[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1401 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1401

   To create a service corps of veterans called Veterans Engaged for 
  Tomorrow (VET) Corps focused on promoting and improving the service 
   opportunities for veterans and retired members of the military by 
engaging such veterans and retired members in projects designed to meet 
   identifiable public needs with a specific emphasis on projects to 
  support veterans, including disabled and older veterans and retired 
                        members of the military.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 9, 2009

  Mr. Sarbanes (for himself, Mr. Hare, Mrs. Davis of California, Mr. 
Loebsack, Mr. Wilson of Ohio, Mr. Mollohan, Mr. Rothman of New Jersey, 
Ms. Sutton, Mr. Braley of Iowa, Mr. Sires, Mr. Arcuri, Mr. Perlmutter, 
 and Ms. DeGette) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
                  the Committee on Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To create a service corps of veterans called Veterans Engaged for 
  Tomorrow (VET) Corps focused on promoting and improving the service 
   opportunities for veterans and retired members of the military by 
engaging such veterans and retired members in projects designed to meet 
   identifiable public needs with a specific emphasis on projects to 
  support veterans, including disabled and older veterans and retired 
                        members of the military.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``VET Corps Act of 
2009''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--

Sec. 1. Short title; Table of Contents.
Sec. 2. VET Corps.
                        ``Subtitle J--VET Corps

        ``Sec. 199AA. Purposes of Vet Corps.
        ``Sec. 199BB. Establishment of VET Corps; Administrative 
                            provisions.
        ``Sec. 199CC. VET Corps members.
        ``Sec. 199DD. Authority to provide assistance to VET Corps 
                            projects.
        ``Sec. 199EE. Consultation.
        ``Sec. 199FF. Training and Technical assistance.
        ``Sec. 199GG. Definitions.
Sec. 3. Authorization of Appropriations.

SEC. 2. VET CORPS.

    (a) Findings.--The Congress finds the following:
            (1) The veteran population is estimated by the Department 
        of Veterans Affairs to be around 23,400,000 and growing.
            (2) Today, an estimated 1,640,000 United States troops have 
        deployed as part of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF; 
        Afghanistan) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF; Iraq). In total 
        2,950,000 veterans receive disability compensation, with 
        261,897 having a 100 percent disability rating. As of September 
        of 2007, 223,564 OEF/OIF veterans filed for disability claims.
            (3) A 2007 survey for the Department of Veterans Affairs 
        discovered veterans of all ages tend to have an unemployment 
        rate double that of similar nonveterans, with returning 
        veterans experiencing the highest rate of unemployment at 18 
        percent.
            (4) Veterans often have difficulty transitioning to 
        civilian life.
            (5) Military and national service is a foundation for a 
        continued commitment to service.
            (6) The specific experience and expertise of veterans make 
        them uniquely qualified to serve other veterans.
            (7) The Civilian Conservations Corps (CCC) established in 
        1933, which provided work and vocational training for 3,500,000 
        unemployed young Americans, was one of the singularly 
        successful Federal programs in American history.
            (8) The Senior Corps established in 1973 to expand the role 
        of older volunteers, enrolls more than 500,000 volunteers each 
        year and in their first 10 years contributed over 1,100,000,000 
        hours of service to communities nationwide.
            (9) In a manner similar to the CCC of the 1930s and the 
        Senior Corps of today, veterans can be mobilized to perform 
        outreach to the veteran community to guide them to appropriate 
        services and assist them in necessary activities.
    (b) General Authority.--Title I of the National and Community 
Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12511 et seq.) is amended by adding at 
the end the following:

                        ``Subtitle J--VET Corps

``SEC. 199AA. PURPOSES OF VET CORPS.

    ``It is the purpose of this subtitle to authorize the establishment 
of Veterans Engaged for Tomorrow Corps (in this Act referred to as `VET 
Corps')--
            ``(1) to create a service corps of veterans, composed of 
        veterans, retired military personnel, or family members of 
        veterans, or retired military personnel to help such 
        individuals to obtain job training, professional certification, 
        or access to post-secondary education or employers and 
        otherwise to serve their communities through national and 
        community service programs;
            ``(2) to create a service corps that supports existing 
        outreach efforts of Veteran Service Organizations, the 
        Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Department of Defense 
        in order to inform veterans about available services and 
        benefits;
            ``(3) to create a service corps that will act as a 
        clearinghouse to direct any person desiring to serve the 
        veteran population to such opportunities in cooperation with 
        other service corps programs, Veterans Service Organizations, 
        the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Department of 
        Defense;
            ``(4) to create a service corps to coordinate with the 
        Veteran Service Organizations, the Department of Veterans 
        Affairs, the Department of Defense, and other Federal agencies 
        to identify and address existing and future needs and 
        challenges of veterans; and
            ``(5) to create a service corps that provides veterans of 
        all ages with opportunities to adjust to civilian life.

