Letters

Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Mike Bost (R-Ill.), released a second letter he sent to Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Denis McDonough about the lack of transparency from the department surrounding the implementation of the Biden-Harris administration’s Executive Order (EO) 14019, “Promoting Access to Voting.” VA had announced that it was partnering with Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Kentucky to operate as a “voter registration agency” for the first time ever, at the direction of EO 14019. However, based on the Chairman’s investigation and despite VA’s lack of transparency, it appears that the Commonwealth of Kentucky is not partnering with VA. Without any explanations or answers to the Chairman’s inquiries, it appears that VA is conducting voter registration activities in two states, and two states only: Pennsylvania and Michigan.

As Chairman Bost previously stated, “VA’s sole mission should be serving veterans, their families, and their survivors – period. But under Joe Biden’s leadership, it appears that the Biden [Harris] Campaign is directly using VA and its resources, at a time when VA is facing a $14.8 billion dollar budget shortfall, to promote voter registration activities in two states which are repeatedly labeled as key battleground states that could determine the outcome of the 2024 presidential election. This is happening at the same time when VA continues to hide the ball and repeatedly refuses to provide more information to Congress to answer legitimate questions on its operations as a voter registration agency,” said Chairman Bost. “These actions by the Biden administration come as veterans are openly being denied community care referrals for their healthcare, rural and remote veterans can’t get exams for their disability benefits, and accountability for failing leaders who aren’t putting our veterans first is nonexistent. It's time for this administration to get their priorities straight.”

To read the first letter Chairman Bost sent to Secretary McDonough on EO 14019, click here.

Full text of the second letter Chairman Bost sent to Secretary McDonough on this topic can be found here and below:

Dear Secretary McDonough:

The Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) apparent disregard for the oversight authority of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs (Committee) regarding VA’s implementation of Executive Order (EO) 14019, “Promoting Access to Voting” is very troubling. The Committee sent an initial request for information on June 14, 2024, then followed up on that request and sought a briefing on this issue on June 26, 2024. VA has not answered these requests. I then sent a letter on July 9, 2024, further detailing my concerns on the subject, informing VA of the Committee’s ongoing investigation, and again requesting information about VA’s implementation of EO 14019. More than a month has passed, and VA has yet to respond to a single question or schedule the requested briefing.

Pursuant to the Committee’s legislative and oversight jurisdiction over the administration of VA and its operations, see House Rule X.1(s), Rules of the House of Representatives, 118th Cong. (2023), the Committee seeks information regarding VA’s EO 14019 implementation—including information on VA’s activities as a voter registration agency in key battleground states like Pennsylvania and Michigan. I am concerned VA is becoming a voter registration agency and potentially working with third-party organizations to facilitate voter registration at VA facilities. This is clearly not within the mission of the Department. Committee oversight is necessary to ensure VA is not misusing its resources to perform functions it has never done and that are outside its core statutory mission of caring for veterans. Given VA’s actions, and the apparent indifference displayed towards legitimate Committee oversight, I am concerned VA may be inappropriately using its resources to implement EO 14019. This is even more troubling considering VA recently announced an anticipated $15 billion budget shortfall for fiscal years 2024 and 2025.

Congress’s role in conducting oversight is crucial to the democratic process and cannot be fulfilled without all relevant information. As such, please respond to the previous requests for information, propose a date and time for a briefing on this topic, and respond to my letter no later than July 25, 2024. If VA does not fully comply with these requests, the Committee will consider using compulsory process to obtain the necessary information.

Sincerely,


MIKE BOST
Chairman

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