Tag Archives: Eric Shinseki

VA Deputy Secretary Scott Gould Leaving

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Originally posted by Jason Miller on Federal News Radio 

Scott Gould, the deputy secretary of the Veterans Affairs Department, will leave his post May 17.

"We have accomplished great things together including increasing access for veterans, decreased homelessness among veterans, and improved departmental management," Gould wrote in an email to staff obtained by Federal News Radio. "There is more work to do to achieve our goals -- under Secretary Shinseki's leadership, I know the department is well-positioned to accomplish those goals. After four years of intense and rewarding public service, I am ready for the next stage in my private sector career.

VA Secretary Eric Shinseki praised Gould's "advocacy and dedication" in a statement released April 29.

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VA cracks down on conference spending

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Following a new inspector general's audit of two conferences held in 2011, the Veterans Affairs Department has enacted numerous tactics to check spending, root out misconduct by employees and keep senior officials involved in conference planning.

One key control is a new requirement that a senior executive must approve all proposed conferences or training sessions, the department said in a statement Oct. 1.

The undersecretary, assistant secretary or similarly-ranked VA official has to give approval for a conference proposal with project costs reaching to $100,000. If the expected costs exceed $100,000, the deputy secretary and the chief of staff must approve. Conferences with a bill expected to exceed $500,000 are generally prohibited, unless the VA secretary gives a waiver. As an additional check, officials must do an "After Action Review" following the conference to compare proposed costs to actual costs.

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IG report cites failed leadership in wasteful VA conference spending

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Originally posted by Jack Moore on Federal News Radio

Two Veterans Affairs Department training conferences held last summer in Orlando, Fla., contained as much as $762,000 in wasteful spending and were plagued by poor planning and oversight, according to an inspector general report released Monday.

In the report, the IG said although the conferences were held for legitimate purposes, agency leadership "failed to provide proper oversight in the planning and execution" of the two conferences. Specifically, Assistant Secretary for Human Resources and Administration John Sepulveda "abdicated his responsibilities" by failing to provide guidance to agency senior executives and taking a "hands-off approach."

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