VA officials face House hearing on hiring claims

WASHINGTON -- Two high-ranking officials at the Department of Veterans Affairs have been issued subpoenas to testify at a congressional hearing Monday night on allegations that they manipulated the agency's hiring system for their own gain.

The VA's acting inspector general said in a report that Diana Rubens and Kimberly Graves forced lower-ranking regional managers to accept job transfers against their will. Rubens and Graves then stepped into the vacant positions themselves, keeping their pay while reducing their responsibilities, the IG said.

Rubens, director of the Philadelphia regional office for the Veterans Benefits Administration, and Graves, director of the St. Paul, Minnesota regional office for the VBA, face possible criminal prosecution.

The two are among five high-ranking VA officials who received subpoenas to appear at a hearing Monday night conducted by the House Veterans Affairs Committee.

This story was originally published November 2, 2015 at 8:47 PM with the headline "VA officials face House hearing on hiring claims."