``SEC. 199BB. ESTABLISHMENT OF VET CORPS; ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.

    ``(a) In General.--The Corporation shall establish VET Corps to 
carry out the purposes described in section 199AA.
    ``(b) Staff.--
            ``(1) Appointment.--Upon the establishment of VET Corps, 
        the Chief Executive Officer shall appoint a Director. The 
        Director may be selected from among retired commissioned 
        officers of the Armed Forces of the United States.
            ``(2) Duties.--The Director shall--
                    ``(A) design, develop, and administer the VET Corps 
                programs;
                    ``(B) be responsible for managing the daily 
                operations of the Corps; and
                    ``(C) report to the Chief Executive Officer.
            ``(3) Authority to employ staff.--The Director may employ 
        such staff as is necessary to carry out this subtitle. The 
        Director shall, to the maximum extent practicable, utilize in 
        staff positions personnel who are detailed from departments and 
        agencies of the Federal Government and, to the extent the 
        Director considers appropriate, shall request and accept detail 
        of personnel from such departments and agencies in order to do 
        so.
            ``(4) Inapplicability of certain civil service laws.--The 
        Director and staff personnel shall be appointed without regard 
        to provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing 
        appointments in the competitive service. The rates of pay of 
        such persons may be established without regard to the 
        provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of 
        such title.
            ``(5) Voluntary services.--Notwithstanding any other 
        provision of law, the Director may accept the voluntary 
        services of individuals. While away from their homes or regular 
        places of business on the business of the Corps, such 
        individuals may be allowed travel expenses, including per diem 
        in lieu of subsistence, in the same amounts and to the same 
        extent, as authorized under section 5703 of title 5, United 
        States Code, for persons employed intermittently in the Federal 
        Government.

``SEC. 199CC. VET CORPS MEMBERS.

    ``(a) Membership in VET Corps.--
            ``(1) Participants to be members.--Persons selected to 
        participate in any VET Corps project receiving a grant under 
        the 199DD shall become members of the VET Corps.
            ``(2) Selection of members.--The Director shall select 
        individuals for membership in the Corps. Such individuals shall 
        consist of veterans, retired military personnel, or family 
        members of veterans or retired military personnel, with 
        preference given to veterans and retired military personnel.
    ``(b) Application for Membership.--To be selected to become a Corps 
member an individual shall submit an application to the Director or any 
other office as the Director may designate, at such time, in such 
manner, and containing such information as the Director shall require. 
At a minimum, the application shall contain an assurance that the 
individual is a veteran or retired military personnel who did not 
withdraw from military service for the purpose of becoming a member of 
VET Corps.
    ``(c) Duration.--Individuals may be members of VET Corps for up to 
24 months.
    ``(d) Status of Corps Members Under Federal Law.--Except as 
otherwise provided in this subtitle, members of VET Corps shall not, by 
reason of their status as such members, be considered Federal employees 
or be subject to the provisions of law relating to Federal employment.
    ``(e) Authorized Benefits for Corps Members.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Director shall provide for members 
        of the VET Corps to receive benefits authorized by this 
        subsection.
            ``(2) Living allowance.--The Director shall provide a 
        living allowance to members of the Corps for the period during 
        which such members are engaged in residential Corps programs.
            ``(3) Other authorized benefits.--While receiving training 
        or engaging in service projects as members of the VET Corps, 
        members may be provided the following benefits:
                    ``(A) Allowance for travel expenses, personal 
                expenses, and other expenses.
                    ``(B) Quarters.
                    ``(C) Subsistence.
                    ``(D) Transportation.
                    ``(E) Other services determined by the Director to 
                be consistent with the purposes of VET Corps.
            ``(4) National service educational awards.--A Corps member 
        who successfully completes a period of agreed service in the 
        Corps shall be considered to have served in an approved 
        national service position and, upon meeting the requirements of 
        section 147 for full-time or part-time national service, shall 
        be eligible for a national service educational award described 
        in such section. The Corporation (through the Director) shall 
        transfer an appropriate amount of funds to the National Service 
        Trust to provide for the national service educational awards 
        for such member.
            ``(5) Health insurance.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A VET Corps project receiving 
                assistance under section 199DD shall provide a basic 
                health care policy for each full-time participant in a 
                service project carried out or supported using the 
                assistance, if the participant is not otherwise covered 
                by a health care policy. Not more than 85 percent of 
                the cost of a premium shall be provided by the 
                Director, with the remaining cost paid by the entity 
                receiving assistance under section 199DD. The Director 
                shall establish minimum standards that all plans must 
                meet in order to qualify for payment under this 
                section, any circumstances in which an alternative 
                health care policy may be substituted for the basic 
                health care policy, and mechanisms to prohibit 
                participants from dropping existing coverage.
                    ``(B) Option.--A VET Corps project receiving 
                assistance under section 199DD may elect to provide 
                from its own funds a health care policy for 
                participants that does not meet all of the standards 
                established by the Director if the fair market value of 
                such policy is equal to or greater than the fair market 
                value of a plan that meets the minimum standards 
                established by the Director, and is consistent with 
                other applicable laws.
            ``(6) Determination of benefits.--In determining the 
        authorized benefits a member receives under this subsection, 
        the Director shall take into account the educational, social, 
        and family circumstances of such member, including whether such 
        member has graduated from an institution of higher education, 
        is unemployed, or has had contact with the justice system.

