Congress honors Civil War hero with VA clinic naming
H.R. 4689 — To name the Department of Veterans Affairs community-based outpatient clinic in Bloomington, Illinois, as the "Andrew Jackson Smith Medal of Honor Department of Veterans Affairs Clinic". · Filed by Darin LaHood (R-IL) · 16 cosponsors · Introduced Jul 23, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill renames a Department of Veterans Affairs community-based outpatient clinic in Bloomington, Illinois, after Andrew Jackson Smith, a Civil War Medal of Honor recipient from Clinton, Illinois, who saved his regiment's colors at the Battle of Honey Hill in 1864. The bill honors Smith's heroic service by designating the clinic in his name, with all federal references to the clinic updated accordingly.
Why we flagged it
The bill's sole function is to rename an existing VA clinic after a deceased Civil War Medal of Honor recipient. This is routine commemorative legislation honoring a historical military figure, not a policy change or appropriation.
Who it affects
This is a commemorative naming of a public facility honoring a deceased Civil War hero whose actions saved lives and demonstrated extraordinary valor. Veterans using the clinic may benefit from the symbolic recognition of military service and sacrifice. There are no costs to citizens, no restrictions on rights, and no private giveaways.
Named in the bill
Department of Veterans Affairs, Andrew Jackson Smith, 55th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, 41st Illinois Infantry Regiment, Bloomington, Illinois, Clinton, Illinois
Where it stands
16 cosponsors: 14 Democrats, 2 Republicans.
- Jul 23, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Jul 23, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Veterans' Affairs · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (3,569 characters) on Oct 21, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 16,388 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-10-21.
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