Digital G.I. Bill Undelivered: Contracting Challenges and the Need for Acquisition Reform
Hearing•House Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Technology Modernization•Feb 4, 2026 · 2:00 PM
Summary
House Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Technology Modernization held a hearing on Feb 4, 2026 at 2:00 PM in Cannon House Office Building, Room 360, rescheduled. 7 witnesses appeared.
Record
The meeting has its video, its transcript, witnesses and documents on the record.
Video
The proceedings, as the committee streamed them.
Transcript
The transcript runs to 2,672 lines and 145,981 characters, as the Government Publishing Office printed it.
1[House Hearing, 119 Congress]2[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]34 DIGITAL G.I. BILL UNDELIVERED:5 CONTRACTING CHALLENGES AND THE6 NEED FOR ACQUISITION REFORM7=======================================================================89 JOINT HEARING1011 BEFORE THE1213 SUBCOMMITTEE ON TECHNOLOGY MODERNIZATION1415 AND THE1617 SUBCOMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY1819 OF THE2021 COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS22 U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES2324 ONE HUNDRED NINETEENTH CONGRESS2526 SECOND SESSION2728 __________2930 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 20263132 __________3334 Serial No. 119-473536 __________3738 Printed for the use of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs3940[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]4142 Available via http://govinfo.gov43 __________4445 U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE4663-304 WASHINGTON : 202647=======================================================================4849 COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS5051 MIKE BOST, Illinois, Chairman5253AUMUA AMATA COLEMAN RADEWAGEN, MARK TAKANO, California, Ranking54 American Samoa, Vice-Chairwoman Member55JACK BERGMAN, Michigan JULIA BROWNLEY, California56NANCY MACE, South Carolina CHRIS PAPPAS, New Hampshire57MARIANNETTE MILLER-MEEKS, Iowa SHEILA CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK,58GREGORY F. MURPHY, North Carolina Florida59DERRICK VAN ORDEN, Wisconsin MORGAN MCGARVEY, Kentucky60MORGAN LUTTRELL, Texas DELIA RAMIREZ, Illinois61JUAN CISCOMANI, Arizona NIKKI BUDZINSKI, Illinois62KEITH SELF, Texas TIMOTHY M. KENNEDY, New York63JEN KIGGANS, Virginia MAXINE DEXTER, Oregon64ABE HAMADEH, Arizona HERB CONAWAY, New Jersey65KIMBERLYN KING-HINDS, Northern KELLY MORRISON, Minnesota66 Mariana Islands67TOM BARRETT, Michigan6869 Jon Clark, Staff Director70 Matt Reel, Democratic Staff Director71 ------7273 SUBCOMMITTEE ON TECHNOLOGY MODERNIZATION7475 TOM BARRETT, Michigan, Chairman7677NANCY MACE, South Carolina NIKKI BUDZINSKI, Illinois, Ranking78MORGAN LUTTRELL, Texas Member79 SHEILA CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK,80 Florida81 ------8283 SUBCOMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY8485 DERRICK VAN ORDEN, Wisconsin, Chairman8687JUAN CISCOMANI, Arizona CHRIS PAPPAS, New Hampshire,88ABE HAMADEH, Arizona Ranking Member89KIMBERLYN KING-HINDS, Northern MORGAN MCGARVEY, Kentucky90 Mariana Islands DELIA RAMIREZ, Illinois91TOM BARRETT, Michigan TIMOTHY M. KENNEDY, New York9293Pursuant to clause 2(e)(4) of Rule XI of the Rules of the House, public94hearing records of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs are also95published in electronic form. The printed hearing record remains the96official version. Because electronic submissions are used to prepare97both printed and electronic versions of the hearing record, the process98of converting between various electronic formats may introduce99unintentional errors or omissions. Such occurrences are inherent in the100current publication process and should diminish as the process is101further refined.102 C O N T E N T S103104 ----------105106 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2026107108 Page109110 OPENING STATEMENTS111112The Honorable Tom Barrett, Chairman, Subcommittee on Technology113 Modernization.................................................. 1114The Honorable Nikki Budzinski, Ranking Member, Subcommittee on115 Technology Modernization....................................... 2116The Honorable Derrick Van Orden, Chairman, Subcommittee on117 Economic Opportunity........................................... 4118The Honorable Chris Pappas, Ranking Member, Subcommittee on119 Economic Opportunity........................................... 5120121 WITNESSES122 Panel I123124Mr. Kenneth Smith, Executive Director at Education Service,125 Veterans Benefits Administration, U.S. Department of Veterans126 Affairs........................................................ 7127128 Accompanied by:129130 Mr. Raymond Tellez, Executive Director, Office of Business131 Integration, Veterans Benefits Administration, U.S.132 Department of Veterans Affairs133134 Mr. Jeffrey Neill, Associate Executive Director, Office of135 Procurement, Acquisition and Logistics, Technology136 Acquisition Center, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs137138 Mr. Robert Orifici, Executive Director of Benefits and139 Memorial Services, Office of Information Technology, U.S.140 Department of Veterans Affairs141142 Panel II143144Mr. Justin Parke, Managing Director, Digital GI Bill Program145 Manager, Accenture Federal Services............................ 22146147Mr. Troy Mueller, Managing Director, Integrated Benefits148 Operations & Technology Division, MITRE........................ 24149150Mr. William Hubbard, Vice President for Veterans & Military151 Policy, Veterans Education Success............................. 25152153 APPENDIX154 Prepared Statements Of Witnesses155156Mr. Kenneth Smith Prepared Statement............................. 35157Mr. Justin Parke Prepared Statement.............................. 37158Mr. Troy Mueller Prepared Statement.............................. 38159Mr. William Hubbard Prepared Statement........................... 41160161 APPENDIX--continued162 Statements For The Record163164National Association of Veterans Programs Administrators Prepared165 Statement...................................................... 49166Student Veterans of America Prepared Statement................... 74167168 DIGITAL G.I. BILL UNDELIVERED:169 CONTRACTING CHALLENGES AND THE170 NEED FOR ACQUISITION REFORM171172 ----------173174 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2026175176 Subcommittee on Technology Modernization,177 Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity,178 Committee on Veterans' Affairs,179 U.S. House of Representatives,180 Washington, DC.181 The subcommittees met, pursuant to notice, at 2 p.m., in182room 360, Cannon House Office Building, Hon. Tom Barrett183[chairman of the subcommittee on Technology Modernization]184presiding.185 Present from the Subcommittee on Technology Modernization:186Representatives Barrett, Budzinski, and Cherfilus-McCormick.187 Present from the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity:188Representatives Van Orden, HAMADEH, King-Hinds, Pappas,189Ramirez, and Kennedy.190191 OPENING STATEMENT OF TOM BARRETT, CHAIRMAN, SUBCOMMITTEE ON192 TECHNOLOGY MODERNIZATION193194 Mr. Barrett. Good afternoon. The joint committee hearing195will come to order.196 Today we are here to talk about the most important promises197our Nation makes to those who have served. Veterans make a198commitment to our country. They make the sacrifice. When our199veterans come home, America needs to help them build the next200chapter in their life, which is why we are here today.201 For millions of veterans and families, the GI Bill is not202just a benefit. It is the bridge from military service to203civilian life. It gives veterans a fair shot at building a204future. It ensures veterans have the tools they need to get the205education or job training they want, where they want it, and206without a bunch of bureaucracy standing in the way, so that207they can eventually be competitive in the American economy.208That promise should be simple and it should be reliable.209 Over several years, the Digital GI Bill (DGIB) has210struggled to meet that standard. The system was meant to211modernize how education benefits are delivered. It is supposed212to replace outdated systems, reduce paperwork, make payments213safer. Instead, what we have seen are delays, confusion, and214multimillion-dollar rising costs to contracts. That is215unacceptable.216 The Digital GI Bill system began with unclear requirements,217moved forward without the right subject matter experts at the218table. For years, it lacked basic project management discipline219and a reliable schedule. This is not a modernization mistake.220This is a mismanagement, plain and simple.221 The Digital GI Bill contract was awarded 5 years ago, in2222021. It was expected to cost hundreds of millions of dollars.223Today, that cost has more than doubled, with a full life cycle224price now reaching into the billions. Meanwhile, veterans are225missing housing payments. We have seen delays that have been226unnecessary. Schools are being left in the dark without clear227guidance. There is not a single technical error--this is not228about a single technical error. It is an accumulation of229multiple errors. It is about leadership decisions, contracting230strategy, and it ties back to a lack of accountability.231 The benefit system itself should never become a barrier to232the benefits they are set to give. Veterans earn the GI Bill233through years of service and sacrifice. They should not have to234re-earn it by waiting in call queues, navigating backlogs, or235praying the system works this time, or contacting their Member236of Congress to work through the problem with them. Today's237hearing is about understanding what went wrong and, just as238importantly, what must change going forward because this239problem is not unique to the Digital GI Bill.240 Across the entire Department, large technology programs241continue to struggle under vague requirements, weak oversight,242contracts that balloon and cost taxpayers more, while delaying243the delivery of U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)244services to our veterans. When accountability is unclear, the245costs always end up going up, schedules slip and get delayed,246and the veterans and their families these systems are meant to247serve pay the price. That is why this hearing is also about248acquisition reform. If we do not fix how these systems are249procured and awarded, we will repeat the same mistakes at the250expense of veterans and taxpayers.251 I chair the Subcommittee on Technology and Modernization. I252know my friend and fellow subcommittee chairman, Representative253Van Orden, shares this message that this does not work for us.254The status quo is not cutting it. President Trump and Secretary255Collins share that commitment.256 Thank you again for all being here today. I look forward to257a productive discussion on how we can move forward to create258more permanent changes.259 I just want to say that I personally have benefited from260the GI Bill. Used that in my own personal life and I know261countless other veterans who have as well, and it stands out as262one of the biggest pillars of economic opportunity that our263country has undertaken.264 Before I yield, please be advised that the chairman may265declare a recess at any time. With that, I want to yield to266Ranking Member Budzinski for her opening statement as well.267268 OPENING STATEMENT OF NIKKI BUDZINSKI, RANKING MEMBER,269 SUBCOMMITTEE ON TECHNOLOGY MODERNIZATION270271 Ms. Budzinski. Thank you very much, Chairmen Barrett and272Van Orden and Ranking Member Pappas. I value the oversight work273our two subcommittees have done on the Digital GI Bill program274in recent Congresses.275 As I mentioned back in December, it is unfortunate that the276program's relative success has been impaired by recent missed277payments and a lack of communication by the Department. Even278more unfortunate is that many have pointed the finger at279Information Technology (IT) hiccups or tech glitches when it280appears that policy decisions, a lack of planning, and poor281contract management were actually to blame, issues that plagued282too many of VA's modernization efforts.283 While I appreciate our conversation today on the284intricacies of government contracting and project management285challenges within the Digital GI Bill program, these are286systemic issues that we see across VA modernization efforts,287like supply chain modernization, electronic health record288modernization, the integrated financial and management system,289or IFAMS, just to name a few. To this end, I would like to290insert VA's Office of the Inspector General's recent report291here analyzing VA's major management and performance challenges292into the record and specifically highlighting its section293addressing challenges to the information systems and294innovation.295 Mr. Barrett. Continue.296 Ms. Budzinski. Thank you. The report highlights the297critical work VA employees do to provide world-class veteran298healthcare, disability payments, education and survivor299benefits, memorial services, and more. However, VA's Office of300Inspector General (OIG) notes significant challenges in301effectively deploying IT products within the same implements--302impediments rearing their heads over and over again. Inadequate303planning, insufficient resource development, limited304stakeholder engagement, and failures to promptly fix known305problems, these are all issues that OIG has identified in their306August 2024 report about contract management failures within307DGIB, and there are topics we discussed in September 2024308hearing about that report.309 Despite the recommendations from that report being closed,310I have two major concerns. First, I worry about the status of311these recommendations and the applied resolution in light of312the significant personnel, contractual, and procedural changes313that have occurred under Secretary Collins. Second, in light of314this recent report on management challenges and our continued315oversight, has VA systemically--systematically addressed these316issues with contract management and can they apply them to317future contracts even with a depleted workforce?318 While I highlight this one report from OIG, there are319dozens of more just like it from OIG, the Government320Accountability Office (GAO), and other oversight watchdogs321assessing VA's capacity for modernization. Many of these322reports highlight that when these controls and processes break323down, small errors turn into large losses and erode the public324trust. Siloed conversations about how VA manages one contract325will not improve the issues OIG or GAO raised. I believe our326time would be better spent taking a holistic view at the high-327level systemic issues that plague VA's IT modernization efforts328rather than playing whack-a-mole on each individual contract.329 Last, I look forward to hearing from VA, Accenture, and330Veterans Education Success (VES) today on VA's progress in331processing beneficiary claims and delivering timely payments.332While I believe the delays were caused by structural challenges333in intentional policy decisions within the VA rather than334contractor performance, I look forward to hearing how VA can335improve its planning, execution, and communication and prevent336added confusion, frustration, and further delays in benefits.337 Thank you and I yield back.338 Mr. Barrett. Thank you, Ranking Member Budzinski.339 I now yield to our Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity340chairman, my friend, Chairman Van Orden, for his opening341statement.342343OPENING STATEMENT OF DERRICK VAN ORDEN, CHAIRMAN, SUBCOMMITTEE344 ON ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY345346 Mr. Van Orden. Thank you, Chairman. Thanks for everybody347for being here. I mean, I also want to thank the VA for finally348sending the actual witness that we wanted instead of taking349their pick. That is our pick, not yours.350 I believe that this topic can and needs to be approached in351a nonpartisan manner and I appreciate your comments, ma'am. The352ultimate goal of this hearing is to get down to brass tacks and353figure out how the VA can continue its efforts to keep the354Digital GI Bill program--excuse me, I need to correct that. It355is not keep the Digital GI Bill on program or on track. It is356get the Digital GI Bill on track.357 As chairman of the Subcommittee of the Economic358Opportunity, I am committed to providing our veterans with the359resources that they need to pursue the education or employment360opportunities. Veterans earn their educational benefits through361their service to this great country and it is our obligation to362ensure these benefits are delivered reliably and on time.363 Now, the Digital GI program was supposed to be a364multimillion-dollar VA effort. It has now turned into a365multibillion-dollar effort. It is supposed to--intended to366streamline the education claims processing by consolidating367out--excuse me, outdated legacy IT systems and automating368adjudication of most claims. This should make it easier, not369harder for veterans to access and receive their educational370benefits. However, the delays in benefit payments continue to371impact student veterans.372 I swear it was like 2 days ago it was Groundhog Day. This373is like Groundhog Committee with you guys.374 I will be very clear. The Veterans Affairs Administration375has a zero, zero, success rate of creating their own376infrastructure like this. Zero. Have not got one right at all.377That goes into the health record and everything. It is a378disaster.379 We are also going to hear about the real-world impacts of380these delayed payments on students. Today's hearing is going to381examine how contracting issues and lack of program oversight382led to these delays, delays in payments, and how we move383forward.384 The purpose of this hearing is to focus on the solicitation385and contract administration of the GI Bill, Digital GI Bill.386Specifically, how contracting decisions made in the early387stages of this program have impacted delivery of the platform388that has only ballooned the cost of contracting to over $2389billion. Imagine what we could do with a billion and a half.390Let us say you needed $500 million for this. Imagine what we391could do with the other $1.5 billion to provide services to our392veterans. It is inexcusable.393 The cost of this project has increased over billions of394dollars compared to the original estimates. During today's395hearing, you have got to take responsibility. You have to take396responsibility for the continued delays and the skyrocketing397costs