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TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION PAGE

 Overview of the Department of Veterans Affairs 1 

 The Veteran 2 

 Budget Summary 3 

 Organizations of the Department of Veterans Affairs 4 

ADMINISTRATIONS

 Veterans Health Administration 7 

 Veterans Benefits Administration 11 

 National Cemetery Administration 17 

ASSISTANT SECRETARIES

 Assistant Secretary for Management 18 

 Office of Budget 18 

 Office of Finance 18 

 Office of Asset Enterprise Management 19 

 Office of Business Oversight 20 

 FLITE Program Office 21 

 Assistant Secretary for Information and Technology 22 

 Office of Information and Technology 22 

Office of Quality, Performance, and Oversight 23 

Office for Information Protection and Risk Management 23 

Office for IT Enterprise Strategy, Policy, Plans and Programs 23 

Office of Information Technology Resource Management 24 

Office for Enterprise Development 24 

Office for Enterprise Operations and Field Development 24 

 Assistant Secretary for Policy and Planning 25 

 VA/DoD Collaboration 25 

 Office of Policy 25 

 Office of Planning and Evaluation 26 

 Assistant Secretary for Operations, Security, and Preparedness 28 

 Office of Emergency Management 28 

 Office of Security and Law Enforcement 30 

 Assistant Secretary for Human Resources and Administration 31 

 Office of Administration 31 

 Office of Human Resources Management 32 

 Office of Diversity and Inclusion 32 

 Office of Resolution Management 33 

 Office of Labor-Management Relations 33 

 Corporate Senior Executive Management Office 34 

 VA Learning University 35 
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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ASSISTANT SECRETARIES (Cont.) PAGE

 Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs 36 

 Office of Public Affairs 36 

 Office of Intergovernmental Affairs 37 

 Office of National Veterans Sports Programs and Special Events 38 

 Office of White House Liaison 38 

 Assistant Secretary for Congressional and Legislative Affairs 39 

 Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs 39 

 Office of Congressional Reports and Correspondence 39 

 Office of Congressional Liaison 39 

STAFF OFFICES

 General Counsel 40 

 Inspector General 42 

 Board of Veterans' Appeals 43 

 Office of Acquisition, Logistics and Construction 44 

 Veterans Service Organizations Liaison 46 

 Center for Minority Veterans 47 

 Center for Women Veterans 48 

 Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships 49 

 Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization 50 

 Office of Employment Discrimination Complaint Adjudication 52 

 Office of Advisory Committee Management 53 

 Office of Survivors Assistance 54 

 Federal Recovery Coordination Program 55 

 NGO Gateway Initiative Office 56 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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OVERVIEW OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), established as an independent agency under the 

President by Executive Order 5398 on July 21, 1930, was elevated to Cabinet level on March 15, 

1989 (Public Law No. 100-527). 

The Department's mission is to serve America's Veterans and their families with dignity and 

compassion and to be their principal advocate in ensuring that they receive medical care, benefits, 

social support, and lasting memorials promoting the health, welfare, and dignity of all Veterans in 

recognition of their service to this Nation. 

VA is the second largest Federal department and has over 278,000 employees. Among the many 

professions represented in the vast VA workforce are physicians, nurses, counselors, statisticians, 

architects, computer specialists, and attorneys. As advocates for Veterans and their families, the 

VA community is committed to providing the very best services with an attitude of caring and 

courtesy. 

VA comprises a Central Office (VACO), which is located in Washington, DC, and field facilities 

throughout the Nation administered by its three major line organizations: Veterans Health 

Administration, Veterans Benefits Administration, and National Cemetery Administration. 

Services and benefits are provided through a nationwide network of 153 hospitals, 956 outpatient 

clinics, 134 community living centers, 90 domiciliary residential rehabilitation treatment programs, 

232 Vet centers, 57 Veterans benefits regional offices, and 131 national cemeteries. 

The Secretary identified five broad strategic goals for VA to focus on as the means to improve 

services to Veterans and their families and to improve management in the Department. These 

goals are the components of the VA Strategic Plan: 

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

Restore the capability of Veterans with disabilities to the greatest extent possible, and improve 

the quality of their lives and that of their families. 

Ensure a smooth transition for Veterans from active military service to civilian life. 

Honor and serve Veterans in life, and memorialize them in death for their sacrifices on behalf of 

the Nation. 

Contribute to the public health, emergency management, socioeconomic well-being, and history 

of the Nation. 

Deliver world-class service to Veterans and their families through effective communication and 

management of people, technology, business processes, and financial resources. 
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THE VETERAN

NUMBERS: The estimated total Veteran population was 23,067,000 as of September 30, 2009. 

This included 7,653,000 Vietnam era Veterans, representing the single largest period-of-service 

component of the Veteran population. Gulf War era Veterans now comprise the second largest 

component, numbering 5,507,000. Korean conflict Veterans numbered 2,621,000 while World War 

II Veterans totaled 2,272,000. Veterans serving only in peacetime numbered 5,892,000, about 

one-in-four Veterans. (NOTE: The sum of the numbers by period does NOT add to the total 

because the period categories shown here are not mutually exclusive: an estimated 716,000 

Veterans served in two war periods and 81,000 Veterans served in three or more; these Veterans 

are counted in ALL the periods in which they served.) 

AGE: As of September 30, 2009, the median age of all Veterans was 61 years. Veterans under 

the age of 45 constituted 20 percent of the total, while those aged 45 to 64 represented 40 percent, 

and those 65 or older were also 40 percent of the total.

SEX: Female Veterans numbered 1,824,000 million, representing 7.9 percent of the total Veteran 

population. Roughly one-in-five resident U.S. males 18 years of age or older is a Veteran. 

FUTURE POPULATION: The Veteran population (23.1 million in 2009) is projected to decline to 

22.7 million by the year 2010, under currently expected armed forces strength and mortality rates. 

The population of Veterans aged 65 or older peaked at 10.0 million in 2000. It is projected to 

decline to 9.2 million in 2010 but rise again to about 9.6 million in 2013 as the Vietnam era cohort 

ages. The number of Veterans aged 85 or older is projected to increase 3 percent between 2009 

and 2010 from 1,348,000 to nearly 1,393,000. 

EDUCATION: Data from the American Community Survey (ACS) of 2008 shows that among the 

civilian U.S. population 25 years and over, Veterans had a higher percent completing high school 

or having some college, or an associates degree as the highest level attained than non-Veterans, 

while non-Veterans had a higher percent completing a bachelors or higher degree as well as a 

higher percent who were less than a high school graduate. 

INCOME: Data from the 2008 ACS shows that among the civilian population 18 years and over 

with income in the past 12 months, Veterans in general had higher personal income than nonVeterans. Specifically, the median personal income of Veterans overall was $36,800 compared to 

$25,700 for non-Veterans. The median for male Veterans was $37,300 compared to $32,400 for 

male non-Veterans, and was $29,700 for female Veterans compared to $20,900 for female nonVeterans of that age. 

(SOURCE: VA Office of Policy and Planning. VetPop2009.) 
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BUDGET SUMMARY

The Department’s budget for FY 2010 was enacted on December 16, 2009. VA was funded under 

Public Law No. 111-117, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2010. VA’s funding for FY 2010 is 

$15.7 billion above the FY 2009 enacted level. The following is a breakdown of the enacted FY 

2010 appropriations as compared to the FY 2009 enacted level: 

($ in Thousands) 

Program 2009 Enacted 2010 Enacted 

Medical * $43,502,903 $48,031,500 

Benefit $48,367,257 $58,423,626 

Memorial $ 230,000 $ 250,000 

Construction $ 1,881,916 $ 2,043,000 

IT $ 2,489,391 $ 3,307,000 

All Other $ 423,590 $ 506,500 

Total $96,895,057 $112,561,626 

* Includes Medical Care Collections. 

As enacted in 2010, annual appropriations are funding the Veterans Health Administration through 

an account structure comprised of four accounts: Medical Services, Medical Support and 

Compliance, Medical Facilities, and Medical and Prosthetic Research. 

Monetary benefits, memorial programs, and construction have separate appropriations. Remaining 

staff functions are funded out of the General Operating Expenses appropriation, with the exception 

of the Office of the Inspector General, which has its own appropriation. 

Over half of the VA budget, $56.6 billion, goes out in the form of checks to Veterans and their 

families (disability payments, income support, etc.). 

The remaining $56 billion is “discretionary”. Most of these funds ($48 billion out of $56 billion) 

support the medical care system. 
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ORGANIZATIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

Secretary

-------------

Deputy Secretary General Counsel

Board of Veterans’

Appeals

Inspector General

Acquisition, Logistics, 

and Construction

Chief of Staff

Office of the

Secretary

Veterans Benefits 

Administration

Veterans Health 

Administration

National Cemetery 

Administration

Assistant 

Secretary for

Congressional

and Legislative 

Affairs

Assistant 

Secretary for

Public and

Intergovernmental

Affairs

Assistant 

Secretary for 

Information and

Technology

Assistant 

Secretary for

Human 

Resources and

Administration

Assistant 

Secretary for 

Management

Assistant 

Secretary for 

Policy and 

Planning

Assistant 

Secretary for

Operations, 

Security and 

Preparedness

Center for Women Veterans

Center for Minority Veterans

Office of Small and Disadvantaged

Business Utilization

Office of Employment Discrimination 

Complaint Adjudication

Center for Faith-Based and

Neighborhood Partnerships

Advisory Committee Management 

Office

Veterans Service Organization

Liaison

Federal Recovery Coordination 

Office

Office of Survivors Assistance

NGO Gateway Initiative Office

The Secretary of Veterans Affairs is a member of the President’s cabinet, serving as the chief 

advisor to the President on Veterans' affairs. As the head of the Federal government’s second 

largest department, the Secretary is responsible for a $96 billion budget used to provide a 

nationwide system of health care services, benefits programs, and national cemeteries for 

America’s Veterans. The Secretary sets policies governing the Department’s operations, defines its 

basic organizational structure, and maintains favorable relations with organizations, groups, and 

individuals interested in Veterans' affairs. 

The Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs is second in command, serving as the Department’s 

Chief Operating Officer. The Deputy Secretary directs the policy and operations of the Department 

and provides broad direction to the Department’s 278,000 employees through the administrations 

and staff offices, ensuring coordinated action and conformance with the Secretary’s directives. The 

Deputy Secretary chairs the Department’s governance process through the Strategic Management 

Council and leads the Business Oversight Board and Capital Investment Board. 

Administrations and Staff Offices: The Department includes 3 administrations that provide for 

the delivery of services and benefits, 7 assistant secretaries who advise and support the Secretary 

and the administrations, and 14 staff offices that provide specific assistance to the Secretary. 

The three administrations are Veterans Health Administration, Veterans Benefits 

Administration, and National Cemetery Administration. The head of each administration 

reports to the Secretary through the Deputy Secretary. These administrations give centralized 

program direction to field facilities that provide diverse program services to Veterans and their 

families. Further, each administration has Central Office components that support the 

administration's operations. This organizational structure reflects a basic management approach of 

centralized policy direction, complemented by consistent decentralized execution. 
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The seven assistant secretaries serve as the principal staff advisors to the Secretary and Deputy 

Secretary and oversee or administer programs in their respective areas of responsibility. 

3⁄4 The Assistant Secretary for Management serves as the Department's Chief Budget Officer, 

Chief Financial Officer, and Senior Real Property Officer. The Assistant Secretary is 

responsible for financial management, budget administration, resources planning, and 

monitoring the development and implementation of VA’s performance measures. The 

Assistant Secretary serves as the Department's principal advisor for budget, fiscal, capital and 

green program management (energy, environment, transportation/fleet, and sustainability) 

policy, and supports the VA governance bodies with regard to capital asset portfolio 

management and implementing the strategic capital asset planning process. 

3⁄4 The Assistant Secretary for Information and Technology serves as the Chief Information 

Officer (CIO) for the Department. As the CIO, the Assistant Secretary is the principal advisor to 

the Secretary on matters relating to information and technology management in the 

Department as delineated in Public Law No. 104-106, the Clinger-Cohen Act; the Paperwork 

Reduction Act, Chapter 35 of Title 44 United States Code; and any other associated legislated 

or regulatory media. 

3⁄4 The Assistant Secretary for Policy and Planning is responsible for the Secretary's policy 

analysis and planning processes and their integration into the Department's Strategic 

Management Process. The Assistant Secretary's functions entail responsibility for performing 

Department-level policy analyses and development, program evaluations, strategic planning, 

quality improvement, actuarial studies and assessments, Veterans' demographics, 

VA/Department of Defense (DoD) coordination services, and statistical analyses. The 

Assistant Secretary is responsible for the Nation's official estimates and projections of the 

Veteran population and the National Survey of Veterans, Active Duty Service Members, 

Activated National Guard and Reserve Members, Family Members, and Survivors. 

3⁄4 The Assistant Secretary for Operations, Security, and Preparedness is the principal 

advisor to the Secretary and Deputy Secretary on VA’s capability and readiness to continue 

services to Veterans and their families, respond to contingency support missions to the DoD 

and other Federal agencies engaged in emergency response activities and respond effectively 

during national emergencies. 

3⁄4 The Assistant Secretary for Human Resources and Administration is responsible for 

providing VA-wide responsibilities to such programs as human resources management, 

diversity and inclusion, discrimination complaint resolution, labor-management relations, VA’s 

Learning University, corporate senior executive management, and general administrative 

support (primarily services to VACO). The Assistant Secretary serves as the Department's 

Designated Agency Safety and Health Official and is responsible for administering the 

Occupational Safety and Health and Workers’ Compensation programs. The Assistant 

Secretary also serves as the Department’s Chief Human Capital Officer, advising and assisting 

the Secretary in carrying out VA’s responsibilities for selecting, developing, training, and 

managing a high quality workforce in accordance with merit systems principles. 
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3⁄4 The Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs develops, maintains, and 

communicates the Department’s message through media relations and public, 

intergovernmental, and Veteran engagement to empower Veterans and their families. The 

Assistant Secretary oversees the Department’s communications with Veterans, the general 

public, VA employees, and the news media. The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Public 

and Intergovernmental Affairs works to build confidence in the VA and its readiness to serve 

America’s Veterans of all generations. 

3⁄4 The Assistant Secretary for Congressional and Legislative Affairs serves as the principal 

advisor to the Secretary and Deputy Secretary concerning all legislative and congressional 

liaison matters and has overall responsibility for the plans, policies, goals, and direction of the 

Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs. The Assistant Secretary is the principal 

coordinator of VA’s legislative program development, ensures departmental compliances with 

congressionally mandated reports and serves as the point-of-contact with the Government 

Accountability Office. 

The 14 staff offices that report directly to the Secretary or Deputy Secretary include: General 

Counsel; Inspector General; Board of Veterans' Appeals; Veterans Service Organizations 

Liaison; Center for Minority Veterans; Center for Women Veterans; Center for Faith-Based 

and Neighborhood Partnerships; NGO Gateway Initiative Office; Office of Small and 

Disadvantaged Business Utilization; Office of Employment Discrimination Complaint 

Adjudication; Office of Advisory Committee Management; Office of Acquisition, Logistics, 

and Construction; Office of Survivors' Assistance; and the Federal Recovery Coordination 

Program.
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VETERANS HEALTH ADMINISTRATION

Under Secretary for Health

Principal Deputy 

Under Secretary for Health

ADUSH for Clinical & 

Organizational Support

ADUSH for Operations 

and Management

Director of Network 

Support

VSSC

Chief Patient Care Services

Officer

Chief Research & 

Development Officer

Chief Public Health & 

Environm. Hazards Officer

Chief Academic Affiliations

Officer

Chief Readjustment 

Counseling Officer

Chief Employee Education

System Officer

ADUSH for

Policy & Planning

Chief Health Information 

Officer

Chief Nursing Officer

Chief Financial Officer

DUSH for Operations 

& Management

Medical Inspector

Chief Officer,

Chief Quality & Office of Research Oversight

Performance Officer

Chief Patient Safety

Officer

ADUSH for Quality & Safety

Chief of Staff

Director, Mgmt. Review Service

Director, National Center for 

Organization Development

Chief Ethics in Health Care

Officer

Chief Compliance &

Business Integrity Officer

Chief Communications

Officer

Chief Workforce Mgmt.

