Giving Veterans Administration Cabinet Status OKd by Senate

The Senate, in an election-year bow to the nation’s 28 million veterans, voted overwhelmingly Monday to make the Veterans Administration the 14th Cabinet department.

The 84-11 vote virtually assures that the Department of Veterans’ Affairs will be created in 1989, ending a 35-year struggle to raise the status of the independent agency.

The legislation first must go to a conference to reconcile minor differences with a parallel House bill, which was passed 399 to 17 in November. President Reagan, who tried but failed to eliminate the departments of Education and Energy, has said he favors a separate Cabinet-level department for veterans.

Spends $30 Billion a Year

The VA, which now provides medical care, home loan guarantees, life insurance and pensions for veterans and their 51 million dependents and survivors, spends about $30 billion a year. It has 240,000 employees, making it the third-largest federal employer behind the Department of Defense and the Postal Service.

Advocates of the move, led by Sen. John Glenn (D-Ohio) and Sen. Alan Cranston (D-Calif.), said the change is warranted because it would provide appropriate representation for the fundamental interests of those who have served in the armed forces and top priority for their benefits.

However, critics said there is no compelling reason to change the VA’s status, and Senate Minority Whip Alan K. Simpson (R-Wyo.) called the measure an “over-reaction to a non-problem” being pushed by organized veterans’ groups without rank-and-file support.

Sen. Gordon J. Humphrey (R-N. H.), an Air Force veteran, used even stronger language, calling the legislation “unprincipled whoring after special-interest groups.” The VA was formed in 1930 by the merger of three smaller federal bureaus dealing with veterans’ affairs. The American Legion and allied organizations have been trying for years to elevate its status, but this time, with Reagan’s blessing, their efforts seem certain to bear fruit.

In tacit acknowledgment of the increase in Cabinet departments in recent years, the Senate bill would establish a 16-member commission to review the structure of the executive branch and make recommendations within 18 months.