on behalf of the American taxpayers. Student veterans398deserve a reliable modern system and taxpayers deserve399assurances that their investment is worthwhile, period.400 Today we have witnesses from the Veterans Benefits401Administration (VBA) and the Office of Information and402Technology (OIT) and the Office of Business Integration. With403these different departments within the VA present, sorry, I404look forward to seeing how all of you can work together to405ensure the Digital GI Bill is in good hands and finally take406accountability for the massive years-long failures.407 I want to end with a quote from General Omar Bradley. We408are dealing with veterans, not procedures. It is their409problems, not ours. Meaning when you are focused internally on410your own problem sets, you cannot focus externally to the411veterans. Again, that is unacceptable.412 With that, I yield to Ranking Member Pappas for an opening413statement.414415OPENING STATEMENT OF CHRIS PAPPAS, RANKING MEMBER, SUBCOMMITTEE416 ON ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY417418 Mr. Pappas. Well, thank you very much to both of our419chairmen and I would also like to echo the comments of Ranking420Member Budzinski.421 I am glad that we are here talking about VA education422benefits, but I am confused a little bit about the approach. If423we are discussing contracting issues, then VA's OIG should be424at the table as a witness. Our Oversight and Investigation425Subcommittee should be represented at this hearing, too. If we426are going to be discussing VA management decisions, failure to427communicate, and failure to pay benefits on time last fall,428then we should have witnesses representing veterans, families,429survivors impacted by these decisions who can testify to tell430their lived experiences, as well as VA political appointees to431take accountability for these decisions. Instead we have a432weird hybrid setup today. I wish that the majority staff had433engaged with the minority staff before last Friday so that434these issues could have been worked through and we could have435had an even more productive hearing today.436 When I look at what happened in the fall with Chapter 35437benefits, I do not see a contract or a contractor failure. No438one in VA has accused Accenture of not delivering what they439were asked to when they were asked to. The issue that sparked440the delays was the decision to have a human reconcile441beneficiary data between the old Benefits Delivery Network442(BDN) and the new VA corporate data bases used by the Digital443GI Bill.444 That being said, I acknowledge the fact that there were445legitimate concerns about data integrity and processing of446claims. VA's failure was not validating the assumption that447this data reconciliation would only take about 5 minutes per448beneficiary. In reality, it took up to 3 hours per file.449 A planning failure that compounded this mistake was VA's450decision to roll out this change before the fall semester, the451busiest time for VA Education Services and the largest number452of veterans and survivors applying for education benefits.453Previous reports and reviews of how VA implements IT upgrades454have recommended that VA test changes at a small scale first455and then roll out the full scale change in nonpeak months. VA456did not do that here.457 I understand why VA made that decision. Education Services458was trying to get the last group of beneficiaries off BDN459before the end of the Fiscal Year so that the system could be460retired and the government would not have to continue to pay461the contract to sustain it. Nevertheless, we now see the462consequences of doing it that way.463 Finally, the most impactful and inexcusable decision VA464made was the failure to communicate with beneficiaries, with465the public, and with Congress. Again, this was a decision made466by the administration. Nothing prevented VA from communicating467what was happening in real time. Saying that the lapse in468appropriations and government shutdown prevented VA from469communicating this critical information to beneficiaries is not470true. Plenty of VA staff were at work. The Secretary was471tweeting. It was a political decision to hide veterans--to hide472this information from veteran survivors and the public and from473Congress in terms of what was going on. That is unacceptable474and it should be unacceptable to everyone on this bipartisan475committee.476 Oftentimes, when we discuss events like these, we usually477say VA did this or VA did that. VA is the organization. The478decisions are made by individuals. I do not think that people479who made the decisions that directly led to the failures last480fall that I have outlined are in the room today. That, too, is481unacceptable, especially for a committee that prides itself on482a reputation for focusing on real solutions to help our483veterans without the partisanship that is seen elsewhere in484Congress. Even if we want to say that Mr. Smith is the485responsible decision-maker as the head of Education Services, I486think Chairman Van Orden will agree with me from his time in487the service that responsibility can be delegated down, but488accountability cannot be.489 For the record, we have exactly zero administration490officials take accountability for these failures to date. I491have been on this committee since 2019. I have seen all eight492DGIB releases. I saw the issues with the original contract and493VA's failure to understand their requirements and write the494contract correctly under the first Trump administration. I saw495the issues overseeing the contract under the Biden496administration, the transition to Accenture, and the growth in497the scope of the contract. I saw the massive failure to pay498beneficiaries last fall. I can tell you that VA could have499absolutely written this contract better to start.500 I can point out that VA has had to re scope the contract501several times because they did not understand their needs up502front and did not plan correctly. I can say that the cost503estimates have been way off as a result. I can also confidently504say, and I want to underscore this, that the issues in the fall505were not due to the contract. The issues were a result of506decisions that VA made and veterans' families and survivors507were the ones who suffered.508 When are we going to have someone take accountability for509the decisions that cause harm to veterans? When are we going510to, as a committee, practice what we preach, rise above the511partisanship, regardless of who is in the White House, and512insist on some accountability? When are we going to force that513accountability? I hope we can hear a little bit more about that514today.515 Mr. Chairman, I yield back. Thank you.516 Mr. Barrett. Thank you, Ranking Member Pappas.517 We now move on to introduce our witnesses. From the518Department of Veterans Affairs we have Mr. Kenneth Smith,519executive director of Education Services, Veteran Benefits520Administration. Mr. Smith is accompanied by Mr. Raymond Tellez521from VBA's Office of Business Integration; Mr. Jeffrey Neill522from VA's Technology Acquisition Center (TAC); Mr. Robert523Orifici, did I say it correctly or is there a long E in there?524Orifici from VA's Office of Information and Technology.525 I ask the witnesses please stand and raise your right526hands.527 [Witnesses sworn.]528 Mr. Barrett. Thank you and let the record reflect that all529witnesses have answered in the affirmative.530 Mr. Smith, you are now recognized for 5 minutes to deliver531your testimony and opening statement on behalf of VA.532533 STATEMENT OF KENNETH SMITH534535 Mr. Smith. Thank you and good afternoon, Chairmans Barrett536and Van Orden, Ranking Members Budzinski and Pappas, and537distinguished members of the subcommittee. Thank you for the538opportunity today to discuss Digital GI Bill's program539management and contract. Joining me today are Mr. Raymond540Tellez, executive director, Veterans Benefits Administration,541Office of Business Integration; Mr. Jeffrey Neill, associate542executive director, Technology Acquisition Center in VA's543Office of Acquisition, Logistics, and Construction (OALC); and544Mr. Robert Orifici, executive director, Benefits and Memorial545Service, Office of Information Technology.546 VA's efforts to implement transformational changes through547the DGIB platform have enabled VA to deliver benefits faster,548enhance customer service, and strengthen compliance and549oversight activities. VA has made tremendous advancements550toward streamlining and automating systems and processes to551increase efficiency and drive outcomes for veterans and their552families.553 DGIB was envisioned as a fully integrated solution to554restructure both claims processing for all education benefits555programs and to enhance customer service for beneficiaries and556external partners. To date, the program has successfully met557mission milestones to maximize service delivery through end-to-558end automation for millions of education benefits claims.559 Additionally, VA has exceeded initial goals by replacing560and decommissioning several legacy IT systems, including the561near half-century old Benefits Delivery Network and the long-562term solution for Chapter 33, both replaced by DGIB. Along the563road, VA has also addressed many other unplanned functionality564changes as required by congressional action and court mandates.565 The progress was not without challenges. The original566contract underestimated complexity, particularly transitioning567from legacy Common Business-Oriented Language (COBOL) as568systems. Delays occurred during integration issues and testing569environment shortages, and VA acknowledged this in a hearing on570September 26, 2024.571 Increased scope equals increased costs. For example,572legislated changes, such as the Johnny Isakson and David P. Roe573Act, the Elizabeth Dole Act, and court decisions, like Rudisill574v. McDonough and Perkins v. Collins, each require significant575work and technical reprioritization within the DGIB program.576 Since implementation of the DGIB project, the MITRE577Corporation has assisted VA with acquisition, planning, and578program support. To ensure full multiyear understanding of579costs and the strategic impact of both delay and external580factors, MITRE prepared a Life Cycle Cost Estimate (LCCE). The581LCCE enables education service to consider tradeoff decisions,582such as new claims processor functionality versus greater583automation. VA monitors these costs closely and prioritizes584increased service delivery for veterans while ensuring good585stewardship for taxpayer dollars.586 Since 2021, VA has processed 37 percent more claims and as587of December 2025, VA is automating and delivering 65 percent of588all claims without any human action in a day, reducing costs589and improving service delivery. As of January 22, 2026, the590average days to complete education claims was 5.6 days. For591Chapter 33 and 35 claims completed through automation, accuracy592was 97 percent, which is on par with human processing.593 VA has taken further steps to improve program management.594First, VA moved from a fixed schedule to a scope-driven595priority process called the Agile Software Methodology. Second,596since VA has consistently processed more claims than originally597forecast, VA was forced to add additional funding annually to598its claims processing contract, but has now shifted to a fixed599cost per month to improve predictability.600 Finally, since 2021, the DGIB initiative has successfully601implemented eight major releases and hundreds of minor602releases. Our focus has always been on the veteran delivering603benefits easier and faster through simplified application604interfaces and increased automation.605 Thank you for your continued support and collaboration as606we work to honor the service and sacrifice of veterans. My607colleagues and I are prepared to answer any questions you or608other members of the subcommittee may have.609610 [The Prepared Statement Of Kenneth Smith Appears In The611Appendix]612613 Mr. Barrett. Thank you, Mr. Smith. The written statement of614Mr. Smith will be entered into the hearing record and I assume615your opening statement stands for the rest of the panelists616with you today, so we will be able to move on to questions.617 I am now going to recognize myself for 5 minutes for618questions.619 Mr. Smith or Mr. Orifici, the Program Management Office is620tasked with requirements planning and developing cost621assessments prior to solicitations for these contracts. Do you622believe it would be beneficial if VA established an independent623office to provide expertise in cost estimates and program624evaluations for large modernization efforts, like the one625undertook by the Digital GI Bill?626 Mr. Smith. Thank you for the question, Mr. Chairman. If the627question is whether Program Management Office should be outside628of the business line, I would say no, because the subject629matter expertise to deliver that benefit is within the program,630which is education service.631 Mr. Barrett. Would you say that the program--I mean, what I632am looking at is the actual implementation of an IT system633agnostic to the actual area under which it is going to be634covering, but covering the actual implementation of the635program, the program management, and the implementation of that636technology. You know, the computer does not know if it is637processing education benefits or health benefits. Yet it feels638like we have drifted from actually getting these things639implemented in a reasonable amount of time for a cost we can640anticipate at the beginning.641 To Chairman Van Orden's point, there has not been a642successful launch of an IT system in a large scale in as far643back as we can remember. Perhaps part of that is due to the644localized effort of those that are managing it versus those645that may have the expertise in implementing systems regardless646of what they are used for.647 Mr. Orifici. Thank you for that question. In general, we648believe that we have the necessary support between IT and the649business program offices as IT works to partner with the650business on integrated roadmaps, on making sure that we have651the outcomes that the business needs identified as we enter652into these. Of course, there is never going to be perfect as we653look at requirements, as we look at toward schedule, but we654want to make sure that we do work toward good enough to be able655to move forward and drive outcomes for veterans.656 Mr. Barrett. Yes, I do not think any of us on this657committee have perfect as our expectation. We want, you know,658we want outcomes that are going to benefit the veterans that we659serve at costs that are not two to three times more than our660advertiser and sometimes even greater than that with serving661the people that have earned these benefits. You know, we have662seen chronic issues within this and it seems to all come back663to IT systems that are an overhaul, a massive overhaul of a664legacy system, moving to an IT system, or an accumulation of a665bunch of different systems in the Digital GI Bill to put this666under one umbrella and then implement it, and it just seems to667chronically have issues that arise from that. Moving it out668into an office dedicated to this purpose perhaps would bring669about a better result. It sounds like you disagree with that670though.671 Mr. Smith. Sir, the program has delivered tremendous672results for veterans. We are currently automating 65 percent of673all of our claims. This was originally envisioned as a managed674service contract. This is a managed service contract. It is not675an IT contract. While we work closely with IT on integration676with VA systems to issue things like payments and ensure that677we have integrity across our environment, we work with our678acquisition staff to make sure that contract has strong679oversight and we are fair and equitable with the contractor.680Then the Program Management Service is also responsible for681making sure that we achieve those outcomes in terms of the682number of claims that we processed, as well as we have683decommissioned eight legacy systems and have addressed684countless other unplanned requirements in our--with it since6852021.686 Mr. Barrett. Okay. With the 1 minute I have left on my687time, can you help me understand? You know, a lot of these688things are siloed between the parts of the Department that they689are contained within. Is there any collaborative effort or690sharing of information, best practices, lessons learned? I691mean, in the Army, we had a whole safety center that shared,692hey, this thing happened, and now we are going to change our693protocols. The next time we go and do a scenario or an exercise694this way. Is that happening within the VA or are there really695siloed offices and practices going about this that may make the696same mistake as another office did 2 years ago or 10 years ago?697 Mr. Smith. I would like to ask Mr. Neill or Mr. Orifici to698respond.699 Mr. Orifici. Sir, thank you for that question. We700definitely have lessons learned that we share up through the IT701organization as we work with this effort.702 Mr. Barrett. Is that a formal process or just like a, you703know, you call somebody you know in the other office and tell704them?705 Mr. Orifici. It is more of an informal process, but it706happens where we share lessons learned. We have regular707meetings between the program offices and portfolios that work708on these efforts, and there is lessons learned shared across709these groups.710 Mr. Barrett. Okay. My timing is up. I want to make sure I711go through the proper protocol of who I am supposed to712recognize.713 Is it Chairman Van Orden next or Chairman--Ranking Member714Budzinski? Okay, go ahead, Ranking Member.715 Ms. Budzinski. Actually, I am going to pick up where you--I716think you left off, Chairman Barrett.717 I just wanted to put a finer maybe point on, I think, his718questioning. One of the things I am still kind of confused by,719by your responses, is who is actually leading this acquisition?720You know, I can understand that VBA, the business line, OIT is721involved, the Office of Acquisitions, Logistics, and722Construction. I think what Chairman Barrett might have been723asking, and I am also still curious about, is that work being724siloed, who is kind of overarching in charge of the acquisition725itself?726 Mr. Smith. In terms of the actual acquisition and the DGIB727system, I, as the executive director for Education Service, I728am the responsible official.729 Ms. Budzinski. Okay. I think just asking kind of again, for730you to maybe further elaborate on, you know, the confusion that731did seem to have occurred