{"id":2202773,"date":"2024-03-20T15:45:02","date_gmt":"2024-03-20T19:45:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-republican-seeks-crackdown-on-va-staffers-accused-of-misconduct\/"},"modified":"2024-03-20T15:49:45","modified_gmt":"2024-03-20T19:49:45","slug":"house-republican-seeks-crackdown-on-va-staffers-accused-of-misconduct","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-republican-seeks-crackdown-on-va-staffers-accused-of-misconduct\/","title":{"rendered":"House Republican pushes for stricter action against VA employees facing misconduct allegations"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fhouse-republican-seeks-crackdown-on-va-staffers-accused-of-misconduct%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2202773&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>Exclusive: GOP Lawmaker Champions Transparency in VA Staff Disciplinary\u200c Records<\/h2>\n<p>A \u2064new bill introduced by\u2064 Rep. Scott\u2062 Franklin (R-FL) aims \u200dto hold the Department of Veterans Affairs more \u200caccountable in documenting disciplinary actions against employees accused of misconduct. If passed, the legislation would mandate the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to include any investigations or findings of misconduct on the permanent records of \u200cemployees resigning from the agency.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;VA\u2062 staff must not be allowed to hide behind <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/as-national-ags-group-drifts-left-red-states-eye-the-exits\/\" title=\"As National AGs Group Drifts Left, Red States Eye the Exits\">settlement agreements<\/a>&#8230; &#8221; &#8211; Rep. Scott Franklin (R-FL)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Franklin&#8217;s initiative follows revelations of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-admin-uses-sue-and-settle-lawfare-to-enact-radical-climate-policies-voters-reject\/\" title=\"Biden admin employs 'Sue and Settle' tactic for unpopular climate policies\">settlement \u200dagreements<\/a> with retiring employees\u2064 facing disciplinary scrutiny, where many investigations were not reflected \u2062on their records. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mcconnell-cotton-to-try-to-pass-bill-to-refreeze-6-billion-in-iranian-assets\/\" title=\"McConnell and Cotton aim to pass bill freezing B Iranian assets.\">proposed bill seeks<\/a> to prevent employees from evading accountability by using bureaucratic loopholes.<\/p>\n<h3>Addressing \u200bAccountability and Due Process<\/h3>\n<p>Furthermore, Franklin emphasizes that while due process is crucial, the current practices at the VA lack transparency and deter a comprehensive examination of potential misconduct. The move stems \u2062from concerns raised by whistleblowers regarding alleged\u2063 sexual \u200bharassment and other misconduct within the VA.<\/p>\n<p>The House Veterans\u2064 Affairs \u200bCommittee was alerted to these claims, prompting a call for \u2064increased oversight\u2062 and transparency. However, subsequent actions by the VA raised further concerns as perpetrators were reassigned, and implicated\u2063 staff members\u2062 resigned or retired.<\/p>\n<h3>Ending Secret Settlements<\/h3>\n<p>The legislation spearheaded by \u2063Franklin seeks to end the practice \u2062of secret \u200csettlement agreements within the VA, highlighting instances where <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/senate-launches-inquiry-into-coast-guard-over-alleged-coverup-of-sexual-assaults\/\" title=\"Senate investigates Coast Guard for alleged sexual assault coverup.\">disciplinary\u2064 actions<\/a> were concealed or minimized through financial compensations. By shedding light on these processes, Franklin aims\u2064 to promote a fair and accountable \u200cwork culture within the VA.<\/p>\n<h3>Commitment to Accountability<\/h3>\n<p>In response,\u2062 a\u2062 VA spokesperson reiterated the department&#8217;s commitment to addressing misconduct allegations\u2064 seriously and ensuring a safe environment for all employees and veterans. While emphasizing cooperation with congressional inquiries, the VA aims to swiftly address any issues identified and uphold a zero-tolerance \u2064policy towards <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ex-cuomo-aide-makes-shocking-sexual-harassment-allegation\/\" title=\"Ex-Cuomo Aide Makes Shocking Sexual Harassment Allegation\">sexual harassment<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>As Franklin prepares to present the bill to the House Veterans Affairs Committee for\u200d consideration, the spotlight remains on the need for \u2062greater transparency and accountability in handling disciplinary actions within the VA.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In an exclusive move, a GOP legislator aims to increase transparency in documenting disciplinary measures for VA employees linked to misconduct. Rep. Scott Franklin (R-FL) introduced a bill mandating the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to disclose all investigations and misconduct outcomes<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2640,"featured_media":2202774,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/iStock-1166132888-1024x683.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2202773","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/iStock-1166132888-1024x683.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2202773","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2640"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2202773"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2202773\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2202774"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2202773"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2202773"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2202773"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}