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Members will be recognized in order of committee seniority for questioning witnesses today. This will make it easier to ensure that all members participating have an opportunity to be recognized. Does any member have a question about the conduct of this hearing with members participating remotely . Hearing none, i recognize myself for an opening statement. Todays witnesses include va officials and experts with important knowledge and perspectives from inside the department including the acting deputy secretary pamela powers. We will hear from experts at the Government Accountability office. Last week, the gao released a report titled Sexual Harassment inconsistent policies and information hinder va efforts to protect employees. The gao findings provide as gao will testify, the va is not doing enough and the pit hinder employees jobs to do their job correctly. The va a heading in the right direction but its clear that the pace must increase and more work must be done to ensure the safety of all. The Department Must make addressing Sexual Harassment a higher priority. When i read the witness testimony, the department of Veterans Affairs is moving too slowly to address Sexual Harassment. During todays hearing, i will ask why va will take many months and years to implement what seems to me straight forward recommendations by gao. The department has laid out that basic and critical changes involving the managers charge with the reporting Sexual Harassment will not see completion until the year 2024. This is an issue that va itself noted as a problem since two years ago. This panel needs to know why this will take four years to implement. Worse, va has not agreed to adhere to rules about who must be in charge of overseeing major Sexual Harassment policies within the department. The Leadership Structure creates conflict of interest recording how they see the Sexual Harassment process and this must be fixed. The va does not require reporting of all Sexual Harassment complaints results in underreporting and less effective oversight. They hope to correct this by the end of 2021. I joined with eight of my colleagues including the chairs and Ranking Members of both the house and senate Veterans Affairs committee urging the department to implement all of gaos recommendations in that va expedite its you arent timetable. The issue of Sexual Harassment at the va is a priority for me and on both sides of the aisle. I hope we will see a commitment from va along with clear actions they plan to take that prove to us that they too are making Sexual Harassment prevention a top priority. I would like to recognize my colleague general bergman to deliver any operating remarks he may have. Todays thank you is entitled safety for all, ending Sexual Harassment in the department of Veterans Affairs. This is our objective, but it admittedly it is a very broad one. Employee harassment and patient harassment could on their own support separate hearings. One thing that is true for all forms of Sexual Harassment is that all mandatory all the mandatory training in the world will not end it completely. In order to achieve our goal, we need individuals, employees and veterans alike to treat one another with respect in order to change the vas culture. And when Sexual Harassment does happen, despite our best efforts, management must be committed to holding employees and veterans accountable for their actions. Only through accountability can we bring Sexual Harassment at the va to an end. When Sexual Harassment occurs, management is responsibility for insuring that employees have access to programs that are efficient, effective and fair. However, gaos recent report identified numerous issues that are ripe for improvement. First, is the sexual is the Harassment Prevention Program or hpp. Hpp was stood up in 2017 with the intention of preventing harassment before it becomes unlawful. This is a laudable objective and one that i fully support. As gaos report found, va has failed to finalize the protectives and implementing guidance for the 4yearold program preventing it from fulfilling its objectives completely. Its my understanding that hpp is only comprised of nine full time employees. Nine full time staff seems to be inadequate for a Program Supporting 390,000 employees. I hope to discuss vas commitment to this program and get assurances for va that hpp directives and guidance will be finalized this year and that the program will be staffed appropriately to serve va employees across the country. Next, gao found that there is an apparent conflict of interest in vas equal employee opportunity or eeo structure. Specifically, the alignment of the agency eeo director in the office of the assistant secretary for Human Resource and administration. Va did not concur with gaos recommendation to realign the eeo director, a deficienty identified by the eeoc. Moving this potential conflict of interest seems simple to me. However, i understand the department believes it is complicated so i would like to explore why that is. Another area of concern and one not discussed in the gao report is the timeliness of the cases. According to the most recent data reported by va, it takes an average roughly of 1,100 days to process an eeo complaint when the employee requests a hearing before the eeoc. I understand that some of this time is attributed to the eeoc, but three years to process a complaint does not inspire confidence that the system is working efficiently or effectively. In fact, according to gao, the 2016 merit system protection board survey found that only 47 of va employees felt that their charges of Sexual Harassment would be resolved in a fair and just matter. I hope today to explore the ways in which we can increase trust in the system and reduce the time it takes to render a fair and just decision. I now want to turn to patient harassment. It is evident from the testimony submitted in this case that patientonpatient harassment happens frequently. No veteran deserves to suffer the indignities that were described in the testimony. Moreover, we know that 1 in 4 female veterans and 1 in 100 male veterans screen positive for military sexual trauma. After the recent tragic death of Vanessa Guillen who was sexually harassed and brutally murdered by a fellow service member, many more servicewomen and Women Veterans have come forward about the abuse and the harassment they experience while serving in uniform. It is unacceptable that they might come to va, a place intended to heal, and experience similar harassment and abuse by their fellow veterans and or va employees. I take from the vas written testimony an acknowledgement that the va must do more to create a safe and welcoming environment for all veterans. I dont have to tell you the importance of the initiative when attacking problems, when you have to take initiative. As the secondmost senior employee at the department, you have the power to gain the initiative and make real and meaningful change. Veterans, employees and stakeholders are listening and counting on you. Before my time expires i would be remiss if i do not recognize that today is colonel powers first time testifying before this committee. Welcome, and i just want to let you know that did you graduate from the New High School or the Old High School . The old one. The old one was located in prior lake. And we used to beat prior lake on the basketball court. It was one of those competition that is when it was over, we went all out and enjoyed ice cream together. And thats how it should be. Thank you for being here. And with