here between these multiple different732entities that led to some of these issues. In looking back on733this, was there anything in retrospect you would have handled734differently that could have mitigated some of the confusions?735 Mr. Smith. I am not sure which confusions you are referring736to, ma'am. I would say that, as I said in my opening statement,737there were unclear expectations around the timeline and level738of effort for decommissioning legacy systems and coming out of739the COBOL system into a modern data base, as well as unplanned740scope. We had to address new requirements within the same741budget.742 Ms. Budzinski. Yes. I guess what I mean is like cost743overruns, issues with delays, those kind of confusions. If744there was anything that you might have done differently745specifically.746 Mr. Smith. In terms of cost overrun, it technically was not747an overrun. It was a cost expansion. We added costs because we748added scope to the contract to address new functional749requirements. These functional requirements were, as I said,750the Isakson-Roe Act, the Dole Act, Rudisill, and Perkins, to751name a few.752 Ms. Budzinski. Okay. I will move on. I think one of the753issues, though, is getting the scope right is so important so754that we do not see these projects continue to balloon in cost755and so confusion and a lack of communication so that the scope756gets done right the first time and it does not continue to757expand and taxpayers continue to pay for a larger price tag for758implementation. I will move on from there.759 Mr. Smith, MITRE, who is joining us on our second panel,760has been a contractor to conduct the VA's Life Cycle Cost761Estimate for the DGIB program since 2021. I understand that the762VA ended that contract after MITRE delivered its last estimate763in April. How does the VA plan to perform these estimates764without this contract?765 Mr. Smith. Thank you for the question. We are looking at766ways to manage that, either to in-house it or find another767solution.768 Ms. Budzinski. Okay. It seems like a big part of the cost769growth with the DGIB program has not been fully understanding770what you need, again, as I mentioned before, one of the surest771ways to underestimate acquisition costs. Are you confident the772VA understands all the elements of your requirements so they773will stop growing?774 Mr. Smith. Yes, I think we do have an understanding of our775scope. We do understand that there are new requirements that we776still need to work in while also executing the final components777of--that we had actually planned in the original contract.778 Ms. Budzinski. Okay. My next question is, who will be779responsible for revising the cost estimates going forward? Is780that you?781 Mr. Smith. It would be under the direction of my office.782You know, the actual whether we contract it out or do it in-783house is something we will have to decide still.784 Ms. Budzinski. Okay. Are you confident that whoever that785will be will have the expertise to actually come up with that786robust estimate and get it right the first time?787 Mr. Smith. We will come up with a cost estimate, and we788will be happy to share it with you and the subcommittee.789 Ms. Budzinski. Okay. How did VA come to decide that taking790this task in-house is the most appropriate considering numerous791reports about VA's inability to accurately and reliably perform792LCCEs?793 Mr. Smith. We believe that having worked with MITRE over a794number of years, that we should be able to transition some of795that work. While, again, it may not be perfect the first time796with government personnel taking over, we would be looking797forward to, you know, getting that correct.798 Ms. Budzinski. Okay. I will go ahead and yield back.799 Mr. Barrett. Thank you, Ranking Member Budzinski.800 I want to recognize Representative Hamadeh for 5 minutes.801 Mr. Hamadeh. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to also thank802my colleagues on the other side of the aisle, too. I think we803have got a lot of bipartisan support in trying to make sure804that the veterans are taken care of here today.805 The Trump administration has prioritized dismantling the806bureaucratic paralysis and, quote, ``contractor entitlement.''807Both bureaucratic paralysis and contractor entitlement have808stalled progress during the previous term. Now these reform809efforts face a critical test with the Digital GI Bill. Despite810VA's reported backlog reductions, the program's rollout remains811a flashpoint for mismanagement and systemic payment failures812that continue to affect veterans. Secretary Collins has been813doing a commendable job carrying out President Trump's mandate,814and I appreciate the VA's timely submission of their written815testimony by Monday morning for today's oversight hearing.816 Now, Mr. Smith, thank you for being here today. I want to817focus on August 2024. The VA's Office of Inspector General818issued a report on the Digital GI Bill platform that found the819VA did not effectively manage the contract and all of these820problems started during the planning stages for the project.821The VA awarded the contract before it understood exactly what822was needed. This resulted in subsequent contract changes that823more than doubled its cost.824 Now, going off of what Congresswoman Budzinski was talking825about, what steps has the VA taken to ensure its cost as826estimate is accurate, reliable, and complete? Did you rely on827the Government Accountability Office's estimating guide for828your determination?829 Mr. Smith. Thank you for the question. MITRE completed the830last version of the Life Cycle Cost Estimate and, yes, they did831follow the GAO's guide for that.832 Mr. Hamadeh. It was just inaccurate?833 Mr. Smith. The Life Cycle Cost Estimate has--is a range834estimate, so there should be an upper bound and lower bound,835and the DGIB actual costs are within that range.836 Mr. Hamadeh. What part of that range?837 Mr. Smith. I would have to get back to you.838 Mr. Hamadeh. Would it be on the higher end of that range839for the range that you were discussing?840 Mr. Smith. I cannot recall exactly. I just know it was in841range, sir.842 Mr. Hamadeh. Please get back to me on that. Now, what steps843have you taken to ensure all requirements have been identified?844 Mr. Smith. We use an Agile software development methodology845to ensure that the high-level functional requirements are846captured and we work in 3-month increments to develop and847deploy functionality and ensure that we have good integration848across our system.849 Mr. Hamadeh. Is there a risk that the requirements can keep850growing?851 Mr. Smith. There always is, particularly as new legislation852is developed or court cases are found against the VA, and we853have to make adjustments to systems to account for those854changes.855 Mr. Hamadeh. In August 2024, the VA OIG report also laid856out how the VA has repeatedly not been ready to support the857work of the contractor. Now this includes failing to finalize858system requirements on time, not developing the test859environments needed by the contractor, not doing their due860diligence to make sure the system worked. Can you confirm861whether any outstanding payments to the VA contractors are862preventing the release of new capabilities or improvements that863would directly benefit veterans?864 Mr. Smith. I am sorry, are you asking if there is--if we865have withheld payment from the vendor?866 Mr. Hamadeh. Yes.867 Mr. Smith. No, we have not.868 Mr. Hamadeh. Does that--for the contractors, so you pay869them before and the requirements are being delivered on time?870 Mr. Smith. No, we always pay contractors in arrears.871 Mr. Hamadeh. Do you have the staff and expertise you need872in the Office of Information Technology and the Program Office873to manage and support the program?874 Mr. Smith. I have high confidence with Mr. Orifici and his875staff.876 Mr. Orifici. Thank you for that question. We have an877adequate staff that is supporting this team who is dedicated to878support the Digital GI Bill for IT infrastructure and related879concerns.880 Mr. Hamadeh. I know you say that you have adequate staff,881but it has been delayed, it is over cost. How could you say882that right now to the committee?883 Mr. Orifici. As we look at the program and where it is884gone, we have successfully decommissioned BDN, which was this88550-year-old legacy system. It was a big lift. As we went886through that implementation, we faced challenges. We worked887with VBA to adjust for those and we made some adjustments to888the contract as we went through to make sure we delivered.889 As Mr. Smith said, through this cycle there has been890expansion of scope in terms of new features that were being891delivered and were delivered on time. There is also been an892expansion of claims that are processed underneath this contract893and that this contract is a managed service contract, which is894playing for claims outcome, which also goes--accounts for the895cost increases.896 Mr. Hamadeh. Something seems wrong. If it is on--it is not897on time, it is over budget. There seems to be an issue.898 With that, I yield back.899 Mr. Barrett. Thank you, Mr. Hamadeh.900 I now recognize Ranking Member Pappas for 5 minutes. Go901ahead, sir.902 Mr. Pappas. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Smith, I have903behind me a slide that VA provided to Congress that shows a904timeline of the payment issues last fall. We have placed sticky905notes on that that show the times that VA communicated with906beneficiaries specifically. As you can see, a lot of Post-its907for August, many Post-its for November, and in between we want908to get into that area where we saw a lack of communication with909veterans.910 It is clear that you and VA as a whole understood that911there was a significant issue with Chapter 35 payments in early912September because you were taking action to speed up the913process, like waiving enrollment verification requirements on914the 7th of September, the BDN authoritative data memo on the91517th, and the reconciliation automation requirements being916improved on the 23d of September. Yet the only communication917from VA to beneficiaries that entire month was the GI Bill918newsletter that hit on December--or that was sent out on919September 9.920 The next communication does not occur until October 29, and921even that communication did not address the processing delays.922It was not until November 14 that VA chose to publicly923acknowledge the payment delays.924 In September and October, did you want to communicate with925beneficiaries to explain what was happening?926 Mr. Smith. Thank you for the question. Yes, we would have927always preferred to communicate, but we were prohibited from928doing so because of the Anti-Deficiency Act.929 Mr. Pappas. You clearly knew something was wrong back in930early September, before the shutdown. It took 70 days to931communicate with veterans, more than halfway through the fall932semester. What prevented you from communicating the issue to933the public any earlier? Were you directed not to?934 Mr. Smith. In September, we--as I--as you indicated, we935developed requirements to automate and reverse the manual936processing requirement. We thought we would have that solution937in hand and delivered, and the government shutdown happened and938we were unable to deliver that. We thought we would be able to939basically remediate the problem and avoid any payment delays.940 Mr. Pappas. Do you dispute those dates at all? September9419--I am sorry, September 7, when waiving enrollment942verification happened through the 17th and the 23d, when other943steps were taken by the Department to understand this problem944and work to address it? Do you accept those dates?945 Mr. Smith. The decision to waive enrollment verification946was not related to the reconciliation process. That was related947to the unavailability of a web application called Verify Your948Enrollment. Because that was not available, I made the decision949to waive verification of enrollment at that time and on that950basis. We continued to get more information about the951difficulties of processing due to that manual reconciliation952requirement. We were prepared to brief Congress when the953government shutdown happened and that prevented us----954 Mr. Pappas. You fully were aware that there was a problem955in September and there was not communication that was happening956from VA. I do not accept the claim that VA could not957communicate during the shutdown. Number one, the White House's958own guidance said that employees supporting funded programs959like VA education benefits were to be considered exempted960employees and working. Second, the Secretary was communicating,961he was tweeting during this time. All of that is publicly962available and I can put that out with the timestamps if you963want to dispute that fact. Third, VA communicated with veterans964and beneficiaries during previous shutdowns. The difference was965a different leadership that was in place.966 I want to know which VA senior leader told you not to967communicate with veterans' families and survivors?968 Mr. Smith. As I indicated, we were following the anti-969deficiency provisions required of us by the Anti-Deficiency970Act. We were only providing information and doing work directly971tied to protection of life and property.972 Mr. Pappas. This caused a lot of issues with veterans,973families, beneficiaries. We heard about this directly in our974office and they are still, frankly, confused about this and the975direction that VA has taken. I think it has broken trust. We976have heard from beneficiaries and service organizations about977widespread confusion around the implementation of enrollment978verification requirements for Chapter 35. I am wondering what979is the current requirement and are students receiving their980benefits? Can you provide us with an update?981 Mr. Smith. Yes, sir. We did enact verification of982enrollment processes for Chapter 35 starting this month. Those983communications went out and so far we have had 142,000984responses out of about 170. Just this week, in fact yesterday,985we sent notes to help students remember that they have an986obligation to verify their enrollment. We let 37,000987individuals know that they needed to verify their enrollment988still, but we stand ready to verify it for them this month so989that we can ensure that they adapt to that change.990 Mr. Pappas. Thank you. You said in your testimony our focus991is on the veterans. You are not focused on veterans when you992are not communicating with veterans. I appreciate the work that993goes on in the Department, but I cannot get over this lack of994communication. It is inexcusable.995 I yield back.996 Mr. Barrett. Thank you, Ranking Member Pappas.997 I now recognize Representative King-Hinds from the Northern998Mariana Islands. I assume the weather is much better there than999it is here today.1000 Ms. King-Hinds. It is gorgeous. I wish I was back home.1001Thank you for that.1002 Mr. Barrett. Thank you.1003 Ms. King-Hinds. Thank you for the opportunity to have1004conversation about this issue today because the GI Bill1005represents access to opportunities for so many of the veterans1006in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI).1007 I was going over your written testimony, Mr. Smith, and,1008you know, I think there were outright admission, but there were1009some things that was not immediately addressed. Right? I think1010from what I read, the requirements were not matured at the time1011of award. Schedule discipline did not exist. Scope was allowed1012to grow without governance. The BDN was decommissioned before1013the replacement was complete. Right? In your testimony, your1014testimony describes DGIB as exceptionally successful, yet it1015also acknowledges underestimated complexity, missing systems,1016and displays functionality.1017 I just want to know, at what point did the VA acknowledge1018internally that this program was at risk? At what point was1019Congress notified? I am new into the conversation.1020 Mr. Smith. I would like to ask Mr. Orifici to assist me1021with that question.1022 Mr. Orifici. Thank you for that question. We have had a1023number of hearings and testimonies on this since 2018, when we1024first did the Colmery Act. We have had regular engagements. We1025also meet monthly with staffers and provide them updates on the1026status of the Digital GI Bill and other issues surrounding the1027education service area.1028 Through this process, there have been a number of times1029when issues have been raised to staffers, and we have discussed1030this at numerous hearings around this topic.1031 Ms. King-Hinds. Okay. Just for me, because I am new to the1032conversation, as I stated, the contract more than has doubled1033in cost. What you are basically saying, it has not doubled in1034cost. You are adding components to the system itself. Right?1035Just for clarity's sake.1036 Mr. Smith. We have undoubtedly added costs from the initial1037base contract, but it is due to both complexity of converting1038and decommissioning legacy products, as well as new scope1039related to both congressional initiatives as well as court1040requirements.1041 Ms. King-Hinds. Hmm. I guess it is curious to me that the1042decision-making process, right, at which point do you basically1043consider pausing the program rather than engaging in1044renegotiation? I--because that is a significant amount that we1045are talking about. I mean, we are talking about 479 million. In1046addition, that could build the CNMI, a whole new hospital1047system, a whole new police department, and a whole new1048community college. That is a huge amount of money.1049 I know that there is an OIG report that was issued with1050regards to this issue. Has the recommendations been fully1051addressed?1052 Mr. Smith. Yes, we have closed all the IG's1053recommendations.1054 Ms. King-Hinds. Okay. Where are we at in terms of the full1055implementation of the program itself now?1056 Mr. Smith. We have just recently implemented Release 8,1057which removed us from dependency on the legacy BDN system. We1058are now working to increase our automation outcomes while also1059making the veteran facing services better so that veterans can1060get the information they need and communicate with us through1061that My Education Benefits program.1062 Ms. King-Hinds. At what point can you say that this program1063has been fully implemented where our veterans are not going to1064see the disruptions in these services? I was reading through1065some of the testimonies and, you know, there has been1066complaints to certain members that folks are getting notices of1067eviction because