Strengthening Whistleblower Protections At the Department of Veterans Affairs Act

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. PAPPAS. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of my bipartisan legislation, H.R. 8510, the Strengthening Whistleblower Protections at the Department of Veterans Affairs Act.

It is a bill that improves policies and procedures to better protect VA whistleblowers. It also promotes independence and removes conflicts of interest at VA's Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection.

Whistleblowers play a critical role in holding the Federal Government and its agencies accountable for waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement. When employees of the Department of Veterans Affairs witness issues that put the health, safety, and well-being of veterans at risk, VA staff should feel encouraged to speak out without fear of retaliation. This would encourage corrective action to be taken and no harm to the whistleblower.

In reality, however, too often the messenger is punished. The Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations that I chair has done years of work on this issue.

Alongside Ranking Member Tracey Mann, we have conducted multiple hearings looking into this problem. Our efforts have highlighted the individual stories of whistleblowers who have lost their jobs or faced other retaliatory actions as a result of their disclosures.

Further, whistleblowers often wait years to be made whole after experiencing retaliation under current Department policies and procedures.

The testimony from three previous VA employees disclosed VA whistleblowers are likely to face retaliation, including the loss of their position, and are forced to wait years for justice.

This bipartisan bill will make major changes to how whistleblower claims are handled, strengthening accountability through the process. The bill ends VA's authority to investigate whistleblower retaliation complaints and, instead, relies on the independent U.S. Office of Special Counsel to ensure objectivity over the process.

OSC is an independent Federal investigative agency that has high trust within the whistleblower community. They have the resources and autonomy needed to do this work.

It will also require VA's Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection to strengthen accountability over settlement agreements for VA employees who suffered retaliation which provide financial restitution and guarantees of reemployment.

Further, the bill will reaffirm OAWP's responsibility to provide resources to VA employees on whistleblower rights, including training. These reforms will ensure whistleblowers feel safe reporting issues within the Department.

We can't continue to allow whistleblowers to be punished for speaking out, and we have to make sure we are doing all we can to protect VA whistleblowers. It is not only the law; it is also the right thing to do to protect whistleblowers from retaliation.

My colleague and ranking member of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, Congressman Tracey Mann, co-led this bill with me to promote independence and strengthen the mission of VA's whistleblowers office. I thank Congressman Mann and his staff for their dedication and hard work on this issue.

I thank all the members of the Veterans' Affairs Committee for their support of this bill last week, and I appreciate the support from the whistleblower advocacy groups, including the Project on Government Oversight, the Whistleblowers of America, and the Government Accountability Project, as well as VA's labor union, AFGE.

So once this is enacted, this bill will ensure that the protections are on the books at the Department of Veterans Affairs that will strengthen independence and the mission of VA's whistleblower office.

Madam Speaker, I urge the full House to support passage.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source