Sponsors
The bill secures pay, job status, and retroactive relief for VA law-enforcement employees to preserve staffing and veteran services, but does so by reducing agencies' reclassification flexibility and increasing costs for taxpayers.
VA law-enforcement employees will keep their pre-downgrade grade and pay, protecting their income and job status.
VA law-enforcement staffing stability is preserved, supporting recruitment and retention and helping maintain services and security for veterans.
Employees adversely impacted by reclassification since Oct 1, 2025 will have those actions nullified and pay restored, correcting past administrative harm.
Taxpayers may face higher Federal personnel costs because retroactive pay restorations and blocked downgrades increase spending on VA law-enforcement positions.
Prohibiting reclassification could limit OPM and agency ability to correct improper classifications, leaving some positions misaligned with current duties and reducing HR flexibility.
A broad definition of covered positions (including any VA law-enforcement function regardless of appointment or funding) could block legitimate, narrowly targeted reorganizations and complicate cross-funded arrangements.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Stops downgrades of VA law enforcement positions, requires reversal and back pay for downgrades after Oct 1, 2025, and bars federal funds for such downgrades.
Prohibits any VA, OPM, or other federal official from proposing, initiating, or carrying out downgrades of VA law enforcement positions and bars use of federal funds for such actions. Requires retroactive nullification of any position downgrades proposed, initiated, or carried out between October 1, 2025 and the law's enactment, restores affected positions to their previous grade/pay status, and requires affected employees receive any pay they otherwise would have gotten.
Introduced March 19, 2026 by Timothy M. Kennedy · Last progress March 19, 2026