[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 93 (Monday, June 23, 2003)]
[House]
[Pages H5675-H5679]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1445
VETERANS ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND BENEFITS IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 2003
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (H.R. 1460) to amend title 38, United States Code, to
permit the use of education benefits under such title for certain
entrepreneurship courses, to permit veterans enrolled in a vocational
rehabilitation program under chapter 31 of such title to have self-
employment as a vocational goal, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 1460
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans Entrepreneurship
and Benefits Improvement Act of 2003''.
SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION FOR STATE APPROVING AGENCIES TO APPROVE
CERTAIN ENTREPRENEURSHIP COURSES.
(a) Approval of Entrepreneurship Courses.--Section 3675 of
title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end
the following new subsection:
``(c)(1) A State approving agency may approve the
entrepreneurship courses offered by a qualified provider of
entrepreneurship courses.
``(2) For purposes of this subsection, the term
`entrepreneurship course' means a non-degree, non-credit
course of business education that enables or assists a person
to start or enhance a small business enterprise.
``(3) Subsection (a) and paragraphs (1) and (2) of
subsection (b) do not apply to--
``(A) an entrepreneurship course offered by a qualified
provider of entrepreneurship courses; and
``(B) a qualified provider of entrepreneurship courses by
reason of such provider offering one or more entrepreneurship
courses.''.
(b) Business Owners Not Treated as Already Qualified.--
Section 3471 of such title is amended by inserting before the
last sentence the following: ``The Secretary shall not treat
a person as already qualified for the objective of a program
of education offered by a qualified provider of
entrepreneurship courses solely because such person is the
owner or operator of a business.''.
(c) Inclusion of Entrepreneurship Courses in Definition of
Program of Education.--Subsection (b) of section 3452 of such
title is amended by adding at the end the following: ``Such
term also includes any course, or combination of courses,
offered by a qualified provider of entrepreneurship
courses.''
(d) Inclusion of Qualified Provider of Entrepreneurship
Courses in Definition of Educational Institution.--Subsection
(c) of section 3452 of such title is amended by adding at the
end the following: ``Such term also includes any qualified
provider of entrepreneurship courses.''.
(e) Definition of Qualified Provider of Entrepreneurship
Courses.--Section 3452 of such title is further amended by
adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(h) The term `qualified provider of entrepreneurship
courses' means--
``(1) a small business development center described in
section 21 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648), and
``(2) the National Veterans Business Development
Corporation (established under section 33 of such Act (15
U.S.C. 657c)) insofar as the Corporation offers or sponsors
an entrepreneurship course (as defined in section 3675(c)(2)
of this title).''.
(f) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section
shall apply to courses approved by State approving agencies
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 3. PROCUREMENT PROGRAM FOR CERTIFIED SMALL BUSINESS
CONCERNS OWNED AND CONTROLLED BY QUALIFIED
SERVICE-DISABLED VETERANS, ETC.
(a) Establishment of Program.--The Small Business Act (15
U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is amended by redesignating section 36 as
section 38 and by inserting after section 35 the following
new sections:
``SEC. 36. PROCUREMENT PROGRAM FOR CERTIFIED SMALL BUSINESS
CONCERNS OWNED AND CONTROLLED BY QUALIFIED
SERVICE-DISABLED VETERANS.
``(a) Sole Source Contracts.--In accordance with this
section, a contracting officer may award a sole source
contract to any certified small business concern owned and
controlled by qualified service-disabled veterans if--
``(1) such concern is determined to be a responsible
contractor with respect to performance of such contract
opportunity and the contracting officer does not have a
reasonable expectation that 2 or more certified small
business concerns owned and controlled by qualified service-
disabled veterans will submit offers for the contracting
opportunity;
``(2) the anticipated award price of the contract
(including options) will not exceed--
``(A) $5,000,000, in the case of a contract opportunity
assigned a standard industrial classification code for
manufacturing; or
``(B) $3,000,000, in the case of any other contract
opportunity; and
``(3) in the estimation of the contracting officer, the
contract award can be made at a fair and reasonable price.
``(b) Restricted Competition.--In accordance with this
section, a contracting officer may award contracts on the
basis of competition restricted to certified small business
concerns owned and controlled by qualified service-disabled
veterans if the contracting officer has a reasonable
expectation that not less than 2 certified small business
concerns owned and controlled by qualified service-disabled
veterans will submit offers and that the award can be made at
a fair market price.
``(c) Enforcement; Penalties.--Rules similar to the rules
of section 31(c) shall apply for purposes of this section.
