Thornberry votes for Veterans Affairs reform bills

U.S. Congressman Mac Thornberry (R-Clarendon) voted this week in support of two bills that will reform the Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital system and provide greater support for veterans.

“Meeting our commitments to our veterans is one of the most important responsibilities of the federal government. These bills make important reforms to the VA system to address some of the deficiencies within the system and allow it to better serve our nation’s veterans,” Thornberry said. “These men and women have put their lives on the line to keep our country safe, and they deserve our best in return.”

H.R. 1259 would: 

• Allow the VA Secretary to remove or demote a VA employee due to poor performance or misconduct;
• Enhance whistleblower protections;
• Allow the Secretary to reduce the pension of individuals in senior executive service positions who committed a felony that influenced their job performance; and
• Allow the Secretary to suspend, reprimand, or admonish an individual for actions based on performance or misconduct if their conduct does not rise to the level of removal.

H.R. 1367 would:

• Provide the VA Secretary more authority to hire employees for positions that the Inspector General has identified as having the largest staffing shortages;
• Require VA political appointees to be subject to annual performance plans and evaluations;
• Create a fellowship program that allows senior VA staff and private sector employees to participate in fellowships; and
• Expand preferential consideration for veterans seeking jobs with the federal employment.

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