WASHINGTON — What appears to be some confusion over paperwork may delay the nomination of former Hawai'i resident Tammy Duckworth — wounded as a helicopter pilot in Iraq — for a top job at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., the senior Republican on the committee that must first approve Duckworth's nomination before the full Senate votes on it, has requested that Duckworth clarify some financial information she provided on a series of questionnaires.

"This is not a hold," said Samantha Smith, Burr's press secretary. "This is just the senator doing his due diligence."

Senators have the option of placing a hold on nominations and bills they have concerns about.

So far, Burr's questions mainly concern Duckworth's declared assets and income.

His questions initially raised eyebrows because some of President Obama's top nominees have admitted to making substantial errors on tax returns and have had to withdraw their nominations.

According to Duckworth's initial responses to Burr's questions, there was some confusion over how Duckworth was supposed to categorize certain assets.

The questionnaires that high-level administration nominees must fill out are typically long, complicated and written in bureaucratic language.

If confirmed by the Senate, Duckworth — a graduate of McKinley High School and the University of Hawai'i-Manoa — would become the VA's assistant secretary for public and intergovernmental affairs. She appeared before the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee on Wednesday for what was by most accounts a very successful confirmation hearing.

During the hearing, Burr praised her "courageous service to our nation."

In 2004, Duckworth was piloting a Black Hawk helicopter in Iraq when a rocket-propelled grenade struck.

The explosion took her right leg above the knee and her left leg below the knee and almost destroyed her right arm, breaking it in three places.