Van Orden, Flood Introduce the BONUS Transparency Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Derrick Van Orden (WI-03), joined by House Veterans’ Affairs (VA) Committee Chairman Mike Bost (IL-12), and Congressmen Juan Ciscomani (AZ-06) and Adrian Smith (NE-03), introduced the BONUS Transparency Act. The legislation follows a recent report by the VA’s Inspector General, which revealed that funds allocated by Congress for recruitment and retention of VA employees that assist in processing veterans’ benefits claims, were instead used to award bonuses to SES employees. 

The BONUS Transparency Act requires that all bonuses awarded to SES employees must be reported to Congress, including the employee’s name, job title, and annual rate of pay. Additionally, federal agencies must disclose the accounts from which the performance awards were funded.

 “Oversight on the use of taxpayer dollars is not optional – it is a necessity,” said Congressman Van Orden. “If this magnitude of financial misconduct can occur at the Veterans Administration, it can happen at any other federal agency, and that will not be tolerated. The BONUS Transparency Act will draw a clear line to ensure that federal agencies are held to the highest standard and any misuse of funds is fully exposed”

“The VA’s inappropriate awarding of nearly $11 million to SES employees must be addressed,” said Congressman Flood. “What makes this situation even worse is that the public only became aware of this misuse of funds because of the VA’s Inspector General. This cannot happen again, which is why I’ve introduced the BONUS Transparency Act. Congress has the obligation and authority to oversee how taxpayer funds are used by federal agencies. This bill promotes transparency—and, in turn, accountability—across our federal government, ensuring these funds are not abused for personal gain by Washington bureaucrats in the future.”

 “After the Biden-Harris administration tried to line the pockets of its senior VA executives during the bonus scandal earlier this year, we need my friend Rep. Flood’s bill. The BONUS Transparency Act would ensure that this type of government waste never happens again. My Committee’s investigation over the summer revealed that too often bureaucrats are getting ahead of their skis and money doesn’t go to the right people – those who had actually earned it,” said Chairman Bost. “This commonsense bill would increase transparency and accountability throughout the federal government overnight.” 

 The full text of the legislation can be found here.