[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 85 (Monday, May 17, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H2363-H2364]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
VA TRANSPARENCY & TRUST ACT OF 2021
Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 2911) to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to submit
to Congress a plan for obligating and expending Coronavirus pandemic
funding made available to the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for
other purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 2911
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``VA Transparency & Trust Act
of 2021''.
SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT OF CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC
FUNDING MADE AVAILABLE TO DEPARTMENT OF
VETERANS AFFAIRS.
(a) Plan and Reports by Secretary.--
(1) Plan.--Not later than 30 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs
shall submit to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the
House of Representatives and the Senate a detailed plan for
obligating and expending covered funds, including a detailed
justification for each type of obligation of such funds.
(2) Biweekly reports.--Every 14 days during the period
beginning on the date on which the plan under paragraph (1)
is submitted and ending seven days after the date on which
the Secretary has expended all covered funds, the Secretary
shall submit to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the
House of Representatives and the Senate a report detailing
the obligation and expenditure of, and the planned uses for,
such funds during the period covered by the report, including
a written justification for any deviation in such
obligations, expenditures, or planned uses from such plan.
(b) Inspector General Audits.--Not later than 120 days
after the date of the enactment of this Act, and semiannually
thereafter for three years or until the Secretary has
expended all covered funds, whichever occurs first, the
Inspector General of the Department of Veterans Affairs shall
submit to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the House of
Representatives and the Senate a report examining the
obligations and expenditures made using covered funds during
the period covered by the report. Each such report shall
include--
(1) a comparison of how the funds are being obligated and
expended to how the funds were planned to be obligated and
expended in the plan under subsection (a)(1);
(2) areas of waste, fraud, and abuse, if any; and
(3) any other matter the Inspector General determines
relevant.
(c) Comptroller General Reviews.--
(1) Interim report.--Not later than September 30, 2022, the
Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the
Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the House of
Representatives and the Senate an interim report containing a
review of obligations and expenditures made using covered
funds. The report shall include--
(A) a review of the process of the Department of Veterans
Affairs for preparing the request for funds;
(B) an explanation of how the expenditure of such funds met
the goals of the Department during the public health
emergency for which the funds were made available;
(C) any recommendations to improve the process of
identifying needs and expending funds during similar
situations in the future; and
(D) a review of the plans of the Department to continue
programs or investments that were begun with such funds but
will continue after such funds are expended.
(2) Final report.--Not later than September 30, 2024, the
Comptroller General shall submit to the Committees on
Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives and the
Senate a final report on the matters specified under
paragraph (1).
(d) Covered Funds Defined.--In this section, the term
``covered funds'' means funds that are made available to the
Department of Veterans Affairs pursuant to--
(1) the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (Public Law
116-127);
(2) the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act
(Public Law 116-136); or
(3) the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-
2).
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
California (Mr. Takano) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Bost) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.
General Leave
Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
to insert extraneous material on H.R. 2911.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from California?
There was no objection.
Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to support Representative Bost's bipartisan
legislation, the VA Transparency & Trust Act, for which Representative
Pappas, Representative Mann, and I are original cosponsors.
This bill provides additional oversight for the funds Congress made
available to the VA through the Families First Coronavirus Response Act
and the CARES Act in 2020, as well as the American Rescue Plan, which
we passed earlier this year.
In addition to requiring the VA to report biweekly on how it spends
these supplemental funds, the bill mandates the VA Office of Inspector
General and the Government Accountability Office to periodically report
on VA's spending of these funds.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2911 adds to the existing oversight on VA's
spending and will enable greater transparency for Congress and the
public to ensure that these funds are spent efficiently and effectively
to support critical VA programs and services as we recover from the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this
legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. BOST. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2911, the VA
Transparency & Trust Act of 2021.
In the American Rescue Plan, the VA requested and received $17.1
billion in emergency funding. I demanded justification from the VA to
support that funding, and very little came. I asked why the VA needed
additional money since roughly $10 billion in CARES Act funding was
still available, and no one answered.
Ranking Member Tracey Mann offered an amendment to oversee the use of
those funds during the committee's markup of the American Rescue Plan.
It was voted down on party lines.
What I feared at that time I can now confirm. The American Rescue
Plan has essentially become a blank check for the VA to the tune of
$17.1 billion.
H.R. 2911 would establish strict oversight and reporting requirements
over all remaining COVID supplemental funds. It would also require the
VA inspector general to conduct regular audits of these funds.
Lastly, it would require the GAO to conduct a complete review after
all funds have been spent.
I believe these requirements are appropriate given that we are
talking about tens of billions in taxpayer dollars. We should all
expect full transparency on the use of these funds.
I thank Chairman Pappas and Ranking Member Mann for joining me in
introducing this bill. I encourage all my colleagues to support this
bill.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New
Hampshire (Mr. Pappas), my good friend and the chairman of the
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.
Mr. PAPPAS. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, Ranking Member Bost,
for introducing this legislation. I was proud to support it alongside
my colleague, Tracey Mann, from the Oversight and Investigations
Subcommittee. It is the VA Transparency & Trust Act of 2021.
Now, the COVID-19 pandemic and economic crisis turned our world
upside down, and it hit our veteran community especially hard. The
issues our veterans faced before the pandemic
[[Page H2364]]
have only been exacerbated by COVID-19, and they contend with a new
host of health and financial hardships.
That is why I joined with many in this Chamber to strongly urge for
support to our veterans in COVID-19 relief packages, including the
American Rescue Plan. That plan provided a much-needed investment in
the VA, but we must all work together to ensure that this funding is
used effectively to support our veterans and to increase the quality
care that they receive.
As chair of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee,
eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse, and ensuring veterans get the care
they have earned is a top priority.
This legislation would require the VA to report to Congress on the
emergency funding that it has already received. It will provide the
enhanced oversight that is warranted to ensure funds are being used
efficiently and in ways that are truly meeting the needs of those who
have served us all.
Mr. Speaker, I urge swift passage of this legislation.
Mr. BOST. Mr. Speaker, I encourage all of my colleagues to support
this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I also ask all my colleagues to join me in
passing H.R. 2911, and I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from California (Mr. Takano) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 2911.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. ROSENDALE. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 3(s) of House Resolution
8, the yeas and nays are ordered.
Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings on this motion
are postponed.
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