``SEC. 199DD. AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE TO VET CORPS PROJECTS.

    ``(a) Provision of Assistance.--From amounts appropriated for a 
fiscal year under section 501(a)(4), the Corporation shall make grants 
to Veteran Service Organizations, nonprofit organizations, Federal 
agencies, State or local governments, or institutions of higher 
education for the purpose of establishing, operating, and supporting a 
VET Corps project.
    ``(b) Application.--
            ``(1) In general.--To be eligible to receive assistance 
        under this section, a Veteran Service Organizations, nonprofit 
        organization, Federal, State, or local government, or 
        institution of higher education shall prepare and submit to the 
        Director an application at such time, in such manner, and 
        containing such information as the Corporation may reasonably 
        require.
            ``(2) Required information.--An application submitted under 
        paragraph (1) shall include--
                    ``(A) a description of how the VET Corps project to 
                be carried out directly by such applicant using funds 
                provided under this section--
                            ``(i) will assist participants in obtaining 
                        admission into an institution of higher 
                        education, a job credential, further job 
                        training, or employment;
                            ``(ii) will meet all the VET indicators, 
                        and engage participants in activities that will 
                        improve the project's performance on such 
                        indicators; and
                            ``(iii) will improve performance on the VET 
                        indicators in a geographic area demonstrating 
                        the need to improve such indicators based on 
                        the demographic information of veterans and 
                        retired military personnel in such area and 
                        other statistics;
                    ``(B) a description of the type of positions which 
                participants will be placed into using the funds under 
                this section, including descriptions of the specific 
                tasks to be performed by such participants, and the 
                minimum qualifications that individuals will be 
                required to meet to become participants in such 
                project;
                    ``(C) the number of proposed full- and part-time 
                national service positions for which participants will 
                receive the national service educational award 
                described in subtitle D;
                    ``(D) an assurance that the applicant will comply 
                with the nonduplication and nondisplacement provisions 
                of section 177; and
                    ``(E) a description of how the applicant--
                            ``(i) in cooperation with other service 
                        corps authorized under the national service 
                        laws, Veterans Service Organizations, the 
                        Department of Veterans Affairs, and the 
                        Department of Defense will act as a 
                        clearinghouse by directing any person desiring 
                        to serve the veteran population to such 
                        opportunities; and
                            ``(ii) if applicable, will work with other 
                        community-based agencies to carry out 
                        activities to improve performance of the VET 
                        Corps indicators
    ``(c) Eligible VET Corps Projects.--The recipient of a grant under 
this section shall use the grant funds to carry out service projects 
that address veteran needs, which may include--
            ``(1) building housing for veterans and others in need of 
        such services;
            ``(2) assisting with rehabilitative classes such as 
        physical therapy or life skills development;
            ``(3) providing services in veterans' hospitals or 
        community-based outpatient clinics;
            ``(4) assisting with outreach of Veteran Services 
        Organizations and other service corps to help veterans and 
        retired military personnel with the transition from active duty 
        service as a member of the Armed Forces to becoming a veteran 
        or retiring from military life;
            ``(5) the repair, renovation, or adaption of homes or 
        vehicles of disabled veterans;
            ``(6) performing outreach to the veteran and retired 
        military personnel community to provide them information and 
        access to services available to them;
            ``(7) assisting in other such activities as a recipient of 
        a grant under this section may identify;
            ``(8) providing services to military families during 
        overseas deployment; and
            ``(9) fostering mentoring relationships between veterans 
        and nonveterans.
    ``(d) Preference for Certain Projects.--In the consideration of 
applications submitted under this section, the Director shall give 
preference to projects that--
            ``(1) provide development, training, and practical work 
        experience for veterans and retired members of the military in 
        important career fields and act as preparation for additional 
        education or permanent employment for veterans and retired 
        members of the military which will provide long-term benefits 
        to the public;
            ``(2) can be planned and initiated promptly; and
            ``(3) will provide academic, experiential, or community 
        education opportunities.
    ``(e) Evaluation.--
            ``(1) Evaluation.--Subject to paragraph (2), the Director 
        shall develop evaluation criteria and performance goals, 
        including recruitment and retention goals, applicable to all 
        VET Corps projects carried out with assistance provided under 
        this section.
            ``(2) Alternative evaluation requirements.--The Director 
        may establish alternative evaluation requirements, such as 
        requirements that provide flexibility in the recruitment and 
        retention outcomes, for VET Corps projects based upon the 
        amount of assistance received in this section and the 
        demographics of participants.

