Trump rescinds nomination for VA's CIO, intending to reduce IT staff number
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is facing a change in leadership for its information technology (IT) operations as President Donald Trump withdrew his pick, Ryan Cote, to lead the department's IT operations on July 17, 2025. Cote's nomination, submitted on June 30, was withdrawn less than a month after submission, with no specific reason given.
Ryan Cote, who previously served as CIO of the Transportation Department under the first Trump administration, was nominated to be the VA's assistant secretary for information and technology and chief information officer (CIO). The CIO role remains filled in an acting capacity following the withdrawal.
The VA's IT operations have been under scrutiny, with the department announcing plans to reduce its workforce by nearly 30,000 employees by the end of fiscal year 2025. This move is aimed at eliminating the agency’s previously planned mass layoffs, but it also indicates ongoing workforce restructuring efforts.
The VA's IT workforce is feeling the impact, with nearly 1,200 employees within the VA's Office of Information and Technology (OIT) accepting voluntary separation incentives and set to leave the department at the end of this year. This will result in a nearly 12% cut to the VA's IT workforce, leaving the department with 8,205 employees in the OIT.
Despite the challenges, the VA continues efforts to modernize its IT systems. The VA's fiscal 2026 budget request is $7.3 billion for IT systems, a decrease of nearly $300 million from current spending levels. The VA is also asking Congress for more flexibility in how it spends appropriated funds, requesting changes in appropriation language to eliminate "rigid statutory subaccounts" and authorize a three-year availability for IT funds.
The withdrawal of Cote's nomination came the same week that House lawmakers held a subcommittee hearing on VA's IT priorities. Subcommittee Ranking Member Nikki Budzinski (D-Ill.) called on the Senate to confirm a permanent VA CIO "soon." The Technology Modernization Subcommittee Chairman, Tom Barrett (R-Mich.), expressed looking forward to working with Cote after his confirmation by the Senate.
However, it's "highly unlikely" that VA OIT would need to rehire any of the employees who left through DRP or VERA. VA OIT is reallocating positions to "critical IT functions" and rolling out more automation tools to make its workforce more productive. Exit interview data from VA OIT shows that 66% of departing IT specialists would recommend working for the VA again, indicating a positive work environment despite the changes.
The withdrawal of Cote's nomination has left the VA's IT operations in a state of uncertainty. As the department continues to face challenges in modernizing its IT systems, it remains to be seen who will take on the role of CIO and lead these efforts moving forward.
[1] https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/17/trump-withdraws-nomination-of-ryan-cote-to-lead-it-operations-at-va-436408 [2] https://www.nextgov.com/it-modernization/2025/07/trumps-nominee-va-cio-withdrawn-congress-amid-oversight-scrutiny/167502/ [3] https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/20/ryan-cote-donated-to-trump-and-mcconnell-436479 [4] https://www.nextgov.com/it-modernization/2025/07/va-to-cut-its-it-workforce-by-nearly-30000-employees-by-end-of-fiscal-year-2025/167505/
- The withdrawal of Ryan Cote's nomination as the VA's assistant secretary for information and technology and chief information officer (CIO) raises questions about the reimagined federal workforce in the OIT, particularly as the department calls for more technology integration within its sports programs and other operations.
- With growing emphasis on leveraging technology in various sectors, the sports community is eagerly watching the transformation of the federal workforce, particularly in the VA, as a model for modernizing IT workforce teams and rethinking their own strategies.