they rely on this money to be able to support1068not just their tuition, but, you know, their cost of living.1069 Mr. Smith. Thank you. That is a great question. This is why1070we continue to press automation. Currently, we are at 651071percent automation. We are looking to further increase that. We1072have got planned work this year to continue to drive----1073 Ms. King-Hinds. I guess, the timeline, Mr. Smith, because1074it seems that some of these rollouts are happening right when1075school starts. I am just kind of wondering, right, like, what1076full implementation looks like and how we ensure that we do not1077disrupt these benefits from getting to where it needs to go.1078 Mr. Smith. Absolutely. We would absolutely prefer to avoid1079high enrollment. You know, like fall enrollment was not our1080design. It was not something we wanted to do. We would look to1081avoid that.1082 Ms. King-Hinds. Thank you. I am out of time.1083 Mr. Barrett. Thank you.1084 I now recognize Mrs. Ramirez for 5 minutes. Go ahead.1085 Ms. Ramirez. Thank you. I want to thank the chairs and1086ranking members for holding today's hearing and the very1087familiar faces I have just seen recently. Let me start by1088saying that today's hearing feels a little misdirected. I will1089tell you why. Asking us to look in one place while something1090important is happening elsewhere feels misdirected.1091 My colleagues claim they want to conduct oversight, but we1092have not even had a Oversight Committee hearing since July 22d.1093That was 90 degrees, and it is about 20 degrees now. Right?1094They will not invite the Government Accountability Office, the1095GAO, or the VA Office of Inspector General, the OIG, who are1096directly responsible for providing oversight of the VA.1097 You see, my colleagues want us to believe that the only1098problem is contracting, but we are not addressing the1099previously identified patterns of failures stemming from1100staffing issues, from acquisition governance, and fragmented1101oversight, and also from a lack of sustained capacity building.1102Look, I think we should be seeking to learn from and correct1103systemic failures that harm veterans and that rob them of their1104benefits, not keep passing around the blame like it is a hot1105potato of some sort.1106 As ranking member of the Oversight and Investigation1107Subcommittee, it is my priority to ensure that the VA is1108fulfilling its mission to support our veterans and provide them1109with the benefits that they have earned. I want to get into1110some of these questions.1111 First, I will tell you, modernization only really works if1112the institution itself is ready. There are some really serious1113questions about whether the VA meets that basic threshold. A1114January OIG report formally identified systemic staffing1115vacancies and weak conduct oversight across the VA, even as the1116Department was pushing forward with the Digital GI Bill, the1117DGIB we call it, modernization. At the same time, the VA1118experienced workforce disruptions through Deferred Resignation1119Program, the DRP, Voluntary Early Retirement Authority, the1120VERA, attrition, and furlough decisions during the shutdown.1121 Mr. Smith, hi. Good seeing you again. What concrete steps1122did the VA take to confirm it had the staffing and the1123institutional readiness to execute a $2 billion IT1124modernization effort without harming the beneficiaries?1125 Mr. Smith. Thank you for the question. You know, obviously,1126staffing was increased. I believe in 2024, we testified that1127they were adding 15 additional people. We do have 15--those 151128people still on a term assignment. Clearly, we have about 251129people managing the project.1130 Ms. Ramirez. How many?1131 Mr. Smith. About 25 people managing the project, but also1132supported by our IT colleagues and, you know, the acquisitions1133team.1134 Ms. Ramirez. You think that is enough?1135 Mr. Smith. I do, with our contractor support.1136 Ms. Ramirez. You said your contractor support is 15 people1137that you have added?1138 Mr. Smith. Contractors, no. That would include both MITRE,1139who assists us with acquisitions and planning and project1140management, but also the assistance from the Accenture team.1141 Ms. Ramirez. Mr. Smith, you are saying that the tangible1142actions you took is to add some staffing to be able to help1143with the rollout. Let me keep going.1144 I want to talk about Strategic Acquisition Management1145Initiative, SAMI. It was created within the Office of1146Acquisition, Logistics, and Construction to build acquisition1147and cost-estimating capacity across the VA itself. We now1148understand that SAMI has been dissolved during this1149reorganization.1150 This question is for you, Mr. Neill. Why was an office1151created to address a known GAO finding eliminated before its1152mission was complete?1153 Mr. Neill. Thank you for the question, ma'am. I am not1154familiar with the rationale for eliminating that office, but I1155can say that----1156 Ms. Ramirez. It does not make sense.1157 Mr. Neill. It may make sense if I know the explanation for1158it, but I think I can take that back and I can get an answer to1159that question for you.1160 Ms. Ramirez. Yes, I think it is really important, and I do1161want to make sure. I know there are some questions that I have1162asked in the past that we are going to follow up with, but this1163one certainly is one of those.1164 I want to also make clear the DGIB is not an isolated1165failure. It reflects systemic acquisition weaknesses. In these1166last 30 seconds, Mr. O, I am sorry, what roles does oversight1167investigation now play in ensuring major IT programs have1168credible cost estimates before acquisition decisions are made?1169How has this changed after SAMI's dissolution?1170 Mr. Orifici. Thank you for that question. We still work1171closely with the TAC when we are putting together cost1172estimates, and the TAC helps us validate to make sure that1173those estimates are accurate according to industry standards1174and the expectations around the programs and the acquisitions.1175 Ms. Ramirez. We will follow up. I know my time is up, so,1176Chairman, I will yield back.1177 Mr. Van Orden. [Presiding.] The gentlelady yields back.1178 The chair now recognizes Cherfilus-McCormick for 5 minutes.1179 Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you1180guys so much for being here.1181 Our oversight, when it comes to IT, is something that has1182been near and dear because for the last 4 to 5 years, we have1183been trying to get it right, and it has not been right. That is1184why we are really hunkering down on how can we make sure that1185when we are going through acquisitions, that we are actually1186thinking it through and making sure we are following steps to1187make sure that we are not going to have systems that are in1188place forever that we cannot get up and running, that are1189hurting our veterans having access, and making sure that no one1190is hurt at the end of the day? Because although we are having1191this conversation about making sure all the procedures are1192here, we know that if we get it wrong, veterans get hurt.1193 I wanted to talk more about your Digital GI Bill and the1194oversight that you guys have taken or the steps you have taken1195to make sure that there are not going to be issues that we have1196seen before. Have you guys been using the Acquisition Lifestyle1197Framework when it came to acquiring this contract? That is for1198anybody who can answer it.1199 Mr. Smith. Yes, we did.1200 Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick. Please tell me more about it. The1201whole design between the Acquisitions Lifetime Framework is to1202make sure that there is a system in place. When you applied it1203to this specific GI Bill platform, what did it change in how1204you were going to apply it? Did it have any significant1205improvement to what you were doing?1206 Mr. Smith. I would like to ask Mr. Neill to help me with1207that question. Obviously, the Acquisition Lifecycle Framework1208is something that is across the entire organization and I think1209he would be best able to address the details of that.1210 Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick. Mr. Neill.1211 Mr. Neill. Well, thank you for the question. That is1212something that is in progress. It is being developed currently1213within OALC. If I could speak generally about what the1214Acquisition Lifecycle Framework does.1215 Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick. Before we go into it generally, we1216wanted to make sure that before the acquisition that this was1217actually--the framework was applied. Is there a reason why the1218framework was not applied beforehand?1219 Mr. Neill. I would have to go back--thank you for the1220question first, but I would have to go back and understand not1221knowing because the TAC actually did not participate in this1222acquisition. I am not sure how it was coordinated with respect1223to the acquisition life cycle.1224 Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick. That is very important because a1225lot of times we have different frameworks and we realize that1226they are not working after we apply the next time around. If1227there is any reason why it was not being applied earlier on, I1228think we would want to know that to see if there is anything we1229would want to change.1230 In the sense of the actual development of the framework, it1231was to prevent us going into systems, specifically spending a1232whole bunch of money on different platforms or technology that1233was not able to become compatible to the VA. Could you tell me1234more about where you are in steps of the application of this1235framework?1236 Mr. Smith. We are actively developing the system right now.1237Some of it is obviously into sustainment, but it is very much1238an active development process right now.1239 Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick. If you did not use this framework,1240what framework did you actually use to make sure that there was1241basic--which created a well-defined milestone and1242accountability? What framework were you using? I am assuming1243Mr. Neill is going to take that question since you reached for1244it.1245 Mr. Neill. Thank you for the question. I was actually1246muting myself, but I do not know the answer. I would like to1247let, you know, Mr. Smith answer that question.1248 Mr. Smith. The General Project Management Framework for1249acquisition planning, acquisition development. We worked on the1250requirements. We are in development phase right now, and then1251we will look to move into full-time sustainment and maintenance1252for that application.1253 Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick. Now, is there a reason why you1254chose that framework? That framework has not had success in the1255past of helping us avoid putting a whole bunch of money into1256different programs that did not fit the VA. Is there a reason1257why you chose that framework instead of using the acquisition1258framework?1259 Mr. Smith. Perhaps I am misunderstanding something, ma'am,1260but I would certainly be happy to get back to you.1261 Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick. Okay, thank you. If there is1262anything else that you wanted to--well, let us get back to Mr.1263Neill. You said that you want to talk about it in general. Now,1264if you talk about it in general, can you tell us how you are1265planning on applying it? You are planning on applying it,1266correct?1267 Mr. Neill. Yes, thank you for the question. We are1268intending to apply it to, you know, major programs, and it1269covers a lot of the things that you mentioned where the1270requirements can be better understood, the estimates related to1271those requirements can be more thoroughly explored, and it1272allows greater engagement and consideration of alternatives for1273these services.1274 Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick. Do you have any of those1275quantifiable matrices for the framework that you used before1276acquiring this platform?1277 Mr. Neill. Again, thank you for the question, but I was not1278a participant in the acquisitions, so I do not know what was1279utilized.1280 Mr. Smith. I am certain that that documentation is1281maintained in both the files for the contracting officer as1282well as our contracting officer's representatives.1283 Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick. We look forward to receiving it.1284My time is running out, but we would like to see that just to1285make sure we could compare the two.1286 Mr. Van Orden. The gentlelady's time has expired.1287 Ms. Cherfilus-McCormick. Thank you.1288 Mr. Van Orden. You are welcome. I now recognize myself for12895 minutes.1290 Ok. What was the original budget for this supposed to be,1291Mr. Smith?1292 Mr. Smith. At 453 million.1293 Mr. Van Orden. Okay. From the time you said you were told1294you had $453 million to develop a Digital GI Bill, how long was1295it from you got that email to you awarded a contract?1296 Mr. Smith. I am not certain what the timeline was on that,1297sir.1298 Mr. Van Orden. Okay. I want--I am not asking, I am telling1299you. You are going to give me that answer because you guys have1300a 0, zero, percent record of doing this stuff on time. Here is1301what you did again at the VA: you got a ton of money available1302to you and you said, oh, my gosh, I got to spend this money, so1303let us pretend like we did actual mission planning and then1304crap on the American taxpayers. That is exactly what happened.1305You failed to plan again. The American taxpayer and the1306veterans who earn these benefits are paying the price for your1307guys basic inability to do mission planning.1308 You mentioned that you there is legislation and some court1309cases that made you have to change what you are doing, correct?1310 Mr. Smith. That is correct.1311 Mr. Van Orden. Okay. What was the first one?1312 Mr. Smith. The Isakson-Row Act.1313 Mr. Van Orden. Okay. What was the goal prior to that1314passing?1315 Mr. Smith. The goal for the DGIB managed service contract1316is to deliver claims faster to veterans.1317 Mr. Van Orden. Okay. Then so you changed that after this1318act?1319 Mr. Smith. We had----1320 Mr. Van Orden. Was the goal the same?1321 Mr. Smith. We had to change how we paid the monthly housing1322allowance.1323 Mr. Van Orden. Okay. Then that came into play and you are1324like, oh, okay, we better think of a new thing that we have to1325do or a new goal. What was the goal following the Isakson's1326legislation?1327 Mr. Smith. It has always been to replace the benefit----1328 Mr. Van Orden. What was the next piece of legislation or1329court action that made you change?1330 Mr. Smith. We implemented the Veteran Employment Through1331Technology Education Courses (VET TEC) 1 capability.1332 Mr. Van Orden. I think you see what I am--so I do not1333believe that you actually had any type of metric of success. I1334do not think that you did. Then you are pawning this off on1335Congress and the courts because you again failed to do mission1336planning and set attainable, quantifiable goals for this1337program. This has happened again and again and again.1338 What is the goal right now? Can you put it on a piece of1339paper other than it is we are going to speedy service?1340 Mr. Smith. Again, we are working to deliver claims in 11341day.1342 Mr. Van Orden. I am working to get my hair back, and1343neither one of this is turning out properly, Okay? That is1344unacceptable.1345 Now, listen, do you know what this is?1346 Mr. Smith. I cannot read that from here, sir.1347 Mr. Van Orden. This is the current Veterans Health1348Administration (VHA) organization chart. You have a little bit1349in all of these little things. You are all over the place. You1350are contracting officers, all sorts. All through here, all1351these little noes.1352 Now, these guys are moving this to this. See that? Can1353everybody see the difference between the two? Okay. Where is1354your line and block chart?1355 Mr. Smith. Sir, I believe we sent that over to your office.1356 Mr. Van Orden. I believe I do not have it. No, we need1357theirs. Yes. No, we do not have it. I want to see this because1358everybody here, you know, hey, Bob, I got six bosses. You guys1359got six bosses. We need one boss or maybe two at the most. You1360are never, ever going to get this right until you actually have1361a clean line, until you have a line and block chart where1362everybody knows exactly what they are doing and when they are1363supposed to do it and who they report to and who can be held1364accountable by who. I mean, this is a fundamental issue that we1365have.1366 Mr. Tellez, who is responsible for not including the Office1367of Acquisition, Logistics, and Construction into the original1368contract negotiation? Who?1369 Mr. Tellez. Thank you for your question, sir. I was not--I1370am not--as my role as executive director for the Office of1371Business Integration, I have a small role in the Digital GI1372Bill. I provide support to them.1373 Mr. Van Orden. Does anybody know the answer to this1374question? Who is responsible for not including the Office of1375Acquisition, Logistics, and Construction into the original1376contract?1377 Mr. Smith. Sir, the Office of Acquisitions was involved in1378that we leveraged their contract vehicle, the Transformation1379Twenty-One Total Technology-Next Generation (T4NG) contract.1380VBA's acquisitions team actually managed the task order.1381 Mr. Van Orden. Who put together the team? Who invited1382people to the table?1383 Mr. Smith. The team would have been led by the Education1384Service director.1385 Mr. Van Orden. That is not leading. I ask you, who put the1386actual team together?1387 Okay. My time has expired and out of respect for my1388colleagues here, you are dismissed, this panel, please. If you1389want to stick around, it would be awesome. Then let us have the1390second panel come up. We will readjourn in 7 minutes.1391 [Recess.]1392 Mr. Van Orden. The committee will come to order.1393 On our second panel, we are going to be hearing from the1394following witnesses. Our first witness is Mr. Justin Parke,1395managing director, Digital GI Bill program manager, Accenture1396Federal Services. Our next witness is Mr. Troy Mueller,1397managing director, Integrated Benefits Operations and1398Technology Division at MITRE. Our final witness is Mr. William1399Hubbard, vice president for Veterans and Military Policy,1400Veterans Education Success.1401 Please, all rise and raise your right hand.1402 [Witnesses sworn.]1403 Mr. Van Orden. Very well. Let the record reflect that the1404witnesses have answered in the affirmative.1405 