[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 165 (Thursday, November 5, 2015)]
[House]
[Page H8137]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   ENSURING ACCOUNTABILITY AT THE VA

  (Mr. PAULSEN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PAULSEN. Mr. Speaker, on November 11, Veterans Day, we will honor 
and remember the efforts of those who serve our country. We owe it to 
our veterans to keep the promises made to them when they first joined 
the military.
  Despite bipartisan action in Congress to increase efficiency and care 
at the VA, we are still suffering from a lack of transparency that 
makes it very difficult to determine what actions still need to be 
taken to ensure quality, timely care for our veterans. Now we have 
learned that there are over 140 investigations by the inspector general 
that were hidden. These investigations were shelved; they were not made 
available to the public or to Congress.
  That is why I am supporting bipartisan legislation, the Veterans Care 
and Reporting Enforcement Act, which will require reports from the 
investigations by the inspector general to be made public, to be made 
available to Congress.
  I want to thank my Minnesota colleagues, Congressmen Tom Emmer and 
Tim Walz, for bringing this legislation forward. It will go a long way 
toward making the VA more accountable so that our veterans get the care 
that they deserve.

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