``(d) Collection of Data Regarding Small Business Concerns
Owned and Controlled by Service-Disabled Veterans.--
``(1) Survey.--Not later than 2 years after the date of the
enactment of this section and each 3 years thereafter, the
Administrator, in consultation with the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs, shall complete a survey of service-disabled veterans
receiving benefits under title 38, United States Code, to
determine the number, identity, and primary industry
classification of small business concerns owned and
controlled by service-disabled veterans.
``(2) Report to congress.--The Administrator, in
consultation with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, shall
report to Congress on the results of each survey conducted
under paragraph (1). Such report shall include the total
number of small business concerns owned and controlled by
service-disabled veterans.
``(e) Contracting Officer.--For purposes of this section
and section 37, the term `contracting officer' has the
meaning given such term in section 27(f)(5) of the Office of
Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 U.S.C. 423(f)(5)).
``SEC. 37. PRIORITY OF SMALL BUSINESS PROCUREMENT
PREFERENCES.
``(a) In General.--A contracting officer may not make a
procurement from a source on the basis of a preference
provided under any provision of this Act referred to in
subsection (b) unless the contracting officer has determined
that such procurement cannot be made on the basis of a
preference provided under another provision of this Act with
a higher priority under such subsection.
``(b) Order of Priority.--For purposes of this section, the
following provisions of this Act are listed in order of
priority from highest to lowest:
``(1) Section 8(a).
``(2) Section 36(b).
``(3) Section 36(a).
``(4) Section 31(b)(2)(B).
``(5) Section 31(b)(2)(A).
``(6) Section 8(m).
``(c) Priority of Certain Other Procurement Preferences.--A
procurement may not be made from a source on the basis of a
preference provided under any provision of this Act referred
to in subsection (b) if the procurement would otherwise by
made from a different source under section 4124 or 4125 of
title 18, United States Code, or the Javits-Wagner-O'Day Act
(41 U.S.C. 46 et seq.).''.
(b) Certified Small Business Concern Owned and Controlled
by Service-Disabled Veterans.--Subsection (q) of section 3 of
the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632) is amended by adding
at the end the following new paragraph:
``(5) Certified small business concern owned and controlled
by qualified service-disabled veterans.--
``(A) Qualified service-disabled veteran.--The term
`qualified service-disabled veteran' means any veteran who--
``(i) has one or more disabilities that are service-
connected (as defined in section 101(16) of title 38, United
States Code) and rated at 10 percent or more by the Secretary
of Veterans Affairs; or
``(ii) is entitled to benefits under section 1151 of title
38, United States Code.
``(B) Small business concern owned and controlled by
qualified service-disabled veterans.--The term `small
business concern owned and controlled by qualified service-
disabled veterans' means a small business concern--
``(i) not less than 51 percent of which is owned by one or
more qualified service-disabled veterans or, in the case of
any publicly owned business, not less than 51 percent of the
stock of which is owned by one or more qualified service-
disabled veterans; and
[[Page H5676]]
``(ii) the management and daily business operations of
which are controlled by one or more qualified service-
disabled veterans or, in the case of a veteran with permanent
and severe disability, the spouse or permanent caregiver of
such veteran.
``(C) Certified small business concern owned and controlled
by qualified service-disabled veterans.--The term `certified
small business concern owned and controlled by qualified
service-disabled veterans' means any small business concern
owned and controlled by qualified service-disabled veterans
that is certified by the Administrator as being such a
concern.''.
(c) Conforming Amendments.--Paragraph (2) of section 31(b)
of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 657a(b)) is amended--
(1) by striking ``Notwithstanding any other provision of
law'' and inserting ``In accordance with this section'';
(2) in subparagraph (B)--
(A) by striking ``a contract opportunity shall be awarded
pursuant to this section'' and inserting ``a contracting
officer may award contracts''; and
(B) by striking ``; and'' at the end and inserting a
period; and
(3) by striking subparagraph (C).
(d) Department of Veterans Affairs Pilot Program.--
(1) In general.--In the case of a contracting officer of
the Department of Veterans Affairs, the provisions of the
Small Business Act referred to in paragraphs (1), (2), and
(3) of section 37(b) of such Act shall be treated as being
equal in priority for purposes of applying section 37 of such
Act.
(2) Termination.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply with
respect to procurements made after September 30, 2007.
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION TO PROVIDE ADAPTED HOUSING ASSISTANCE
TO CERTAIN DISABLED MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES
WHO REMAIN ON ACTIVE DUTY.
Section 2101 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by
adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(c)(1) The Secretary may provide assistance under
subsection (a) to a member of the Armed Forces serving on
active duty who is suffering from a disability described in
paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of that subsection if such
disability is the result of an injury incurred or disease
contracted in or aggravated in line of duty in the active
military, naval, or air service. Such assistance shall be
provided to the same extent as assistance is provided under
that subsection to veterans eligible for assistance under
that subsection and subject to the requirements of the second
sentence of that subsection.
