U.S. Representative Kelly Morrison Condemns Mass Firing of VA Employees, Calls for Answers from VA Secretary

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Representative Kelly Morrison (MN-03), a member of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, joined her colleagues in condemning the mass firing of Veterans Affairs (VA) employees and calling for answers from VA Secretary Doug Collins. In a letter to the Secretary, Rep. Morrison and her colleagues are calling for full transparency for veterans and the American people, requesting a detailed breakdown of firings across all VA administrations and offices and to better understand the impact of these dismissals on VA operations.

“Our veterans have sacrificed so much for our country, and it is our duty to ensure we are providing the resources they need and have earned. Millions of veterans across the country rely on the VA for essential health care services. The VA is already facing severe staffing shortages nationwide, and we should be doing everything we can to address that crisis -- not make it worse. We need answers,” said Congresswoman Kelly Morrison.

Full text of the letter here and copied below:

Dear Mr. Secretary:

We were appalled to read your statement released last night celebrating the dismissal of more than 1,000 Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) employees. The callous and contemptuous attitude you have exhibited toward the workforce that cares for our nation’s veterans is truly disturbing. Among those you dismissed were 100% service-connected disabled veterans, military spouses, lifesaving researchers, and more. You have left more than 1,000 Americans jobless in an economy that is being ransacked by Presidents Musk and Trump and their billionaire benefactors. Your actions will have severe consequences for the families of those you fired and the veterans VA serves. It is clear you do not revere and will not fulfill President Lincoln’s sacred promise to care for those who served in our nation’s military, their families, caregivers, and survivors.

We request you respond to the Ranking Member’s letter dated February 6, 2025 (enclosed) immediately. We also request responses to the following additional questions:

1. Please provide an unredacted, full and comprehensive list of all VA employees who either were proposed for dismissal or have been dismissed from their position since January 20, 2025. Please include the employees’ occupations, job duties, job location, veteran status, disability status, military spouse status, probationary versus non-probationary status, temporary, conditional, or permanent status, authority under which they joined federal service, grade and step levels, salary, years in service, and a legal justification for their dismissal.
2. Please provide complete and unredacted copies of all performance evaluations for each VA employee who has been terminated since January 20, 2025. Please also provide any and all performance metrics that were considered when selecting employees for dismissal.
3. How many dismissed employees worked in each of health care delivery, direct care, medical research or claims processing roles?

2. How does VA define a “mission-critical position” and who made the determination of which employees were considered mission-critical?

1. How many employees in “mission-critical” positions were probationary employees, but were exempted from dismissal? Please provide a detailed list of the name, job title, and program office for each of those employees as well as a detailed justification for their exemption.
2. How many probationary employees in “mission-critical” positions have been terminated since January 20, 2025?
3. It is our understanding that Senior Executive Service leaders may request further exemptions from dismissal for employees they supervise. What criteria will VA use to grant or deny an exemption? Will previously dismissed employees who are later granted an exemption be entitled to back pay, and have the break in service expunged from their personnel records?
4. Provide any guidance developed by VA or provided by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), or the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) regarding the termination or exemption process.

3. In total, how many probationary employees has VA dismissed since January 20, 2025, within each of the Veterans Health Administration, the Veterans Benefits Administration and the Board of Veterans Appeals, the National Cemetery Administration, and at the enterprise level? Please provide a count for each office within each administration, and for each enterprise level office. Please also provide numbers of probationary and non- probationary employees within each of these offices who were not dismissed.

1. For each office that submitted a list of probationary employees to the VA Human Resources and Administration office, please provide the name and job title for the person who created any lists or compiled information regarding employees eligible for termination. Please provide complete and unredacted copies of the emails or correspondence transmitted to either VA Human Resources and Administration office and OPM.
2. At what level or levels of VA were determinations made regarding which employees were considered probationary, and which were eligible for termination?

4. Please provide cost estimates of fulfilling the duties of the positions from which VA employees were terminated since January 20, 2025, and whether VA plans to compensate for the loss of position through outsourcing, contracts, or other means.

5. To what specific accounts do you intend to redirect funds accrued from the salaries of terminated employees, and under what legal or statutory authority will you redirect those funds?

We ask that you provide a written response to this letter no later than February 21, 2025.

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