that, mr. Chairman, i yield back. Thank you, general. I could go for some ice cream after the hearing today and im sure you all agree. We welcome you deputy secretary powers and are pleased that youre here. I would like to turn things over to Julia Brownlee of the womens Veterans Task force for five minutes of opening comments. Thank you for holding this very important hearing today and including the womens Veterans Task force and its voice to the hearing. Yesterday i stood outside the capitol with my colleagues and womens veterans who are demanding justice following the murder of specialist Vanessa Guillen. Guillen told her family that she was being sexually harassed by a fellow soldier before she went missing in april. This story resonates with millions of Women Veterans who have experienced so much trauma and violence at the hands of those who are supposed to have their backs. That includes their experiences at the va. The agency that is responsibility for providing health care and benefits to survivors of Sexual Violence must be a safe place for all who enter its doors. Today we will discuss the prevalence of Sexual Harassment within the va. Much of todays hearing will focus on findings of the Government AccountabilityOffice Report that found that inconsistent and incomplete policies and information hinder vas efforts to protect their employees. The results of the report to me are alarming. I was stunned to learn that the policy and accountability shortfalls regarding harassment of employees are nearly identical to those regarding Sexual Harassment of veteran patients. While i welcome vas acceptance of six of gaos seven recommendations to address harassment, i share the concern that the timeliness will take far too long. Women employees and Women Veterans have shared their experiences of sexual and gender harassment within vas walls for years. And we also know that black women and lgbtq veterans are disproportionately impacted. 1 in 4 Women Veterans experience sexual or gender harassment at va medical facilities across the country. 1 in 3 black Women Veterans experience Sexual Harassment in medical facilities across the country. These numbers are probably far higher because va does not mandate reporting of Sexual Harassment complaints. In their statement for the record, paralyzed veterans of america shared the story of one of their Women Veteran members whose physical limitations made her particularly vulnerable when she was sexually harassed by a male veteran in her hospital room. This kind of trauma causes at least 20 of Women Veterans to delay or skip entirely seeking lifesaving health care. We are out of time and we need corrective action now. If its a resourcing issue, i expect that the va will share with us and with the appropriate tors what they need to meet a more accelerated time line. While i want to recognize the efforts of many in the va, i must also highlight a contradiction in vas testimony which says, quote, secretary wi wilke emphasized in his annual message to all staff, va will not tolerate behaviors that create an intimidating, offensive or hostile environment. Yet we have a culture of misogyny for too many Women Veterans and women employees. In statements for the record for todays hearing, multiple veteran Service Organizations highlighted the case of a woman veteran who happens to be on my staff. In september, while on her way to an appointment she was sexually hazarded at the washington, d. C. , va. Even though the incident took place in a public space, she had to report to four different employees before the police were called. Survivors feel this statement as an attack on all survivors because they dont feel heard, they feel disrespected, and they feel the whole lack of recognition that Sexual Harassment still occurs at an unacceptable rate and the Old Boys Club culture that devalues women persists. Additionally, women va employees are also still experiencing high levels of sexual and gender harassment. A 2016 merit system protection board survey found that the va had the second highest rate of Sexual Harassment of women employees in the entire executive branch at 26 . Yet between 2016 and 2018, the va only resolved 15 cases of Sexual Harassment. The house acted on this issue in november when we passed my bill. The house version includes a provision that would address Sexual Harassment and assault at the va. We Still Need Senate Action on this bill. This gao report makes it clear what needs to be done. Inconsistent and incomplete policies are putting employees, patients, caregivers and anyone else on vas property at risk. Without an honest, clear and genuine recognition of the problem from the top, a successful fail safe system with Accountability Measures built into every step along the way, it will never happen. We need a system in place now, not years from now, and the va must begin to approach this issue with a real sense of urgency. I look forward to todays testimony and a productive discussion on this critically important issue. And with that, mr. Chairman, thank you, again, and i yield back the balance of my time. Thank you. I would like to recognize chairman takano for five minutes for any opening comments he might to have. Thank you, chairman. I want to note the importance of this hearing. The subcommittee and the womens Veterans Task force have focused much needed attention on the ongoing and widespread problem of Sexual Harassment experienced at va facilities. I recognize that the department has made progress. However, i must echo what chairman pappas and others have stated, we need to see va leadership take many more steps and in a timely manner toward effective policies and procedures. As shown by the gao in its report on va Sexual Harassment released last week, ineffective policies not only mean that fewer employees have the protection they need, but the very mission of va is hindered. Gao in its report released last week pointed out many failings by va in their efforts to address Sexual Harassment, including that not all allegations by employees are being reported through any sort of centralized system. In other words, theres a severe undercounting of allegations that are reported. Let alone that result and inaction by the department. This is not the first time gao has raised similar concerns. There was a 1993 gao report titled, quote, inquiry into Sexual Harassment issues at selected va medical centers, end quote. Let me say that again. A 1993 gao report. That gao report specifically pointed out the importance of full reporting of allegations through a central system as well as mandatory Sexual Harassment training and other steps similar to what we are hearing about today. Va employees simply cannot wait for years or even too many months before the gao recommendations are implemented and other steps are taken. I also note that the department is not working effectively with organized labor in order to address Sexual Harassment. Labor unions can be an asset in working with and communicating with employees. They are also a valuable form of protection and support. I urge va to engage with organized labor on this issue. I look forward, secretary powers, to your testimony and appreciate your participation in this in these proceedings today. I look forward to hearing from todays witnesses and i yield back the balance of my time. Thank you, chairman takano. I will introduce the witnesses. We have ms. Pamela powers, acting deputy secretary at the department of Veterans Affairs and shes accompanied by mr. Dan sidery and ms. Layla jackson. Ms. Powers will provide testimony for all of the va witnesses. I