``(2) The Secretary may provide assistance under subsection
(b) to a member of the Armed Forces serving on active duty
who is suffering from a disability described in subparagraph
(A) or (B) of paragraph (1) of that subsection if such
disability is the result of an injury incurred or disease
contracted in or aggravated in line of duty in the active
military, naval, or air service. Such assistance shall be
provided to the same extent as assistance is provided under
such subsection to veterans eligible for assistance under
that subsection and subject to the requirements of paragraph
(2) of that subsection.''.
SEC. 5. REINSTATEMENT OF MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR SALE OF
VENDEE LOANS.
(a) In General.--Section 3733(a) of title 38, United States
Code, is amended--
(1) by striking paragraph (2) and redesignating paragraphs
(3), (4), (5), and (6) as paragraphs (2), (3), (4), and (5),
respectively; and
(2) in subparagraph (B)(i) of paragraph (3), as so
redesignated, by striking ``paragraph (5) of this
subsection'' and inserting ``paragraph (4)''.
(b) Increase in Maximum Percentage.--Section 3733(a)(1) of
such title is amended--
(1) by striking ``65 percent'' in the first sentence and
inserting ``85 percent''; and
(2) by striking the second sentence.
(c) Stylistic Amendment.--Section 3733 of such title is
amended by striking ``paragraph (1) of this subsection'' each
place it appears and inserting ``paragraph (1)''.
SEC. 6. PAYMENT OF ACCRUED BENEFITS.
(a) Repeal of Limitation on Payment.--Subsection (a) of
section 5121 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by
striking ``for a period not to exceed two years'' in the
matter preceding paragraph (1).
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a)
shall take effect with respect to deaths occurring on or
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Aderholt). Pursuant to the rule, the
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) and the gentleman from Maine (Mr.
Michaud) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith).
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, before I begin discussing our bill, Mr. Speaker, I would
like to note with great sadness the passing of the former chairman of
the Committee on Veterans Affairs, Bob Stump. Bob was a great friend to
all of those who served in the Armed Forces since his own Naval
experience as a Navy corpsman serving in the South Pacific during World
War II. Although you did not see Bob making the rounds on the Sunday
morning talk shows, his words, and especially his actions and deeds,
spoke volumes about his dedication to all those who serve and have
served our country in the United States military.
Bob served in Congress for 26 years. He was chairman of the House
Committee on Veterans Affairs from 1995 to 2000, and then chaired the
House Committee on Armed Services until his retirement in December of
2002. He has left a lasting legacy of service to our country, and he
will be dearly missed.
On behalf of the Committee on Veterans Affairs, I want to express our
condolences to his wife, Nancy, his children, Karen, Hoot, and Bruce,
and to his grandchildren as well.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 1460, as amended,
the Veterans Entrepreneurial and Benefits Improvement Act of 2003. The
Committee on Veterans Affairs reported H.R. 1460 unanimously on May 15
as a result of the initiative of the gentleman from Arizona (Mr.
Renzi), who introduced the bill. This bill was introduced following a
hearing on the state of veterans employment on February 5 at which the
gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Renzi) highlighted the seriously inadequate
performance of Federal agencies in reaching out to disabled veteran-
owned businesses. Since then, the ranking member, the gentleman from
Illinois (Mr. Evans), and I have worked closely with the chairman, the
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Manzullo), and the ranking member, the
gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez), of the Committee on Small
Business with respect to section 3 of the bill on which the Committee
on Small Business had jurisdiction.
I am pleased that we have been able to formulate language agreeable
to both committees, and I want to thank the gentleman from Illinois
(Mr. Manzullo) and the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez) for
their cooperative efforts.
Mr. Speaker, disabled American veterans deserve a full opportunity to
participate in the economic system that they fought so hard to defend.
Section 2 of the bill would make improvements to the veteran and
service-disabled veteran's small business opportunities by authorizing
for the first time the use of VA education benefits to pay for
nondegree/noncredit courses. These courses are offered by the Small
Business Development Center and the National Veterans Business
Development Corporation.
Section 3 of the bill has been, if you want to look at it one way,
almost 23 years in the making. It contains a disabled veterans
contracting preference provision derived from the 1980 White House
Conference on Small Business convened by then-President Jimmy Carter.
The 1981 consultant report of the SBA Veterans Project and the 1999
report of the bipartisan Congressional Commission on Servicemembers and
Veterans Transition Assistance made similar-type recommendations.