``SEC. 199EE. CONSULTATION.

    ``The Director shall consult with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
and Veteran Service Organizations, the Secretary of Defense, and the 
heads of other Federal agencies, as appropriate, in making grants under 
subsection 199DD, developing additional VET indicators, and in 
recruiting VET Corps members.

``SEC. 199FF. TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

    ``From amounts appropriated for a fiscal year under section 501(a), 
the Director shall ensure that the VET Corps (including each recipient 
of a grant under this subtitle) has adequate access to relevant 
training and technical assistance services, such as services to assist 
with improving performance on VET indicators, which shall be provided, 
by grant or contract, through at least 1 national non-profit 
organization with a demonstrated record of experience in promoting and 
disseminating effective practices among service corps.

``SEC. 199GG. DEFINITIONS.

    ``For the purposes of this subtitle:
    ``(a) Veteran.--The term `veteran' means a person who--
            ``(1) serves on active duty (other than active duty for 
        training) as a member of the Armed Forces--
                    ``(A) for a period of at least 180 days; or
                    ``(B) for a shorter period of time in the case of a 
                person who is discharged or released from such service 
                for a service-connected disability; and
            ``(2) is discharged or released from such service under 
        conditions other than dishonorable.
    ``(b) Retired Military Personnel.--The term `retired military 
personnel' means the following:
            ``(1) Regular and Reserve officers and enlisted members who 
        retire from the Military Services under chapters 61, 63, 65, 
        67, 367, 571, 573, or 867 of title 10, United States Code, and 
        chapters 11 and 21 of title 14, United States Code.
            ``(2) Reserve officers and enlisted members eligible for 
        retirement who have not reached age 60 and who have not elected 
        discharge or are not members of the Ready Reserve or Standby 
        Reserve (including members of the Inactive Standby Reserve).
            ``(3) Members of the Fleet Reserve and Fleet Marine Corps 
        Reserve under section 6330 of title 10, United States Code.
    ``(c) VET Indicators.--The term `VET Indicators' means--
            ``(1) promoting and improving the service opportunities for 
        veterans;
            ``(2) engaging veterans and retired military personnel; and
            ``(3) projects designed to meet identifiable public needs 
        with a specific emphasis on projects in support of veterans, 
        especially disabled and older veterans and retired military 
        personnel.''.

SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    Section 501(a) of the National and Community Service Act of 1990 
(42 U.S.C. 12681(a)) is amended--
            (1) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following:
            ``(4) Subtitle j.--There are authorized to be appropriated 
        $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 through 2014 to 
        carry out subtitle J.''; and
            (2) by redesignating paragraph (4) as paragraph (5).
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