EXCLUSIVE — A Republican lawmaker is looking to enforce transparency in how the Department of Veterans Affairs records disciplinary action against staff members accused of inappropriate behavior.
Under a new bill introduced by Rep. Scott Franklin (R-FL) on Wednesday, the secretary of Veterans Affairs would be required to list any investigation or findings of misconduct on the permanent record of employees who are resigning from the agency. The legislation comes in response to reports of settlement agreements with retiring employees who are under review for disciplinary reasons, with a majority of those investigations not appearing on their record form.
“VA staff must not be allowed to hide behind settlement agreements and other bureaucratic loopholes to avoid scrutiny and evade accountability for misconduct,” Franklin said in a statement. “I believe in due process, but what the VA is doing
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