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VA backs transparency bill in principle but warns broad reporting mandate would be resource intensive
Summary
The Department of Veterans Affairs told a House subcommittee it supports the intent of the VA Data Transparency and Trust Act but asked Congress to narrow reporting requirements to avoid a complex, costly implementation; lawmakers pressed VA on staffing and past reporting gaps.
Lawmakers pressing for more detailed, timely VA data heard from Department of Veterans Affairs officials that the VA supports improved transparency but warned a broadly written reporting mandate could require significant time and resources to implement.
Representative Maguire and Representative Conaway highlighted repeated oversight gaps and urged a centralized, public data platform to improve congressional and public oversight. “Without comprehensive and useful data, Congress cannot make informed decisions about veterans' health care, disability compensation, or program funding,” Representative Maguire said in opening remarks.
Dr. Antoinette Chappelle said VA “supports the VA Data Transparency and Trust Act” (H.R. 3643) subject to amendments that narrow the bill’s scope to avoid resource‑intensive implementation. “As written, the report is very broad and would require a significant amount of time and resources to fully understand what is desired,” she told the committee.
Members probed whether VA has the personnel to compile the desired staffing and hiring breakdowns. Dr. Chappelle said she did not have a cost estimate at the hearing and offered to meet with the committee to refine data requirements; she added that VA has worked with the White House and Office of Personnel Management to exempt about 300,000 positions from hiring freezes to preserve mission‑critical staffing.
Committee members asked VA to explain why a prior congressionally mandated report expired in 2022; VA officials said they would take that question for the record. Lawmakers told the VA that staffing and hiring data are central to congressional oversight and that the committee will press for usable reporting definitions and timelines.
No committee vote was taken; members requested technical engagement between committee staff and VA to determine a feasible set of data elements and an implementation timeline.