& Consulting Officer

Chief Legislative, 

Regulatory & 

Intergovernmental Affairs 

Officer

Chief Business Officer

21 VISN Directors

Chief Procurement & 

Logistics Officer

Director, Veterans 

Canteen Service

In 2009, the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) provided health care for nearly 6 million 

Veterans. VHA is among the largest providers of health professional training in the world; operates 

one of the largest and most effective research organizations in the United States; is a principal 

Federal asset for providing medical assistance in major disasters; and serves as the largest directcare provider for homeless citizens in the United States. 

Today’s VHA provides care at more than 1,400 sites throughout the country, employs a staff of 

255,000, and maintains affiliations with 107 academic health systems. More than 65 percent of all 

physicians in the U.S. today have trained in VA facilities. 

In the past 15 years, VHA reinvented itself into a model health care system offering the “Best Care 

Anywhere,”1

 winning accolades from Time, U.S. News & World Report, Harvard University, etc. In 

2010, VA intends to continue transforming to a more Veteran-centric model of patient care. VHA’s 

unprecedented transformation began with fundamental changes to management and structure. In 

1995, VHA established 22 regional networks (now 21) and charged each one with conducting daily 

operations and decisions affecting hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, and Vet Centers located 

within their regions. These regional networks (called Veterans Integrated Service Networks, or 

VISNs) remain the fundamental units for managing funding and ensuring accountability. VISNs 

were a bold move to decentralize VHA’s bureaucracy, eliminating layers of administration and 

bringing staff closer to patient care. 

Since 1995, VHA also changed the nature of service provided. Like private health care, VHA 

moved from an inpatient model of care, characterized by a limited number of specialized facilities 

that often were far from a Veteran’s home, to an outpatient model in which more than 1,400 sites 

provide care in communities where Veterans live throughout the United States. 

 

1

 “Best Care Anywhere Why VA Health Care is Better than Yours,” Phillip Longman, Pollipoint Press LLC, 

Copyright 2007. 
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Fundamentally, VHA transformed itself from a collection of “safety net” hospitals to a health system 

focused on health promotion and disease prevention. More than 650 community-based outpatient 

clinics have been established since 1995, bringing the total number of community and facility 

based outpatient clinics to 956 as of December 31, 2009. The ratio of outpatient visits to inpatient 

admissions in 1995 was 29 to 1; it now exceeds 100 to 1 - and we now have more than one million 

ambulatory care encounters each week. 

Restructuring the organization was just the beginning. VHA needed a way to make accountability, 

quality and safety non-negotiable standards for Veterans’ care. Through impressive technology, 

thorough training and intense inspection, VHA quantifies care delivery with an aggressive use of 

performance measurements for field and headquarters managers. These measurements have led 

to a consistent application of evidence-based guidelines in medicine that systemize the best 

practices in health care to the benefit of every Veteran in the Nation. 

Measuring performance has challenged VHA to deliver excellent health care. Information 

technology supports that challenge. We use technology to more readily and accurately process 

and make decisions based on clinical and administrative information, to automate processes 

formerly done manually, to deliver care across long distances, to train staff, and to improve quality 

by reducing chances for human errors. 

In 2004, President Bush cited our system as a model for the entire health care industry in moving 

towards his goal of providing most Americans with computerized health records within the next 10 

years. In 2010, a study reported in the public health journal “Health Affairs” found that VA 

investments in health information technology were directly related to improvements in quality of 

care and potentially produced $3.09 billion in net value over the 10-year period studied (1997-

2007). President Obama also hailed VA’s computerized patient record system in 2010 and the 

Department of Health and Human Services launched Health IT beacon communities in order to 

emulate some of VA’s success and savings. The Veterans Health Information Systems and 

Technology Architecture (VistA) is a single, integrated system for health care providers serving all 

VA hospitals, nursing homes, outpatient clinics and Vet Centers. The Computerized Patient 

Record System (CPRS) is VistA's flagship and allows providers to update a patient’s medical 

history, review any test results, submit orders, and access patient health information from any VA 

medical center or clinic. The system is accessible across all settings – inpatient, outpatient, 

operating rooms, emergency rooms, long-term care, and even for home care providers. 

VistA has virtually eliminated medical errors caused by illegible handwriting. Automated allergy 

alerts and other error checks prevent potentially dangerous treatments from being ordered. The 

use of bar code technology on all medications and on the patient’s wristband ensures that the right 

patient receives the right medication, in the right dosage, administered by the right person, at the 

right time. 

VistA imaging, another component of VistA, gives VHA the ability to capture and display a wide 

variety of medical images as part of the patient’s electronic health record. VistA imaging produces 

a multimedia, online patient record integrating traditional medical chart information with medical 

images of all kinds, including x-rays, pathology slides, video views, scanned documents, cardiology 

exam results, wound photos, dental images, and endoscopies. Like all components of VistA, this 

technology is available at every VA hospital. 
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One focus for VHA’s new technologies is improving the coordination of patient care, so that care is 

delivered seamlessly across all environments, from hospital to outpatient to home. Another focus 

is to support patients’ ability to successfully manage their health in their own homes. VHA has also 

pushed to make care accessible for rural and disabled patients who can’t easily visit clinics. To that 

end, VHA conducts more than 400,000 consultations annually via telemedicine. This technology 

provides in-home medical care via computer and other special devices for the Veteran patient’s 

ultimate convenience. Telemedicine also is being used in radiology, mental health, cardiology, 

pathology, dermatology, and in-home care teleconsultations for spinal cord injury patients and for 

patients with other chronic conditions. 

Guided by our mission of providing exceptional health care that improves Veterans’ health and 

well-being, VHA also has become a leader in patient safety. Our system’s guiding principles are 

voluntary participation, confidentiality protection, and non-punitive reporting. These principles help 

VHA develop better systems to eliminate errors, while retaining a work force that is focused on 

finding best practices and surefire solutions to medical problems. 

Through affiliations with University Schools of Medicine, every year nearly 34,000 medical 

residents and 19,000 medical students receive training at VHA. VHA’s robust training program is 

critical in recruiting and retaining the highest quality staff. It enables new health professionals 

throughout the nation to receive training in state-of-the-art care, including patient safety programs, 

quality measurement and electronic health records. 

VHA’s long tradition of medical research has given the world many breakthroughs, such as the 

cardiac pacemaker, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT) scanner, liver 

transplantation, and the nicotine patch. Recently, VHA added to this scientific legacy through 

achievements including a vaccine that significantly reduced the incidence of shingles in clinical 

trials and the establishment of a new center to adapt technologies for the special needs of 

Veterans with spinal cord injury and limb loss. Ongoing studies include early success in deep 

brain stimulation for Parkinson's patients, the development of a robotic arm for stroke rehabilitation, 

a brain computer interface for patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), and new 

treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. 

Throughout the years, VHA has established special programs and centers to focus on emerging 

research and clinical needs, such as the National Center for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders and 

our Blind Rehabilitation Service. A major initiative for VHA is providing care for servicemen and 

women returning from Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) - 

especially those with multiple, major injuries. In 2005, VHA established the Polytrauma System of 

Care. Four Polytrauma Centers throughout the country serve as regional flagship facilities for the 

system to bring together expertise and provide multidisciplinary recovery and rehabilitation services 

for service members and Veterans who were badly injured in our Nation’s newest war. A fifth 

center is planned for San Antonio, Texas. 

Polytrauma is one of several “signature injuries” with which Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan are 

returning home. The most common health problems of these Veterans are musculoskeletal 

ailments, principally joint and back disorders. Since FY 2002 through the fourth quarter of 

FY 2009, 46 percent of the OEF/OIF Veterans the VA has seen have received a preliminary 

diagnosis of a possible mental health condition, and 23 percent received a preliminary diagnosis of 

possible Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). VA screens returning OEF/OIF Veterans for 

PTSD, and for mild traumatic brain injuries (TBI), or concussions, as well. Today, approximately 9 

percent of the patients who receive VA health care are Veterans of the current conflicts. 
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VHA is aggressively preparing, not only for today, but for tomorrow. VHA is embarking on yet 

another transformation to put the patient at the center of care and seamlessly coordinate that care 

beyond the hospital and clinic to the patient’s home, workplace, and community. Through the 

Patient-Centered Medical Home model, Veterans will receive a dedicated team of primary care 

clinicians they will learn to know, trust and team with to manage their health care. 

Second, to reinforce the new care model, we are developing training models for the 21st Century 

that cultivate a new role for physicians, that of a team player involved in many relationships with 

non-physician health professionals, as well with other physicians. New training models also 

address the need to develop a system that encourages optimal care and establishes new rules and 

ways of relating for health professionals within the system. For example, VHA’s patient safety 

training promotes prevention and early reporting of risks, not punishment for errors. These new 

education models also emphasize continuous, rather than periodic, learning through the Internet 

and other information channels. 

Third, VHA continues to work on new technologies, such as medical devices that enhance current 

capabilities by directly inputting information from medical tests into computer-based records. And 

VHA is investigating the potential of genomic medicine to anticipate health needs and outcomes 

and to provide truly personalized health care. 

VHA’s greater understanding of various illnesses will contribute to moving care further out of 

hospitals. For example, VHA developed Myhealthvet, an online health journal patients subscribe 

to that gives Veterans secure access to their own medical records, helps them learn about and 

manage chronic illnesses, chart their own progress, order prescription refills, and even provides 

appointment reminders. 

VA’s Under Secretary for Health has established a clear vision for VHA to be patient-centered; 

characterized by team care; continuously improving itself; and evidenced-based. VHA will create a 

culture where Veterans and their families are and feel treated with compassion and genuine 

respect. Additionally, VA will ensure easy communication with their providers as well as 

coordination and levels of care across different sites. Veterans and their families will know that 

VHA is truly a single integrated system of care. These interdisciplinary teams will view patients, 

families and internal customers as members of the team and actively seek their input to work 

collaboratively for the Veteran. VHA will strengthen its commitment to continuous improvement as 

a core operating principle, understanding that “improving our work is our work.” In this way, VHA 

will contribute to the transformation of VA to better serve the Veterans of the 21st Century. VHA will 

provide exemplary health care which meets the needs, values and preferences of Veterans and 

their families. 
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VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION

Under Secretary for Benefits

Chief Financial Officer

Chief of Staff

Congressional Affairs

Public Affairs

Executive Review

Office of Performance

Analysis and Integrity

Associate Deputy Under

Secretary for Field Operations

Eastern Area

Detroit

Southern Area

Nashville

Central Area

Muskogee

Western Area

Phoenix

Office of Communications &

Case Management

Records Management

Center

Associate Deputy Under

Secretary for 

Policy and Program Mgmt.

Compensation and

Pension Service

Education Service

Loan Guaranty

Service

Vocational

Rehabilitation and

Employment Service

Insurance Service

Associate Deputy Under

Secretary for Management

Office of

Human Resources

Office of Facilities,

Access & Administration

Office of Diversity 

Management & EEO

Office of Employee

Development & Training

Acquisition Staff

Appeals Management

Center

Office of Business

Process Integration

Deputy Under Secretary 

for Benefits

57 Regional Offices

Benefits Assistance Service

The Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) is responsible for administering the Department’s 

programs that provide financial and other forms of assistance to Veterans, their dependents, and 

survivors. Major benefits include Veterans’ compensation, Veterans’ pension, survivors’ benefits, 

rehabilitation and employment assistance, education assistance, home loan guaranties, and life 

insurance coverage. 

VBA MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE

The following summarizes the organizational elements and functions within VBA Headquarters. 

The Associate Deputy Under Secretary for Policy and Program Management (ADUSPPM)

has oversight responsibility for the management of VBA’s six Services: Compensation and 

Pension, Education, Loan Guaranty, Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment, Insurance, and 

Benefits Assistance. (For program descriptions, see “VBA Benefit Programs” on Page 13.) 

The Associate Deputy Under Secretary for Field Operations (ADUSFO) has oversight 

responsibility for the management of the field organization, the Records Management Center 

(RMC), and the Appeals Management Center (AMC). Within the field, 57 regional offices 

administer VBA’s benefit programs to include Compensation and Pension, Vocational 

Rehabilitation and Employment Loan Guaranty, Education, and Insurance. These regional offices 

are aligned under four Area Directors who report directly to the ADUSFO. 
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The Associate Deputy Under Secretary for Management (ADUSM) has oversight responsibility 

for five staff offices that manage, coordinate and integrate programs to support VBA business lines 

and regional office operations. 

3⁄4 The Office of Human Resources has responsibility for human resource functions within VBA 

headquarters. These include labor relations, employee relations, employee compensation and 

benefits, recruitment and classification, and human resources policy development and 

workforce planning. The office is also responsible for overall policy and directions governing 

human resources functions administered at the four VBA Human Resource Centers and the 

regional offices. 

3⁄4 The Office of Diversity Management and Equal Employment Opportunity is responsible for 

EEO programs and functions, which include diversity management and affirmative 

employment, employee discrimination complaint processing, complaint investigations for 

Federally Assisted Programs, facilitation of an Alternative Dispute Resolution Program, 

Summer Internship Program, Special Emphasis Program, and EEO and Diversity training. 

3⁄4 The Office of Facilities, Access and Administration (OFAA) is responsible for facilities 

management, access management, emergency preparedness, web management, and 

nationwide administrative support functions in support of the President’s T21 Initiatives. OFAA 

manages a multi-million dollar annual budget to successfully develop policies and execute 

strategic, annual and multi-year plans for assigned program areas. This strategy includes 

allocating minor construction funds for building, leasing, and renovating facilities that are stateof-the-art and designed with efficiency, flexibility and cost effectiveness to quickly meet the 

emerging and changing needs of Veterans. 

3⁄4 The Office of Employee Development and Training is responsible for establishing VBA training 

policies, providing leadership development programs, and coordinating headquarters activities 

for the preparation, delivery, and evaluation of technical and non-technical training throughout 

VBA. Functions include synchronization of VBA and departmental training initiatives, 

management of the technical training delivery system TPSS (Technical and Performance 

Support System) in support of the business lines, and the administration of nationwide training 

programs via instructor-led resident classes and lessons delivered via satellite, computer 

desktop delivery, and video teleconferencing. 

3⁄4 The Acquisition Liaison Staff is responsible for performing necessary actions to support the 

acquisition of goods and services for all VBA services, staffs, and regional offices. The staff 

also provides liaison and coordination support to Federal oversight agencies such as 

Congress, General Accountability Office, and the Office of Management and Budget. 

The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) is fully responsible for all aspects of the formulation, 

presentation, defense, and execution of VBA’s benefits and general operating expense budgets, 

totaling over $77 billion in obligations. This responsibility includes managing and directing VBA’s 

financial accounting and reporting, as well as policy and systems development. 

The Office of Business Process Integration (OBPI) is responsible for ensuring VBA's strategic 

business needs and requirements are properly documented, integrated, and communicated both 

internally and externally. OBPI facilitates the design, development, and implementation of 

business systems and information technology to enhance claims processing within VBA. 
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The Office of Performance Analysis and Integrity (OPA&I) is responsible for conducting data 

analyses and studies leading to improved processes and systems for benefits delivery. 

