[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 137 (Saturday, September 28, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1781-E1782]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 LET'S REALLY PROTECT AND STRENGTHEN OUR VETERANS' EMPLOYMENT PROGRAMS

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BOB FILNER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 27, 1996

  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, issues related to employment and training 
assistance for veterans have received a lot of attention in the

[[Page E1782]]

104th Congress. In fact, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle 
have talked endlessly about our national responsibility to support and 
assist veterans in their efforts to obtain employment and training. 
However, to quote the Bard, their rhetoric is largely ``much ado about 
nothing,'' and their legislative commitment to veterans in no way 
matches the passion of their words.
  For over 50 years the House of Representatives deemed veterans' 
issues as near sacred--and far too important for partisan bickering and 
cynicism. Expecting that this bipartisan tradition would continue, I 
introduced three bills to protect, strengthen, and expand employment 
opportunities for our Nation's veterans. Unfortunately, the Republican 
chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Education, Training, 
Employment, and Housing, which has jurisdiction over these measures, 
chose not to act on any of this legislation. H.R. 3538, the Veterans' 
Job Protection Act, H.R. 3938, the Veterans' Training and Employment 
Bill of Rights Act of 1996, and H.R. 4080, the Veterans' 
Entrepreneurship Promotion Act of 1996, are all significant bills that 
would make significant differences in the lives of thousands of 
veterans. These bills are serious business--they are not ``much ado 
about nothing''--and I hope that in the 105th Congress they will not 
fall victim to the hypocrisy surrounding veterans' matters we have 
experienced this year.
  It is important that our veterans fully understand and appreciate 
what they have lost as a result of the destruction of the historical 
bipartisan support for veterans. Accordingly, I will briefly describe 
the bills which the Republican leadership chose not to support. First, 
I introduced H.R. 3538, the Veterans' Job Protection Act. This measure 
responded to a recent Supreme Court ruling which inadvertently 
eliminated job protections for veterans and members of the Selected 
Reserve whose civilian employment is with a State government. My bill 
would restore reemployment rights for these individuals. It would 
clarify that States must abide by the Federal law which requires 
employers to reestablish veterans in their former jobs when they return 
from military service. Because H.R. 3538 has not been enacted, members 
of the Selected Reserve who were activated for service in Bosnia could 
have problems when they return home and attempt to reclaim their 
civilian jobs if they are State employees. We hope and expect that the 
Selected Reservists now in Bosnia will soon return to the United 
States. It will be a dismal ``welcome home'' if their civilian jobs are 
not available to them because some in Congress chose not to protect 
them.

  Under H.R. 3938, the Veterans' Training and Employment Bill of Rights 
Act of 1996, disabled veterans and veterans who have served in combat 
areas would have the opportunity, for the first time, for the first 
time, to fully participate in all federally funded training programs. 
Too often, veterans have been underserved by these national programs. 
For example, although veterans accounted for approximately 24 percent 
of all dislocated workers, only 14 percent of those trained under the 
Job Training Partnership Act [JTPA] program for dislocated workers were 
veterans. Veterans' service organizations have told us that some 
program managers mistakenly assume veterans receive similar services 
from the Department of Veterans' Affairs and discourage veterans from 
taking advantage of JTPA services. Additionally, we are in the midst of 
a major redesign of our national labor exchange and job training 
programs. My bill would ensure that our country's long-standing 
commitment to providing priority services to veterans seeking 
employment and training assistance would be protected and strengthened. 
H.R. 3938 would also establish, for the first time, an effective 
appeals process for veterans who believe their rights have been 
violated under certain veterans' employment-related programs.
  Finally, I introduced H.R. 4080, the Veterans' Entrepreneurship 
Promotion Act of 1996. The purpose of this measure is to promote and 
assist the creation, development, and growth of small businesses owned 
by disabled veterans and other eligible veterans. Under this bill, a 
Governmentwide procurement program would be established to assist 
eligible veteran-owned small businesses to receive Federal Government 
contracts. For the first time, certain veteran-owned small businesses 
would have a real opportunity to become suppliers of needed goods and 
services through access to contract award opportunities in the multi-
billion dollar Federal market. Additionally, because the availability 
of adequate capital for business startup and expansion can be an 
obstacle to the development and growth of veteran-owned small 
businesses, my bill would establish a guaranteed loan program for these 
concerns in the Small Business Administration [SBA]. H.R. 4080 would 
also provide eligible veteran small business owners with 
entrepreneurial training, counseling, and management assistance. I 
believe our Government has a responsibility to help the veterans of 
this country because of the sacrifices they have made in the service of 
their country. I also believe that the men and women who have served in 
our Armed Forces are a valuable national resource whose skills and 
abilities must be absorbed by, and integrated into, the civilian 
workforce. In order to facilitate this transfer of talent, however, we 
must provide our service members the tools, training, and job 
protection they need to reenter the nonmilitary workplace. Finally, I 
believe veterans are special and unique members of our American family. 
They have defended us all and have protected the freedoms we all value. 
I hope that in the next Congress we can work together as Americans, not 
as Republicans or Democrats, to develop responsible, effective, 
meaningful policies affecting our Nation's veterans.

                          ____________________