Reducing High Risk to Veterans and Veterans Services Act
Floor Speech
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Mr. BERGMAN. Madam Speaker, basically, when you have three stars, it just means you outlasted a lot of folks. But the point is the honor of being able to serve among marines, sailors, soldiers, airmen, and coastguardsmen is enough to make us all swell with pride because, you know, yesterday was Veteran's Day, and it is a real special day thanking the veterans of all wars for their service to our country.
I rise today in support of H.R. 4477, as amended, the Reducing High Risk to Veterans and Veterans Services Act, a bill introduced by Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Chris Pappas and co- led by myself.
Every 2 years, GAO publishes its High-Risk List identifying those activities which are considered high risk due to their vulnerabilities to fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement or their need for transformation. Sometimes things don't always stay the same, and we need to move forward with the change.
As Ranking Member Roe stated, GAO added managing risks and improving VA healthcare to its list in 2015 and added VA Acquisition Management in 2019. This past May, the Comptroller General of the United States testified before the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, where I am proud to serve as ranking member, concerning the Department's efforts to add GAO recommendations.
Comptroller General Dodaro testified during the hearing: ``I want to emphasize hardly any area in the high-risk area gets off the list without sustained congressional oversight, as well, and action by the Congress. The engagement by the Congress is absolutely critical to the success of agencies coming off the High-Risk List.''
The intent of this bill is to focus VA on its efforts to remove these two programs from GAO's High-Risk List and give Congress the information needed to provide the sustained congressional oversight the Comptroller General said was absolutely necessary and needed to remove programs from the High-Risk List.
H.R. 4477 was amended in committee to incorporate provisions of H.R. 698, a bill introduced by Representative Banks, which would require VA to report on its efforts to implement GAO's priority recommendations for VA.
I strongly encourage all Members to support H.R. 4477, as amended.
Mr. DAVID P. ROE of Tennessee. Madam Speaker, I encourage all Members to support the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
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