VBA BENEFIT PROGRAMS

Compensation and Pension Programs provide direct payments to Veterans, dependents, and 

survivors as a result of the veteran’s service-connected disability or because of financial need. 

3⁄4 Disability Compensation is a monetary benefit paid to Veterans with disabilities that are the 

result of a disease or injury incurred or aggravated during active military service. The benefit 

amount is graduated according to the degree of the veteran’s disability on a scale from 10 

percent to 100 percent (in increments of 10 percent). 

3⁄4 Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) benefits are generally payable to the 

survivors of servicemembers who died while on active duty or survivors of Veterans who died 

from their service-connected disabilities. 

3⁄4 Pension programs are designed to provide income support to Veterans with wartime service 

and their families for a nonservice-connected disability or death. These programs are for lowincome Veterans and survivors. 

3⁄4 Burial and Interment Allowances are payable for certain Veterans. A higher rate of burial 

allowance applies if the Veteran’s death is service-connected. 

3⁄4 Spina Bifida Monthly Allowance under 38 U.S.C. 1805 is provided for children born with Spina 

Bifida who are children of individuals who served in the Republic of Vietnam during the 

Vietnam Era or served in or near the demilitarization zone in Korea during the period 

September 1, 1967, through August 31, 1971. Payment is made at one of three levels and is 

based on degree of disability suffered by the child. 

3⁄4 Children of Women Vietnam Veterans Born with Certain Defects This program provides a 

monetary allowance, healthcare, and vocational training benefits to eligible children born to 

women who served in the Republic of Vietnam during the period beginning on February 28, 

1961, and ending May 7, 1975, if they suffer from certain covered birth defects. VA identifies 

the birth defects as those that are associated with the service of the mother in Vietnam and 

result in permanent physical or mental disability. 

Education Programs provide resources to Veterans, servicepersons, reservists, and certain 

Veterans’ dependents to help with readjustment and restore educational opportunities lost because 

of service to the country, to extend benefits of higher education to qualified persons who may not 

otherwise be able to afford it, to aid in military recruitment and the retention of highly qualified 

personnel, to encourage membership in the Selected Reserve, and to enhance the national 

workforce. Details may be found at www.gibill.va.gov. 

3⁄4 Post-Vietnam Era Veterans Educational Assistance Program (VEAP) is available for eligible 

Veterans who entered active duty between January 1, 1977, and June 30, 1985. Benefits and 

entitlement are determined by the contributions paid while on active duty and Veterans have 

10 years after separation in which to use the benefit. 
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3⁄4 Montgomery GI Bill – Active Duty (MGIB) provides a program of education benefits that may 

be used while on active duty or after separation. There are several distinct eligibility 

categories. Generally a Veteran will receive 36 months of entitlement and has 10 years after 

separation to use the benefit. 

3⁄4 Montgomery GI Bill – Selected Reserve (MGIB-SR) is a program funded and managed by the 

Department of Defense (DoD) and is available to members of the Selected Reserve. VA 

administers this program but DoD determines the member’s eligibility. Generally a qualified 

member of the Reserve will receive 36 months of entitlement and will have 14 years in which 

to use the benefit. 

3⁄4 Reservists Educational Assistance Program (REAP) is a program funded and managed by 

DoD and is available to members of the Selected or Ready Reserve who are called to active 

duty to support contingency operations. VA administers this program but DoD determines the 

member’s eligibility. Generally a qualified member of the Selected or Ready Reserve will 

receive 36 months of entitlement and will be able to use the benefit as long as he or she 

remains in the Selected or Ready Reserve. 

3⁄4 National Call to Service is a program of education benefits that may be used while on active 

duty or after separation. The person must have enlisted on or after October 1, 2003, under the 

National Call to Service program and selected one of the two education incentives provided by 

that program. A Veteran will receive education benefits based on the education initiative 

selected. These are either (1) education benefits of up to 12 months of MGIB benefits (the 3-

year rate) or (2) education benefits of up to 36 months of the MGIB benefits (half the 2-year 

rate). 

3⁄4 Dependents Educational Assistance Program (DEA) is designed to assist dependents of 

Veterans who (1) have been determined to be 100 percent permanently and totally disabled 

due to a service connected condition, (2) died due to a service-connected condition, or (3) died 

while on active duty. Dependents typically receive 45 months of eligibility. The criteria for 

using this benefit is shown below: 

9 Children have 8 years to use this benefit. 

9 A spouse of a living Veteran has 10 years to use this benefit. 

9 A surviving spouse of a Veteran who died with a 100 percent service-connected 

condition has 10 years to use this benefit. 

9 A surviving spouse of a Veteran who died on active duty has 20 years to use this benefit. 

3⁄4 Post-9/11 Educational Assistance Program (Post 9/11-GI Bill) is a new education assistance 

program for certain individuals with a qualifying period of active duty service after 

September 10, 2001. Individuals will be eligible for educational assistance in the form of 

tuition and fees, a monthly housing allowance, and a books and supplies stipend. The new 

program also provides certain individuals the opportunity to transfer unused educational 

benefits to their spouses and children. The new program is effective August 1, 2009. The 

Post-9/11 GI Bill also includes the Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Frye Scholarship 

Program for the children of servicemembers who died while on active duty. 
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The Loan Guaranty Program provides assistance to Veterans, certain spouses, and 

servicemembers to enable them to buy and retain homes. Assistance is provided through VA’s 

partial guaranty of loans made by private lenders in lieu of the substantial down payment and 

private mortgage insurance required in conventional mortgage transactions. This protection 

means that in most cases qualified Veterans can obtain a loan without making a down payment. 

Also, the Loan Guaranty Program offers the following: 

3⁄4 Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) Grants are available to Veterans that have specific serviceconnected disabilities for the purpose of constructing an adapted dwelling or modifying an 

existing dwelling to meet the Veterans needs. The goal of the SAH Program is to provide a 

barrier-free living environment that affords the Veterans a level of independent living he or she 

may not have otherwise enjoyed. 

3⁄4 Native American Direct Home Loans are available to eligible Native American Veterans and, in 

certain circumstances, spouses who wish to purchase or construct a home on trust lands. 

These loans are direct loans made by the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

3⁄4 Servicing Assistance provides help for borrowers having difficulty in making their loan 

payments. The assistance can take several forms but the goal is to try and keep the Veteran 

in the property and avoid foreclosure. 

The Insurance Programs were created to provide life insurance at a “standard” premium rate to 

members of the armed forces who are exposed to the extra hazards of military service. Veterans 

are eligible to maintain their VA life insurance following discharge. In general, a new program was 

created for each wartime period since World War I. There are four life insurance programs that still 

issue coverage as well as a program of traumatic injury coverage: 

3⁄4 Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (SGLI) – Provides up to $400,000 of life insurance 

coverage to active-duty members of the Uniformed Services and members of the Reserves, 

cadets and midshipmen of the four service academies, members of the Reserve Officer 

Training Corps, and members who volunteer for assignment to a mobilization category in the 

Individual Ready Reserve. SGLI also offers Family Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance 

(FSGLI) for up to $100,000 in coverage for a servicemember’s spouse, if the servicemember is 

on active duty or a member of the Ready Reserve of a uniformed service. All dependent 

children are automatically insured for $10,000 at no charge. 

3⁄4 Veterans’ Group Life Insurance (VGLI) – Individuals who separate from service with SGLI 

coverage can convert their coverage to VGLI, regardless of health, by submitting an 

application with the first month’s premium within 120 days of discharge. After 120 days, the 

individual may still be granted VGLI provided evidence of insurability is submitted within oneyear of the end of the 120-day period. If the member is totally disabled at separation, SGLI 

coverage continues for free for two years, after which VGLI can be granted without evidence of 

insurability. 

3⁄4 Service-Disabled Veterans Insurance (SDVI) – A Veteran who has a VA service-connected 

disability rating but is otherwise in good health may apply for life insurance coverage of up to 

$10,000 within two years from the date of being notified by VA of the service-connected status. 

This insurance is limited to Veterans who left service after April 24, 1951. If the Veteran is 

totally disabled, premiums are waived, and he or she may apply for an additional $20,000 of 

coverage under this program. 
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3⁄4 Veterans Mortgage Life Insurance (VMLI) – Mortgage life insurance protection for up to 

$90,000 is available to severely disabled Veterans who receive a SAH Grant. 

3⁄4 Servicemembers' Traumatic Injury Protection (TSGLI) - is a rider to the SGLI policies and 

provides automatic traumatic injury coverage to all servicemembers under SGLI, effective 

December 1, 2005. It provides for payment between $25,000 and $100,000 (depending on 

the type of injury) to SGLI members who sustain a traumatic injury that results in certain 

severe losses. The benefit is retroactive to October 7, 2001, if the loss was a direct result of 

injuries incurred in Operations Enduring Freedom or Iraqi Freedom. 

The Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) Program helps servicemembers and 

Veterans with service-connected disabilities prepare for, find, and keep suitable jobs. For Veterans 

with service-connected disabilities so severe that they cannot immediately consider work, VR&E 

offers services to improve their ability to live as independently as possible. Vocational 

rehabilitation services include a vocational evaluation (i.e. assessment of interests, aptitudes, and 

abilities), vocational counseling and planning, employment services (i.e. job seeking skills and job 

placement assistance), training for suitable employment, supportive rehabilitation services, and 

independent living services. Generally, a Veteran must complete a program of rehabilitation 

services within 12 years from the date of VA notification of entitlement to service-connected 

disability compensation. This period may be deferred or extended if a medical condition prevents 

the Veteran from pursuing rehabilitation services for a period of time, or if the Veteran has a 

serious employment handicap. 

Vocational and Educational Counseling - VR&E can also provide a wide range of vocational and 

educational counseling services to servicemembers still on active duty, as well as Veterans and 

dependents who are eligible for one of VA's educational benefit programs. These services are 

designed to help an individual choose a vocational direction and determine the course needed to 

achieve the chosen goal. Assistance may include interest and aptitude testing, occupational 

exploration, setting occupational goals, locating the right type of training program, and exploring 

educational or training facilities which might be utilized to achieve a vocational goal. 
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17

NATIONAL CEMETERY ADMINISTRATION

Under Secretary for 

Memorial Affairs

Deputy Under Secretary for

Memorial Affairs

Communications

Management

Service

Management

Support

Service

Office of 

Construction

Management

Office of

Finance and

Planning

Office of

Field Programs

State Cemetery

Grants Service

Logistics

Management

Service

Memorial Programs

Service (MPS)

3 MPS Processing

Centers

5 Memorial Service

Networks

131 National

Cemeteries

NCA Human 

Resources Center

NCA National

Training Center

NCA National

Scheduling Center

IT and Business

Requirement 

Service

First Notice of

Death Office

The National Cemetery Administration (NCA) operates 131 national cemeteries in the United States 

and Puerto Rico, together with oversight/management of 33 soldiers' lots, confederate cemeteries, 

and monument sites. NCA's mission is to honor our Nation’s Veterans with final resting places in 

national shrines and with lasting tributes that commemorate their service to our Nation. This 

mission is accomplished through four major program areas: 

3⁄4 Providing for the interment of eligible service members, Veterans, reservists, National Guard 

members, and eligible family members in national cemeteries. More than 106,000 Veterans 

and eligible family members were buried in national cemeteries in FY 2009. More than 3.5 

million Veterans, spouses, and dependents are buried in the system's nearly 7,900 acres of 

developed land. NCA maintains national cemeteries as national shrines. 

3⁄4 Furnishing headstones and markers for the graves of Veterans throughout the United States 

and the world. In FY 2009, NCA furnished more than 350,000 headstones, markers, and 

inscriptions as lasting memorials to our Nation’s Veterans. NCA furnishes headstones and 

markers for the graves of veterans in national, state, and private cemeteries at no cost to the 

Veteran. 

3⁄4 Administering the State Cemetery Grants Program, which provides grants to states and tribal 

governments for establishing, expanding, and improving state Veterans' cemeteries. Since the 

program was established in 1978, 274 grants have been awarded, totaling over $389 million 

through FY 2009. The program provides Federal funding up to 100 percent of the cost of 

establishing, expanding, or improving state or tribal government Veterans cemeteries that 

complement NCA. There are currently 74 state Veterans cemeteries in 38 states throughout 

the Nation, including Guam and Saipan. In FY 2009, nearly 26,800 Veterans and dependents 

were buried in these cemeteries. 

3⁄4 Providing Presidential Memorial Certificates to Veterans' loved ones to honor the service of 

honorably discharged deceased service members or Veterans. In FY 2009, NCA issued more 

than 655,000 Presidential Memorial Certificates on behalf of the President. 
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18

ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR MANAGEMENT

Assistant Secretary

for Management

Deputy Assistant Secretary

for Budget

Office of Asset

Enterprise Management

Deputy Assistant Secretary

for Finance

Office of Business

Oversight

FLITE Program Office

The Assistant Secretary for Management oversees all resource requirements, development and 

implementation of agency performance measures, and financial management activities relating to 

VA programs and operations. Responsibility also includes a Departmental accounting and financial 

management system that provides for management, cost, budgeting, and accounting information. 

In addition, the office oversees the Department’s capital asset management activities and business 

oversight activities, including development and implementation of policies and regulations. 

OFFICE OF BUDGET

The Office of Budget is responsible for overseeing VA budget formulation, analyzing resource 

requirements, preparing and justifying budget submissions, and representing VA in budget 

deliberations with Congress and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This office monitors 

the financial execution of the budget, and the development and implementation of performance 

measures as defined in the Chief Financial Officers Act as well as the Government Performance 

and Results Act of 1993. This includes examining actual expenditures and performance with the 

approved operating budget plan. This office also prepares and submits the Department's annual 

Performance and Accountability Report to the President, members of Congress, and OMB. The 

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Budget serves as VA's Performance Improvement Officer and 

coordinates the performance management activities of the Department. 

OFFICE OF FINANCE

The Office of Finance is responsible for continually improving the quality of the Department’s 

financial services. The office maintains stewardship of Departmental resources and provides 

financial information on appropriations and general, revolving, special, and deposit funds for cost 

and obligation accounting. The Office of Finance establishes financial policy, systems and 

operating procedures for all Department financial entities, provides guidance on all aspects of 

financial management, provides audit readiness and remediation services, and directs and 

manages the Department’s financial operations and systems support. 

The office is responsible for the continued maintenance and update of VA’s central payroll and 

human resources system (Personnel and Accounting Integrated Data or PAID) and implementation 

of legislative and other mandated changes. The office leads VA's efforts to implement high-quality, 

cost-effective and operational improvements to PAID and related self-service applications. The 

office also maintains and updates VA’s corporate core accounting system, the Financial 

Management System (FMS). 
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19

The office completed VA’s efforts on payroll modernization (e-Payroll) in 2009. This effort 

standardizes, consolidates, and integrates Federal civilian payroll services and procedures. As a 

result of the Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM) alignment of VA with the Defense Finance 

and Accounting Service (DFAS), the Office of Finance, as VA’s primary liaison, works with all VA 

offices, DFAS, OPM, and OMB on plans for accomplishing the planned migration of VA’s payroll 

servicing. The office completed VA’s implementation of a new Web-based electronic travel system 

in concert with the Federal government’s E-Gov Travel Program in December 2007, and oversees 

system and program service enhancements. 

The Office of Finance is responsible for issuing VA’s quarterly and annual consolidated financial 

statements and providing external departmental financial reports to the Department of the 

Treasury, OMB, and Congress. It also establishes departmentwide standards and policies in 

financial management and reporting, cost accounting, cash management, debt collection, payroll 

and management controls. 

