[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 12666]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




           VA ACCOUNTABILITY FIRST AND APPEALS MODERNIZATION

  (Mr. PITTENGER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PITTENGER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5620, the 
VA Accountability First and Appeals Modernization Act, of which I am a 
cosponsor.
  We owe our brave veterans a debt we can never repay. As a small token 
of our gratitude, we have the privilege of providing veterans with 
appropriate care and benefits. Too often, the care provided at the VA 
expresses the opposite of gratitude and does not demonstrate the 
privilege of serving veterans.
  This legislation promotes accountability by allowing incompetent VA 
employees to be fired for poor performance or misconduct. This 
legislation will also help the thousands of veterans stuck in the 
appeals quagmire by providing veterans more options in the appeals 
process.
  Restoring accountability and transparency at the VA should not be a 
political issue. I urge all my colleagues to join me in support of H.R. 
5620.

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