Heller visits Nevada Legislature; talks veteran issues, I-11

CARSON CITY — U.S. Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., said Monday that wait times for Nevada veterans who have filed benefit claims with the Veterans Administration have improved significantly but remain one of the longest in the nation.

Heller, in remarks to the Nevada Legislature, said the wait time has improved from 478 days to 257 days but is still far from the 125 days that the VA has promised.

“It’s unacceptable and until the backlog is eliminated, I won’t back down,” he said.

Heller said he continues to work on the issue as a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs’ Committee.

Heller said the VA also must better prepare for the rise in the number of women veterans, with 27,000 female vets residing in Nevada alone.

“That’s why I teamed with Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, a Democrat, on legislation to make sure privacy and security in VA medical facilities are up to par and that each facility offers a full range of services to ensure female veterans are receiving proper care,” he said.

Heller, who served in the state Assembly from 1990 to 1994, also mentioned the groundbreaking he attended earlier in the day for the Interstate 11 project in Southern Nevada.

“I am pushing key legislation on I-11 on the Senate floor and am proud to see this project moving closer to become reality,” he said. “Last year over 40 million visitors came to the Silver State supporting almost 400,000 jobs. This designation of I-11 connects the two most populous cities in America without an existing freeway already between them. It has the potential to open even more markets for tourism and trade which will improve our economy and create jobs.”

Heller said he continues to work to enact a long-term highway funding bill that will keep the Highway Trust Fund solvent without increasing the deficit.

“I strongly believe that infrastructure plays a key role in our nation’s and Nevada’s economic growth,” he said. “This is why I am seeking a long-term extension of the highway bill. It will provide jobs in the short term and economic growth in the long term.”

Heller also talked of his support for the transfer of federal lands in Nevada to the state and local governments.

Heller made no mention of Gov. Brian Sandoval’s proposed state budget or the new business license fee Sandoval has proposed to increase funding to public education.