The Office of Finance also directs and manages the departmentwide travel and purchase card 

programs, and analyzes and oversees the performance and effectiveness of trusts established 

under VA’s enhanced-use leasing program. It is also responsible for VA financial operations at 

Central Office and the Financial Services Center in Austin, Texas, and debt collection operations 

provided by VA’s Debt Management Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. 

The Office of Finance also oversees the management and direction of VA’s Franchise Fund 

through its Franchise and Trust Fund Oversight Office. The Fund is comprised of the following 

business lines (Enterprise Centers): Austin Information Technology Center, Debt Management 

Center, Financial Services Center, Law Enforcement Training Center, Security and Investigations 

Center, and VA Records Center and Vault. These centers are authorized to sell common 

administrative services to VA and other Government agencies. The Enterprise Centers operate 

entirely on revenues earned from customers and receive no appropriated funding. 

OFFICE OF ASSET ENTERPRISE MANAGEMENT

The Office of Asset Enterprise Management (OAEM) is the corporate capital asset planning and 

portfolio management office for the Department. OAEM is a principal policy office and business 

advisor to the Assistant Secretary for Management and the Secretary, providing objective 

oversight and advice regarding the acquisition, management, and disposal of VA capital assets. 

The OAEM Director functions as the Real Property Officer on behalf of the Assistant Secretary 

for Management and as the Senior Sustainability Officer, the senior agency official for the 

Department’s green program management (energy, environment, transportation/fleet and 

sustainability). The office oversees capital asset activities to ensure (1) a consistent and 

cohesive departmental approach and (2) effective portfolio and asset performance management 

throughout the entire asset lifecycle. OAEM has primary responsibility for developing and 

promulgating the governance policies and principles, processes, decision-making and 

performance measurement systems related to the Department’s capital asset management. 

OAEM coordinates the Department's strategic capital investment planning process and chairs 

the VA Strategic Capital Investment Planning Panel. The office provides guidance, standards, 

and technical expertise with respect to individual investments, infrastructure-related programs, 

and initiatives. OAEM is also responsible for budget formulation, compiling and producing VA’s 

5-year Capital Plan for Major and Minor Construction programs; Asset Management Plan; 

Annual Energy Plan; and 5-Year Disposal Plan. 
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20

The size, scope, and complexity of OAEM’s responsibilities continue to expand. This office 

collaborates with VA's administrations on setting budgetary priorities to reflect both legislative 

intent and the strategic goals of the Department, coordinating the budget and planning process 

for construction programs. OAEM is responsible for oversight of VA’s enhanced-use leasing 

program and for leadership in major reuse initiatives such as the Site Review Initiative, 

Transitional Housing, Mission Driven Housing for Homeless Veterans, the Building Review and 

Reuse Initiative, and market-driven public/private partnerships. OAEM integrates and oversees 

VA's energy, environment, transportation/fleet, and sustainability management policies and 

programs, and chairs the VA Energy Management Task Force, Green Buildings Council, 

Environmental Task Force, and Fleet Management Task Force. The office serves on the 

Federal Real Property Council and its subgroups, chairs the VA Real Property Group, and 

participates on the OMB Real Property Performance Team. OAEM is responsible for crossorganizational initiatives internal and external to the Department, performance monitoring and 

benchmarking and reporting for improved real property/capital asset/portfolio management. 

OAEM is responsible for integrating asset management and governance at multiple levels, 

improving financial and analytic capability, and enabling better-informed decision-making.

Federal reporting requirements have increased, and OAEM has responded aggressively to meet 

additional mandates in the areas of real property, environment, transportation/fleet, and energy 

management, including energy costs and consumption. OAEM is responsible for the OMB 

scorecard reporting on real property, energy, transportation and environment. 

OFFICE OF BUSINESS OVERSIGHT

The Office of Business Oversight (OBO) has oversight responsibility for audit and review of the 

Department's finance, logistics, and capital asset management activities. The goals of the 

organization include improving internal audit coverage of field activities, ensuring consistent 

application of policy, procedures, and regulations, and ensuring the integrity of VA financial 

operations. The Director’s office is located in Washington, DC, and three supporting services -- 

Management Quality Assurance Service, Internal Controls Service, and Systems Quality 

Assurance Service – are located in Austin, Texas. 

The Management Quality Assurance Service performs internal audit reviews of the Department’s 

financial, logistics, and capital asset management activities and conducts financial analysis, 

monitoring, risk assessment and advisory services for VA's CFO. The Internal Controls Service 

coordinates reviews of internal controls over financial reporting required by Appendix A of OMB 

Circular A-123, Management’s Responsibility for Internal Control, and system reviews required 

under OMB Circular A-127, Financial Management Systems. These reviews include internal 

control assessments, remediation activities, and the preparation of the Department’s annual 

statement of assurance related to internal controls over financial reporting. The Systems Quality 

Assurance Service provides independent verification and validation of VA software development, 

specifically systems quality assurance and systems integration testing for enterprise financial 

systems. The Systems Quality Assurance Service is organizationally assigned to the Office of 

Information and Technology but works for OBO and the Assistant Secretary for Management under 

an agreement between the CFO and the CIO. 
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OBO is responsible for the VA Senior Assessment Team’s (SAT) conduct of business. The SAT, 

comprised of senior management representatives from VA and its three Administrations, provides 

oversight and accountability for the Department’s internal control over financial reporting. OBO 

brings significant issues and results to the SAT, such as the annual Statement of Assurance 

required by OMB Circular A-123, Appendix A, for the SAT’s approval and the Secretary’s 

signature. 

FINANCIAL AND LOGISTICS INTEGRATED TECHNOLOGY ENTERPRISE (FLITE)

PROGRAM OFFICE

The FLITE Program Office is responsible for a major transformational effort to modernize VA’s 

financial and asset management systems and improve VA’s financial accountability. The FLITE 

program is a multi-year phased approach and is comprised of three major components: the 

Strategic Asset Management (SAM) project for logistics and asset management activity, the 

Integrated Financial Accounting System (IFAS) project for financial management and procurement 

activity, and the FLITE Data Warehouse (FDW) for data management, storage, and reporting. 

The FLITE Program Office oversees and coordinates all aspects of the program, including systems 

engineering, organizational change management, training, program management, 

communications, and risk and investment management, and directs multi-disciplinary efforts of VA 

and contractor personnel. 

The FLITE program’s objectives are to implement accessible enterprise-level standardized 

business processes that result in increased efficiencies and enhanced internal controls; provide VA 

executives and managers with timely, transparent financial and asset management information to 

make and implement effective policy, management, stewardship and program decisions; and 

provide business data and information in a secure, shareable, open environment. When 

implemented nationwide, FLITE will deliver world-class service to Veterans through effective 

communication and management of people, technology, business processes and financial 

resources. 
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22

ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR INFORMATION AND TECHNOLOGY

Assistant Secretary for

Information & Technology

Ex. Dir., Quality, 

Performance & Oversight

DAS for IT Resource

Management

DCIO for Enterprise 

Development

DCIO for IT Enterprise

Strategy, Policy, Plans

& Programs

DAS for Information 

Protection & Risk 

Management

DCIO for Enterprise

Operations & Field

Development

Field Security Operations IT Comptroller

IT Capital Planning &

Investment Management

Asset Management

Program Quality

& Administration

Program Management

Software Engineering

Human Resources 

Career Development

Enterprise Architecture &

Innovation

IT Strategy

Business & Vendor 

Relationship Management

IT Programming, Mgmt.,

Assessment & Compliance

Field Operations and 

Development

Enterprise Engineering

Services

Field Business Services

Cyber Security

Risk Management &

Incident Response

Business Continuity

Privacy and Records

Management

Software Development

Principal DAS for Information

& Technology

VA/DoD

IPO

Help Desk Operations

Administrative

IT Financial Operations

Support

DoD/VA Single Electronic

Record POE

Corporate Data Center

Operations Operations

The Assistant Secretary for Information and Technology (AS/IT) is the Chief Information Officer 

(CIO) for the Department of Veterans Affairs and is the principal advisor to the Secretary on all 

matters relating to the management of VA’s information and technology (IT). The AS/IT is the 

single leadership authority for IT in VA. The Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Information 

and Technology (PDAS/IT) facilitates IT activities in the Department to improve the effectiveness of 

program operations and to assist line and staff organizations in the performance of their missions. 

The PDAS/IT is the senior advisor to the Assistant Secretary for all Department-wide IT, security 

and privacy matters including policy/budget formulation, planning, assessment of Department 

business requirements, acquisition, execution and oversight; internal and external coordination; 

and development and analysis of Department-level program data. 

The office is composed of six major organizational elements: Quality, Performance, and Oversight; 

Information Protection and Risk Management; IT Enterprise Strategy, Policy, Plans, and Programs; 

IT Resource Management; Enterprise Development; and Enterprise Operations and Field 

Development. 

OFFICE OF INFORMATION AND TECHNOLOGY

The Office of Information and Technology (OI&T) is the steward of VA’s IT assets and resources, 

and is responsible for ensuring the efficient and effective operation of VA’s IT Management System 

to meet mission requirements of the Secretary, Under Secretaries, Assistant Secretaries, and other 

key officials. The mission of OI&T is to provide and protect information necessary to enable 

excellence through client and customer service. OI&T represents VA’s IT program internally and 

externally to Congress, Office of Management and Budget (OMB), General Accountability Office 

(GAO), Office of Inspector General (OIG), Federal agencies, and interested parties. The role of the 

CIO and IT is defined in OMB Circular A-130 which implements the Clinger-Cohen Act. 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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23

The office supports VA’s highest priorities and robust requirements for data-driven decisionmaking, consistent services to clients and customers, collaboration with the Department of 

Defense, fiscal responsibility, and disciplined and rigorous planning and execution processes. The 

office of focused on maximizing employee productivity with the right skills, processes, and tools 

and managing interdependencies of initiatives, projects, and programs to meet rapidly changing 

client expectations and new legislative mandates in the 21st century. OI&T also supports VA’s 

Integrated Operating Center to provide situational awareness, monitoring, and reporting IT-related 

events that impact or may impact VA operations or VA’s ability to provide services to Veterans. 

OFFICE OF QUALITY, PERFORMANCE, AND OVERSIGHT

The Office of Quality, Performance, and Oversight (QP&O) advises the AS/IT and the PDAS/IT on 

complex and sensitive Department issues with IT implications as well as oversees daily operations 

to maintain a culture of quality performance and continuous improvements. The office administers 

the IT Leadership Board, which sets Department-wide information, security, and technology 

direction based upon business requirements and technology evolution. QP&O performs economic 

analysis, cost analysis, risk analysis, and business case reviews to provide independent 

assessments of initiatives, projects, and programs. The office is responsible for reviewing all IT 

policies and correspondence and provides management solutions to achieve optimum overall 

program balance in relationship to the Department’s mission. QP&O is also charged with 

Department-wide compliance in the areas of privacy, records management, information physical 

security, and cyber security as well as conformance to IT organizations’ policies and procedures. 

The office independently validates compliance with the Federal Information Security Management 

Act of 2002 and works collaboratively with VA administrations to proactively identify 

weaknesses, improve their processes, and eliminate significant vulnerabilities. 

OFFICE OF INFORMATION PROTECTION AND RISK MANAGEMENT

The Office of Information Protection and Risk Management (IPRM) serves our Veterans, their 

beneficiaries, employees and all VA stakeholders by ensuring the confidentiality, integrity and 

availability of VA sensitive information and information systems. IPRM develops and executes 

strategy, governance, policies, and procedures for information protection initiatives in the areas of 

cyber security, risk management, incident response, business continuity, critical infrastructure 

protection, privacy, FOIA, records management and training. IPRM ensures VA compliance with 

related federal and legislative mandates in the areas of information security, privacy, FOIA, and 

records management. IPRM continuously measures performance, assesses risk, and mitigates 

threats to enable VA’s business operations and support our mission of honoring America’s 

Veterans. 

OFFICE OF IT ENTERPRISE STRATEGY, POLICY, PLANS, AND PROGRAMS

The Office of IT Enterprise Strategy, Policy, Plans and Programs (ESPP&P) advises and assists 

the AS/IT in overseeing and directing the areas of IT strategy, plans, and programs for the 

Department. The office develops the Enterprise Architecture and IT Strategic Plan which 

addresses short and long-term IT goals, objectives, and performance measures necessary to 

support VA business lines. As Chair of the Programming and Long Term Issues Board, the office 

develops the IT Multi-Year Program which identifies major business initiatives that require IT 

support, as well as IT infrastructure needs over a two to four year time-frame. The office develops 

IT program management policies and standards; and through the conduct of program management 

reviews, milestone reviews, and operational analysis, the office monitors compliance with cost, 

schedule, and performance goals for major IT initiatives. The office is charged with working with 
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24

VA business lines to identify evolving business needs that require IT support, identifying service 

level standards for ongoing support, and resolving issues regarding IT support to VA businesses. 

OFFICE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

The Office of Information Technology Resource Management (ITRM) advises the AS/IT and other 

senior OI&T officials on all IT resources for financial management, human capital management, 

asset management, and acquisition activities. ITRM also chairs the Budget Near Term Issues 

Board in partnership with other VA organizations to executive funding IT priorities that support the 

Secretary’s goals and objectives. The office has primary responsibility for linking the budget 

process with IT initiatives, projects, and programs and is responsible for directing fiscal activities 

related to linking the budget process to all established IT operations and management initiatives 

enterprise-wide. The office is responsible for developing the strategic approach for human capital 

management initiatives that will lead to creating and building an internal cadre of it professionals 

who are enabled and prepared to effectively operate in the VA environment. ITRM serves as the 

liaison with other Federal departments and agencies that provide acquisition services, reviews and 

recommends approval for IT procurements through the IT Acquisition Request System, and works 

to ensure IT acquisitions meet environment standards and support small business goals. 

OFFICE OF ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT

The Office of Enterprise Development (OED) is responsible for all software application 

development activities within the Department to support VA initiatives, projects, and programs. 

Development consists of planning, developing or acquiring, and testing software applications to 

meet business requirements. OED provides day-to-day direction over all IT solutions for VA 

business lines, including establishing and overseeing development initiatives through their entire 

cycle and developing and maintaining architectural standards and ensuring applications are 

appropriately architected to those standards. 

OFFICE OF ENTERPRISE OPERATIONS AND FIELD DEVELOPMENT

The Office of Enterprise Operations and Field Development (EOFD) directs all operational and 

maintenance activities associated with VA’s IT environment on behalf of the AS/IT, including the 

management of budget and resources for field IT actvity. The office provides help desk support, 

system administration, field-based software development, network management, systems 

implementation, telecommunications, release and configuration management, and standardization 

and optimization from the earliest stages of system design, such as equipment, national level data 

systems and manages the delivery of operations services to over 1,000 VA facilities in geographic 

locations across the country and Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. 
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ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR POLICY AND PLANNING

Deputy Assistant Secretary

for Planning and Evaluation

Deputy Assistant Secretary

for Policy

Policy Analysis

Office of the Actuary

National Center for Veterans

Analysis and Statistics

VA/DoD Collaboration

Assistant Secretary for

Policy and Planning

Program Evaluation

Corporate Analysis & 

Evaluation

Transformation & Innovation

Strategic Planning

Management Systems

Improvement

The Office of Policy and Planning (OPP) leads the development of initiatives and comprehensive 

analysis for the Secretary and VA senior leaders in the areas of Veteran policy, Departmental 

policy, interagency policy, program development, strategic planning, and management to support 

effective and efficient delivery of benefits and services to our Nation’s Veterans. OPP ensures 

alignment of all policy, programs, strategy, and operations with the strategic direction of the 

Administration and Secretary. 