Mr. Parke, you are now recognized for 5 minutes to deliver1406your testimony on behalf of Accenture Federal Services.14071408 STATEMENT OF JUSTIN PARKE14091410 Mr. Parke. Chairman Barrett, Mr. Van Orden, Ranking Members1411Budzinski and Pappas, distinguished members of both1412subcommittees, thank you for inviting me to testify at today's1413hearing. I am Justin Parke, Managing Director at Accenture1414Federal Services, and a member of the Accenture Federal1415Leadership Team. I am also the program manager of our Digital1416GI Bill engagement, leading the implementation and operations1417of Accenture Federal DGIB Systems. I am honored to serve1418veterans and their families in my role on this important1419program.1420 Accenture's work with VA education began in 2019, when VA1421decided to reset after a failed Colmery implementation attempt1422with a different vendor. This reset included the release of a1423competitive outcome-based Request for Proposal (RFP) that1424Accenture won. In partnership with VA, we delivered Colmery on1425time and on budget.1426 After this, VA released another full and open competitive1427RFP for the Digital GI Bill implementation and operations.1428Accenture won this competition and, since March 2021, we have1429supported VA's efforts to make it faster, and easier for1430veterans to access and reliably receive life-changing education1431benefits.1432 We have achieved the main objectives of this contract: to1433process claims uninterrupted and to develop new capabilities1434based on requirements defined by VA while enabling the1435retirement of VA legacy systems. For example, DGIB has retired1436VA's nearly 50-year-old BDN mainframe, which has improved VA's1437operational resilience, and for the first time in GI Bill's 80-1438year history, has enabled fully automated claims processing for1439originals and new chapters.1440 Through our DGIB automation efforts with VA, this January1441more than 64 percent of all education claims were processed1442automatically same day, with the vast majority of these in1443seconds with no veteran claim examiner effort. Chapter 35 is1444now running at 69 percent same-day automated claims processing,1445radically improving VA's posture for spring enrollment. Since1446March 2021, DGIB has processed over 16 million claims,1447delivering more than $43 billion in veteran benefits to 2.31448million unique beneficiaries.1449 There have been challenges to overcome. As previously1450detailed by the OIG, additional requirements, like new1451legislative mandates, new judicial interpretations, and1452additional systems integrations, expanded the scope from the1453original contract, and non-DGIB dependencies delayed the BDN1454retirement. During this BDN delay, VA reprioritized several1455other efforts including VET TEC 1.0 and My Education Benefits,1456and we delivered those capabilities ahead of schedule, ensuring1457that new advancements were still delivered to veterans despite1458the BDN retirement delay. Most recently, the DGIB system was1459instrumental in automating one-time BDN claim reconciliation to1460address the fall Veterans Claims Examiner (VCE) Manual Chapter146135 backlog.1462 The DGIB program's Life Cycle Cost Estimate details the1463baseline costs expected for the overall VA program across1464multiple contracts with multiple vendors and other VA expenses.1465A smaller portion of this estimate is for the managed service1466vendor costs, that is Accenture contract costs. The total1467Accenture contract ceiling is currently 1.08 billion inclusive1468of increased scope. Accenture contract cost is squarely within1469the baseline cost range for the scope and schedule ultimately1470required.1471 Moreover, DGIB results in significant cost avoidance,1472including an estimated 250 million for the BDN retirement, 4001473million for other VA legacy systems, and 400 million from the1474reduced need for claims processing staff over 10 years. Without1475DGIB, VA would need to spend more on claims processing staff to1476keep up with the increased claim volume. All of these savings1477compound year over year and in total far exceed the 1 billion1478in managed service contract ceiling. As one of VA's most1479successful IT transformations, DGIB has overcome challenges and1480delivered on its commitments.1481 Some conclusions to consider. One, VA can achieve ambitious1482transformation even when previous attempts over past decades1483have failed. Two, baseline Life Cycle Cost Estimates should1484include known unknowns, like future legal mandates and other1485future fact-of-life changes that do not exist at program1486inception. Three, procurement organizations can tackle big1487business needs with veteran outcome focused based contracts,1488like DGIB. With the right procurement strategy, VA leadership1489can drive critical mission objectives.14901491 [The Prepared Statement Of Justin Parke Appears In The1492Appendix]14931494 Mr. Van Orden. The gentleman's time is expired.1495 Mr. Parke. Thank you.1496 Mr. Van Orden. Mr. Parke, you are recognized for 51497minutes--oh, excuse me. Should probably put these on. Mr.1498Mueller, you are recognized for 5 minutes to deliver your1499testimony.1500 Mr. Parke, your testimony will be entered into the written1501record.1502 Mr. Parke. Thank you.15031504 STATEMENT OF TROY MUELLER15051506 Mr. Mueller. Chairman Barrett, Chairman Van Orden, Ranking1507Members Budzinski and Pappas, and other members of the1508subcommittees, thank you for the opportunity to testify before1509you today on matters relating to the VA's Digital GI Bill1510program. Successful modernization of legacy it is critical to1511improving the veteran experience. MITRE very much appreciates1512the opportunity to testify today.1513 MITRE is a not-for-profit systems engineering, applied1514research, and advanced technology organization that operates1515federally funded research and development centers for multiple1516Federal agencies, including the Department of Veterans Affairs.1517Currently, I am the managing director responsible for our1518support to modernization of benefits and service delivery1519across all VBA lines of business, the VA's Office of1520Information and Technology, and the Social Security1521Administration. MITRE's role is focused on providing strategic1522advice, guidance, and assistance in the areas of systems1523engineering, program integration, and organizational change.1524 Our work included completing the annual update of the Life1525Cycle Cost Estimate for the DGIB program from 2021 with Version15261 through 2025 Version 5.0, which was delivered in April 2025.1527The LCCE calculates the total cost of the government for1528acquiring and owning a system throughout its lifetime, far1529beyond any specific contract, and is updated annually per the1530GAO recommendations and their guidance to reflect changes in1531technical, economic, and programmatic assumptions and fact-of-1532life changes, such as new legislation and court decisions1533impacting the agency, veterans, servicemembers, and1534beneficiaries. It supports financial decision-making and1535informs future budgetary needs.1536 As of April 2025, with updated Version 5.0, the program has1537an estimated total cost of 2.3 billion in base year Fiscal Year15382021 constant dollars over a 10-year period, rising to1539approximately 2.6 billion when adjusted for inflation or then-1540year dollars. The program is large and complex and,1541accordingly, has inevitably encountered challenges,1542unanticipated complexities, the realization of risk. Over the1543past 5 years it has also had many accomplishments, delivering1544eight successful releases, migration of all benefits to the--1545chapters to the platform, and retiring of the BDN 1970's1546mainframe system, and additional automation capabilities that1547result in dramatically faster claims processing.1548 Recognizing that there will always be challenges,1549complexity, and risk, I have two recommendations to share with1550you today. First, a dedicated enterprise-level cost estimating1551capability at VA would give Congress and VA leadership1552consistent, independent, and defensible Life Cycle Cost1553Estimates that strengthen budget information, formulation, and1554major investment decisions. By validating program office1555estimates, establishing authoritative cost baselines, and1556providing transparent affordability analysis, the organization1557would reduce cost and schedule risk while improving oversight1558readiness and ensuring resources are aligned to outcomes that1559matter for veterans.1560 Second, the cost estimating capability should be paired1561with a streamlined early acquisition model that accelerates1562delivery of capability while generating the structured data1563needed for credible cost estimation. Rapid operational need1564definition, minimum viable requirements, early risk scans, and1565lightweight architecture work would shorten pre-award timelines1566and produce clear inputs, such as preliminary requirements,1567solution concepts, and early cost drivers that feed the1568enterprise cost estimating organization capability. Together,1569these reforms enable VA to deliver modern capabilities faster1570while grounding every major investment in transparent data-1571driven analysis.1572 In closing, let me just note that MITRE's roughly 6,5001573personnel, over 1,100 are veterans, including myself. Few1574duties feel more noble to our employees in honoring the service1575and sacrifice of our Nation's men and women in uniform through1576the support that we provide to the VA. On behalf of the entire1577MITRE team, I greatly appreciate the opportunity to come before1578you today and look forward to your questions.15791580 [The Prepared Statement Of Troy Mueller Appears In The1581Appendix]15821583 Mr. Van Orden. Thank you, Mr. Mueller. The written1584statement of Mr. Mueller will be entered into the hearing.1585 Mr. Hubbard, you are now recognized for 5 minutes.15861587 STATEMENT OF WILLIAM HUBBARD15881589 Mr. Hubbard. Chairmen Van Orden and Barrett, Ranking1590Members Budzinski and Pappas, and members of the subcommittee,1591thank you for the opportunity to testify today on behalf of1592Veterans Education success and thank you for your continued1593oversight of VA on issues that directly affect veterans'1594survivors and their families.1595 It is our organization's mission to advance higher1596education success for veterans, servicemembers, and military1597families, and to protect the integrity and the promise of the1598GI Bill and other Federal education programs. It is with this1599perspective that we approach today's hearing with focuses on1600the Digital GI Bill contracts and payment disruptions.1601 Modernization at VA is necessary. Nobody disputes that.1602Modernization that fails to deliver benefits on time is not1603progress, it is disruption. The people who pay the price are1604students who plan their lives around the benefits that they1605were told they could rely on. The Digital GI Bill was intended1606to replace aging systems with a more efficient, unified1607platform. Instead, it has joined a long list of technology1608rollouts that VA launched without proper safeguards or1609contingency planning, and the result was all too predictable.1610 Recently, housing payments were delayed or reduced without1611warning, leaving thousands of students scrambling to cover1612rent, food, and basic expenses. This pattern has plagued VA's1613technology transformations since the beginning of the post 9-111614GI Bill, when tens of thousands of veterans went months without1615payments. Then, during the Forever GI Bill rollout in 2018,1616nearly 180,000 students experienced delays to their housing1617payments. In 2023, another modernization effort resulted in1618more than 280,000 students receiving late payments, and VA1619resorted to mailing paper checks to process some of those.1620 As you can plainly see, last fall's failures were not an1621anomaly. One student told us that her benefits were missing for1622nearly 3 months, her car was repossessed, and she was facing1623eviction while attending school out of State with no family1624support nearby. Another student received less than $900 for the1625month, barely enough to cover rent, leaving him with almost1626nothing for food and transportation. These are real1627consequences of leadership decisions.1628 Adding to the stress of missed payments was the noticeably1629loud silence from VA. VA was aware of the possibility of these1630issues before students felt the impact, yet there was no1631proactive warning and no reliable channel for students to get1632answers. During the government shutdown, the GI Bill hotline1633was classified as nonessential, leaving students unable to ask1634for help.1635 It is also important to note the timing of these major1636technology updates, which were inexplicably scheduled to start1637at the beginning of the academic term, when even short1638disruptions can quickly snowball into housing issues or1639enrollment challenges. We implore VA to stop doing significant1640technology deployments at the beginning of major academic1641periods.1642 Based on what we have heard from veterans, their families,1643and survivors, we offer the following practical solutions to1644mitigate these issues moving forward. First, education benefits1645delivery must be treated as an essential function. Second, VA1646should be required to conduct rigorous testing and independent1647certification before any update goes live. Third, when VA1648identifies a risk to on-time payments, it should be required to1649notify students, schools, and Congress in plain language.1650Fourth, major system changes should not be scheduled during1651critical academic windows. Fifth and finally, we encourage1652Congress to mandate transparent performance metrics that1653reflect the veteran experience, not VA's internal processes.1654 Student veterans and survivors do not view these benefits1655as optional. They plan their lives around them. When payments1656fail, trust in the system erodes. Once lost, that trust is1657difficult to restore.1658 Thank you for your attention to these issues and your1659continued oversight. I look forward to your questions.16601661 [The Prepared Statement Of William Hubbard Appears In The1662Appendix]16631664 Mr. Van Orden. Thank you, Mr. Hubbard. The written1665statement of Mr. Hubbard will be entered into the hearing1666record.1667 Now we are going to proceed to questionings. The chair now1668recognizes Ranking Member Budzinski for 3 minutes.1669 Ms. Budzinski. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.1670 Mr. Mueller, thank you for joining us today. I appreciate1671your recommendation that VA should work to strengthen its1672internal enterprise level cost estimating capability. However,1673with VA losing at least 405 contract specialists in Fiscal Year16742026 so far, I worry the VA does not have the skills in-house1675right now to perform these estimates accurately and reliably.1676What are the dangers of not having enough highly trained staff1677to perform these estimates?1678 Mr. Mueller. The need for qualified staff, which are not1679contracting officers for this, these are true professional cost1680estimators, that is a critical need. I think, that it would1681have to be planned and resourced for in order to actually bring1682those in. I cannot speak to what capability exists there today.1683I do not directly support that particular part of the VA1684organization.1685 Ms. Budzinski. Okay. Let me move to Mr. Hubbard. Mr.1686Hubbard, we heard at our hearing in December the VA has not1687held a monthly stakeholder call for the DGIB program since1688December 2024. Is that accurate?1689 Mr. Hubbard. That is correct.1690 Ms. Budzinski. What concerns do you have regarding the lack1691of engagement from the VA with veteran stakeholders as it1692continues to modernize the DGIB program?1693 Mr. Hubbard. Thank you for the question. We have1694significant concerns about that. The lack of communication in1695general is--only exacerbates any issue that comes up. As an1696example, this past fall, when we saw these payment delays with1697Chapter 35 and others, if there was an exchange of information,1698organizations that support veterans could have anticipated1699that, planned accordingly, worked with schools even to make1700sure that these students were not, for example, facing1701eviction. Unfortunately, there was no exchange. This year to1702date, there have been zero of these calls.1703 Ms. Budzinski. Okay. Let me try to fit in one more quick1704question. Mr. Hubbard, your testimony also highlights numerous1705times that the burden to work around VA contracting and IT1706failures has fallen on veterans and beneficiaries. This is1707simply unacceptable. As I mentioned in my opening, these1708seemingly small errors often result in large losses and1709degraded veteran trust. Can you share more about the impact of1710these delays on your membership and how we as Congress can1711better support veterans and their family members who receive1712these benefits?1713 Mr. Hubbard. Thank you for the question. Historically,1714there is a lack of trust when it comes to veterans coming to VA1715for, for example, their mental health needs. Imagine if you are1716a student who does not even get your payment on time when VA's1717got your Social, they have got your home address, your phone1718number, your blood type, probably your favorite color, and yet1719they cannot even deliver the benefits that you deserve and1720earned.1721 Mr. Van Orden. The gentlemen's time has expired.1722 The chair now recognizes Representative King-Hinds for 31723minutes.1724 Ms. King-Hinds. My question is to Mr. Mueller. You made a1725couple of recommendations, one of which is the creation of a1726sufficiently resource enterprise-level cost-estimating1727capability, and, second, the development of a streamlined early1728acquisition model. For the vets who are listening in, who do1729not speak your language, can you please explain that in1730layman's terms?1731 Mr. Mueller. Sure. When you stand up--before you stand up a1732program, there is a certain amount of analytical activity that1733should happen prior to that. That is where you understand your1734mission need, you start to understand your requirements, and1735look at your options of how do you fulfill this need. Part of1736that is you want to obviously determine what is going to be the1737cost to do this, an initial understanding of that cost1738estimate. You need this analytical activity paired with the1739capability to complete those estimates.1740 Just to go back to that analytical activity, that would be1741made up of users that use the system, be it your contracting1742people, your contracting professionals, the business leaders1743that are responsible for operating it, the IT organization. All1744these different skill sets come together to help bring this1745program to life in an informed way, so decision-makers can make1746an informed decision and have an idea of what the cost is going1747to be. All of this contributes to a better contract, a better1748acquisition activity as well.1749 In the most layman's terms I can put it is you are bringing1750people that understand the ingredients to bring to a great meal1751so you can have a good meal.1752 Ms. King-Hinds. I asked that question, right, because we1753are talking about how do we look at contract reforms and1754acquisitions reform. I think I was reading Mr. Parke's1755testimony and he suggests that baseline estimates should1756include known and unknowns. Right? In this process, right, to1757include future legal mandates, because the VA has pointed out1758that there are different components that needs to be tinkered1759with given all these lawsuits, and that has to be all accounted1760for. Where does that fit in with regards to just the1761contracting process and who should bear that risk? Some of this1762cost inflation is directly attributed to that.1763 Mr. Mueller. Sure. The early analytical activity will give1764you what the requirements are known in that moment and what is1765the objective for that system. Where this issue--where what Mr.1766Parke brought up comes into play, the known unknowns is1767actually in a cost estimate--you develop an LCCE. I want to be1768clear about an LCCE, not an independent government cost1769estimate for a contract. For the bigger program LCCE, you1770account for that in the range and sensitivity analysis.1771However, you can only account for so much. There are just some1772of those unknowns you are not going to know.1773 It comes down to how much do you budget for if you think1774about the range? If we say that we have a confidence level of1775$1 value and we have a range, do you have to budget more on the1776other side? Normally, GAO says budget at the 50 percent1777confidence level to account for some of that, but you are still1778going to have things come up along the way, especially when you1779are thinking----1780 Mr. Van Orden. The gentlelady's time has expired.1781 The chair now recognizes Ranking Member Pappas for 31782minutes.1783 Mr. Pappas. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.1784 Mr. Parke, did Accenture provide DGIB Release 8 on time and1785on budget?1786 Mr. Parke. Thank you for the question. The original1787deadline for BDN retirement, which is equivalent to Release 8,1788was September 2022. We delivered it in August 2025 for the1789reasons that I think you have heard in a number of testimonies.1790 Mr. Pappas. How quickly did Accenture respond to VA's1791requests for assistance in automating the data reconciliation1792last September?1793 Mr. Parke. If we are talking about September 2025?1794 Mr. Pappas. That is right.1795 Mr. Parke. As soon as VA was aware that there was an issue1796in the amount of time it was taking to manually reconcile or1797validate BDN data coming into Chapter 35, we were, with the VA,1798taking new requirements for automation. We were able to then1799build that and have it ready for deployment in October. Of1800course, there were some mitigating circumstances that prevented1801folks from validating that it was working as expected.1802 Mr. Pappas. It could not go live right away because some of1803the employees VA needed were furloughed. Do you know how long1804the release was delayed while VA waited to get those employees1805back in the office?1806 Mr. Parke. The eventual deployment of that improvement to1807automate was November 14th, as I recall, 2 days after, you1808know, November 12th.1809 Mr. Pappas. When did you or Accenture writ large become1810aware of the backlog issues with Chapter 35 beneficiaries?1811 Mr. Parke. I do not know the exact day, but essentially as1812soon as VA was aware, they came and notified us that we would1813need to be ready to address it with some form of automation.1814That was the best idea we had. As you can see, it worked.1815 Mr. Pappas. Mr. Hubbard, in previous hearings, I have1816shared some of the stories that our office has received from1817impacted Chapter 35 beneficiaries from payments being delayed.1818I appreciate you giving voice to that as well. I know you ran1819out of time on a previous answer. I did not know if you want to1820add anything else just to the impacts on veterans' families and1821survivors and the stresses that some of these issues at VA1822cause them. I appreciate you talking about prioritizing the1823veteran experience.1824 Mr. Hubbard. Yes, thank you for the question, Mr. Ranking1825Member. The reality is when VA asks you to come to them for1826mental health, but they cannot even--which is a big thing for1827your well being, your existence, and they cannot even get the1828small things right, like getting your payment on time that you1829have already earned and already deserve, how do you expect1830veterans to have that trust in the institution? That is a real1831loss for America and, frankly, it is a disservice to taxpayers1832as well.1833 Mr. Pappas. Thank you very much for those comments. I yield1834back.1835 Mr. Van Orden. The gentleman yields.1836 The chair now recognizes Mrs. Ramirez for 3 minutes.1837 Ms. Ramirez. Thank you, Chairman.1838 We know that the VA is still struggling to meet1839expectations on delivery of the Digital GI Bill we talked about1840in the previous panel. I want to look at the facts a little1841closer. Despite millions of dollars and ample opportunities for1842the Digital GI Bill to be implemented smoothly and efficiently,1843a backlog remains and rollout continues to be a problem. It is1844especially concerning because we know that many veterans rely1845on these GI Bill benefits to remain housed and to access these1846basic necessities. We know this clear, any delay in receiving1847these funds could prove to be dire.1848 You know, I find it unacceptable that the public and1849Congress do not have better insights into why the Digital GI1850Bill program continues to face challenges. It is also1851unconscionable that in the face of those challenges, veterans'1852families and survivors were left in the dark facing financial1853instability. Look, I know that setbacks happen, failures are1854learning opportunities, but continuing to allow this program to1855falter when veterans rely on it for stability is not an option.1856 I want to talk a little bit about contractor oversight,1857since we have talked about it here quite a bit. The key to1858addressing the challenges that DGIB is facing is by listening1859to the perspectives of all those involved in its modernization1860and integration.1861 This question is for you, Mr. Parke. Did Accenture flag1862risks related to release timing, testing capacity, or manual1863reconciliation to the VA? If so, how did the VA respond to you?1864 Mr. Parke. Thank you for the question. Certainly, we1865collaborate with VA to identify risks and issues. These types1866of risks and issues were flagged. I think, you know, as an1867overall institution, VA is balancing many different priorities1868and, in some cases, certainty as to whether a risk will be1869realized is not clear.1870 You know, as you heard, we did go live in August. It was1871August 4, 2025. The assessment at the time was that that was1872early enough.1873 Ms. Ramirez. Is your assessment that the VA responded as1874best as it could to the red flags that you flagged?1875 Mr. Parke. Based on the information they had, I think they1876made a reasonable decision. Obviously, with 20-20 hindsight,1877you know, more time would have been helpful. That would have1878pushed the go-live a whole year based on what we were hearing1879from finance.1880 Ms. Ramirez. Got it. Let me ask you one last question, I1881have 35 seconds left. Do you believe the process in which you1882communicate the issues you find with the VA is working as it1883should, given the hindsight? In considering how to advance1884acquisition reform, what are the specific areas that you offer1885that have the greatest potential for improvement?1886 Mr. Parke. I would say that the process had issues in the1887past. It has improved. There has been, you know, new engagement1888with new leadership, Ken Smith. As you heard, Mr. Ken Smith1889came in recently. I think this has drastically improved some of1890that.1891 As it relates to acquisition----1892 Mr. Van Orden. The gentlelady's time has expired.1893 The chair--I now recognize myself for 3 minutes.1894 Mr. Parke, what is the average amount of time where a1895veteran was not paid?1896 Mr. Parke. In general, I think the last statistic we have1897is it is an average of 5.6 days to complete each claim. I do1898not have more information than that.1899 Mr. Van Orden. Hold on one sec. We are going to do some1900quick enlisted math up here.1901 Mr. Parke. Okay.1902 Mr. Van Orden. This is going to be really exciting. No1903pressure. How much does the VA spend on education benefits a1904month?1905 Mr. Parke. I think it averages to about $1.0 billion.1906 Mr. Van Orden. 1.2 billion?1907 Mr. Parke. In terms of benefits to veterans.1908 Mr. Van Orden. Okay. 1.2 billion divided by 30 is what?1909 Mr. Parke. I would have to get a calculator and make sure I1910do it right in terms of public math.1911 Mr. Van Orden. Okay. Check me out. If the average amount of1912time is 5 days where vets are not getting paid, and I1913understand what Mr. Hubbard was saying, there has been1914catastrophic things, but so why cannot the VA have moneys set1915aside for when inevitably you guys screw this up again? It is1916going to happen. Why cannot there be money here to pay to our1917veterans so they do not have to wring their hands? Again, the1918VA has a 0 percent record of getting something done like this1919on time and on budget.1920 Mr. Parke. Is the suggestion that there might be some1921contingency money set aside that could be used?1922 Mr. Van Orden. Yes, that is exactly what I am saying. Then1923I do not care if it goes, you know, electronically. Mail them a1924check because, hopefully, by the time the check gets there, the1925system is back online again. If that is--we were just talking,1926Ranking Member Budzinski and I, you know, if we need to, we can1927legislate that, because, I mean, this is just dumb. We keep1928doing it again. Again, what, 2 days ago it was Groundhog Day.1929We keep doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a1930different result. That is the definition of insanity. I want1931you from your side to look at that and from our side we will1932look at that.1933 I do have to say that there is a potential for success,1934however small it is. We have seen on the VHA side a 57 percent1935reduction in the claims under Secretary Collins' leadership.1936That is in a year. Within 1 year, there is almost a single 601937percent reduction in claims. These things are attainable, but1938you need to have the right people working.1939 One of the things, just take this for what it is, who the1940hell has been held accountable for any of this? Who has lost a1941job? Who lost a contract? The first guys? What about you guys?1942You know what I mean? The cost overruns, I think, are1943exponentially greater under your purview than it was under the1944first guys that got fired. I mean, if a civilian company ran1945this like you guys have been running this, they would be out of1946business. Maybe some people need to get out of business in this1947business.1948 My time has expired. I want to thank you all for coming,1949being here today. Ms. Budzinski has waved her closing comments,1950and which I thank you very much for coming, everybody.1951 We can agree that there is an absolute accountability1952problem. Until people start, you know, worrying about whether1953or not they are going to have a paycheck, our veterans are1954going to have to worry about whether or not they have a1955paycheck. I will remind you, and I am echoing the comments of1956our current Secretary, Mr. Collins, it ain't about you. It is1957about the veteran. That every time you put the bureaucracy1958above the veteran, which has happened consistently since I have1959been in Congress for 25 minutes, it is unacceptable. We are1960going to do everything we can to help the Secretary root out1961this bureaucratic inertia so that our vets get what they1962deserve.1963 With that, this hearing is closed.1964 [Whereupon, at 3:40 p.m., the subcommittees were1965adjourned.]1966=======================================================================19671968 A P P E N D I X19691970=======================================================================19711972 Prepared Statement of Witnesses19731974 ----------19751976 Prepared Statement of Kenneth Smith19771978 Good morning, Chairmen Barrett and Van Orden, Ranking Members1979Budzinski and Pappas, and distinguished members of the Subcommittees. I1980appreciate the opportunity to testify today on the Digital GI Bill's1981(DGIB) program management and contracts. Joining me today is Mr. Robert1982Orifici, Executive Director for Benefits and Memorial Service, Office1983of Information Technology, Mr. Jeffrey Neill, Associate Executive1984Director Office of Acquisition, Logistics, and Construction, and Mr.1985Ray Tellez, Executive Director, Office of Business Integration1986 VA's efforts to implement transformational changes through the DGIB1987platform have enabled the Department to deliver benefits faster,1988enhance customer service, and strengthen compliance and oversight1989activities. Our top goals include delivering the highest standards of1990world-class customer service; improving oversight and accountability;1991expanding opportunities for Service members, Veterans and eligible1992family members to pursue their academic and career goals; enhancing the1993Nation's economic vitality with innovative programs; and enriching1994lives by giving beneficiaries the tools and resources they need to1995further their education and achieve their career aspirations. VA has1996made tremendous advancements toward streamlining and automating systems1997and processes to increase efficiency and drive outcomes for Veterans1998and their families and will continue to strive to reach the highest1999level of excellence for our Nation's Veterans.2000 The DGIB modernization initiative was envisioned as a fully2001integrated solution to restructure both claims processing for all2002education benefits programs and enhance customer service for2003beneficiaries and external partners by providing direct, online, one-2004stop access to GI Bill benefits and information. To date, the program2005has been exceptionally successful in meeting mission milestones to2006maximize performance through an updated processing platform that has2007delivered end-to-end automation for millions of education benefits2008claims. The success of this initiative has addressed many high risks to2009Veterans and survivors who depend on these benefits. Additionally, the2010initiative has exceeded our initial goals by delivering functionality2011to replace and decommission the near half-a-century-old Benefits2012Delivery Network (BDN) along with many other unplanned functionality2013changes necessary due to both congressional action (new laws passed)2014and court mandates (precedent opinions with monumental impact on claims2015adjudications).20162017Historical Program Management20182019 On September 26, 2024, VA testified before the House Committee on2020Veterans' Affairs' Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity to discuss DGIB2021progress at that time. VA's Office of Inspector General (OIG) also2022presented testimony to outline its audit of the DGIB program dated2023August 28, 2024. I am pleased to report that VA has satisfied all of2024OIG's recommendations. VA acknowledged that the original 2020-20212025contract underestimated the complexity of the work, which included2026transitioning from legacy systems created in an obsolete programming2027language known as the Common Business-Oriented Language (COBOL). The2028program experienced delays related to integration requirements with2029external systems that did not deliver on schedule and the need for2030additional VA testing environments that were not delivered, which2031forced prolonged testing cycles. The reasons for these delays were2032prioritization and lack of an integrated approach to governance, which2033have been solved through close communication with external systems and2034a strengthened, VA-level enterprise governance structure.2035 In written testimony, VA acknowledged increased contract costs at2036that time, driven by increased scope, which led to a full review and2037restructuring of the contract at the end of Fiscal Year (FY) 2023.2038Costs increased due to the integration and testing challenges outlined2039earlier. They also increased because VA received more claims from2040Veterans than anticipated.2041 Since initial implementation of the DGIB project, the MITRE2042Corporation has assisted VA with acquisition planning and program2043support. To ensure full, multi-year understanding of cost and the2044strategic impact of both delay and exogenous factors such as higher2045claim volumes, MITRE prepared a Life Cycle Cost Estimate (LCCE). An2046LCCE is a best practice described in the Government Accountability2047Office's (GAO) Cost Estimating and Assessment Guide (GAO-20-195G).2048Separate from the program budget, which tracks planned versus actual2049expenses in the budget execution cycle, the LCCE helps forecast all2050program costs over a longer period.2051 Covering actuals and projections for the period 2021-2030, the LCCE2052enabled VBA's Education Service to consider tradeoff decisions, such as2053new claims processor functionality versus greater automation, and the2054impact of Fact of Life changes, including new legislation and court2055mandates. Examples of these changes include Coronavirus disease2056provisions in P.L. 116-128, 116-140, 116-159, and 116-315, which forced2057VA to deprioritize planned development for basic claims processing2058functionality. Additionally, the program had to adjust implementation2059plans to account for the numerous provisions of the Johnny Isakson and2060David P. Roe, M.D. Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement Act of20612020 (P.L. 116-315). Additional costs were added to the contract to2062support legacy data migration from BDN to the new system and an2063analytical data warehouse to support workload and program management2064needs.2065 Unsurprisingly, claims processing labor is a significant driver of2066LCCE cost. VA's claims processing environment has historically rested2067on human labor to process millions of claims for Veterans and2068survivors. Since the 2021 baseline through 2025, VA processed 372069percent more claims, at a significant savings, when compared to the2070cost of employing new staff. As of December 2025, VA is automating and2071delivering 65 percent of all claims without any human interaction,2072reducing costs and improving service delivery. 53 percent of the LCCE207310-year cost estimate is VA human labor to complete claims, which does2074not account for recent improvements in automation.2075 To support the ultimate goal of automation as well as reduce risk2076of catastrophic failure of the 50-year-old BDN system, VA2077decommissioned the decades-old legacy system, in September 2025. The2078decommissioning involved coordinated development in VA's new payment2079delivery tool as well as replacement for the BDN claims processing2080functionality. The decision to decommission BDN on this timeline2081required VA to re-prioritize functional and automation improvements. It2082cannot be understated just how significant the retirement of the BDN2083mainframe was. The prioritization of the BDN Retirement was a strategic2084move not just to reduce the risk to the enterprise in security2085compliance and cost savings but also as a critical enabler to future2086functionality. For example, any systemic changes to implement Dole and2087Rudisill-compliant features were not technically feasible in the2088previous BDN mainframe ecosystem.2089 In 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in Rudisill v.2090McDonough, which expanded eligibility for GI Bill benefits and2091necessitated rework on significant processes already encoded in DGIB2092with the intent to automate adjudications. In April 2025, the U.S.2093Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims in Perkins v. Collins further2094expanded eligibility for GI Bill benefits, which required rework of2095previously decided claims and further reprioritization of functionality2096for DGIB claims processing. Additionally, Congress enacted the Senator2097Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits2098Improvement Act (P.L. 118-210) (Dole Act) in January 2025, which2099contained 15 separate provisions that impacted education benefits and2100rules concerning adjudications.21012102Recent Actions and Future21032104 VA has taken further steps to improve program management. VA2105recognizes the high likelihood of new scope due to changes in law and2106court decisions. To implement these new requirements without protracted2107contract negotiations, VA implemented two modifications in 2025. First,2108VA moved from a waterfall-schedule-driven process to a scope-driven2109priority process called Agile software methodology. This will allow VA2110to quickly reprioritize to address new requirements, but it does not2111change the basic project management principle known as the Golden2112Triangle--there can be no change to scope, cost, or schedule2113independently. If any one item is changed, at least one other element2114must also change. Second, since VA has consistently processed more2115claims than originally forecasted, additional funding was needed2116annually for its claims processing contract on T4NG during the year of2117execution--a fact reflected in the LCCE, which projected a decrease of2118only 38 claims examiners. VA shifted this task order to a fixed rate,2119representing the fact that additional claims processed each year2120through improvements to automation generally should not increase costs2121to the vendor. VA has reduced claims processing staff through attrition2122without replacement, illustrating the high benefit of automation while2123simultaneously improving service delivery.2124 While VA has successfully implemented most Dole Act provisions, we2125are still working to implement sections 208, 210, and 212 (VET TEC21262.0). VA has committed to VET TEC 2.0 (section 212) implementation in2127the third quarter of Fiscal Year 2026, but as described earlier, this2128has necessitated an offset to the scope of planned improvements this2129year. For example, VA has yet to develop functionality to automate2130Rudisill (and now Perkins) cases to replace the aging workload2131management system (The Image Management System or TIMS) for improved2132functionality for field managers and claims processors or to replace2133the legacy school approval system (Web-Enabled Approval Management2134System or WEAMS), which would integrate data on school approvals for2135quicker school approvals and fraud detection. Prioritization of these2136requirements always entails a cost-benefit analysis of priorities and2137agile adjustments based on the dynamic world of law, policies, and the2138limits of time-scope-and-funding. Nonetheless, the DGIB initiative has2139successfully implemented eight major releases and hundreds of minor2140releases.2141 Our focus has always been on the Veteran: delivering benefits2142easier and faster to the Veteran through simplified application2143interfaces and increased automation. Our aspirational, strategic goal2144is an automated, 1-day decision for 90 percent of claims received.2145While this was once a ``pie-in-the-sky'' goal, we are well on our way2146to achieving it: as of January 15, 2026, 69 percent of Chapter 352147supplemental claims are fully automated. Just 4 months prior, no2148Chapter 35 claims were automated. VA has now automated 58 percent of2149all claims for Chapter 33 originals and supplementals, Chapter 352150supplementals, and Chapter 30 supplementals for a grand total of more2151than 1,000,000 claims year to date.2152 Finally, our performance reflects a return on investment from the2153perspective of the student Veterans we serve. As of January 22, 2026,2154the average days to complete education claims are 5.6 days. While this2155average is similar to prior years, VA has been able to achieve this2156outcome with fewer staff and increasing automation to deliver 432157percent more within 1 day. All of this was done while maintaining high2158accuracy--for claims completed in November, automation accuracy was 972159percent, which is comparable to claims processors at 98 percent.21602161Conclusion21622163 Chairmen Barrett and Van Orden and Ranking Members Budzinski and2164Pappas, this concludes my statement. We appreciate the opportunity to2165speak before you today and welcome any questions you or other Members2166of the Subcommittees may have.21672168 Prepared Statement of Justin Parke21692170 Chairmen Barrett and Van Orden, Ranking Members Budzinski and2171Pappas, and distinguished members of both Subcommittees, thank you for2172inviting me to testify at today's hearing. I am Justin Parke, a2173Managing Director at Accenture Federal Services and a member of the2174Accenture Federal Leadership team. I am also the Program Manager of our2175Digital GI Bill engagement, leading the implementation and operations2176of Accenture Federal DGIB systems. I am honored to serve Veterans and2177their families in my role on this important program.2178 Accenture's work with VA Education began in 2019, when VA decided2179to reset after a failed Colmery implementation attempt with a different2180vendor. This reset included the release of a competitive, outcome-based2181RFP that Accenture won. In partnership with VA, we delivered Colmery on2182time and on budget. After this, VA released another full and open2183competitive RFP for the Digital GI Bill (DGIB) implementation and2184operations. Accenture won this competition and since March 2021, we2185have supported VA's efforts to make it faster and easier for Veterans2186to access and reliably receive life-changing education benefits.2187 We have achieved the main objectives for this contract: to process2188claims uninterrupted and to develop new capabilities based on2189requirements defined by VA, while enabling the retirement of VA legacy2190systems. For example, DGIB retired VA's nearly 50-year-old BDN2191mainframe which has improved VA's operational resilience and for the2192first time in the GI Bill's 80-year history, has enabled fully2193automated claims processing for originals and new chapters.2194 Through our DGIB automation efforts with VA, this January more than219564 percent of all education claims are processed same-day, the vast2196majority of these in seconds, with no Veteran Claim Examiner (VCE)2197effort. Chapter 35 is now running at 69 percent same-day automated2198claims processing, radically improving VA's posture for spring2199enrollment. Since March 2021, DGIB has processed over 16 million2200claims, delivering more than 43 billion dollars in Veteran benefits to22012.3 million unique beneficiaries.2202 There have also been challenges to overcome. As previously detailed2203by the OIG: additional requirements like new legislative mandates, new2204judicial interpretations, and additional system integrations expanded2205the scope from the original contract and non-DGIB dependencies delayed2206the BDN retirement. During this BDN delay, VA re-prioritized several2207other efforts, including VET TEC 1.0 and My Education Benefits, and we2208delivered those capabilities ahead of schedule, ensuring that new2209advancements were still delivered to Veterans despite the BDN2210retirement delay.2211 The DGIB program's lifecycle cost estimate details the baseline2212costs expected for the overall VA program across multiple contracts2213with multiple vendors and other VA expenses. A smaller portion of this2214estimate is for the managed service vendor costs - that is, Accenture2215contract costs. The total Accenture contract ceiling is currently $1.082216billion, inclusive of increased scope. Accenture contract cost is2217squarely within the baseline cost range for the scope and schedule2218ultimately required.2219 Moreover, DGIB results in significant cost avoidance, including an2220estimated $250 million for BDN, $400 million for other VA legacy2221systems, and $400 million of claims processing staff time over 102222years. Without DGIB, VA would need to spend more on claims processing2223staff time to keep up with increased claim volumes. All of these2224savings compound year over year and in total, far exceed the $1 billion2225in managed service contract ceiling.2226 As one of VA's most successful IT transformations, DGIB has2227overcome challenges and delivered on its commitments. Some conclusions2228to consider:22292230 1. VA can achieve ambitious transformation, even when previous2231attempts over past decades have failed;22322233 2. Baseline lifecycle cost estimates should include ``known2234unknowns'' like future legal mandates and other future fact-of-life2235changes that do not exist at program inception; and22362237 3. Procurement organizations can tackle big business needs with2238Veteran outcome-based contracts like DGIB. With the right procurement2239strategy, VA leadership can drive critical mission outcomes in2240partnership with contractors.22412242 With these lessons in mind, we look forward to working with VA to2243provide even more same-day experiences while complying with legal2244mandates--delivering education benefits faster, easier, and more2245reliably, which is what our Veterans have earned and deserve. Thank2246you, I look forward to your questions.22472248 Prepared Statement of Troy Mueller22492250 Chairman Van Orden and Chairman Barrett, Ranking Members Pappas and2251Budzinski, and other Members of the Subcommittees, thank you for the2252opportunity to testify before you today on matters relating to the2253Department of Veteran's Affairs (VA) Digital GI Bill program.2254Successful modernization of legacy IT is critical to improving the2255Veteran experience. MITRE very much appreciates the opportunity to2256share our insight from our work on this critical program.2257 MITRE is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit systems engineering, applied2258research, and advanced technology organization that operates federally2259Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) in support of Federal2260agencies spanning national security, homeland security, law2261enforcement, cybersecurity, health, transportation, and economic2262competitiveness, including the Department of Veterans Affairs. MITRE's2263technical and subject matter experts have had the privilege of2264supporting many modernization efforts across the Federal enterprise.2265Our workforce of approximately 7,000 is headquartered at campuses in2266McLean, VA, and Bedford, MA.2267 Currently, I am a Managing Director in MITRE's Center for2268Government Effectiveness and Modernization, responsible for directing2269our support to modernization of benefits and service delivery across2270all Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) lines of business, the VA's2271Office of Information & Technology, and the Social Security2272Administration.22732274A Trusted Partner22752276 MITRE has been a partner with the VA's Education Service since22772008, having supported multiple projects focused on improving delivery2278of education benefits, such as the implementation of The Post-9/112279Veterans' Educational Assistance Act of 2008 (Post-9/11 GI Bill), Harry2280W. Colmery Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2017 (Forever GI2281Bill), and the Digital GI Bill program.2282 MITRE's role has focused on providing strategic advice, guidance,2283and assistance in the areas of systems engineering, program2284integration, and organizational change. Our work included completing2285the annual update of the life cycle cost estimate (LCCE) for the2286Digital GI Bill (DGIB) program from 2021 (version 1.0) through 20252287(version 5.0)., which was delivered in April 2025.22882289Life Cycle Cost Estimate22902291 The Life Cycle Cost Estimate (LCCE) calculates the total cost to2292the Government for acquiring and owning a system throughout its2293lifetime, far beyond any contracts. It establishes a program cost2294baseline, aiding resource planning, program justification, and2295decision-making. Required for programs exceeding $50 million\1\, the2296LCCE aligns with the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) Capital2297Planning and Investment Control (CPIC) framework, as outlined in the2298Capital Programming Guide and OMB Circulars A-11 and A-94.2299---------------------------------------------------------------------------2300 \1\ The White House--OMB Circular A-11. Retrieved from: a11.pdf2301(whitehouse.gov)2302---------------------------------------------------------------------------2303 The LCCE is updated annually per GAO recommendations to reflect2304changes in technical, economic, and programmatic assumptions, and fact-2305of-life changes such as new legislation or court decisions impacting2306the agency, Veterans, service members, and beneficiaries. It supports2307financial decision-making and informs future budgetary needs. Developed2308using GAO's Cost Estimating and Assessment Guide (CEAG) \2\, the LCCE2309functions as an input-output model, with inputs capturing technical,2310economic, and programmatic parameters and assumptions, ultimately2311producing a point estimate and a range estimate to establish2312contingency reserves.2313---------------------------------------------------------------------------2314 \2\ GAO Cost Estimating and Assessment Guide--GAO-20-195G,2315Published: Mar 12, 2020.2316---------------------------------------------------------------------------2317 The initial version of an LCCE is considered the baseline and2318typically exhibits a higher level of uncertainty, with the point2319estimate having an approximate 25 percent confidence level based on2320empirical studies\3\. Version 1.0 of the DGIB LCCE reflected a point2321estimate of $1.295 billion (then-year dollars) at the 25 percent2322confidence level, meaning there is a 75 percent probability of the2323point estimate increasing. GAO recommends using the estimated value at2324a 50 percent confidence level for budget projections in mature programs2325to establish contingency reserves. With each subsequent iteration, the2326uncertainty should decrease, and the point estimate confidence level2327should increase. The program cost team diligently tracks changes to the2328programmatic and technical environments and associated assumptions to2329inform annual updates and provide input to decision-makers.2330---------------------------------------------------------------------------2331 \3\ Journal of Cost Analysis and Parametrics--Enhanced Scenario-2332Based Method for Cost Risk Analysis: Theory, Application, and2333Implementation. Retrieved from: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/233410.1080/1941658X.2012.734757.2335---------------------------------------------------------------------------2336 As of the April 2025 update (version 5.0), the DGIB Program has an2337estimated total cost of $2.38 billion in base year Fiscal Year 20212338constant dollars over a 10-year period, rising to approximately $2.682339billion when adjusted for inflation (then-year dollars). At a 502340percent confidence level, the program's estimated life cycle cost2341reaches $2.76 billion in then-year dollars, including a contingency2342reserve of $93 million.2343 The Digital GI Bill program is large and complex and accordingly2344has inevitably encountered challenges, unanticipated complexities, and2345the realization of risks that have led to schedule delays and increased2346costs. Replacing extremely old legacy IT systems that rely on outdated2347software languages and hardware, such as the VA's 1970's-era mainframe2348Benefits Delivery Network (BDN) among others, presents a multitude of2349challenges. As expected, this effort has required re-engineering that2350yields issues that are difficult to anticipate and necessitate2351extensive testing and validation to minimize disruption to business2352operations such that access to benefits is not delayed.2353 The impact of challenges associated with modernizing legacy IT2354systems that are this dated, as well as updates to assumptions2355regarding claims volume, automation, the number of required Veterans2356Claim Examiners (VCE) post full implementation, and alignment of DGIB2357with dependent legacy systems and other large-scale modernization2358programs schedules and roadmaps to minimize the disruption of services2359resulted in the point estimate increase from LCCE version 1.02360(conducted in 2021) to version 5.0 (delivered in April 2025). The2361primary areas of cost increase over the lifecycle are the VCE2362assumption and timing of required automation targets ($747M), and the2363transition to the GSA Alliant 2 contract, which has higher rates, to2364extend the platform configuration by 4 years