WASHINGTON, June 26 – Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) led a letter to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth calling on the Department of Defense to fully fund lifesaving programs for U.S. service members and their families. In the most recent government funding bill, Congressional Republicans failed to fund Beyond the Yellow Ribbon (BYR) programs, which have helped thousands of service members, veterans and their families effectively manage the challenges associated with deployments and military service.
Joining Sanders and Klobuchar on the letter are Sens. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.).
“As a nation, when someone makes a promise to defend our country, we make a promise in return that we will be there to support them when they come home. For nearly two decades, [Beyond the Yellow Ribbon] programs have helped thousands of service members, veterans, and their families effectively manage the challenges associated with deployments and military service. Let’s be clear: these programs save lives,” Sanders, Klobuchar and the senators wrote.
Programs funded by BYR have helped connect thousands of service members and their families with essential services, including suicide prevention, counseling, substance use disorder treatment, and housing and employment assistance, among many others. These outreach programs are especially valuable in rural areas and in states without active component military installations.
Many of the programs now supported by BYR funding began as congressionally directed spending requests and were the result of members of Congress working with National Guard leadership to address the needs of service members and constituents in their states. Congress has funded these programs directly since fiscal year (FY) 2013, including $25 million in FY 2024. However, while the Senate intended to fund BYR at $22 million for FY 2025, the final continuing resolution crafted by the Republican majority and signed by President Trump failed to include this line-item, leaving the decision to the Department of Defense.
In Vermont, the lack of BYR funding will force the Vermont Veterans and Family Outreach Program to shut down at the end of this month. The program was established in 2007 with funding Sanders secured to help veterans and their families obtain the benefits they’ve earned through their service. The outreach team works closely with local community officials, business leaders, clergy, health care providers and other community-based social organizations and the program has grown to 12 physical locations across Vermont and operates a 24-hour resource line for crisis situations. Vermont’s success has drawn national attention and been used as a model by other states to create similar outreach programs.
Ending funding for BYR also leaves programs in Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin without the expected funding to keep their programs running — effectively shuttering crucial support for military service members and their families while they are asked to sacrifice so much.
“The decision by the Department of Defense not to fund BYR leaves 24 states across the country without the resources needed to serve those men and women who put their lives on the line to defend our country,” the senators wrote. “Given the success of these programs across the country, the value they bring to participants and taxpayers, and the clear Senate intent, we urge you to use your authority as Secretary to provide the funding necessary to continue operations of Beyond the Yellow Ribbon programs for the remainder of the 2025 Fiscal Year and work with us to fully fund these programs in the FY 2026 budget.”
Read the letter here.