OPP designs and manages policy for Veterans for the Secretary, supports development and 

implementation of Departmental policy, cultivates strategic external partnerships, and refines and 

improves VA policy. OPP is comprised of three programmatic offices: VA/DoD Collaboration, 

Office of Policy, and Office of Planning and Evaluation. 

OFFICE OF VA/DOD COLLABORATION

The Office of VA/DoD Collaboration facilitates the development of joint policies and programs 

between VA and DoD, working with DoD to produce better outcomes in health care and benefit 

delivery for Veterans, service members, and eligible dependents through enhanced collaboration 

and coordination. Principle functions include: leading VA’s efforts and providing staff support for 

multiple VA/DoD joint governing bodies, such as VA/DoD Joint Executive Council (JEC), VA/DoD 

Wounded, Ill and Injured Senior Oversight Committee (WII – SOC); coordinating VA responses to 

external requirements and mandates, such as those created by Congress; and developing the 

VA/DoD Joint Strategic Plan (JSP) in coordination with DoD. 

OFFICE OF POLICY

The Office of Policy leads, coordinates, and facilitates the Department’s development, analysis, 

and review of the policy issues affecting Veterans. The office manages and directs survey 

research, including national surveys, provides actuarial estimates and projections and Veteran 

population estimates, and acts as a central clearinghouse for the collection, analysis, and 

dissemination of information and data about Veterans and VA programs and services. The office 

enables better decision making among VA senior leaders about service to Veterans and 

management of the Department, and is comprised of three primary service areas: Policy Analysis 

Service, Office of the Actuary, and the National Center for Veterans Analysis and Statistics. 
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3⁄4 Policy Analysis Service. The Policy Analysis Service (PAS) analyzes and reviews data to 

identify factors that will impact Veteran-related policies and programs, assesses those 

impacts, and provides VA’s leadership with options for changes in current policies and 

programs. PAS provides independent reviews and recommendations on proposed policies 

and legislation. In FY 2010, PAS is managing the 2009 National Survey of Veterans. PAS 

supports advisory committees and task forces and supports intergovernmental efforts with 

policy implications. 

3⁄4 Office of the Actuary. The Office of the Actuary (OACT) constructs formal and predictive 

models to support data-driven decision making about VA capital investments, incorporating 

models for future demand for VA services and benefits. OACT consults with administrations 

and staff offices on actuarial analysis, financial modeling, and cost estimation and develops 

compensation, pension, and burial liability estimates. OACT reviews other VA actuarial 

calculations including medical malpractice, health care enrollment, and life insurance reserves. 

3⁄4 National Center for Veterans Analysis and Statistics. The National Center for Veterans 

Analysis and Statistics (NCVAS) leads the effort to implement corporate data governance and 

corporate data management in VA. NCVAS implements enterprise business intelligence tools 

and processes to support analysis and planning activities in VA. NCVAS develops statistical 

analyses and reports on a broad range of topics; operates VA’s data and statistics Web portal 

to disseminate Veteran data and statistics; and develops estimates and projections on Veteran 

populations. NCVAS leads interagency data-sharing collaborations with other Federal 

agencies, and conducts survey analyses and research including future iterations of the 

National Survey of Veterans. 

OFFICE OF PLANNING AND EVALUATION

The Office of Planning and Evaluation leads, coordinates, and facilitates the assessment of 

programs, operations, and procedures to inform VA-wide decision making. In FY 2010, the 

Corporate Analysis and Evaluation Service was established to promote independent assessment 

of resource allocations, while the Transformation and Innovation Service was established to 

advance organizational transformation initiatives. The Office supports the Secretary in the 

governance process, and is involved in developing the VA Strategic Plan, including the One-VA 

Employee Strategic Plan; managing independent and comprehensive evaluation of programs; 

conducting organizational and functional studies on behalf of the Secretary; coordinating the 

Department's implementation of Competitive Sourcing and Business Process Reengineering 

studies; coordinating the Secretary's Performance Excellence Program; and working with all 

organizational elements to identify and implement improvement initiatives that will enhance delivery of 

benefits and services to Veterans. 

3⁄4 Corporate Analysis and Evaluation Service. The Office of Corporate Analysis and 

Evaluation (CA&E) is a new service that is being created in FY 2010 at the request of the 

Office of the Secretary and OMB. CA&E is an independent body dedicated to aligning VA 

resource allocations with investments that best serve our Veterans, their families, dependents, 

and survivors. Specific responsibilities include: developing a multi-year program; 

implementing an analytic agenda that supports analysis of alternatives; conducting 

independent cost analysis; and estimating and projecting long-term program costs and 

benefits. 
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3⁄4 Transformation and Innovation Service. The Transformation and Innovation Service (TIS) 

leads the effort to transform VA into a 21st Century organization through innovation, 

performance, and accountability. The Transformation part of the service will institutionalize 

transformation within the VA and will monitor VA’s transformational activities. The Innovation 

portion of the service will be the catalyst for developing a new way of thinking in VA, one that 

is proactive not reactive. TIS leads the operational management review (OMR) process to 

synchronize the execution of VA’s major initiatives. 

3⁄4 Program Evaluation Service. The Program Evaluation Service (PES) leads the design of 

studies and selection of independent, third-party researchers for program evaluations. It also 

analyzes and evaluates outcome measures in terms of a program’s legislated goals and 

outcomes for program participants and non-participants. 

3⁄4 Management Systems Improvement Service. The Management Systems Improvement 

Service (MSIS) oversees VA management analysis/business process reengineering (MA/BPR) 

efforts to identify and implement more efficient processes leading to cost avoidance for the 

Department. MSIS also manages the Secretary’s annual Robert W. Carey Performance 

Excellence Awards. MSIS coordinates Federal Activities Inventory Reform (FAIR) Act 

Inventory and provides advice on competitive sourcing. 

3⁄4 Strategic Planning Service. The Strategic Planning Service (SPS) leads VA’s strategic 

management process and the development of the strategic plan in partnership with the 

administrations and staff offices. SPS manages VA governance process, including the Senior 

Review Group (SRG), Strategic Management Council (SMC), and VA Executive Board 

(VAEB). 
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ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR OPERATIONS, SECURITY, AND PREPAREDNESS

Assistant Secretary for

Operations, Security, and

Preparedness

----------------------------

Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for

Operations, Security, and Preparedness

Deputy Assistant Secretary

for Emergency Management

Deputy Assistant Secretary

for Security and Law

Enforcement

Operations

Planning and

National Security 

Service

Police Service

Law Enforcement 

Training Center

(North Little Rock, AR) 

Franchise Fund

Executive Assistant

Resources Management

Staff

VA Integrated

Operations Center

(IOC)

HSPD-12

Programs

Personnel Security

& Suitability (PSS)

Criminal Predictive

Analysis Division

Security Investigations

Center (SIC)

Law Enforcement

Oversight & Criminal

Investigation Division

Policy & Infrastructure

Protection Division

Executive Protection

Division

Personnel Security

& Suitability (PSS)

Academic Program

Division

Technical Program

Division

Advanced Academic

Program Division

The Assistant Secretary for Operations, Security, and Preparedness (OSP) coordinates VA's 

emergency management, preparedness, personal identity verification, physical security, personnel 

security and suitability, police services and law enforcement activities to ensure the Department 

can continue to perform the mission essential functions under all circumstances across the 

spectrum of threats. OSP directs and provides oversight for VA’s overall operations for planning, 

response, and security and law enforcement programs in support of the National Response 

Framework, Homeland Security Presidential Directive (HSPD) 12, and other related Executive 

Orders and Federal regulations. 

To ensure preparedness to meet emergent national needs is one of the 13 major initiatives in the 

VA Strategic Plan for FY 2010–2014. Building our internal capacity to serve Veterans, their 

families, our employees, and other stakeholders efficiently and effectively by ensuring that VA 

environments for care and administration are safe, secure, and as free as possible from the threat 

of physical danger or property loss is VA’s Integrated Objective 3. 

OFFICE OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT

The Office of Emergency Management (OEM) is responsible for developing, coordinating, and 

implementing policy and programs to ensure VA has an integrated Comprehensive Emergency 

Management Program. OEM has four organizational units: Planning and National Security 

Service, Operations Service, VA Integrated Operations Center (IOC) and HSPD 12 Program 

Office. In addition, OEM is responsible for: 

3⁄4 Coordinating and developing departmental policies relating to the Comprehensive Emergency 

Management Program in accordance with executive orders, Presidential management 

directives, regulations and guidance. 
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29

3⁄4 Serving as principal point of contact with the Department of Homeland Security, Federal 

Emergency Management Agency, and other departments and agencies pertaining to 

emergency management, continuity of operations, domestic incident management, and 

national security emergency programs. 

3⁄4 Managing the Presidential and departmental Line of Succession programs. 

3⁄4 Managing VA’s IOC. The IOC is staffed around-the-clock and serves as the information fusion 

center for operational status and to support VA's Comprehensive Emergency Management 

Program. 

3⁄4 Coordinating emergency preparedness and crisis response activities both VA-wide and with 

other Federal, state, and local agencies. 

3⁄4 Maintaining an exercise, training and evaluation program to enhance VA's preparedness 

programs. 

3⁄4 Providing guidance, and ensuring all classified information is properly safeguarded, controlled, 

transmitted, destroyed and packaged in accordance with executive orders, handbooks, 

directives, regulations, and guidelines. 

3⁄4 Maintaining all sensitive compartmented information facilities within VA. 

3⁄4 Maintaining VA’s emergency relocation sites. 

3⁄4 Developing policies and managing the Information Security Program (classified documents) to 

ensure compliance with Executive Order 12958, as amended, and Information Security 

Oversight Office (ISOO) directives. 

3⁄4 Representing the Department for issues related to HSPD 5, Management of Domestic 

Incidents; HSPD 8, National Preparedness; HSPD 20, National Continuity Policy; and HSPD 

21, Public Health and Medical Preparedness. 

3⁄4 Establishing policies and procedures for implementing the Personnel Security and Suitability 

Program in accordance with applicable executive orders, laws and regulations, and providing 

oversight and guidance on personnel security and suitability issues throughout VA, including 

background investigation adjudication determinations. 

3⁄4 Providing policy and oversight to ensure a reliable and efficient system of personal identity 

verification that improves physical and logical security in compliance with HSPD 12. 

3⁄4 Providing suitability and security adjudicative services for employees and contractors in nonsensitive, sensitive, and public trust positions nationwide for all VA entities. Provide security 

checks for appointees and/or high level award recipients centralized to the Secretary of the 

VA. The Security and Investigations Center is an enterprise activity whose budget and staffing 

levels are based on revenue generated by reimbursable services provided by the Center. 
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OFFICE OF SECURITY AND LAW ENFORCEMENT

The Office of Security and Law Enforcement (OS&LE) is responsible for developing policies, 

procedures, and standards that govern VA’s infrastructure protection, personal security and law 

enforcement programs, protecting Veterans, visitors, and staff in and on Department facilities and 

grounds. 

The Office of Security and Law Enforcement’s goal is delivering the highest quality professional 

law enforcement services, ensuring the maintenance of law and order, and the protection of 

persons and property on VA campuses and in buildings under the jurisdiction of the Department. 

To facilitate this for field units, OS&LE is composed of two units: Police Services and the VA Law 

Enforcement Training Center (LETC). 

3⁄4 Police Services. The Police Services is responsible for the Law Enforcement Oversight & 

Criminal Investigations Division, Policy and Infrastructure Protection Division, Executive 

Protection Division, and the Criminal Predictive Analysis Division. The Law Enforcement 

Oversight & Criminal Investigations is responsible for conducting program inspections of the 

153 Police units around the nation. In addition, the division conducts internal investigations on 

police officers for various infractions. The Policy & Infrastructure Protection Division develops 

and writes VA Infrastructure Protection policy and is the interface with the Federal Protective 

Service for VA Campus Security and represents VA on Federal level steering committees. 

The Executive Protection Division provides personal protection for the Secretary and Deputy 

Secretary of Veterans Affairs. The Criminal Predictive Analysis Division conducts criminal 

analysis and tracks a multitude of trends to “sound the alarm” before an incident occurs. 

3⁄4 Law Enforcement Training Center. The Law Enforcement Training Center (LETC) is an 

enterprise activity whose budget and staffing levels are based on revenue generated by 

reimbursable services provided by the Centers. The LETC is broken down into three divisions; 

the Academic Training Division, the Technical Training Division and the Advanced Academic 

Program Division. The Academic Program Division is responsible for developing programs 

and curriculum that develops individuals to be law enforcement officers in a health care 

environment. The Technical Program Division is responsible for developing and implementing 

training requirements and standards for VA police officers. The Advanced Academic Program 

Division is responsible for training the police officers using a comprehensive investigative 

methodology. The LETC provides basic and advanced training for Law Enforcement Officers 

and Security Officers of several other Federal agencies. 
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ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR HUMAN RESOURCES AND ADMINISTRATION

Assistant Secretary for

Human Resources & Administration

---------------------

Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for

Human Resources & Administration

Occupational

Safety

and Health

Deputy Assistant

Secretary for

Diversity and 

Inclusion

Deputy Assistant

Secretary for

Administration

Deputy Assistant

Secretary for

Human Resources

Management

Field

Offices

Deputy Assistant

Secretary for

Resolution

Management

Deputy Assistant

Secretary for

Labor-Management 

Relations

Deputy Assistant

Secretary for

Corporate Senior 

Executive Mgmt. 

Office

Dean, VA Learning

University

The Assistant Secretary for Human Resources and Administration (HR&A) provides direction and 

oversight to seven major program areas headed by the Deputy Assistant Secretaries for 

Administration, Human Resources Management, Diversity and Inclusion, Resolution Management, 

and Labor-Management Relations, and Corporate Senior Executive Management Office; and the 

Dean of the VA Learning University. With the assistance of these officials, the Assistant Secretary 

is responsible for directing both policy and operational functions in these program areas. The 

Assistant Secretary serves as the Department's Designated Agency Safety and Health Official and 

is responsible for administering the Occupational Safety and Health and Workers’ Compensation 

programs. The Assistant Secretary also serves as the Department’s Chief Human Capital Officer, 

advising and assisting the Secretary in carrying out VA’s responsibilities for selecting, developing, 

training, and managing a high quality workforce in accordance with merit systems principles. 

OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATION

The Office of Administration (O/A) provides a wide range of support services, primarily to VACO. 

Local services include audiovisuals, transportation, personal property, space management, mail, 

and operation of the VACO building as well as administrative support to all VACO employees in 

satellite locations. Nationwide, O/A oversees the Department's Occupational Safety and Health, 

and Workers' Compensation programs; provides guidance and assistance to facilities in their 

audiovisual needs; the oversight and responsibility of the transit benefit program; the processing of 

executive correspondence (White House bulk mail), and protocol matters affecting the Department.

The office serves as departmental liaison to GSA concerning space acquisition and other support 

functions within the Washington, DC, metropolitan area. The office manages the VACO space 

inventory, and is responsible for alterations and renovation projects, and serves as the facility site 

manager for 11 Washington area locations. 
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OFFICE OF HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT

The Office of Human Resources Management (OHRM) is responsible for advising the Secretary on 

personnel matters and consulting with other VACO and field officials to meet the established 

mission, goals, and objectives of the Department through a strategically aligned and customerfocused human resources program. 

This office is focused on policy development, workforce planning initiatives, human resources 

development, legislative changes, and civil service reform. This includes the fundamental human 

resources functions of staffing (recruitment and retention); classification; compensation; workforce 

planning; employee relations; employee work-life and benefits; career transition, oversight and 

effectiveness; and employee development within the human resources community, as well as 

Veterans employment and outreach. 

The functions of OHRM also include liaison with the Office of Personnel Management, and 

representing VA before Congress, Office of Management and Budget, and other Federal agencies 

on human resources issues. 

