VA Accountability First Act of 2017

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. Chairman, let me first commend the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Roe) for his leadership on this issue and so many others on behalf of our veteran population.

As a veteran myself of the war in Afghanistan, I have a deep commitment to ensuring that my fellow veterans receive the proper care and treatment that they have earned by serving our country. That is why I am proud to be an original cosponsor of the VA Accountability First Act.

This bipartisan legislation will give Secretary Shulkin the tools that he needs to change the dysfunctional culture of the VA. It has been 3 years since the wait list at VA facilities became public, yet too many of our veterans deal with VA employees who engage in misconduct that could endanger their lives.

Too often, it takes months or even years to remove those employees.

Worse still, sometimes these employees are not removed at all. Most VA employees, though, are hardworking and dedicated people, which makes it that much more unfair when the VA can't or won't hold bad employees accountable.

We can and must do better, and this bill is a first step in that process.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

The bill would shorten the time it takes to fire a VA employee for misconduct, give the Secretary the discretion to both revoke bonuses previously paid to employees engaging in misconduct and reduce pensions of employees found guilty of felonies while on the job, and provide improved protections for whistleblowers.
These are commonsense proposals supported by many veterans' groups.

This bill is also supported by Secretary Shulkin. It is a no-brainer, and that is why I support it.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source