Committee adopts Yao amendment, unanimously passes American Heroes Bingo Act with added Veterans Trust Fund oversight

An unnamed legislative committee unanimously approved House Bill 4,137, the American Heroes Bingo Act, after adopting an amendment from Representative Yao that adds oversight and spending controls for revenues deposited into the state Veterans Trust Fund.

Representative Yao, addressing the committee, said the amendment requires that “all revenues received and deposited into the Veterans Trust Fund from American Heroes Bingo is subject to an annual budget process” and that such budgets “must be prepared and submitted to the Secretary of Veteran Affairs for approval.” Yao added, “Disbursement of funds derived from the American heroes bingo may not be made without prior approval of the secretary.”

The amendment also narrows the list of veteran organizations eligible to receive funds to a limited set of federal veterans groups and adjusts allocation percentages mentioned in the bill. Representative Yao described those changes as “a few other number changes,” noting the amendment directs specified shares back to the listed organizations; the amendment text as described in committee discussion referenced 15% of the net hold and an additional 10% to be split among the named organizations.

Committee members voted to adopt the Yao amendment; the chair called for the voice vote and said the ayes had it. The committee then held a roll-call style confirmation of support and the committee chair recorded the final passage as unanimous.

Because the committee record does not list individual member votes in the transcript, the article notes the outcome as unanimous rather than listing individual yes/no votes. The amendment’s mover was Representative Yao; no second was identified on the record.