WASHINGTON — Following the completion of an internal investigation, the VA said Tuesday it does not plan to punish anyone else involved in the construction of a new hospital in Aurora that saw its cost balloon by $1 billion.

The agency did not release the report to Congress or the public. But a news release issued by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs indicated the work of an Administrative Investigative Board was finished and no further action was necessary.

“The AIB determined that responsibility for the decisions that resulted in delays and cost overruns for the Denver replacement facility rested with executives who had departed from the VA prior to the AIB’s completion,” the release noted.

RELATED:How the VA hospital project spiraled out of control

Specifically, the agency highlighted the work of three employees who had left the agency or had been demoted. The VA did not list any of the individuals it held responsible by name, although it noted their prior positions: a project executive, a senior resident engineer and a senior contracting officer.

The Denver Post previously has named Timothy Pogany as the project manager, Thomas Hayden as the senior resident engineer and Thaddeus Willoughby as the contracting officer.

“After reviewing thousands of pages of documentation, I determined that the evidence does not support accountability action against any individual still employed by VA,” VA Deputy Secretary Sloan Gibson said.

Estimated to cost $604 million in 2011, the price tag of the project last year rocketed to about $1.7 billion. An investigation by The Post found the root of the disaster was mismanagement by VA personnel and a lack of proper oversight.

The VA expects to complete the facility in early 2018.

Reaction to the latest news was swift among Colorado’s congressional delegation, which has long complained about the VA’s handling of the project’s cost and schedule.

“Unfortunately it reflects a pattern in the VA where nobody responsible is ever held accountable,” said U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman, R-Aurora. “This little press release they put forward — without the full report — just again reflects that pattern where they don’t care. Who else could get away with this?”

Even before Tuesday, the internal review has seen its share of controversy.

Lawmakers last year raised concerns that the Administrative Investigative Board initially did not include a construction expert, a problem later resolved by the administration.

The VA also has kept its findings under wraps since last summer. Agency officials said they planned to release the internal review along with a second investigation by the VA’s inspector general, its in-house watchdog.

Neither the VA nor the VA inspector general responded with comment or clarification on efforts to learn more about either report. No related inquiry could be found Tuesday night on the website for the VA inspector general.

In a statement, U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet said the VA should take a hard look at the eventual findings of the inspector general.

“The VA should use the Inspector General’s findings as an opportunity to punish those responsible, including referring any potential criminal acts to the Department of Justice,” said Bennet, a Colorado Democrat.

Mark K. Matthews: 202-662-8907, matthews@denverpost.com or twitter.com/mkmatthews