Letters

House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Mike Bost (R-Ill.), released the seventh letter he sent to Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Denis McDonough on the mismanagement by the Biden-Harris administration’s top leadership at the Veterans Benefits Administration of the Digital GI Bill (DGIB) program. The Digital GI Bill was intended to automate and streamline veterans’ education claims, but the effort has been mired in delays and cost overruns. Chairman Bost and Committee members have repeatedly pressed Secretary McDonough, Undersecretary for Benefits Josh Jacobs, and other VA officials for answers, including most recently at an oversight hearing on this topic in September.

“To date, VA’s responses have not addressed our underlying concerns and more importantly, they have not addressed the overall problems with DGIB with the appropriate urgency that veterans deserve,” Chairman Bost wrote in the most recent letter. “This ongoing failure to deliver critical information is unacceptable.”

Full text of the most recent letter on the DGIB can be found here and below:

Dear Secretary McDonough:

As you know, throughout the 118th Congress, I have repeatedly contacted you regarding the failures of the Biden-Harris administration’s management of negotiating and executing the contract to make the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Digital G.I. Bill (DGIB) a reality. My House Republican colleagues and I have expressed our frustration about VA’s implementation of the DGIB platform during oversight hearings on September 26, 2024, and July 17, 2023, as well as oversight letters sent to your department on August 28, 2024, and on July 14, August 17, October 26, October 30, and December 5 in 2023.

To date, VA’s responses have not addressed our underlying concerns and more importantly, they have not addressed the overall problems with DGIB with the appropriate urgency that veterans deserve. Further, VA has not resolved any of the recommendations that the Office of the Inspector General made in their audit of VA’s implementation of the DGIB program earlier this year. In fact, VA has still failed to respond to my letter regarding OIG’s audit. Finally, the DGIB program remains two years behind schedule. Despite numerous and repeated requests through multiple channels, the Overall Integrated Master Schedule for the DGIB program has yet to be provided. This ongoing failure to deliver critical information is unacceptable.

Please provide a copy of the Overall Integrated Master Schedule that contains all partner system commitments and details necessary to enable DGIB by January 17, 2025.

When producing documents, do not alter them in any way, including but not limited to application of redactions or a watermark. Additionally, digital copies should be provided in a format that enables their printing and copying by the Committee. Thank you for your attention to this important issue.

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