Comptroller General of the United States shall com-
plete an examination of the following: 
(A) Overlapping functions of the human 
resource structures of the Veterans Health Ad-
ministration and the office of the Assistant Sec-
retary of Human Resources. 
(B) Whether there are opportunities to 
centralize offices and tasks of the Administra-
tion and such offices that are duplicative. 
(C) Whether the use of multiple hiring 
structures in the Department of Veterans Af-
fairs has had an effect on the speed with which 
the Department hires new employees. 
(2) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller 
General shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ 
Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Vet-
erans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives a re-
port on the findings of the Comptroller General with 
respect to the examination completed under para-
graph (1). 
(i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) SECTION
7401(1)
EMPLOYEE.—The term 
‘‘section 7401(1) employee’’ has the meaning given 
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such term in section 7461(c) of title 38, United 
States Code. 
(2) SUPERVISOR.—The term ‘‘supervisor’’ has 
the meaning given that term in section 7103(a) of 
title 5, United States Code. 
SEC. 209. REPORT ON EFFECTS OF HIRING FREEZE OR-
DERED BY THE PRESIDENT ON JANUARY 23, 
2017. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Vet-
erans Affairs shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ 
Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Af-
fairs of the House of Representatives a report on the effect 
of the freeze on the hiring of Federal civilian employees 
ordered by the President of January 23, 2017, has had 
on the ability of the Department of Veterans Affairs to 
provide care and services to veterans. 
(b) ELEMENTS.—The report required by subsection 
(a) shall include the following: 
(1) A discussion on whether the hiring freeze 
has disrupted the operations of the Department. 
(2) A discussion on whether the hiring freeze 
has increased the operating costs of the Department. 
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(3) The effect of the hiring freeze on the ability 
of the Department to provide veterans with access to 
health care. 
(4) The effect of the hiring freeze on the ability 
of the Department to schedule appointments for vet-
erans. 
(5) The effect of the hiring freeze on the ability 
of the Department to process payments for medical 
care, including payments to third-party providers. 
(6) The effect of the hiring freeze on the ability 
of the Department to adjudicate claims for benefits, 
pensions, and compensation. 
(7) The effect of the hiring freeze on the ability 
of the Department to resolve appeals for benefits, 
pensions, and compensation. 
(8) A discussion of whether the hiring freeze 
created an incentive for supervisors to use alter-
native sources of labor, such as increased use of 
overtime, contracting with private firms, or using 
other than full-time permanent employees. 
(9) A discussion of whether improved workforce 
planning, rather than a hiring freeze, is a more ef-
fective way to insure that the level of the personnel 
resources of the Department are consistent with re-
quirements. 
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SEC. 210. REPORT ON PLAN OF THE SECRETARY OF VET-
ERANS AFFAIRS TO CARRY OUT A REDUC-
TION IN FORCE AT THE DEPARTMENT OF 
VETERANS AFFAIRS THROUGH ATTRITION. 
(a) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than 180 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the Committee on Vet-
erans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Vet-
erans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives a report 
on how the Secretary plans to implement the portions of 
the plan of the Director of the Office of Personnel Man-
agement to reduce the size of the workforce of Federal 
Government through attrition that pertain to the Depart-
ment of Veterans Affairs. 
(b) SUCCESSION
AND RECRUITMENT PLAN RE-
QUIRED.—The report shall include the Secretary’s succes-
sion and recruitment plan to replace employees of the De-
partment that are eligible to retire as of the day of the 
enactment of this Act and eligible to retire within five 
years of such date. 
(c) CONSULTATION.—The Secretary shall consult 
with the labor organization that represents employees of 
the Department on matters relating to the plans described 
in subsections (a) and (b). 
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SEC. 211. TRANSPARENCY REGARDING STAFFING LEVELS 
OF NURSES EMPLOYED BY THE DEPARTMENT 
OF VETERANS AFFAIRS AND REPORT ON PAY 
FOR SUCH NURSES. 
(a) PUBLICATION OF INFORMATION.— 
(1) INITIAL PUBLICATION.—Not later than 180 
days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall publish on a pub-
licly available Internet website of each medical facil-
ity of the Department of Veterans Affairs informa-
tion on staffing levels for nurses at such medical fa-
cility. 
(2) UPDATE OF INFORMATION.—The head of 
each medical facility of the Department shall update 
the information published under paragraph (1) as 
changes to the staffing level of nurses at such med-
ical facility occur. 
(3) CONSULTATION WITH CMS.—In developing 
the information required by paragraph (1) and up-
dated under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall con-
sult with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Serv-
ices. 
(b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit 
to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and 
the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep-
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resentatives a report that includes discussion and assess-
ment of the following: 
(1) The use by directors of medical centers of 
the Department of authorities to provide nurses pay 
that reflects market conditions. 
(2) The development by the Department of a 
period reporting process to monitor medical center 
compliance with the policies and procedures for each 
of the key recruitment and retention initiatives of 
the Veterans Health Administration. 
(3) The adequacy of training resources provided 
to all nurse recruiters at medical centers of the De-
partment. 
(4) The key recruitment and retention initia-
tives of the Veterans Health Administration for 
nurses, the overall effectiveness of the initiatives, 
and the improvements that may be needed. 
SEC. 212. EMPLOYMENT OF POLICE OFFICERS AND FIRE-
FIGHTERS BY DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 
AFFAIRS. 
(a) CLASSIFICATION OF POSITIONS.—Not later than 
one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in consultation with the Di-
rector of the Office of Personnel Management, shall en-
sure that the job description, position classification, and 
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Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Af-
fairs of the House of Representatives a report on— 
(1) the use by directors of medical centers of 
the Department of Veterans Affairs of special pay 
incentives to recruit and retain trained and qualified 
police officers; and 
(2) the steps that the Secretary plans to take 
to address the critical shortage of police officers 
throughout the Department. 
SEC. 213. STUDY ON COMMUNICATIONS WITHIN THE MAN-
AGEMENT OF THE VETERANS HEALTH AD-
MINISTRATION. 
Not later than one year after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, the Inspector General of the Department 
of Veterans Affairs shall complete a study on— 
(1) how the Veterans Health Administration 
communicates the directives, policies, and handbook 
of the Administration to the field, including an eval-
uation of compliance with such directives, policies, 
and handbook to determine whether such commu-
nication is effective; and 
(2) the effectiveness of each Veterans Inte-
grated Service Network in disseminating information 
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to employees within such Network and veterans 
served by such Network. 
Æ 
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