State VA requests to change its name

Want to differ from U.S., agency says

Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs officials told an oversight commission Tuesday that the agency is seeking to change its name -- a move that comes during a transformation period for the department, which is currently paying off its debts and illegally collected fees and finalizing plans to build a new veterans home in North Little Rock.

The department will ask the Legislature this session to change the agency's name to the Arkansas Department of Veterans Services to differentiate it from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, said department Director Cissy Rucker.

"There's a lot of talk about the VA issues; it's splashed all over the news," Rucker said. "A lot of people think that's us."

Adding the name change to the legislative agenda will be one of Rucker's last moves in an overhaul of the department that started when she was appointed by Gov. Mike Beebe in May 2012. Rucker is stepping down in January and a successor will be appointed by the newly elected governor.

Rucker told the Arkansas Veterans Commission on Tuesday that the agency will soon complete one of the first items she sought to fix after she took the position as director, and the reason for her appointment.

The department will pay off next month the more than $580,000 it illegally collected from 2009 to 2012 -- the discovery of which led to the dismissal of David Fletcher as director.

A 2009 change in federal law increased the monthly rate the VA pays state veterans homes for the care of the nation's most disabled veterans and prohibits states from collecting out-of-pocket fees for their care. However, the department continued collecting the $1,800 monthly fees from eligible residents at the Little Rock home for three years.

The agency will send its last $22,000 payment to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in November, Rucker said Tuesday.

"We've turned a lot of things around," said department spokesman Kelly Ferguson. "If you look at where we were and where we are now, it's amazing."

After that payment is sent, the agency will begin paying the overdue rent it owes to the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Rucker said.

About a year ago, it was discovered that the Fayetteville Veterans Home owed $236,000 in unpaid bills. About $36,000 was a missed payment in February 2013 to UAMS Northwest, where the veterans home occupies an annex and the top two floors of the six-story building.

The remaining $200,000 is owed to Allcare Pharmacy in Arkadelphia for about 16 months of invoices. Karen Watkins, the agency's administrative manager, said the department would seek approval from the Legislature this session to pay that bill.

"With the financial issues this agency has had, it will take time to turn things around," Watkins said. "It doesn't just happen overnight. But we're making strides. I feel like a year from now, we won't be having these conversations."

The "dark time" in the department will truly end with the sale of the property on Charles Bussey Avenue where the Little Rock Veterans Home used to be, Rucker said. The home was closed in 2012 because of structural problems that would cost more than $10 million to repair.

The governor's office paid to demolish the building this summer, and the state is selling the property to Little Rock's Metropolitan Housing Alliance, said Charles Johnson, deputy director for the Veterans Affairs Department.

The matter will be taken to the Little Rock Board of Directors in November, and Johnson expects to close the sale by the end of the year.

Project budget increases

Johnson also told the commission Tuesday that the budget has increased for the new veterans home that will be built on a 35-acre parcel in North Little Rock, a project that was awarded conditional approval by the federal VA on Sept. 30.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs announced in March that the proposal for the new home would be funded through the agency's budget this year. The federal agency will pay 65 percent of the costs with a maximum contribution of $28 million.

The project's budget was set at $22 million in February after the Arkansas Legislature voted to appropriate $7.5 million in state surplus funds.

With donations, as well as additional contributions from the governor's office, the state's contribution has increased to more than $8 million and the overall budget to $24 million, Johnson said. The additional money will go toward improved air-conditioning and heating units and backup generators for each of the home's eight residences.

The VA's approval of the grant in September started a 180-day period in which the state Veterans Affairs Department needs to acquire the land, do an environmental assessment, receive approval from VA Secretary Robert McDonald and go through a 90-day congressional notification.

Johnson estimated that construction could start in the summer.

"Once the federal dollars start flowing, they'll want to see progress," Johnson said. "So we'll get it rolling."

Architects presented a design in June for the Central Arkansas Veterans Home, which includes eight cabins housing a total of 96 residents.

Commission member Harlie Treat has said 96 beds were "not adequate for the number of vets we have here in central Arkansas" and that the home would "fill up real quick."

The federal VA estimates that there are more than 250,000 veterans in Arkansas, with about 32,000 in Pulaski County. Since the Little Rock Veterans Home closed in 2012, there has been only one state-run veterans home in Fayetteville. No state surrounding Arkansas has fewer than three homes, according to the National Association of State Veteran Homes.

Johnson raised that point Tuesday.

Once construction starts on the Central Arkansas Veterans Home, the state agency will put together a committee to look at whether another veterans home should be built and where it should be placed, Johnson said.

He asked the commission to keep in mind that a state must have a need of at least 2,000 beds before the federal VA will give its project priority, and the state must have matching funds available.

"It's very hard to get high on that," Johnson said. "Maybe we need to look at getting that changed. It's very hard for small states to get high on that priority list."

Rucker has said the design of the new veterans home allows for an increase in the number of cabins and beds.

If the agency can raise enough money to receive the maximum $28 million match in construction grants, the design could bump to 12 homes accommodating 146 residents.

Cemetery needs

Also Tuesday, Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs officials addressed a problem regarding another project -- the federally funded expansion of the state veterans cemetery, which is off West Maryland Avenue near Camp Robinson in North Little Rock.

Watkins said more workers will be needed to maintain the cemetery once a 9-acre expansion is completed in February. However, the state Department of Finance and Administration recently told the state veterans agency that the Legislature has not provided positions for extra help.

The state department will seek the addition of those positions during the next legislative session, Johnson said. He didn't give a specific number of needed positions Tuesday, but did note they were part time.

The National Cemetery Administration, which oversees state veterans cemeteries, could pull funding from the cemetery if it is not in compliance with set standards, said Bill Wussick, director of the state veterans cemetery.

"We want to have the staff available to meet those needs," Wussick said. "If you're not compliant, you could lose your federal funds. We need to do our due diligence for that, and I think it's important that we're taking care of our veterans."

A section on 10/22/2014

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