Tammy Duckworth Failed to Comply with State Laws as Veterans Affairs Director

Posted 2015-04-09 18:56 by Grunt Report with 0 comments

Senate hopeful Tammy Duckworth is touting her record on veterans issues, but an audit of her time at the helm of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs (IDVA) shows veterans were underserved due to widespread mismanagement.

Duckworth, herself a U.S. Army veteran, announced her Senate run last week and stated in a press conference that she will “stand proudly” on her record as director of IDVA.

Under Duckworth, who was director of the agency from late 2006 to early 2009, the IDVA failed to manage affairs, leading to wasteful spending and a decrease in aid to veterans, according to a compliance examination carried out by William Holland, Illinois’ auditor general.

The report, which examined a two-year span from June 2006 to June 2008, found that employees took advantage of travel expenses, lost equipment, and failed to comply with basic duties designed to protect veterans.

Furthermore, the report found that the department became less efficient under Duckworth. The number of claims processed for veterans by the IDVA decreased in each year she was director, with 2,305 fewer claims processed in 2006 than in 2008.

The audit listed 16 findings during the two-year period, double the number of findings in the audit of the two years preceding Duckworth. Only three of the findings found in the previous audit were corrected under Duckworth.

One major finding by Holland was that employees were abusing their travel privileges by staying at hotels with rates that far exceeded lodging allowances. Instances were also found in which employees were reimbursed for mileage in excess of normal routes.

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