VA Acquisition Workforce Improvement and Streamlining Act
Latest action. Referred to the subcommitteeA smaller panel inside a standing committee with jurisdiction over a slice of its subject matter. Most hearings and the first markup usually happen here.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) on Economic Opportunity.
VA Acquisition Workforce Improvement and Streamlining Act
This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to implement certain training curricula and certification programs for specified logistics, construction, or facilities management employees of VA or the Veterans Health Administration (VHA).
The VA may develop: (1) curricula in a manner that provides such training in person, over a website, or by another federal agency; and (2) certification programs in a manner that uses either one level of certification or more than one level as appropriate for different grades of the General Schedule.
The VA shall prioritize the use of acquisition internship programs to hire employees in entry-level, acquisition positions.
The VA shall develop a plan to reduce duplication and increase efficiencies of the VA's acquisition functions in a manner that achieves cost savings necessary to carry out such training, certification, and acquisition internship programs. The VA shall determine whether to: (1) consolidate or abolish certain service area and program contacting activity offices and transfer their functions to certain other VA or VHA facilities; and (2) consolidate specified functions of the VA's Office of Acquisition, Logistics, and Construction and the VHA's Procurement and Logistics Office into one such office.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on July 10, 2017. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on July 10, 2017: Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 115th Congress (2017-18), 442 of the 11,421 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Bruce Poliquin (R-ME) introduced it on July 10, 2017, and 3 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 1 Democrat, 2 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on July 10, 2017, 3349 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 3349 days ago, on July 10, 2017.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 115th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2019 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers