H.R. 2999, The Fair VA Accountability Act

Floor Speech

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to introduce H.R. 2999, the Fair VA Accountability Act, legislation that will bring real accountability to the VA while maintaining constitutional due process protections for civil service employees.

Last year, we were horrified to learn of widespread mismanagement at the VA. We all felt outraged that VA employees whose actions may have harmed veterans remained in their jobs or sat at home for months on paid administrative leave. There have been other bills introduced that seek to bring greater flexibility to the VA to remove problem employees, but I believe that many do this by destroying the bedrock principles of our civil service, limiting due process to an extent that runs counter to the constitutional protections we enjoy. I think these bills have another failing--they likely would result in outcomes far different than their sponsors and proponents intend. By violating the due process rights of our federal employees, these bills could very well ensure that if followed, VA may never be able to effectively remove bad employees when a court finds them unconstitutional.

The Fair VA Accountability Act increases accountability by allowing VA to immediately suspend without pay any employee whose misconduct poses a direct threat to veterans' health and safety. VA currently has the authority to fire employees with adequate pre-termination notice--usually 30 days. I agree that VA needs to do a better job of utilizing this authority. But the only realistic reason a VA employee should be fired on the spot would be if his or her conduct threatened veterans' health and safety.

I believe my bill provides the proper balance between the needs of the VA and the rights of VA employees. I also believe it provides sufficient due process rights to meet constitutional requirements and provide accused employees with a fair chance to tell their side of the story. Keep in mind that over 30 percent of VA employees are veterans themselves--the largest percentage of veteran employees among civilian agencies. I am proud to promote a policy that protects these employees' constitutional right to due process before losing their federal job.

In addition to the immediate removal provision, my bill increases accountability at the VA by addressing the ``revolving door'' problem, prohibiting senior VA executives from receiving VA contracts for at least a year after they leave the VA. It also limits the use of paid administrative leave to 14 days, to ensure employees don't continue to draw paychecks while sitting at home for months.

Finally, the Fair VA Accountability Act protects whistleblowers by requiring mandatory back-pay for any employee who proves that dismissal was a result of whistleblower retaliation. My bill also requires the IG to report on the percentage of employees fired who claimed whistleblower protections, and retains existing Title 5 protections for VA employees.

As stated in a letter of support by the American Federation of Government Employees, this language establishes ``highly effective mechanisms for increasing VA accountability while preserving the due process rights of front-line employees so that they can still make lifesaving disclosures about patient harm and other mismanagement without the fear of immediate job loss as at-will employees.''

Source