S. 1726, Automotive Support Services to Improve Safe Transportation Act of 2026

Bill Summary

S. 1726 would expand the types of adaptive equipment that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) can purchase for vehicles belonging to veterans who have received medical care from the department.

Estimated Federal Cost

The estimated budgetary effects of S. 1726 are shown in Table 1. The bill would increase direct spending by $15 million and increase spending subject to appropriation by $27 million over the 2026‑2036 period. The costs of the legislation fall within budget function 700 (veterans benefits and services).

Basis of Estimate

For this estimate, CBO assumes that S. 1726 will be enacted in fiscal year 2026 and that provisions will take effect upon enactment. CBO also estimates that outlays will follow historical spending patterns for affected programs.

Provisions That Affect Direct Spending and Spending Subject to Appropriation

S. 1726 would expand the types of adaptive equipment that VA can purchase for the vehicles of eligible veterans who receive medical care at VA facilities. Specifically, the bill would authorize VA to provide kneeling systems in addition to the equipment that VA provides under its current policy. Kneeling systems lower the side or rear of a vehicle to reduce the incline of a ramp, making it easier for people using wheelchairs or other mobility devices to access the vehicle. Using information from VA, CBO estimates that the department would purchase kneeling systems for roughly 55 veterans each year at a cost of about $72,000 on average, for a total of $42 million over the 2026‑2036 period.

VA uses several appropriation accounts to pay for the costs of health care, disability claims processing, medical research, and information technology (IT) modernization. One of those accounts, the Toxic Exposures Fund (TEF), is a mandatory appropriation that can be used to pay for some of the costs of those activities if they support veterans who were exposed to toxic substances or environmental hazards.^[1] The other accounts are discretionary appropriations. S. 1726 would affect health care related benefits to veterans with and without toxic exposures; therefore, enacting the bill would increase direct spending from the TEF as well as spending subject to appropriation. CBO allocates the estimated costs of legislation between the TEF and the discretionary appropriation accounts on the basis of the portion of all funding for those activities that is projected, in CBO’s baseline, to come from the TEF.

CBO estimates that over the 2026-2036 period, implementing the bill would increase direct spending from the TEF by $15 million and spending subject to appropriation by $27 million (see Table 1).

Pay-As-You-Go Considerations

The Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010 establishes budget-reporting and enforcement procedures for legislation affecting direct spending or revenues. The net changes in outlays that are subject to those pay-as-you-go procedures are shown under the direct spending heading in Table 1.

Increase in Long-Term Net Direct Spending and Deficits

CBO estimates that enacting S. 1726 would not increase net direct spending by more than $2.5 billion in any of the four consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2037.

CBO estimates that enacting S. 1726 would not increase on‑budget deficits by more than $5 billion in any of the four consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2037.

Mandates

The bill contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.

Previous CBO Estimate

On May 14, 2025, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R. 1364, the Automotive Support Services to Improve Safe Transportation Act of 2025, as ordered reported by the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs on May 6, 2025. H.R. 1364 is similar to S. 1726: Both bills would expand the types of automotive adaptive equipment that VA can purchase for veterans receiving VA medical care. The estimated cost for S. 1726 is higher than for H.R. 1364 for two reasons. This estimate takes into account updated information about increases in the average cost paid by VA for such equipment over the past year. H.R. 1364 also would extend a limitation on certain pension payments for veterans and survivors residing in Medicaid nursing homes, which would reduce direct spending. S. 1726 would not affect those pension payments, and this estimate incorporates that difference.

Estimate Prepared By

Federal Costs: Paul B.A. Holland

Mandates: Brandon Lever

Estimate Reviewed By

David Newman
Chief, Defense, International Affairs, and Veterans’ Affairs Cost Estimates Unit

Kathleen FitzGerald
Chief, Public and Private Mandates Unit

Christina Hawley Anthony
Deputy Director of Budget Analysis

Estimate Approved By