03.05.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON—
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee
Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano
issued
the
following
statement
denouncing
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA)
latests
decision
to
reduce
its
workforce
by
83,000
employees.
"This
deliberate
dismantling
of
VA’s
workforce
by
firing
an
additional
80,000
employees
isn’t
just
dangerous—it’s
an
outright
betrayal
of
veterans.
Gutting
VA’s
staffing
to
pre-PACT
Act
levels
will
cripple
the
very
system
that
millions
of
veterans
rely
on,
denying
them
access
to
… Read More
03.04.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON—
Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano
(CA-39)
delivered
the
following
opening
statement
as
prepared
at
the
House
and
Senate
Committees
on
Veterans'
Affairs
joint
hearing
entitled,
"Legislative
Presentation
of
The
Veterans
of
Foreign
Wars
of
the
United
States
&
Multi
VSOs:
Paralyzed
Veterans
of
America,
Iraq
and
Afghanistan
Veterans
of
America,
Student
Veterans
of
America,
Tragedy
Assistance
Program
for
Survivors,
The
Elizabeth
Dole
Foundation,
National
Coalition
for
Homeless
… Read More
02.27.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON—
Today,
VA
Secretary
Collins
officially
ignored
a
deadline
to
explain
the
abrupt
and
unlawful
terminations
of
at
least
2,400
VA
employees-
many
of
whom
are
disabled
veterans,
military
spouses,
and
dedicated
public
servants.
Despite
a
direct
demand
for
answers
from
Ranking
Member
Takano
(CA-39)
and
89
House
Democrats,
Secretary
Collins
has
refused
to
provide
any
justification
for
how
these
firings
will
not
impact
veterans’
healthcare
and
benefits—contrary
to
his
claims.
After
… Read More
02.26.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON—
Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano
(CA-39)
delivered
the
following
opening
statement
as
prepared
at
the
House
and
Senate
Committees
on
Veterans'
Affairs
joint
hearing
entitled, "Legislative
Presentation
of
The
American
Legion
&
Multi
VSOs:
Minority
Veterans
of
America,
Jewish
War
Veterans
of
the
U.S.A,
National
Association
of
County
Veterans
Services
Officers,
Military
Officers
Association
of
America,
National
Association
of
State
Directors
of
Veterans
Affairs,
D’Aniello
Institute
for
… Read More
02.25.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON—
House
Committee
on
Veterans’
Affairs
Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano
(CA-39)
delivered
the
following
opening
statement
at
the
House
Committee
on
Veterans'
Affairs
full
Committee
Legislative
hearing.
“In
the
audience
and
watching
the
livestream
today,
we
are
joined
by
former
VA
employees
who
were
illegally
and
suddenly
terminated
by
President
Trump
since
he
took
office
on
January
20th.
These
are
Americans,
many
of
them
veterans
and
military
spouses,
who
are
now
unemployed,
and
I
want
to
… Read More
02.25.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON—
House
Committee
on
Veterans’
Affairs
Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano
(CA-39)
delivered
the
following
opening
statement
at
the
House
and
Senate
Committees
on
Veterans'
Affairs
will
held
a
joint
hearing
entitled,
"Legislative
Presentation
of
Disabled
American
Veterans
&
Multi
VSOs:
AMVETS,
Vietnam
Veterans
of
America,
Military
Order
of
the
Purple
Heart,
Blinded
Veterans
Association,
Veterans
Education
Success,
Gold
Star
Wives
of
America,
Inc.,
and
Reserve
Organization
of
… Read More
02.24.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON—
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee
Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano
issued
the
following
statement
denouncing
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA)
Secretary
Collins's
latest
decision
to
terminate
more
than
1,400
additional
VA
employees,
following
the
initial
dismissals
of
over
1,000
workers
on
February
13,
2025.
The
Secretary's
office
has
failed
to
comply
with
the
Committee's
requests
for
documentation
regarding
the
identities,
roles,
and
performance
histories
of
the
terminated
… Read More
02.19.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON
—
As
House
Republicans
continue
to
neglect
their
responsibility
to
hold
President
Trump
accountable,
House
Democrats
are
demanding
answers
from
VA
Secretary
Collins
regarding
the
mass
terminations
taking
place
at
VA.
To
date,
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
has
failed
to
respond
to
numerous
inquiries
about
the
late-night
firing
of
over
1,000
VA
employees
nationwide
-
many
of
whom
are
service-disabled
veterans
or
military
spouses.
Despite
Secretary
Collins’s
claim
that
the
… Read More
02.14.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON
—
Today
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee
Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano issued
the
following
statement
condemning
Secretary
Collins'
recent
dismissal of
over
1,000
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA)
employees:
"I
am
deeply
disturbed
by
Secretary
Collins'
celebratory
statement
regarding
the
mass
firing of
more
than
1,000
VA
employees.
This
action
demonstrates
a
shocking
disregard
for
the
dedicated
workforce
that
serves
our
nation's
veterans.
Among
those
terminated
were
100%
… Read More
02.06.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON
-
Yesterday,
Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano
and
nine
members
of
the
House
Veterans’
Affairs
Committee
sent
a
letter
to
newly
confirmed
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA)
Secretary
Doug
Collinsto
raise
concerns
regarding
President
Trump’s
recent
executive
order
for
federal
agencies
to
terminate
all
diversity,
equity,
inclusion,
and
accessibility
programs
and
the
impact
it
will
have
on
veterans'
healthcare
services
and
VA’s
ability
to
effectively
serve
all
veterans.
