A bill (HR-280) passed by the House would allow the VA to recoup all or part of employee awardsalready paid – an action that could be taken largely at the department’s discretion, within rules it would issue.
The bill is one of many reacting to the VA patient scheduling and care scandal focusing on senior executives—although it would apply to VA employees at other levels, as well. Several other bills targeting VA personnel practices also are pending.
According to a CBO estimate, VA pays out roughly $400 million each year in awards, about $4 million of that going to senior staff. The bill would allowthe VA to target payments retroactively, although a general six-year statute of limitations would apply.
The CBO added that it expects the authority would be used “infrequently”—in most cases due to senior executives who violated standards of conduct, although the bill itself states that all that is needed is a determination by the VA secretary that repayment is “appropriate.”
The measure allows for outside review by an unspecified third-part agency. The MSPB typically fills that role in federal personnel matters, although depending on the situation, the EEOC or the FLRA might have jurisdiction.