to accommodate schedule2365impacts ($485M).2366 VBA's active executive leadership and ongoing evolution of program2367processes, tools, and experienced staff will enable the program to2368continue identifying challenges, crafting options, and proposing2369adjustments and improvements that will increase the probability of2370future success.23712372A Record of Accomplishment23732374 Over the past 5 years, the Digital GI Bill program has had many2375accomplishments delivering eight successful major releases, including2376the migration of all benefits chapters to the platform, retiring of the2377Benefits Delivery Network (BDN) 1970's mainframe, and additional2378automation capabilities resulting in dramatically faster claims2379processing.2380 The integrated DGIB team is extremely sensitive to the impact of2381time on Veterans and beneficiaries. Delays in processing could drive a2382semester or entire academic year-long delay for some students as some2383degree completion or accelerated graduate programs only start once a2384year. These delays are not just start dates for school, they are delays2385in pursuing dreams and achieving life goals.23862387Recommendations23882389 Two closely aligned recommendations can strengthen VA's ability to2390deliver modern services while improving the transparency and2391credibility of major investments. The first is the creation of a2392sufficiently resourced enterprise-level cost estimating capability, and2393second, the development of a streamlined early acquisition model that2394produces the data required for informed cost estimates. Together, they2395improve both the speed and rigor of VA's modernization efforts.2396 A dedicated, enterprise-level cost estimating capability at VA2397would give Congress and VA leadership consistent, independent, and2398defensible lifecycle cost estimates that strengthen budget formulation2399and major investment decisions. By validating program office estimates,2400establishing authoritative cost baselines, and providing transparent2401affordability analysis, this organization would reduce cost and2402schedule risk while improving oversight readiness and ensuring2403resources are aligned to outcomes that matter for Veterans.2404 This capability should be paired with a streamlined early2405acquisition model that accelerates delivery of benefits, healthcare,2406and services while generating the structured data needed for credible2407cost estimation. Rapid operational need definition, minimum viable2408requirements, early risk scans, and lightweight architecture work would2409shorten pre-award timelines and produce clear inputs such as2410preliminary requirements, solution concepts, and early cost drivers2411that feed the enterprise cost estimating organization.2412 Together, these reforms enable VA to deliver modern capabilities2413faster while grounding every major investment in transparent, data-2414driven analysis.2415 In closing, let me just note that of MITRE's roughly 6,5002416personnel, over 1,100 are Veterans. There are few duties that our2417employees consider more noble and consequential than honoring, through2418our support for the VA, the service and sacrifice of our Nation's men2419and women in uniform. On behalf of the entire MITRE team, I greatly2420appreciate the opportunity to come before you today, and I look forward2421to your questions.24222423 Prepared Statement of William Hubbard2424[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]24252426 Statements for the Record24272428 ----------24292430 Prepared Statement of National Association of Veterans Programs2431 Administrators2432[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]24332434 Prepared Statement of Student Veterans of America24352436 Chairman Barrett and Van Orden, Ranking Member Budzinski and2437Pappas, and Members of the Subcommittees: Thank you for inviting2438Student Veterans of America (SVA) to submit a statement for the record2439on this important hearing titled ``Digital G.I. Bill Undelivered:2440Contracting Challenges and the Need for Acquisition Reform'' today.2441 With a mission focused on empowering student veterans, SVA is2442committed to providing an educational experience that goes beyond the2443classroom. Through a dedicated and expansive network of on-campus2444chapters across the country, SVA aims to inspire yesterday's warriors2445by connecting student veterans with a community of like-minded chapter2446leaders. Every day these passionate leaders work to provide the2447necessary resources, network support, and advocacy to ensure student2448veterans, military-connected students, their families, caregivers, and2449survivors can effectively connect, expand their skills, and ultimately2450achieve their greatest potential.2451 SVA thanks the Subcommittees for considering this issue that would2452impact student veterans, military-connected students, their families,2453caregivers, and survivors in higher education.24542455Introduction24562457 In 2026, the GI Bill remains one of the most powerful tools for2458veteran success, offering pathways to higher education, economic2459mobility, and long-term well-being. For many transitioning service2460members, the GI Bill serves as their first interaction with Department2461of Veterans Affairs (VA), making it a defining moment that shapes their2462trust in the whole of VA. A smooth, transparent experience encourages2463veterans to explore the full range of VA services, from mental health2464care to career resources, while systemic hurdles discourage engagement.2465If fully optimized, the GI Bill can serve as the ``front door'' to VA,2466ensuring that veterans not only achieve the economic mobility promised2467by their service and education but also remain engaged in the broader2468network of programs designed to support them throughout their lives.2469The past several years have seen significant advancements in the2470administration of the GI Bill, including investments in information2471technology modernization, automation of benefit processing, and2472customer service reform within the Veterans Benefits Administration2473have reduced delays and improved reliability.\1\ These improvements are2474significant precisely because they reduce visibility, in that education2475benefits are most effective when they recede into dependability rather2476than demand constant management by the beneficiary. Such gains,2477however, are not self-sustaining. They require continued oversight to2478ensure that modernization efforts remain responsive to veteran2479experience rather than driven solely by system efficiency. A direct2480example of this oversight happened on December 16, 2025, when the2481Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity had a hearing titled ``Detrimental2482Delays: Reviewing Payment Failures in VA's Education Programs.'' This2483hearing explored the impact that the interruption of Federal funding2484had on our beneficiaries utilizing their Chapter 31 Veteran Readiness2485and Employment or Chapter 35 Survivors and Dependents educational2486benefits starting on October 1, 2025. Chapter 35 beneficiaries2487throughout the Nation started off their Fall 2025 semester without2488receiving their Monthly Housing Allowance (MHA) due to various2489technological issues. These students turned to the Department of2490Veterans Affairs (VA) Education Service for help through their2491counselors or through the GI Bill Hotline. GI Bill users were2492unwillingly placed into a state of uncertainty after having to rely2493heavily on these critical operations to stay enrolled and housed.2494---------------------------------------------------------------------------2495 \1\ U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (n.d.). Transforming the2496GI Bill experience. Digital VA. Retrieved February 19, 2025, from2497https://digital.va.gov/delightful-end-user-experience/transforming-the-2498gi-bill-experience/.24992500---------------------------------------------------------------------------2501GI Bill Hotline25022503 As of February 2024, nearly 840,000 students were receiving some GI2504Bill benefits, with almost 600,000 of them enrolled at campuses with an2505SVA chapter. \2\, \3\ The GI Bill Hotline (GIBH) is the only2506place where a student can speak with a live representative about any2507question they have regarding their GI Bill education benefits. The GIBH2508is open Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET by dialing2509888-GIBILL-1 (888-442-4551).\4\ By calling that hotline, a student can2510speak with a VA representative, knowledgeable in education benefits, to2511verify payments, fix billing errors, and get real-time benefit guidance2512when they are unable otherwise. When the interruptions of Federal2513funding forced the GIBH to close on October 1, 2025, it had potentially2514left roughly 840,000 students using VA education benefits with nowhere2515to turn when their monthly benefits were delayed - risking eviction,2516dis-enrollment, or withdrawal. Students utilizing Chapter 31 Veteran2517Readiness & Employment (VR&E) were impacted even further to the hotline2518closing when all Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors (VRC) were also2519furloughed on October 3, 2025.\5\ Direct communication with VA on2520education benefits came to a halt, leaving AskVA.gov as the sole2521channel. Responses were significantly delayed and often failed to2522provide useful or actionable information.2523---------------------------------------------------------------------------2524 \2\ According to the VBA Annual Benefits Report Fiscal Year 2023,2525updated February 2024, there were 843,135 recipients combined of the2526Post-9/11 GI Bill (chapter 33), MGIB-AD (chapter 30), MGIB-SR (1606),2527DEA (chapter 35), and VEAP (chapter 32).2528 \3\ The number of those receiving GI Bill benefits reported by2529campus in the VA's GI Bill Comparison Tool dataset were cross-2530referenced with campuses present in the SVA system of record as having2531an SVA chapter.2532 \4\ U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Benefit2533Administration Education and Training Contact Us, https://2534www.benefits.va.gov/gibill/contact_us.asp.2535 \5\ U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Human Capital Contingency2536Plan, last updated Oct. 3, 2025, https://department.va.gov/contingency-2537planning/human-capital-contingency-plan/#table-3-va-functions-to-be-2538suspended-by-administration-or-staff-office.25392540---------------------------------------------------------------------------2541Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors25422543 The VR&E program has continually evolved to better serve veterans2544and service members with service-connected disabilities. This unique2545program is designed to help them prepare for, secure, and sustain2546meaningful and suitable employment to obtain economic mobility post-2547service. VRCs are responsible for approving academic plans, authorizing2548reimbursement stipends for educational supplies, and guiding employment2549readiness.2550 In December 2024, SVA testified on the crucial role that VR&E plays2551in workforce reintegration and how its inconsistencies in service2552delivery have often left veterans in precarious financial and academic2553situations.\6\ SVA conducted a survey of its members about their2554experiences with the VR&E program,\7\ and a majority of respondents2555said they would recommend the program to other service-connected2556disabled veterans seeking to prepare for, find, and maintain2557employment.\8\ However, the most significant barrier identified was2558communication, nearly one-third reported they could rarely reach their2559VRC, and three-in-four had inconsistent access.\9\ These gaps have led2560to delayed approvals, interrupted stipends, and stalled economic growth2561and career progress.\10\ What was once already a strained system had2562reached a standstill amidst the lapse in Federal funding, and was2563further exacerbated by the closing of the GIBH. This left many disabled2564student veterans uncertain about their ability to continue their2565training, secure meaningful employment, and provide for their families.2566---------------------------------------------------------------------------2567 \6\ Student Veterans of America, EXAMINING the EFFECTIVENESS of the2568VETERANS READINESS and EMPLOYMENT (VR&E) PROGRAM, December 11, 2025.2569https://docs.house.gov/meetings/VR/VR10/20241211/117750/HHRG-118-VR10-257020241211-SD003.pdf.2571 \7\ Student Veterans of America, 2024 VR&E Exploration Survey.2572 \8\ Id.2573 \9\ Id.2574 \10\ Id.25752576Chapter 35 Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA)2577---------------------------------------------------------------------------2578Beneficiaries25792580 GI Bill beneficiaries utilizing their Chapter 35 VA Educational2581Benefits include children and spouses of veterans or service members2582who have died, been captured or are missing, or are totally disabled2583from a service-connected disability.\11\ The payments help eligible2584students pay for school or cover expenses while training for a job.2585Full-time students enrolled in this program receive nearly $1,600 each2586month from VA. SVA, as well as many other veteran and military serving2587organizations, has heard an increasing number of issues among2588membership on VA system failures that have compounded in light of the2589funding pause causing nationwide delays in education payments for2590dependents and survivors relying on Chapter 35 benefits.\12\2591---------------------------------------------------------------------------2592 \11\ U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Survivors' and2593Dependents' Educational Assistance, last updated Aug. 4, 2025, https://2594www.va.gov/family and-caregiver-benefits/education-and-careers/2595dependents-education-assistance/.2596 \12\ Linda Hersey, Computer `glitch' delays higher-ed payments for2597veterans' dependents and survivors, Oct. 15, 2025, https://2598www.stripes.com/veterans/2025-10-16/veterans-gi-bill-payments-shutdown-259919448904.html.2600---------------------------------------------------------------------------2601 One family reached out to SVA about their communications via the2602GIBH throughout the month of September with the goal of resolving their2603issue before their daughter started their term in November. VA2604instructed the family to continuously check in using the GIBH2605throughout the following weeks of October. However, their calls went2606unanswered once the GIBH halted, resulting in impact to the dependent's2607enrollment. It is without question that these delays have created real2608financial strain and uncertainty; many are now struggling to cover2609basic living expenses such as rent, utilities, and transportation.2610Others are facing the difficult prospect of taking on additional debt2611or withdrawing from classes to avoid falling further behind2612financially.26132614Recommendations26152616 With the GIBH closed and VRC furloughed, students had no direct2617path to resolve payment issues or confirm their benefit status. This2618led to uncertainty, financial strain, and the risk of dis-enrollment or2619withdrawal of students across the country. Even while these services2620were suspended, campuses remained open, classes continued, and student2621veterans pressed forward in pursuit of their education and career2622goals. Below are several recommendations from SVA to improve processes2623and prevent similar disruptions in the future.2624 First, it is imperative that VA designate all VRC roles and at2625least a portion of staffing for the GI Bill Hotline as ``essential2626service'' providers and protect these services from future funding2627interruptions. This would ensure that students retain access to support2628services and do not go without the education benefits they earned or2629that were earned for them. Second, SVA urges VA to provide timely2630communications in a transparent and plain manner to students, schools,2631Congress, and veteran/military serving organizations when the risk of2632payment delays are known in advance. Last, SVA recommends VA adopt an2633IT rollout plan that avoids the start of a new academic term and add/2634drop class period. Although not every school's calendar is aligned,2635there are times throughout the year that are high-traffic in terms of2636enrollment, graduation, etc., and VA should understand when these2637periods fall throughout the year. The beginning of a term poses the2638highest risk to students if that system does malfunction. The add/drop2639period are when school certifying officials can confirm a students'2640course enrollment for the term. Implementing changes at a different2641time would allow VA to fully test and stabilize its systems before they2642are implemented to the larger user base.2643 These recommendations will ensure that students will continue to2644get their benefits in a timely manner and have a trusted VA resource to2645assist them when they are in a significant time of need. It would2646additionally build trust for VA service users and ensure that the2647``front door'' is not a barrier to entry. Transparency and2648accountability must be held to the highest standard when the livelihood2649of student veterans, military-connected students, family members,2650caregivers, and survivors are at risk. Modern technology can be used to2651make VA benefits easier, faster, and more reliable to access and2652process. If these upgrades are implemented properly, student veterans2653can focus on their education and career goals rather than spending time2654navigating a broken, outdated system.2655 SVA welcomes any communication with VA to assist in disseminating2656timely information to students when an issue arises. Additionally, SVA2657would request that the GI Bill Stakeholder meetings return to their2658regular cadence. These meetings have historically been a valuable and2659effective forum for veteran-and military-serving organization2660engagement and an important tool for highlighting educational benefit2661issues early.2662 The continued success of veterans in higher education in the Post-26639/11 era is no mistake or coincidence. In our Nation's history,2664educated veterans have always been the best of a generation and the key2665to solving America's most complex challenges. Today's student veterans2666carry this legacy forward.2667 We thank the Chairmen, Ranking Members, and the Members of the2668Subcommittees for your time, attention, and devotion to the cause of2669veterans, military-connected students, their families, caregivers and2670survivors.26712672 [all]Witnesses
7 witnesses appeared, with 18 papers on file.
Documents
The committee filed 5 documents for the meeting.