Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., speaks Jan. 28, 2025, during a hearing of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
WASHINGTON — The Republican chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee said he plans to introduce legislation to require congressional oversight and input from veterans groups before the Department of Veterans Affairs fires more workers, which is expected to reach 80,000 by September.
Sen. Jerry Moran of Kansas said he plans to submit legislation that would place guardrails on VA job terminations that have been ordered by President Donald Trump’s administration as part of a larger downsizing of federal government. The bill would represent the first effort by a GOP lawmaker to place limits on a directive by Trump to significantly decrease federal jobs and programs as part of a cost-cutting campaign.
Moran said he wants to be certain that efforts to “right size” the VA are done responsibly and with transparency.
Rep. Mike Bost, R-Ill., chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, does not plan to introduce similar legislation at this time, his office said Wednesday.
Moran plans to introduce his bill after the Senate returns from spring recess, according to his office. Many lawmakers return to their home districts for town hall meetings and to meet with constituents during the break, which is from March 17 through March 23.
Moran’s office said Wednesday that the senator wants to meet with veterans organizations, individual veterans and other stakeholders before formalizing the legislation.
“The VA must work closely with Congress and veterans service organizations when it plans to undertake staffing cuts,” Moran said Tuesday at a Senate VA committee hearing on bill introductions. “Congress must play a significant role in strategically shaping VA workforce decisions to achieve the right outcomes for veterans and their families.”
Moran’s legislation will compete with bills by Democratic lawmakers to reinstate veterans to their federal jobs.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, has scheduled a news conference Thursday with Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., a committee member, to discuss the Putting Veterans First Act, which would restore jobs and protect veterans, their spouses and survivors from future jobs cuts.
A leaked internal VA memo sent by the chief of staff to other agency leaders stated the VA plans to fire 80,000 employees by August. The terminations would follow the layoffs last month of about 2,400 VA jobs.
But Moran said at the Senate hearing Tuesday that additional workforce reductions must be “thoughtful, transparent and carried out in close coordination” with lawmakers, veterans and other stakeholders.
Veterans make up about 30% of the federal workforce, which numbers more than 2 million. Veterans receive preference for federal employment over other job applicants.
A total of 6,000 veterans have lost jobs in the mass firings across federal agencies, according to lawmakers.
Republican lawmakers so far have not signed on to bills led by Democrats to protect veterans from job cuts, including legislation by Blumenthal and Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, an Iraq War veteran and member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee.
The two senators have held news conferences to condemn the firings and a hiring freeze at the VA. They have accused the Trump administration of hampering the agency, which is already struggling with not enough doctors and nurses due to a national shortage of medical personnel.
Blumenthal warned the terminations will roll back gains made under the PACT Act of 2022, which resulted in an additional 740,000 veterans receiving VA health coverage for illnesses connected to toxic exposure during military service.
“The PACT Act is a linchpin of modern-day protections for veterans. Veterans are asking whether benefits will still be available to them,” Blumenthal said because of the job cuts.
