Documents Show $43.5 Million in PACT Act Bonuses Plus Pay Raises for VA Human Resources Staff

The Department of Veterans Affairs paid $43.5 million in bonuses to more than 6,500 human resources specialists last year under allowances stipulated in the PACT Act, an amount the department's chief human capital officer described as "significant."

Documents obtained by Military.com through a Freedom of Information Act request show the department paid an average of $6,598.13 in critical skills incentives, or CSIs, to 6,517 human resources specialists in the Veterans Health and Veterans Benefits Administrations through June 2023 in addition to salary increases under PACT Act provisions.

The bonuses were authorized under the legislation, which expanded health care and benefits to thousands of veterans sickened by environmental toxins. But the large amount concerned some employees at VA headquarters in Washington, D.C., after VA officials awarded large bonuses to hundreds of VA executives last year.