OFFICE OF DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI) advises and supports the Assistant Secretary for HR&A 

and other key officials in workforce diversity and inclusion matters. ODI provides leadership and 

guidance in creating a diverse workforce and inclusive work environment that ensures equal 

opportunity through national policy development, workforce analysis, outreach, retention, and 

education to best serve our Nation's Veterans. ODI supports VA's strategic objective of "recruiting, 

developing, and retaining a competent, committed, and diverse workforce" through three 

functionality aligned teams: 

3⁄4 Workforce Analysis: Performs analysis and evaluation of the demographic composition of 

the Department’s workforce in comparison with the Relevant Civilian Labor Force to identify 

and eliminate potential barriers to equal employment opportunity. Prepares statistical and 

accompanying narrative reports in response to internal and external federally mandated 

reports in the area of workforce diversity and equal employment opportunity (EEO). Identifies 

workforce trends, triggers, and potential barriers to support agency workforce and succession 

planning through a state-of-the-art standardized workforce analysis system. 

3⁄4 Outreach and Retention: Develops recruitment outreach and workforce retention programs, 

models, and tools to create and sustain a diverse and inclusive workforce throughout the VA. 

Develops and provides technical assistance and training for National Special Emphasis 

Programs to increase awareness and enhance outreach and retention of historically 

underrepresented groups in the workforce. Performs on-site technical assistance reviews of 

Central Office and field facilities to evaluate EEO programs and the status of workforce 

diversity initiatives VA-wide. Develops internal and external partnerships with public, private, 

and non-profit organizations, educational institutions, and affinity groups to support workforce 

diversity and inclusion through internship and mentoring programs. 
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3⁄4 Training and Communications: Maintains accountability for diversity and inclusion 

objectives by developing national policies, performance standards, and Department-wide 

training programs relating to workforce diversity and EEO. Promotes effective 

communications through a variety of vehicles to increase awareness, education, and 

accountability for diversity and inclusion matters, and to gauge the organizational climate with 

respect to diversity issues. Administer the VA Diversity Advisory Council to serve as an 

advisory body to the Secretary and a leadership forum on diversity and inclusion matters. 

ODI's vision is to create and sustain a high performing workforce by leveraging diversity and 

empowering all employees to achieve superior results in service to our Veterans. 

OFFICE OF RESOLUTION MANAGEMENT

The Office of Resolution Management (ORM) is responsible for addressing workplace disputes and 

allegations of employment discrimination in VA through the use of prevention techniques, early 

intervention, alternative dispute resolution (ADR), counseling and investigations. ORM uses a 

variety of services and programs to accomplish these responsibilities in a timely and high quality 

manner. These services and programs fall under four key measures: 

3⁄4 Prevention. ORM offers prevention programs that ensure employees and managers 

understand the characteristics of a healthy work environment and have the tools to manage 

conflict. 

3⁄4 Early Resolution. ORM oversees VA's Workplace ADR Program, providing coaching, 

facilitation, and mediation services and training. These services are delivered through a 

network of hundreds of administration ADR coordinators and VA certified mediators. 

3⁄4 Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Complaint Processing. ORM has developed 

programs to improve the overall management of Equal Employment Opportunity discrimination 

complaint processing services within VA. ORM provides EEO discrimination complaint 

processing services to VA employees, applicants for employment, and former employees. 

These services include counseling, investigation, and procedural final agency decisions. ADR 

is encouraged through all phases of the complaint process. These services are provided 

through a nationwide network of field and satellite offices located throughout the United States. 

ORM provides compliance oversight functions on final decisions, appellate reviews, matters 

relating to settlements including breach of settlement agreements, and fully investigates claims 

for compensatory damages. ORM has oversight responsibility for the Department’s External 

Civil Rights Program which ensures compliance with Title VI and Title IX of the Civil Rights Act. 

3⁄4 High Quality ORM Workforce. ORM recruits, develops, trains and retains a highly competent 

and diverse workforce by promoting a positive work environment. 

OFFICE OF LABOR-MANAGEMENT RELATIONS

The Office of Labor-Management Relations (LMR) supports the VA's mission of providing worldclass service to Veterans and their families by promoting cooperative labor-management 

relationships to ensure that the Department can effectively manage its workforce while creating a 

positive work environment for employees and meeting its labor relations obligations. 
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LMR facilitates effective communication between VA management and the Department’s national 

labor unions; provides expert advice and counsel to management officials in VACO and field 

facilities; provides leadership for management negotiating teams at the national level to facilitate 

agreement and expedite implementation of Department initiatives; and assists VA's Office of 

General Counsel in representing the Department in national labor litigation matters. 

LMR also provides training to include contract interpretation and implementation, rights and 

responsibilities under the labor statute, and labor-management cooperation. 

Finally, LMR ensures that labor-management goals and objectives are linked to VA's Strategic 

Plan and that measures are developed to evaluate the effectiveness of the labor relations program 

as it relates to the mission of improving services and creating a positive work environment for 

employees. 

CORPORATE SENIOR EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT OFFICE

The Corporate Senior Executive Management Office (CSEMO) advises and supports the 

Secretary, the Assistant Secretary for HR&A, and other key officials on executive management. 

VA’s executive and senior professional cadre includes members of the Senior Executive Service, 

Title 38 SES equivalents, and senior leaders. 

CSEMO’s mission is to provide life-cycle management of VA’s executives and senior professionals, 

including recruitment, development, retention, and recognition. Effective life-cycle management 

delivers a cadre of people-centric, results-oriented, and forward-looking executives and senior 

professionals who are committed and prepared to serve Veterans and their families - a highly 

competent executive cadre able to work collaboratively across internal and external boundaries to 

set the standard in health, benefits, and service to our Nation’s Veterans. 

CSEMO provides an enterprise approach to executive management in order to: 

3⁄4 Drive a culture to reinforce that executives are a vital part of the leadership team, view their 

responsibilities in the context of the enterprise and public policy interests, and work effectively 

across organizational boundaries and functional areas; 

3⁄4 Deliver a performance management system that focuses on the Secretary’s priorities and 

encourages and rewards creativity, innovation, intelligent risk-taking, critical thinking, and 

results; 

3⁄4 Deliver “one-stop” services for our executives, to include benefits counseling and career 

development advice and assistance 

3⁄4 Provide advocacy for VA’s executive cadre; 

3⁄4 Ensure that VA hires strong, diverse leaders and positions them for success; 

3⁄4 Focus on hiring and retaining leaders who drive change vs. hiring technical expertise in a 

functional area; 

3⁄4 Streamline processes and ensure consistency across VA; 

3⁄4 Provide continuous learning; 

3⁄4 Benchmark best practices; 

3⁄4 Deliver automated tools and processes; and 

3⁄4 Provide succession management and workforce planning. 

CSEMO’s vision is a 21st Century Leadership Team transforming VA into an agile, adaptive 

organization capable of leading change and delivering results. 
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VA LEARNING UNIVERSITY

On January 12, 2010, the Senior Management Council/Senior Review Group approved the 

realignment of VA Learning University (VALU) with the Office of Human Resources and 

Administration from its former alignment with the Veterans Health Administration. This realignment 

is intended to establish VALU as a corporate learning organization designed to support the VA 

Human Capital Investment Plan with responsibility for oversight, consistency and accountability for 

training and performance outcomes. As a corporate learning organization, VALU is positioned to 

better allocate and manage resources and influence greater efficiencies. The Assistant Secretary 

for HR&A serves as the Chief Human Capital Officer for the Department and, as such, has agency 

responsibility and accountability for advocating a culture of continuous learning to attract and retain 

employees through strategic and timely initiatives designed to maintain a high quality and 

productive workforce.

The Dean of VALU is responsible for assuring that corporate training supports a VA-wide approach 

to training and development that integrates and leverages learning within the Department through 

shared resources, innovative learning strategies and cutting edge technologies designed to bring 

learning in line with the Secretary's vision for 21st century transformation. The Dean interacts with 

external and internal stakeholder, executives and learning leaders across the Department to 

assure that VA-wide employee learning needs are not only competency-based but also linked to 

performance in caring for Veterans and their families. 
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ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR PUBLIC AND INTERGOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

Assistant Secretary for

Public & Intergovernmental

Affairs Executive Assistant

Director

Resource Management

Office of White House

Liaison

Special Assistant

Deputy Assistant Secretary

for Intergovernmental Affairs

Director

National Outreach

Program

Director

National Homeless

Program

Director

Intergovernmental

Affairs

Director

Office of Tribal 

Governments

Director

National Programs

& Special Events

Deputy Assistant Secretary

for Public Affairs

Speechwriters Director

Media Products

Director

Media Relations

Director

New Media

The Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs develops, maintains and 

communicates the Department’s message through media relations and public, intergovernmental 

and Veteran engagement to empower Veterans and their families. The Assistant Secretary 

oversees the Department’s communications with Veterans, the general public, VA employees, and 

the news media. The responsibility includes coordination of the Department’s outreach efforts to 

Veterans and to the general public. The Assistant Secretary directs the Department’s 

intergovernmental, international, and consumer affairs programs and the National Programs and 

Special Events Office. The Assistant Secretary oversees the Homeless Veterans Program Office 

and supports the Paralympics Program Office. The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Public and 

Intergovernmental Affairs works to build confidence in the Department of Veterans Affairs and its 

readiness to serve America’s Veterans of all generations. 

OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

The Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs is responsible for providing external and internal 

communications services and public affairs policy guidance to administration and other operating 

elements to create awareness of VA programs, services, and responsibilities. 

The primary mission of the Office of Public Affairs (OPA) is to provide Veterans and their families 

information through various media channels about VA benefits and programs. Through the 

preparation and dissemination of various communications materials, the office provides essential 

information on program eligibility and operations to a variety of public entities. It maintains close 

liaison with media representatives and monitors print and broadcast news activity. It provides 

responses to inquiries concerning data and information about agency operations and policy. OPA 

conducts public affairs training to enhance the ability of public affairs officers to communicate 

through the news media. It also communicates information on administration policy and priorities 

through a variety of means, including articles, speeches, and media interviews with agency 

officials. 

With personnel in Central Office and seven regional offices, OPA provides an array of public 

information and professional communications media services: news and feature releases, fact 

sheets, statistical summaries, radio and television materials, magazine articles, speeches, and 

official statements. The office also oversees the overall direction and management of the 

Department’s news media communications, products, and strategy. OPA produces a number of 

media specifically aimed at VA’s internal stakeholders. VAnguard is VA’s employee magazine and 
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VA News is a weekly video newscast of events, activities, issues, and achievements affecting VA 

employees. “The American Veteran” is a monthly video news magazine which is broadcast to 

military personnel around the world on the Pentagon Channel and on domestic cable and satellite 

television systems. 

OPA provides timely advice, information, and counsel to public affairs officers based in field 

facilities maintained by the Veterans Health Administration, Veterans Benefits Administration, and 

National Cemetery Administration. The office also provides advice to the Secretary, 

administrations, and staff offices concerning public interest and reaction to VA policies and 

programs.program is designed to provide the Department with the means by which program 

objectives can be enhanced through supportive communication activities. 

OFFICE OF INTERGOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

The Deputy Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental Affairs (IGA) serves as the Department’s 

liaison in all intergovernmental affairs matters and is the primary point of contact with federal, state, 

local and tribal government officials. The office coordinates VA’s participation in intergovernmental 

affairs initiatives, including White House-sponsored activities, and is responsible for the 

assessment of the issues and concerns of state and local officials and the impact of VA's action in 

their areas of jurisdiction. The office also facilitates continuous and bilateral communications 

between the states and VA to gain early knowledge of state actions and concerns, issues, and 

supporting programs. Within IGA, the Office of Tribal Government Relations serves as the 

Department’s liaison to American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian government officials. 

IGA manages VA’s International and Insular Affairs programs. In coordination with the National 

Security Council (NSC), Department of Defense, and the State Department, IGA develops state 

visit programs and subject matter exchanges for representatives of foreign governments 

concerning Veterans’ benefits. A major responsibility of the service is to interface with the 

diplomatic community on all international matters concerning our Veterans and all foreign official 

travel. Consumer Affairs Service (CAS) is the Department’s liaison with other Cabinet-level 

consumer affairs offices and acts as the department-level consumer complaint response office. 

IGA’s National Outreach Office coordinates outreach activities across VA and ensures there are 

standard performance measures in place Department-wide. The office enhances VA’s efforts to 

reach Veterans, their families, and the stakeholders with whom VA collaborates and partners. IGA 

develops outreach strategies using clear, accurate, consistent, and targeted messaging to inform 

Veterans and their families of the health care services and benefits available to them. The office 

ensures that those messages are delivered to Veterans and their families by leveraging technology 

and partnerships with other stakeholders to disseminate outreach information. 

Within IGA, the Homeless Veterans Programs Office (HVPO) establishes policy on homeless 

Veterans’ issues and coordinates Department-wide efforts to end homelessness among our 

Nation’s Veterans by 2015. HVPO manages national outreach efforts to end homelessness and 

develops partnerships with other federal agencies, state and tribal governments, Veterans service 

organizations, and national associations to leverage outreach efforts and to identify best practices 

to address the causes of homelessness. In addition, HVPO chairs the Department’s Working 

Group on Homelessness and staffs the Department’s 15-member Advisory Committee on 

Homeless Veterans. 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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38

OFFICE OF NATIONAL PROGRAMS AND SPECIAL EVENTS

The Office of National Programs and Special Events coordinates VA activities related to 

commemorative Veterans programs and the six national rehabilitative special events for disabled 

Veterans. Such activities include the National Veterans Day Observance, National Disabled 

Veterans Winter Sports Clinic, National Veterans Wheelchair Games, National Veterans Golden 

Age Games, National Veterans Creative Arts Festival, National Veterans Summer Sports Clinic, 

National Veterans TEE Tournament, and other nationally recognized events. This office also 

directs the activities of the National Rehabilitative Special Events Management Group currently 

chaired by the Deputy Secretary and vice-chaired by the Assistant Secretary for Public and 

Intergovernmental Affairs. 

OFFICE OF WHITE HOUSE LIAISON

The Office of White House Liaison advises the Secretary, Deputy Secretary, and the Assistant 

Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs on the placement of Senior-level non-career 

appointments in VA. 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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39

ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR CONGRESSIONAL AND LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS

Assistant Secretary for

Congressional and Legislative Affairs

Deputy Assistant Secretary for

Congressional and Legislative

Affairs

Congressional Reports 

and Correspondence

Service

Congressional Liaison

Service

Congressional

and Legislative Affairs

Service

The Assistant Secretary for Congressional and Legislative Affairs is responsible for promoting the 

enactment of legislation authorizing improved Veterans benefits and services by coordinating the 

development of pro-Veteran legislation and advising the Secretary on legislative strategy; by 

maintaining healthy communications with Congress through constituent services, briefings, reports, 

hearings, and other informational exchanges; and by maintaining productive working relationships 

with congressional members/staff, congressional committees, and the General Accountability 

Office (GAO). 

OFFICE OF CONGRESSIONAL AND LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS

The Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs (OCLA) is responsible for advising senior 

Department officials on developing and maintaining VA’s relationship with Members of Congress 

and congressional committees and on congressional interest in VA policy and program 

development and implementation, managing all congressional hearings, and ensuring that 

Congress receives pertinent and timely information about VA programs and policy issues. In 

addition, OCLA provides support and assistance with respect to specific legislative activity, 

monitors the status of pending legislation affecting VA, and works closely with the Legislative 

Advisor in developing the Department’s annual legislative program. 

