{"id":31626,"date":"2025-03-11T15:51:27","date_gmt":"2025-03-11T15:51:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/uncategorized\/2025\/03\/11\/gop-senators-eye-legislative-guardrails-as-va-prepares-mass-job-cuts\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T15:53:45","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T15:53:45","slug":"gop-senators-eye-legislative-guardrails-as-va-prepares-mass-job-cuts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/congress\/2025\/03\/11\/gop-senators-eye-legislative-guardrails-as-va-prepares-mass-job-cuts\/","title":{"rendered":"GOP senators eye legislative guardrails as VA prepares mass job cuts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Key Republican lawmakers are working with Veterans Affairs leaders on legislative guardrails to proposed staffing cuts at the department,<\/a> ensuring those moves are done \u201cin a responsible manner\u201d with minimal impact on patients and beneficiaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Senate Veterans\u2019 Affairs Committee Chairman Jerry Moran<\/a>, R-Kan., said a proposed bill \u2014 expected to be unveiled in coming weeks \u2014 comes in response to department proposals to cull more than 80,000 jobs within VA in coming months, part of broader efforts by President Donald Trump to dramatically reduce the size of the federal workforce.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cChanges which affect VA policy and personnel must be thoughtful, transparent and carried out in close coordination with this committee and with stakeholders, including veterans and the veterans service organizations,\u201d Moran said at a committee hearing Tuesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have personally conveyed this message to [VA Secretary Doug] Collins. <\/a>The secretary has committed to me that he will testify before this committee about his plans and how he intends to eliminate waste and inefficiency, and refocus resources to improve delivery of healthcare and benefits to veterans.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The enhanced oversight by Moran represents a mild rebuke of the department\u2019s handling of the workforce reduction plan thus far. News of the planned staff cuts were made public after a document leak earlier this month, forcing Collins to publicly acknowledge the internal discussions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an interview with Military Times<\/a> on March 5, Collins insisted the employee cuts will not impact health or benefits delivery but will return the department to 2019 workforce levels, before a concerted hiring push by former President Joe Biden\u2019s administration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been given a mandate, and that is just to run the VA in the way that it\u2019s supposed to be run, putting veterans in our services and putting our health care in the best position it can be,\u201d Collins said.<\/p>\n\n\n\t