Increasing the Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability to Veterans Act of 2016
Latest action. Held at the desk.
Increasing the Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability to Veterans Act of 2016
This bill requires the reduction of the federal annuities of individuals removed from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Senior Executive Service (SES) if they are convicted of a felony that influenced their performance while employed in such position.
The VA may order the reduction of the federal annuities of individuals who were convicted of such a felony and were subject to removal or transfer from the SES but who left the VA before final action was taken. Such annuities shall be reduced by excluding the covered service performed after the activity that subjects such an individual to transfer or removal occurs.
An individual whose annuity is reduced may appeal the reduction to the Office of Personnel Management.
The VA may not place an SES employee on administrative leave for more than a total of 14 days during any 365-day period. The VA may waive such prohibition if it provides Congress with a detailed explanation of the reasons the employee was placed on administrative leave and the reasons for extending such leave.
The VA shall conduct an annual performance plan for each political appointee that is similar to the plan conducted for career appointee SES employees.
A supervisor of an employee on probation shall determine, during the 30-day period ending on the date on which the probationary period ends, whether the employee: (1) has demonstrated successful performance, and (2) should continue past the probationary period.
Each annual performance plan for a supervisor of an employee serving a probationary period shall hold the supervisor accountable for: (1) providing regular feedback to the employee before making a determination regarding such employee's probationary status, and (2) making a timely probationary status determination.
The evaluation of VA managers shall include actions taken to address employee performance.
Before terminating VA employment, an official who has participated personally and substantially in a VA acquisition that exceeds $1 million or who held a key acquisitions position at the VA shall obtain a written opinion from a VA ethics counselor regarding any restrictions on activities that the official may undertake on behalf of a contractor during the two-year period after the official terminates VA employment. A contractor may not knowingly provide compensation to such an individual during such two-year period unless the contractor determines that the individual has obtained or requested such written opinion.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Passed Senate amended" stage on December 10, 2016. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Held at the desk.
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Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
The latest action on file does not map to a stage Civibrief recognizes, so the page will not name one. The record's own words are the reliable fact here.
The record's latest action, on December 12, 2016: Held at the desk.
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 114th Congress (2015-16), 329 of the 10,233 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.2 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one has no outstanding steps 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?
Jerry Moran (R-KS) introduced it on January 28, 2015, and 8 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 2 Democrats, 6 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 January 28, 2015, 4243 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 3559 days ago, on December 12, 2016.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 114th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2017 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
- SenateHeld at the desk.
- HouseNot stated in the latest action
- PresidentNot stated in the latest action