OFFICE OF CONGRESSIONAL REPORTS AND CORRESPONDENCE

The Office of Congressional Reports and Correspondence is responsible for ensuring that VA is 

compliant and timely in meeting congressional mandates for reports. In addition, the office 

maintains the Department’s liaison function between VA and GAO, and coordinates meetings and 

reports due to the GAO. Responses to pre- and post-hearing questions associated with 

congressional hearings are managed by the office, as well as the office’s internal correspondence 

function. 

OFFICE OF CONGRESSIONAL LIAISON

The Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs maintains two satellite offices located in the 

Russell Senate Office Building and the Rayburn House Office Building to provide constituent 

casework and related services, allowing for direct, face-to-face contact with Members of Congress 

and their staffs. 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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40

GENERAL COUNSEL

General Counsel

Assistant

General Counsel

PSG I

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4 C

3⁄4 Bu

3⁄4 Ins

3⁄4 R

3⁄4 C

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

3⁄4

Tort Claims 3⁄4

Collections

Housing

Education

Vocational 

Rehabilitation 

& Employment

ompensation 

& Pension 

Programs

rial Benefits

urance

egulatory 

Law

emetery & 

BVA issues

Health Care

Ethics

Human 

Resources

Medical 

Records

EEO

Information 

Law

Intellectual 

Property

Appropriations

Government 

Contracts

Real Property & 

Environmental 

Law

Management & 

Operations

22 Regional 

Counsel Offices

Budget

Human 

Resources

Homeland 

Security

Veterans Court 

Litigation

Assistant

General Counsel

PSG II

Assistant

General Counsel

PSG III

Assistant

General Counsel

PSG IV

Deputy General Counsel

Assistant

General Counsel

PSG V

Assistant

General Counsel

PSG VI

Assistant

General Counsel

PSG VII

Director

02REG

VA Rulemaking 

Policy and 

Management

3⁄4

The Office of General Counsel (OGC) provides legal advice and services to the Secretary and all 

organizational components of the Department. The General Counsel is, by statute, the 

Department's Chief Legal Officer. OGC interprets and advises Department officials regarding all 

laws, regulations, executive orders, and judicial precedents pertaining to the Department. It also 

serves as the final legal authority in issuing Departmental regulations that have the force of law. 

OGC represents the Secretary in various administrative forums and works in close cooperation with 

the Department of Justice in defending legal actions brought against VA, as well as affirmatively 

prosecuting claims, throughout the country. Further, OGC directly represents the Secretary in all 

cases litigated before the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. Working in close cooperation 

with Department officials, OGC prepares for the Secretary's approval draft bills and legislative 

testimony for presentation to Congress. Among its various other responsibilities, OGC manages 

the Department's ethics program; data security and E-discovery guidelines; and its programs for 

accrediting claimants’ representatives and overseeing attorneys’ fees charged by claimants’ 

representatives. 

At VACO, the responsibility for the full range of legal, litigation, legislative, and regulatory activities 

is distributed among seven Professional Staff Groups (PSG’s), each headed by an Assistant 

General Counsel (AGC), and the Office of Regulation Policy and Management (02REG), headed by 

a Director. Each PSG has expertise in the specific subject matter areas noted in the chart above, 

and is responsible for providing legal advice to program officials, reviewing proposed regulations 

and directives, and handling litigation involving VA programs. The AGC for PSG III is VA’s 

Designated Ethics Official. All PSGs draft bills in support of the Secretary's legislative agenda and 

as a technical service for congressional committees. The Director, 02REG, provides central 

management for VA rulemaking, regulatory impact analyses, and regulatory liaison with the Office 

of Management and Budget. 

The AGC for PSG VI supervises OGC's field operations, comprising two-thirds of OGC’s worforce, 

organized into 22 field offices, each under the supervision of a Regional Counsel. Each Regional 

Counsel is responsible for providing legal advice and assistance to directors and other officials of all 

VA field facilities within the region. 

The responsibilities of a Regional Counsel include: 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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41

3⁄4 Advising and representing management of VA facilities on issues relating to personnel and labor 

law. 

3⁄4 Performing legal review of administrative tort claims and providing legal support to the local U.S. 

Attorneys’ Offices in tort litigation. 

3⁄4 Recovering funds owed the United States by various legal-collection remedies, to include 

litigation in Federal and state courts. 

3⁄4 Providing the full range of legal advice and assistance in local procurement matters. 

3⁄4 Initiating required court actions in guardianship commitment matters by appearing in state 

courts and furnishing legal assistance to appropriate elements of Veterans Benefits 

Administration and Veterans Health Administration. 

3⁄4 Providing necessary legal services in connection with the loan guaranty program. 

3⁄4 Providing training to employees of VA facilities within the assigned region. 

3⁄4 Maintaining liaison with state agencies and legislatures and with state and local bar 

associations. 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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42

INSPECTOR GENERAL

Inspector General Special

Assistant

Counselor to the

Inspector General

Assistant Inspector General

for Healthcare Inspections

Assistant Inspector General

for Audits and Evaluations

Assistant Inspector General

for Investigations

Assistant Inspector General

for Management & 

Administration

Office of Contract

Review

Congressional

Liaison

Deputy

Inspector General

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) was administratively established in VA on January 1, 1978. 

The Inspector General Act of 1978 (Public Law No. 95-452), enacted in October 1978, statutorily 

established the OIG for the Department of Veterans Affairs. The Inspector General Amendments of 

1988 (Public Law No. 100-504) established detailed reporting requirements on the resolution and 

implementation status of issued OIG reports. Public Law No. 100-322 expanded OIG activities to 

monitor and evaluate the Veterans Health Administration's Quality Assurance Programs and 

activities of the Medical Inspector. The Inspector General Reform Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-409) 

further enhanced OIG independence by considering each OIG office to be a separate Federal 

agency with annual budgetary submission requirements. 

VA's OIG directs an independent and objective organization. The purpose of this organization is to 

conduct audits, investigations, and inspections of VA programs, operations, and other activities 

carried out or financed by VA; to recommend policies that promote economy, efficiency, and 

effectiveness; and to prevent and detect criminal activity, waste, abuse, and mismanagement in VA. 

Accomplishments of the office are described in semiannual reports required by the Inspector 

General Act. These reports are provided to the VA Secretary, Congress, Office of Management 

and Budget, and are published on OIG's Website. 

Operations of the OIG are centrally managed in Washington, DC, and are divided among field 

offices established for audits, investigations, health care inspections, and benefits inspections. 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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43

BOARD OF VETERANS' APPEALS

Chairman

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

----------

Vice Chairman

Executive Assistant

----------

Staff Assistant

Special Assistant

----------

Staff Assistant

Deputy Vice

Chairman

Decision Team 1

Deputy Vice

Chairman

Decision Team 2

Director

Management, 

Planning & Analysis

Deputy Vice

Chairman

Decision Team 4

Deputy Vice

Chairman

Decision Team 3

Principle Deputy

Vice Chairman

Appellate Group

Chief Counsel

For Policy

Chief Counsel

For Operations

Chief, Administrative

Support

Chief, Financial

Management

Chief, Decision

Team Support

Deputy Director

The Board of Veterans' Appeals (BVA), a statutory Board created in 1933, makes final decisions on 

appeals to the Secretary under laws affecting the provision of benefits by the Department to 

Veterans, their dependents, or their survivors. BVA conducts hearings in Washington, DC, and at 

VA regional offices. Hearings by videoconference are available at most regional offices. Final 

decisions of the Board may be appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. 

Appeals in insurance cases involving contracts may be taken into Federal courts after 

administrative remedies are exhausted. 

The Board consists of a Chairman, Vice Chairman, Principle Deputy Vice Chairman, four Deputy 

Vice Chairmen, and sufficient members to conduct hearings and decide appeals in a proper and 

timely manner. The Chairman serves at the Assistant Secretary level within the Department and is 

appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate, for a term of six years. The 

other members of the Board, including the Vice Chairman, are appointed by the Secretary, with the 

approval of the President, based upon recommendations of the Chairman. The Secretary 

designates one member of the Board as Vice Chairman. 

The Board is organized into an Appellate Group, four Decision Teams, and a Management, 

Planning and Analysis section. The Appellate Group, headed by the Principle Deputy Vice 

Chairman, provides counsel to the Chairman and serves as BVA’s liaison with VA’s Office of 

General Counsel, Veterans Health Administration, Veterans Benefits Administration, and other 

elements of the agency. The Appellate Group is also responsible for the Board’s professional 

training and quality assurance programs, BVA’s research center, the handling of Freedom of 

Information Act and Privacy Act matters, regulation and handbook/directives drafting, and medical 

consultations and reviews by one medical advisor. 

Each of BVA’s decision teams is headed by a Deputy Vice Chairman, and includes two Chief 

Veterans Law Judges, 13 Line Veterans Law Judges (VLJ) and 75 attorney advisors. Decisions of 

the Board are rendered by individual VLJs or by panels of not less than three VLJs. Board counsel 

assist VLJs, review appeals, conduct research, and prepare tentative decisions. Each decision 

team decides cases from regional offices in one of four geographic regions. 

BVA’s Office of Management, Planning and Analysis is responsible for case management and 

tracking, docket control, hearing scheduling, correspondence, secretarial and transcription services, 

procurement, and liaison with parties outside BVA. 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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44

OFFICE OF ACQUISITION, LOGISTICS, AND CONSTRUCTION

Executive 

Director

Director

Office of Construction 

and Facilities 

Management

Deputy Assistant

Secretary for 

Acquisition and 

Logistics

Director,

Strategic

Management Office

Director,

Resource

Management Office

Director,

Service Delivery

Office

Associate Deputy

Assistant Secretary

for Finance,

Logistics and

Business Services

Associate Deputy

Assistant Secretary

for Acquisition

Associate Deputy

Assistant Secretary

for Acquisition and

Logistics Programs

and Policy

The Office of Acquisition, Logistics, and Construction (OALC) is a multifunctional organization 

responsible for directing the acquisition, logistics, construction, and leasing functions within the 

Department of Veterans Affairs. The Executive Director, OALC, is also the Chief Acquisition 

Officer (CAO) for the Department. 

OALC has two fundamental roles. First, it has an operational role to provide acquisition, logistics, 

construction, and leasing support to the Department’s administrations and staff offices so they can 

accomplish their missions. Second, it has oversight responsibility on behalf of the Secretary to 

ensure VA complies with laws, policies, and directions from executive branch partners, such as the 

Office of Management and Budget, Department of Treasury, General Services Administration, 

Government Accountability Office, and Congress. 

OALC provides direct operational support to the Department’s administrations and staff offices 

through its two major organizational components: the Office of Acquisition and Logistics (OAL) 

and the Office of Construction and Facilities Management (CFM). Each of these offices has staff in 

Washington, DC, as well as field sites across the Nation. 

OFFICE OF ACQUISITION AND LOGISTICS

OAL is responsible for the acquisition of goods and services supporting VA’s mission and provides 

support to other Federal agencies. OAL supports VA’s mission by procuring drugs, medical 

supplies and equipment, critical patient care items, health care related services, non-perishable 

subsistence, “just-in-time” distribution services, and automated data processing equipment and 

services. In addition to its primary role of supporting VA's programs, OAL has a federal role in the 

supply management of medical supplies and non-perishable subsistence. OAL has also 

established the Acquisition Academy to train and certify VA’s acquisition professionals. The 

following are the major organizational components of OAL. 

3⁄4 Acquisitions. The Office of Acquisition is responsible for procuring goods and services for 

VA. It provides innovative solutions for VA’s acquisition challenges. This office awards and 

administers cost-effective contracts to meet supply, service, and equipment needs of VA 

facilities. The Center for Acquisition Innovation and the Technology Acquisition Center provide 

specialized acquisition support. The Acquisition Rapid Response Office and the Program 

Advisory Office were recently established to provide full-service acquisition support. 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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45

3⁄4 Finance, Logistics, and Business Services. The Office of Finance, Logistics, and Business 

Services is responsible for a full range of financial services including the administration of the 

Supply Fund, a revolving fund providing acquisition and logistical services to a broad range of 

VA and other government agency customers on a reimbursable basis. This office operates 

the VA Publications, Transportation, Human Resources, and Information and Technology 

Liaison offices for OAL. This office is also responsible for the distribution of interment flags, 

and the recovery and recycling of X-ray film. 

3⁄4 Acquisition and Logistics Programs and Policy. The Office of Acquisition and Logistics 

Programs and Policy is responsible for developing and overseeing VA’s acquisition, logistics, 

and supply chain management policies and programs to ensure Departmental compliance with 

all applicable acquisition, personal property management, and logistics laws and regulations. 

The office administers the Department’s Acquisition Career Management Program, 

Contracting Officer Certification Program, and issues appropriate level warrants all VA 

contracting officers. To ensure the integrity of VA's acquisition program, the office conducts 

acquisition reviews of major contract actions and conducts the Department’s Office of 

Management and Budget Circular A-123 acquisition review assessments. In an effort to 

improve the VA’s acquisition process, the office administers the VA Supplier Relationship 

Transformation and Management initiative and the VA Acquisition Customer Satisfaction 

Survey as well as coordinates the collection of the VA Supplier Perception Surveys. To 

improve strategic material acquisitions, the office manages and has oversight of the VA 

Strategic Sourcing Program and the VA Acquisition Spend Management Initiative. 

OFFICE OF CONSTRUCTION AND FACILITIES MANAGEMENT

CFM is responsible for the planning, design, and construction of all major construction projects 

greater than $10 million. In addition, CFM acquires real property for use by VA elements through 

the purchase of land and buildings, as well as long-term lease acquisitions. Through the 

construction and real property programs, CFM delivers to Veterans, high quality buildings, 

additions, large scale renovations, and structural enhancements. CFM also manages facility 

sustainability, seismic corrections, physical security, and historic preservation of VA’s facilities. 

The following are the major organizational components of CFM. 

3⁄4 Strategic Management Office. The Strategic Management Office is the responsible office for 

strategic management issues concerning VA capital assets. This includes project planning, 

construction cost management, estimating, standards, guidelines and criteria, sustainability, 

seismic and physical security programs, State Nursing Home and Homeless Veterans Grant 

Programs, architect/engineer evaluation and selection, and historic preservation. 

3⁄4 Resource Management Office. The Resource Management Office is responsible for budget 

and financial management, technology application, human resource management, quality 

assurance, and other administrative and management activities. 

3⁄4 Service Delivery Office. The Service Delivery Office is responsible for VA’s major 

construction and real property programs, as well as, architectural and engineering consulting 

programs/services. It is also accountable for the acquisition, disposal, and leasing of the 

property required to fulfill VA’s needs. 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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46

SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE SECRETARY

FOR VETERANS SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS LIAISON

The Veterans Service Organizations (VSO) Liaison is the VA Secretary’s primary advisor on 

matters affecting VSOs and is responsible for the Department’s day-to-day liaison with those 

organizations. 

