VA Improved the Transparency of Mandatory Staffing and Vacancy Data

The OIG conducted this mandated review to assess VA’s reporting of staffing and vacancy data on its public-facing website. VA is required to release this information publicly each quarter by the VA MISSION Act of 2018 (the Act). The review team found VA partially complied with Section 505 of the Act. VA reported time-to-hire data using a 100-day target instead of the Office of Personnel Management’s required 80-day target. However, VA implemented sufficient corrective actions to close three of the five recommendations from the OIG’s June 2019 report. In doing so, VA ensured compliance with reporting requirements for vacancies and employee gains and losses. Vacancies were reported by specific occupational series as required, allowing the public to see whether unfilled positions were greater in clinical or nonclinical roles. Additionally, VA properly published staffing gains and losses by quarter, as opposed to fiscal year to date. VA also improved transparency and usefulness of its data. All seven quarterly staffing and vacancy publications were posted on VA’s public website. Furthermore, in the three most recent quarterly releases, VA provided an executive summary with a brief data element synopsis for its administrations and staff offices. Finally, VA added a summary page to the staffing and vacancy spreadsheets that provided the reader with information on how to interpret the data, overall figures for the previous quarterly data releases, and the top five vacant occupations in the Veterans Health Administration. However, action is still needed to close recommendations on disclosing data limitations and updating the methodology for aggregation and reporting. The OIG recommended the assistant secretary for human resources and administration ensure that time to hire data are reported as required and confer with the Office of General Counsel to ensure that changes in reporting methodology adhere to the Act.