House Committee on Veterans' Affairs

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Washington, D.C. – John Boozman, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity made the following statement today during a hearing on the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) interagency agreement (IAA) with Navy Space Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR) to provide information technology services to implement the Post 9/11 GI Bill.

“My take on the VA Inspector General report is that VA has not been managing the IAA in a professional manner. The report concludes that VA entered into the agreement without conducting analyses that are required by federal acquisition regulations, and that both VA and SPAWAR failed to comply with the terms and conditions of the agreement.”

“I am deeply concerned that the results of that agreement have been less than salutary. I think it would be charitable to describe that business relationship, as described in the IG report, as a mess. 

“While a degree of flexibility in contracting is commendable, it appears the use of the agreement goes well beyond flexible and borders on unprofessional at best.  It appears it was concluded as a matter of convenience rather than a rational business decision.  Issuing tasks and obligating funds without a contractual basis for payment, lack of insight into who was actually doing the work, and all the other things found by the IG are totally unacceptable.”