ASSESSMENT AND REPORT ON EFFECT ON SENIOR EXECUTIVES AT DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

SEC. 210. ASSESSMENT AND REPORT ON EFFECT ON SENIOR EXECUTIVES AT DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. (a) In General.—Not later than two years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall— (1) measure and assess the effect of the enactment of this title on the morale, engagement, hiring, promotion, retention, discipline, and productivity of individuals in senior executive positions at the Department of Veterans Affairs; and (2) submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives a report on the findings of the Secretary with respect to the measurement and assessment carried out under paragraph (1). (b) Elements.—The assessment required by subsection (a)(1) shall include the following: (1) With respect to engagement, trends in morale of individuals in senior executive positions and individuals aspiring to senior executive positions. (2) With respect to promotions— (A) whether the Department is experiencing an increase or decrease in the number of employees participating in leadership development and candidate development programs with the intention of becoming candidates for senior executive positions; and (B) trends in applications to senior executive positions within the Department. (3) With respect to retention— (A) trends in retirement rates of individuals in senior executive positions at the Department; (B) trends in quit rates of individuals in senior executive positions at the Department; (C) rates of transfer of— (i) individuals from other Federal agencies into senior executive positions at the Department; and (ii) individuals from senior executive positions at the Department to other Federal agencies; and (D) trends in total loss rates by job function. (4) With respect to disciplinary processes— (A) regarding individuals in senior executive positions at the Department who are the subject of disciplinary action— (i) the length of the disciplinary process in days for such individuals both before the date of the enactment of this Act and under the provisions of this Act described in subsection (a)(1); and (ii) the extent to which appeals by such individuals are upheld under such provisions as compared to before the date of the enactment of this Act; (B) the components or offices of the Department which experience the greatest number of proposed adverse actions against individuals in senior executive positions and components and offices which experience the least relative to the size of the components or offices’ total number of senior executive positions; (C) the tenure of individuals in senior executive positions who are the subject of disciplinary action; (D) whether the individuals in senior executive positions who are the subject of disciplinary action have previously been disciplined; and (E) the number of instances of disciplinary action taken by the Secretary against individuals in senior executive positions at the Department as compared to governmentwide discipline against individuals in Senior Executive Service positions (as defined in section 3132(a) of title 5, United States Code) as a percentage of the total number of individuals in senior executive positions at the Department and Senior Executive Service positions (as so defined). (5) With respect to hiring— (A) the degree to which the skills of newly hired individuals in senior executive positions at the Department are appropriate with respect to the needs of the Department; (B) the types of senior executive positions at the Department most commonly filled under the authorities in the provisions described in subsection (a)(1); (C) the number of senior executive positions at the Department filled by hires outside of the Department compared to hires from within the Department; (D) the length of time to fill a senior executive position at the Department and for a new hire to begin working in a new senior executive position; (E) the mission-critical deficiencies filled by newly hired individuals in senior executive positions and the connection between mission-critical deficiencies filled under the provisions described in subsection (a) and annual performance of the Department; (F) the satisfaction of applicants for senior executive positions at the Department with the hiring process, including the clarity of job announcements, reasons for withdrawal of applications, communication regarding status of applications, and timeliness of hiring decision; and (G) the satisfaction of newly hired individuals in senior executive positions at the Department with the hiring process and the process of joining and becoming oriented with the Department. (c) Senior Executive Position Defined.—In this section, the term “senior executive position” has the meaning given such term in section 713 of title 38, United States Code.