Liaison responsibilities include communicating regularly with VSO officials to ensure VA’s 

responsiveness to the needs of the organizations and their members; attending the VSO Midwinter 

conferences and national conventions; and communicating with Veterans concerning issues they 

feel strongly about, including health care. The incumbent attends all National Commanders’ 

testimony on Veteran’s issues to the House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees. Other 

responsibilities include articulating the Department’s points of view on issues affecting America’s 

Veterans; maintaining and publishing lists of VSOs and their representatives for use by VA and the 

public (http://www1.va.gov/vso); advising the Secretary and Deputy Secretary of VSO policy 

statements or specific positions on Veterans’ issues; and assisting VSOs in their dealings with 

other Federal agencies. 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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47

CENTER FOR MINORITY VETERANS

The Center for Minority Veterans (CMV) was established by Congress on November 2, 1994, to 

promote, evaluate and assess minority Veterans' use of VA programs and recommend solutions to 

better serve minority Veterans. Serving as a principal advisor to the VA Secretary, the CMV is 

charged with identifying barriers to service and health care access as well as increasing local 

awareness of minority Veteran-related issues by developing strategies for improving minority 

participation in existing VA benefits programs. Specifically, these Veterans include the following 

Veteran minority groups: African American, Hispanic, Asian American, Pacific Islander, and Native 

American, including American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian. Cultural, economic, 

and ethnic differences may hinder access to VA services by Veterans minority groups. Outreach 

activities, surveys, site visits, and direct contact with Veterans are some of the channels through 

which the CMV gathers information to identify opportunities for improvement. The CMV utilizes 

three major outreach initiatives to assist in identifying and addressing minority Veterans concerns: 

3⁄4 Members of the Secretary's Advisory Committee on Minority Veterans are recognized 

authorities in fields pertinent to the needs of the minority group they represent. This diverse 

committee advises the Secretary and Congress on VA's administration of benefits, provisions 

of health care, and services to minority Veterans. Additionally, they provide an annual report 

to Congress outlining recommendations, concerns, and observations on VA's delivery of 

services to minority Veterans. 

3⁄4 Approximately 300 Minority Veterans Program Coordinators (MVPC) are assigned throughout 

VA in each regional office, medical center, and national cemetery. MVPCs focus on the needs 

of minority Veterans in their respective local communities by educating them on VA benefits, 

services and programs, as well as advocating on behalf of these Veterans by identifying 

opportunities for improvement of services. 

3⁄4 Through established collaborative partnership efforts with Veteran stakeholders, both internal 

and external, the CMV conducts outreach to minority Veterans in rural and urban areas on VA 

benefits and services. These critical partnerships are developed and sustained through active 

participation in committee meetings, conferences, Federal, state, and local Veterans 

workshops/forums. 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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48

CENTER FOR WOMEN VETERANS

The Center for Women Veterans (CWV) was established by Public Law No. 103-446 in November 

1994 to monitor VA programs for women Veterans (www.va.gov/womenvet). 

Women Veterans are currently one of the fastest growing subpopulations of Veterans. Today, 

there are 1.8 million women Veterans of the 23.4 million Veterans. The population of women 

Veterans is increasing exponentially from 1.1 million in 1980 to a projection of nearly 2 million by 

2020 and will comprise more than 10 percent of the Veteran population. 

The Center’s mission is to monitor and coordinate VA’s administration of health care and benefits 

services, and programs for women Veterans; serve as an advocate for a cultural transformation 

(both within VA and in general public) in recognizing the service and contributions of women 

Veterans and women in the military; and raise awareness of the responsibility to treat women 

Veterans with dignity and respect. The CWV Director serves as the primary advisor to the 

Secretary on all matters related to policies, legislation, programs, issues, and initiatives affecting 

women Veterans. 

The Center’s goals are to make health care and benefits services and programs for women 

Veterans part of VA’s institutional consciousness through education and communication; identify 

and recommend effective VA policies, practices, programs, and related activities for women 

Veterans and disseminate throughout the Department; acknowledge women Veterans’ service and 

contributions and the responsibility to treat them with dignity and respect; advocate and support 

awareness of entitlement to VA benefits by promoting images of women Veterans through mass 

media; collaborate with other Federal, state, and local agencies, VSOs, faith-based and community 

partners to promote a culture that honors their military service and treats them with dignity and 

respect. 

The Center’s activities include collaborating and coordinating with VA’s three Administrations and 

staff offices on their delivery of benefits and services; liaison with other Federal, state, and local 

agencies; serving as VA representative on White House Interagency Council on Women and Girls; 

facilitating joint training and networking among women Veterans program managers and 

coordinators across VA; providing women Veteran stakeholders the opportunity to share their 

concerns and issues with VA through community forums and gatherings, and regional/national 

summits; monitoring VA’s research agenda to ensure that women Veterans and their issues are 

included in VA studies; serving as a resource center; performing joint outreach to improve women 

Veterans’ awareness of VA services, benefits and eligibility criteria; educating VA staff on women 

Veterans contributions; and recommending policy and legislative proposals to the Secretary. 

Center staff has membership on or attend all major Department-wide workgroups, task forces, and 

committees, and joint federal collaborative committees. 

The Center also provides consultation and support to the Advisory Committee on Women 

Veterans. This statutory Committee provides advice and guidance to the Secretary on the 

administration of benefits and services by the Department for women Veterans, and submits a 

biennial report to the Secretary on its findings and recommendations. 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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49

CENTER FOR FAITH-BASED AND NEIGHBORHOOD PARTNERSHIPS

The Center for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives was established on June 1, 2004, by 

Executive Order 13342, to coordinate agency efforts to eliminate regulatory, contracting, and other 

programmatic obstacles to the participation of faith-based and other community organization in the 

provision of social and community services. It was renamed the Center for Faith-Based and 

Neighborhood Partnerships (CFBNP) in February 2009. 

The Center’s mission is to incorporate faith-based and other community organizations in VA 

programs and initiatives to the greatest extent possible. The CFBNP Director serves as the liaison 

and point of contact with the White House OFBNP. 

The Center’s responsibilities include: 

3⁄4 Coordinating a comprehensive agency effort to incorporate faith-based and other community 

organizations in agency programs and initiatives to the greatest extent possible. 

3⁄4 Proposing initiatives to remove barriers including but not limited to reform of regulations, 

procurement, and other internal policies and practices. 

3⁄4 Proposing the development of innovative pilot and demonstration programs to increase the 

participation of faith-based and other community organizations in Federal as well as state and 

local initiatives. 

3⁄4 Developing and coordinating agency outreach efforts to disseminate information more 

effectively to faith-based and other community organizations with respect to programming 

changes, contracting opportunities, and other agency initiatives. 

The Center works closely with other VA offices that have organizational and programmatic 

responsibilities with faith-based and community groups. A Center Steering Committee provides 

consultation, sharing of information, and collaboration on all faith-based and community issues. 

CFBNP's Website, www1.va.gov/fbci, provides updated information on faith-based and community 

initiatives activities, programs, and resources. 
VA ORGANIZATIONAL BRIEFING BOOK

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50

OFFICE OF SMALL AND DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS UTILIZATION

The Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) consists of the Center for 

Small Business Programs (CSBU) and the Center for Veterans Enterprise (CVE). The OSDBU 

Director serves as the Department's advocate for the participation of service-disabled Veteranowned small businesses (SDVOSB), Veteran-owned small businesses (VOSB), small business 

concerns (SBC), small disadvantaged businesses (SDB), women-owned small businesses 

(WOSB), and Historically Underutilized Businesses (HUBZone) in VA contracts and subcontracts. 

This office plans, implements, and coordinates Department programs for small businesses as 

directed by statutes, Executive Orders, and applicable regulations. The OSDBU Director serves as 

the Department's principal liaison to the Small Business Administration. In matters relating to the 

Department's socioeconomic acquisition program, the Director is a liaison with the Department of 

Commerce, General Services Administration, and the Office of Federal Procurement Policy. 

Established by statute in 1979, OSDBU works closely with VA program offices and contracting 

activities to ensure maximum practical opportunity for small businesses in the Department’s 

procurements. Activities include conducting contract bundling reviews, training acquisition officials, 

counseling entrepreneurs, participating as small business experts at conferences, distributing 

informational materials that describe how to do business with the Department and sharing 

acquisition information with Veterans Service Organizations. This office negotiates, establishes, 

and maintains the departmentwide procurement goals, and reports on the progress toward 

accomplishing these goals. This office monitors the effectiveness of current policy, procedures, 

and plans for enhancing utilization of small businesses in future departmental requirements. 

CENTER FOR VETERANS ENTERPRISE

CVE promotes the formation and expansion of businesses owned by Veterans. The Census 

Bureau estimates there are approximately 3.2 million businesses owned by Veterans. VA’s 

statutory duties include: 

3⁄4 Locating every business in the Nation owned by a Veteran or Veterans and annually offering 

help to that business. 

3⁄4 Maintaining a database of self-represented and VA verified Veteran and service-disabled 

Veteran-owned businesses. The Vendor Information Pages database is available at 

www.VetBiz.gov. 

3⁄4 Annually notifying Federal agencies of the products and services provided by SDVOSBs. 

3⁄4 Informing Veterans about how to locate Federal, state and local government procurement 

opportunities and corporate opportunities. 

3⁄4 Maintaining an electronic clearinghouse of assistance programs available to Veterans. 

3⁄4 Supporting the Secretary of Veterans Affairs in his capacity as an ex-officio member of the 

Board of Directors of the National Veterans Business Development Corporation. 

3⁄4 Cooperating with the Small Business Administration and the Department of Labor (DOL) to 

promote self-employment for disabled Veterans. 
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3⁄4 Providing training and business coaching to Veterans. CVE maintains a national toll-free 

helpline (1-866-584-2344) for Veterans interested in starting or expanding a business. CVE 

staff provides one-on-one personalized advice, access to resources, professional referrals, 

and the latest in news and information to assist Veterans in business. 

3⁄4 Because VA does not have any financing programs for small businesses, we give referrals to 

organizations that can assist them in locating appropriate financing for their business needs. 
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OFFICE OF EMPLOYMENT DISCRIMINATION COMPLAINT ADJUDICATION

The Office of Employment Discrimination Complaint Adjudication (OEDCA) began operations on 

February 19, 1998, pursuant to The Veterans Benefits Act of 1997. The OEDCA Director is 

required to: 

3⁄4 Issue final agency decisions and orders on the merits of Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) 

complaints and on any relief that may be available. 

3⁄4 Report cases involving a finding of intentional discrimination or retaliation against employees 

asserting rights under an equal employment opportunity law to the Secretary or Deputy 

Secretary. 

OEDCA is an independent office responsible for issuing final agency decisions and orders on the 

substantive merits of employment discrimination complaints filed by employees, former employees, 

and applicants for employment. In order to avoid a conflict of interest, complaints alleging that the 

Secretary or Deputy Secretary personally made a decision directly related to the matters in dispute, 

or were otherwise personally involved in such matters, will be referred for decision-making to 

another Federal agency pursuant to a cost-reimbursable agreement. Such a referral will not be 

made, however, when the action complained of relates merely to routine, ministerial approval of 

selection recommendations submitted to the Secretary by Under Secretaries, Assistant 

Secretaries, or other key officials. 

Final agency decisions and orders are rendered in a fair and impartial manner and are based on 

evidence contained in the investigation report and, if applicable, the hearing transcript and exhibits 

provided by an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) appointed administrative 

judge. OEDCA is also responsible for determining equitable relief and issuing final agency 

decisions on a complainant’s entitlement to compensatory damages, attorney fees, and costs 

where the complainant is a prevailing party. The Director’s decisions are not subject to further 

review or appeal by any official within the Department. Complainants who are dissatisfied with a 

final agency decision or order may either appeal to the EEOC (or in some cases the Merit Systems 

Protection Board) or file a civil action in an appropriate United States District Court. 
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OFFICE OF ADVISORY COMMITTEE MANAGEMENT

The Advisory Committee Management Office serves as the coordinating office for VA's 23 federal 

advisory committees. It is responsible for establishing clear goals, standards, and uniform 

procedures for advisory committee activities. It is also responsible for ensuring the VA advisory 

committee operations are in compliance with the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act. 

Advisory committees are used extensively by VA to provide advice and guidance on a wide variety 

of programs that deliver benefits and services to our Nation’s Veterans. Advisory committees 

operate as another component of the “people’s voice” in our democratic form of government. 

Some of VA’s advisory committees have been mandated by Congress to ensure that federal laws, 

as carried out by the executive branch, are meeting their intended goals. Other VA committees 

have been created by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to assess specific VA policies or programs. 

Advisory committee members are generally acknowledged, by VA’s leadership and members of 

the Veterans Affairs committees in Congress, as “consumer representatives” of those millions of 

beneficiaries whose lives are affected each year by VA programs. Advisory committee meetings at 

VA are generally open to the public, and notices of those meetings are published in the Federal 

Register. 
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OFFICE OF SURVIVORS ASSISTANCE

The Office of Survivors Assistance was created by Public Law No. 110-389 in October 2008 to 

oversee VA programs for survivors and dependents of survivors. 

The Office will ensure that the surviving spouses, children and parents of deceased Veterans have 

access to applicable benefits and services under the law and will advocate for their special needs 

in the policy and programmatic decision of the Department. 

The Office serves as a primary advisor to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs on all matters related to 

the policies, programs, outreach, legislative issues and other initiatives affecting survivors and 

dependents of survivors. The Office will also serve as the Department's liaison for inter- and intraagency cooperation on survivor issues. 

The Office’s responsibilities include: 

3⁄4 Monitor the delivery of benefits and services. 

3⁄4 Provide internal policy guidance and oversight of benefits. 

3⁄4 Help design and oversee directed outreach. 

3⁄4 Seek input from a variety of outside individuals and organizations that deal with survivors. 

3⁄4 Track and suggest legislative issues. 

Claim-specific inquiries will be referred to the relevant administrations and offices of the 

Department so that survivors receive all of the benefits and services for which they are eligible. 
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FEDERAL RECOVERY COORDINATION PROGRAM

In 2007, the President’s Commission on Care for America’s Returning Wounded Warriors 

recommended the creation of a comprehensive patient-centered recovery plan for every seriously 

wounded Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) service members 

or Veterans. In 2007, the Federal Recovery Coordination Program (FRCP) was created in 

response to this recommendation and was incorporated into law through the National Defense 

Authorization Act of 2008. The FRCP is operated as a joint program of the Departments of 

Defense and Veterans Affairs, with VA serving as administrative home. 

The patient-centered recovery plan or Federal Individualized Recovery Plan (FIRP) is created by a 

Federal Recovery Coordinator (FRC) in collaboration with the service member or Veteran, their 

family members and members of their multidisciplinary treatment team. The FIRP identifies the 

benefits and services required to meet the service member or Veteran’s listed personal and 

professional goals and is revised or updated as needed to track progress. 

FRCs are located at various military treatment facilities and VA medical centers including: Walter 

Reed Army Medical Center, National Naval Medical Center, Brooke Army Medical Center, Naval 

Medical Center at San Diego, Eisenhower Army Medical Center, Rhode Island VAMC, and Michael 

E. DeBakey VAMC in Houston, Texas. 

In order to meet its goal of providing assistance to recovering service members, Veterans and their 

families, the FRCP works and interacts with the following programs and staff: 

3⁄4 Department of Defense’s Recovery Coordination Program; 

3⁄4 Military Treatment Facility Command, multidisciplinary staff and case managers; 

3⁄4 Services’ Wounded Warrior Programs; 

3⁄4 VA’s OEF/OIF teams; 

3⁄4 VA’s polytrauma multidisciplinary staff and case managers; 

3⁄4 VA’s system of health care management, medical teams and case managers; and 

3⁄4 Various other VA offices and programs. 

In addition, the FRCP serves as VA’s “business owner” of the National Resource Directory. 
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NGO GATEWAY INITIATIVE OFFICE

The Non-Government Organization (NGO) Gateway Initiative Office assists NGOs in planning, 

improving, and carrying out their programs on behalf of Veterans, their families, and their survivors. 

Under the NGO Gateway Initiative, the Veterans Coalition Inc., a non-profit organization formed by 

several major national Veterans groups, assist NGOs in identifying the unmet needs of Veterans, 

families, and their survivors, working with VA to help minimize duplication of effort and confusion 

among NGOs with programs for Veterans. In addition, the program encourages continuous 

feedback from NGOs on issues such as physical and mental health, employment and satisfaction 

with government services and benefits affecting Veterans.