The
executive
order,
… Read More
01.31.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON
-
Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano
and
Health
Subcommittee
Ranking
Member
Julia
Brownley
sent
a
letter
to
the
Acting
Secretary
of
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA),
demanding
answers
about
the
future
of
VA’s
Center
for
Women
Veterans
and
VA’s
Center
for
Minority
Veterans.
Ms.
Lourdes
Tiglao,
Director
of
the
Center
for
Women
Veterans,
and
Mr.
James
Albino,
Director
of
the
Center
for
Minority
Veterans,
were
removed
from
their
offices
on
Wednesday,
January
29,
2025,
as
the
Trump
… Read More
01.29.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON
- Today, Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano
made
the
following
statement
regarding
the
White
House
Office
of
Personnel
Management’s
email
offering
“buyouts”
to
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA)
employees.
“Elon
Musk
thinks
you
are
stupid
and
won’t
see
through
his
deceptive
and
fraudulent
“buyout”
offer.
VA
employees
should
ignore
his
email
and
send
it
to
the
trash
bin.
VA
employees,
thousands
of
whom
are
veterans
themselves,
keep
the
largest
integrated
healthcare
system
in
the
country
… Read More
01.28.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON
-
Today,
Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano
wrote
Acting
Secretary
of
Veterans
Affairs
Todd
Hunter,
urgently
seeking
information
about
how
new
guidance
from
the
White
House’s
Office
of
Management
and
Budget,
requiring
agencies
suspend
payments
to
federal
funding
recipients
by
today,
January
28,
2025,
at
5
P.M.,
will
affect
veterans.
“The
breadth
of
this
hasty,
ruthless,
and
irresponsible
mandate
will
directly
impact
every
community
in
America
and
will
immediately
jeopardize
public
health
… Read More
01.28.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON
-
Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano
is
demanding
answers
from
UnitedHealth
Group
(UHG)
after
its
admission
that
a
data
breach
impacted
190
million
people,
including
at
least
1.2
million
veterans.
Ranking
Member
Takano
criticized
the
company’s
delayed
and
incomplete
reporting,
urging
stronger
oversight
to
protect
veterans
from
private
sector
cybersecurity
failures.
Despite
the
breach
impacting
the
personal
data
of
at
least
1.2
million
veterans,
the
Committee
has
not
received
updated
data
… Read More
01.25.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON
-
Today,
Ranking
Member
Takano
joins
Rep.
Gerald
E.
Connolly,
Ranking
Member
of
the
Committee
on
Oversight
and
Government
Reform,
with
House
Committee
Ranking
Members
in
a
letter
to
President
Donald
Trump
condemning
his
attempted
late-night
purge
of
at
least
12
independent
inspectors
general,
which
appears
to
have
violated
federal
law
designed
to
protect
their
work
from
political
interference
and
intimidation.
The
Ranking
Members
wrote:
“We
write
to
express
our
grave
concern
… Read More
01.25.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON
-
Last
night,
President
Trump
fired
12
inspectors
general
of
major
federal
agencies,
including
Inspector
General
Michael
Missal
of
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA),
who
has
served
in
this
Senate-confirmed
position
since
2016.
Ranking
Member
Takano
said,
“This
late-night
purge
of
the
Inspectors
General
that
Congress
and
the
American
people
depend
on
for
transparency
and
accountability
in
our
government
is
not
only
reprehensible,
it
is
illegal.
These
firings
are
a
blatant
… Read More
01.23.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON
-
Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano
was
joined
by
House
Veterans’
Affairs
Committee
Democrats
in
a
letter
to
U.S.
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA)
Acting
Secretary
Todd
Hunter
about
how
VA
is
implementing
President
Trump’s
Inaugural
Executive
Order
to
freeze
hiring
across
the
executive
branch.
Despite
VA
reporting
more
than
40,000
vacancies
at
the
end
of
2024,
President
Trump’s
Executive
Order
was
issued
without
any
regard
for
the
impact
it
would
have
on
veterans’
access
to
healthcare
… Read More
01.22.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON
-
The
House
Veterans’
Affairs
Committee
held
a
hearing
today
entitled
"Restoring
Focus:
Putting
Veterans
First
in
Community
Care.”
Despite
being
the
first
hearing
about
community
care
since
Republicans
took
control
of
Congress
over
two
years
ago,
no
government
officials
or
contractors
were
present
to
answer
questions
about
problems
veterans
have
experienced
when
accessing
care.
Ranking
Member
Takano
said,
“I
want
to
say
to
our
witnesses
that
I
am
truly
anguished
by
the
unacceptable
… Read More
01.21.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON
-
On
Inauguration
Day,
President
Trump
issued
a
series
of
Executive
Orders
(EOs)
impacting
veterans
and
civil
servants
who
are
employed
by
and
seek
care
at
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA).
These
EOs
would:
Implement
a
hiring
freeze
across
the
federal
government;
Reclassify
many
federal
employees
with
fewer
job
protections;
Remove
VA
employees’
flexibility
in
remote
working
by
mandating
a
return
to
office;
and
Eliminate
key
diversity,
equity,
and
inclusion
(DEI)
… Read More
01.16.25 •
Press Release
WASHINGTON,
DC
-
Today
during
the
House
Committee
on
Veterans’
Affairs
119th
Congress
Organizing
Meeting,
Republicans
rejected
an
amendment
to
the
Committee
Rules
offered
by
Ranking
Member
Mark
Takano
(CA-39)
to
increase
transparency
into
potential
financial
conflicts
of
interests
a
witness
testifying
before
the
Committee
may
have. This
amendment
would
complement
other
changes
the
Republicans
made
to
the
Committee
Rules
for
the
119th
Congress
that
require
disclosure
of
payments
or
… Read More
