WASHINGTON — Following Veterans Day, Representative Ronny Jackson (TX-13) introduced legislation to enhance the federal CHIP IN (Communities Helping Invest through Property and Improvements Needed for Veterans) pilot program by requiring the Department of Veterans Affairs to submit a report to Congress detailing areas where the program has and has not been successful.

The CHIP IN Act was originally passed by Congress in 2016, creating a pilot program that encouraged public-private partnerships for VA construction projects. The program authorized five projects, but only two have been approved.

In September, language authored by Jackson that reauthorizes and extends the CHIP IN Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives as part of a larger package, the Department of Veterans Affairs Expiring Authorities Act of 2021, and was signed into law. The legislation introduced today further advances Jackson’s goal of modernizing the VA and ensuring there is transparency within the federal government.

Jackson said: “For too long, rural America has not been prioritized for modernization projects at VA facilities. I am proud that my efforts to secure alternate funding sources for modernization projects have been signed into law, but the American people deserve assurance that rural America will benefit from these resources. I have made it my mission to ensure that promises made to our American heroes are promises kept, and transparency is a key part of that. We still have a long road ahead of us to improve the VA, but this is an important start.”

Bill text can be found here.

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