Poff Federal BuildingROANOKE, Va. (AP) _ A congressional committee is taking a hard look at the renovation of a federal building in Roanoke. The Roanoke Times (http://bit.ly/1pJbtCJ) reports that the House subcommittee will conduct a hearing Thursday on the Poff Federal Building. It houses regional branches of the federal court system and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

The General Services Administration has spent $65 million on what the panel says is largely cosmetic work on the building. The work dates back to 2011. But the Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet says the work had not corrected serious life and safety needs. Among other complaints is the skyrocketing cost of the work. U.S. Rep. Bob Goodlatte has called the handling of the Poff upgrade “reckless.”