Government Affairs Update - 02/11/2021

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Bringing policymakers together across party lines to advance issues of importance to Vietnam veterans and their families. February 10, 2021
Inside this issue
Halls of Congress
• House/Senate In Action
Vietnam Veterans of America
• What We Do
House Committee on Veterans Affairs
• 117th Congress - HVAC Committee news
Senate Veterans Affairs Committee
• 117th Congress - SVAC Committee News
Department of Veterans Affairs
• 11th VA Secretary Sworn In
Halls of Congress
House/Senate In Action
U.S. House starts their legislation session on Feb. 11, 2021

Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi-D-CA-12th
https://www.congress.gov/member/nancy-p ... e=expanded

Majority Leader of the House, Steny Hoyer, D-MD-5th
https://www.congress.gov/member/steny-hoyer/H000874

Republican Leader, Kevin McCarthy, R-CA-23rd
https://www.congress.gov/member/kevin-mccarthy/M001165

For updated legislative activity in the U.S. House go to: https://clerk.house.gov/

U.S. Senate begin their legislation session at noon February 11, 2021

President of the Senate Vice President Kamala Harris
https://www.whitehouse.gov/administrati ... nt-harris/

Democratic Leader, Charles Schumer-NY
https://www.congress.gov/member/charles-schumer/S000148

Republican Leader, Mitch McConnell, KY
https://www.congress.gov/member/mitch-mcconnell/M000355

For updated legislative action in the U.S. Senate go to:
https://www.senate.gov/floor/
Top

Vietnam Veterans of America
What We Do
VVA's goals are to promote and support the full range of issues important to Vietnam veterans, to create a new identity for this generation of veterans, and to change public perception of Vietnam veterans. VVA strives to achieve the following:
Aggressively advocate on issues important to veterans
Seek full access to quality health care for veterans
Identify the full range of disabling injuries and illnesses incurred during military service
Hold government agencies accountable for following laws mandating veterans health care
Create a positive public perception of Vietnam veterans
Seek the fullest possible accounting of America's POWs and MIAs
Support the next generation of America's war veterans
Serve our communities
Legislation Action: https://vva.org/what-we-do/veterans-adv ... on-center/


Vietnam Veterans of America, (VVA) is a national non-profit corporation founded in 1978 that is committed to serving the needs of all veterans. www.vva.org
Top

House Committee on Veterans Affairs
117th Congress - HVAC Committee news
Mark Takano, Chairman-D-CA-41st
Ranking Minority Member, Mike Bost-R-IL-12th

https://veterans.house.gov/about/members
https://veterans.house.gov/events/heari ... and-markup
https://veterans.house.gov/news/press-r ... -mcdonough
https://veterans.house.gov/news/press-r ... -mcdonough
https://veterans.house.gov/news/press-r ... ion-is-now
https://veterans.house.gov/news/press-r ... parity-fix
https://veterans.house.gov/news/press-r ... -in-the-va
https://republicans-veterans.house.gov/news/
Top

Senate Veterans Affairs Committee
117th Congress - SVAC Committee News
Senator Jon Tester, Chairman-D-MT
Ranking Minority Member, Jerry Moran-R-KS

https://www.veterans.senate.gov/about/members
https://www.veterans.senate.gov/newsroom/majority-news
Top

Department of Veterans Affairs
11th VA Secretary Sworn In
On Monday, February 8, 2021, the Senate confirmed by a vote of 87-7, Denis McDonough to be the next Secretary of Affairs who was official sworn by the Vice President on February 9, 2021 at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington, DC. https://blogs.va.gov/VAntage/84509/mess ... mcdonough/
Department of Veterans Affairs Acting/Political Appointees

Deputy Secretary (Acting) - Carolyn M. Clancy, M.D., assistant undersecretary for Health, Discovery, Education and Affiliate Networks.
Under Secretary for Health (Acting) - Richard Stone, M.D., principal deputy undersecretary for Health
Under Secretary for Benefits (Acting) - Thomas Murphy, director for Northeast District, Veterans Benefits Administration.
Under Secretary for Memorial Affairs (Acting) - Ron Walters, principal deputy undersecretary for Memorial Affairs.
General Counsel (Acting) - Richard Hipolit, deputy general counsel for Veterans' Programs.
Assistant Secretary Information and Technology/Chief Information Officer (Acting) - Dominic Cussatt, principal deputy assistant secretary for Information & Technology/deputy Chief Information Officer.
Assistant Secretary Enterprise Integration (Acting) - John Medve, executive director for Policy and Interagency Collaboration, Office of Enterprise Integration
Assistant Secretary Congressional and Legislative Affairs (Acting) - Glenn Johnson, principal deputy assistant secretary for Congressional and Legislative Affairs
Assistant Secretary Accountability and Whistleblower Protection (Acting) - Hansel Cordeiro, executive director for Investigations, Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection.
Principal Executive Director for Acquisition, Logistics, and Construction (Acting) - Phillip Christy, deputy principal executive director for Office of Acquisition, Logistics & Construction
Chief Veterans Experience Officer (Acting) - Barbara Morton, deputy chief Veterans Experience Officer

Note: Jon Rychalski, assistant secretary for Management/Chief Financial Officer; Cheryl L. Mason, chairman of the Board of Veterans' Appeals; and Michael J. Missal, inspector general, Office of the Inspector General will continue serving in their current positions within the department.

Political Appointees
Paula Molloy, PhD, assistant secretary, Human Resources and Administration/ Operations, Security and Preparedness
Kayla M. Williams, assistant secretary, Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs
Chris Díaz, acting chief of staff, White House Liaison, Office of the Secretary
Meg Kabat, senior advisor, Families, Caregivers and Survivors, Office of the Secretary
Raymond C. Kelley, liaison, Veteran Service Organization, Office of the Secretary
Ya Wei (Jenny) Wang - director of Mission Operations, Office of the Secretary
Tahmika Ruth Jackson, special counsel, Office of General Counsel
Terrence L. Hayes, press secretary, Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs
John Santos, special assistant, Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs