The Bush administration signaled its support of a fiscal 2008 Military Construction and Veterans’ Affairs spending measure expected to pass in the Senate Wednesday, but stated opposition to a provision that would bar development at a veterans’ hospital site in Los Angeles.

The Senate made little progress on the $109.2 billion Military Construction-VA appropriations bill (HR 2642) Tuesday. But Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he hopes to complete work “in a very expeditious manner,” and aides said a vote on final passage likely will come Wednesday.

The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on Tuesday stopped short of threatening to veto the bill, even though it would provide $4 billion more than the president requested. But the OMB stated strong opposition to a provision pushed by Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., that would prohibit the commercial use of land at a 388-acre VA medical center site in Los Angeles.

The provision circumvents the VA’s Capital Asset Realignment for Enhanced Services process, which the department uses to determine where and when to build VA facilities. Feinstein’s concerns came after the VA leased some of the land for commercial use to private companies, including the Fox Entertainment Group and Enterprise Rental Car, and her provision would not allow similar developments to take place at the site in the future.

The OMB statement estimated that the provision “would eliminate more than $4 billion of revenue,” which it suggested “would be used to improve facilities around the country for our nation’s veterans.”

The VA has not officially determined how it plans to use the Los Angeles site. It issued a report in August outlining four possible plans for the tract, citing a “need to maximize the reuse potential of surplus buildings and land” as a main consideration for future planning. It plans a Sept. 6 public hearing to discuss the proposed plans with Los Angeles residents.

The Feinstein provision could spark debate Wednesday. A Senate Republican aide said conservatives “are scrutinizing that earmark” but would not say whether an amendment is in the works.

Feinstein’s spokesman, Scott Gerber, said the senator would “resist any efforts to remove the language from the bill or make changes to it.”

The Senate bill, which would provide $64.7 billion in discretionary spending, tracks closely with the version the House passed June 15. It would provide substantial increases for the Veterans Affairs Department, which would get $43 billion, or $3.6 billion more than Bush sought. The House bill would provide $43.2 billion.

Military construction accounts would receive $21.6 billion in the Senate bill, which is $391 million more than Bush requested and $3.6 billion more than the amount appropriated for fiscal 2007.