
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is looking to reorganize its Office of Information and Technology (OIT) workforce to focus on critical IT functions, according to the VA’s acting Chief Information Officer (CIO) Eddie Pool.
Pool testified before the House VA Technology Modernization Subcommittee on Monday, where he explained that the planned reorganization will focus on assigning resources to critical positions.
The VA has requested $7.3 billion to fund its IT systems in fiscal year (FY) 2026, a $298 million (about 4 percent) overall decrease from its enacted budget in FY 2025. It has also requested funding to support roughly 7,000 full-time employees, which is an overall decrease of about 11.7 percent from the 2025 enacted levels.
“We are reshaping OIT’s workforce to achieve veteran-facing outcomes with speed and precision,” Pool told lawmakers.
Notably, Pool said that through the Office of Personnel Management and VA deferred resignation program and voluntary early retirement authority, 78 percent of the voluntary departures resulted in retirements.
The acting CIO said that this presents an opportunity for the VA to reallocate human capital to meet emerging mission needs – in areas like cybersecurity and AI.
“In our reshaping efforts, we are simplifying our organizational structure and reallocating and aligning positions to critical IT functions,” Pool said. “This reorganization and reallocation of positions is designed to cut bureaucratic overhead, accelerate decision making, and focus every OIT position on delivering secure, reliable, and modern IT solutions to improve veterans’ lives.”
However, Carol Harris, a director of information technology and cybersecurity at the Government Accountability Office (GAO), raised some concerns about VA’s planned workforce reorganization.
Harris told lawmakers that the GAO conducted a review in January 2025 that found that VA OIT’s strategic workforce plan was “incomplete.”
“They don’t have an inventory of their current workforce skills and competencies. So, in terms of, you know, with the restructuring, not even having a baseline of what it is that they have, it’s going to be difficult to tell … what is it that you’re going to project to and what you’re going to need in the future,” Harris said.
“They also didn’t comprehensively identify their current and future human capital needs, skills, and competencies,” she added. “So, those are essential things that you’re going to need with any reform effort. Whatever your goals and objectives are for a reform effort, you’re going to need to make sure that the workforce matches that need.”
Harris noted that the GAO still has open recommendations to the VA related to that issue.
“Being able to have those processes in place and have a complete picture of what you currently have and what you need to have in the future to match your reform effort, that’s essential, and right now, VA does not have that capability,” Harris said.
In addition to the planned workforce reorganization, Pool also said that the VA is requesting changes to the appropriations language to authorize a three-year period of availability for VA’s IT funding.
“This will empower VA to plan and execute with greater agility, align investments with outcomes, and minimize procurement risk and operational delays,” Pool told lawmakers.
Earlier this month, President Donald Trump nominated Ryan Cote to become the permanent CIO at the VA. If confirmed, Cote would oversee the VA’s OIT and its reorganization plans.
Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle on Monday emphasized the importance of the VA having a confirmed CIO, and they urged the Senate to move quickly on Cote’s nomination.
Rep. Nikki Budzinski, D-Ill., the ranking member of the subcommittee, even urged the VA to pause any reorganization or budgetary decisions until a new CIO is confirmed.
“I’m concerned that this was rushed to be finalized before a new, permanent CIO could be confirmed,” Rep. Budzinski said. “I would hope that the department would delay implementing such drastic changes until a CIO can be appropriately named, vetted, and confirmed.”