Veterans Expose Fraudulent VA-Funded Job Training Programs

A recent investigation uncovered that the Department of Veterans Affairs has financed a series of for-profit training programs that delivered little or no useful skills to veterans. The report cites examples such as a New Hampshire initiative that taught grass cultivation, which received more than $2 million, and a concrete-rock design course funded with $18 million. The most notorious case involved a six-week HVAC repair boot camp that cost veterans about $20,000 each, while the VA disbursed $72 million overall.

Marine veteran Ryan DiFranco described the training as inadequate and said the program’s founder, Jonathan Dean Davis, spent the funds on high-end vehicles. Davis has been charged with wire fraud and money laundering and is currently serving a ten-year prison term. The scandal has revived concerns about the VA’s lax oversight of GI Bill-eligible programs.