This provision for the first time would authorize Federal agencies to
create sole-source contracts for disabled veteran-owned and -controlled
small businesses. It would also furnish Federal agencies discretionary
authority to restrict contracts to disabled veteran-owned and -
controlled businesses if at least two such concerns were qualified to
bid on the contract. This is the first time Federal contracting
officers will have such authority.
Section 3 would also create a 4-year pilot in the Department of
Veterans Affairs, service-disabled veterans-controlled businesses, and
would have the same contracting priority as SBA's 8(a) program for
socially and economically disadvantaged small business.
For all other Federal agencies, service-connected disabled-veteran-
owned and -controlled businesses would be accorded priority to be
awarded procurement contracts above the women-owned and HUBZone
priorities, but just below 8(a) priorities.
In all cases, to be eligible for these procurement preferences,
veterans who own and control small businesses would need to have at
least a 10 percent service-connected disability.
The Federal Government, Mr. Speaker, contracts for about $235 billion
in goods and services annually. America's sons and daughters who became
disabled in their service to the Nation will
[[Page H5677]]
now have some of the same types of contracting preferences accorded to
other deserving groups.
Section 4 of the bill, Mr. Speaker, would extend VA's specially
adapted housing grant to severely disabled service members prior to
separation from active duty service. Under current law, an otherwise
eligible servicemember may not apply for home modification assistance
until he or she is actually separated from the military or placed on
the temporary-disabled retirement list.
I want to commend the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans) for his
leadership in putting together this important provision.
Section 5 would reinstate the Department of Veterans Affairs' vendee
loan programs, which the VA administratively terminated last January. I
want to thank the gentleman for joining me for authoring this
provision.
When a purchaser agrees to buy a foreclosed VA home, VA often offers
to finance the sale by establishing a vendee loan to encourage the
prompt sale of a home. Vendee loans are made at market interest rates
and often require a down payment. Borrowers are assessed a 2.25 percent
funding fee that is paid in each case. The vendee loan program is based
on sound business principles, and there is an ample body of empirical
evidence to suggest that offering vendee financing is highly cost
effective to the government. In March, for example, of 2002, a Booz,
Allen, Hamilton study found that cost effectiveness of vendee loan
financing, their report said that the government would save $16 million
a year starting in 1999.
Finally, section 6 of the bill would repeal the existing 2-year
limitation on accrued benefits so that a veteran survivor may receive
the full amount of an award and of benefits and may not be penalized if
VA does not process the claim in a timely manner. This section is
derived from H.R. 241, legislation that I introduced earlier this year.
Finally, I want to thank especially the good leadership that the
gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Renzi) has provided in shaping this
legislation. As always, I wanted to thank my good friend and colleague,
the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans), for his work on this, as well
as the gentleman from Maine (Mr. Michaud) who is representing the
minority in presenting this bill to the floor today and for his good
work as ranking member of the subcommittee.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. MICHAUD. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my strong support for H.R. 1460,
the Veterans Entrepreneurship and Benefits Improvement Act of 2003,
which I am a proud co-sponsor of. I also would like to thank the
chairman of the committee, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith);
the ranking member, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans); and the
chairman of the Subcommittee on Benefits, the gentleman from South
Carolina (Mr. Brown), for their work in bringing this important
legislation to the floor.
This bill includes several provisions related to veterans who are
owners of small businesses or who aspire to be.
I appreciate the efforts of the chairman, the gentleman from Illinois
(Mr. Manzullo); and the ranking member, the gentlewoman from New York
(Ms. Velazquez); as well as the staff of the Committee on Small
Business for their assistance with those provisions.
H.R. 1460 would authorize the use of VA education assistance to pay
for nondegree and noncredit business courses at approved institutions.
This will enable veterans to obtain educational opportunities that meet
their small business goals. This legislation would also improve the
ability of service-disabled veterans who own small businesses to do
business with the Federal Government.
As a member of both the Committee on Small Business and the Committee
on Veterans Affairs, I am pleased that we are considering this
legislation to help service-disabled veterans to obtain government
contracts. These men and women who have sacrificed so much for this
country, they are disabled as a result of their service to our Nation.
The least that we can do is to say if you own a small business, then
you should have the opportunity to obtain contracts from the Federal
Government.
I am particularly disappointed about the number of service-disabled
veterans who are obtaining Federal contracts. The number is already
unacceptably small, and it has actually decreased over the past year.
As Angela Styles of the Office of Management and Budget testified
earlier this year, the Federal Government's record for contracts to
service-disabled veterans is abysmal.
This bill will help improve that record. Section 4 of the bill
includes provisions from H.R. 761, introduced by the ranking member,
the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans), and by the chairman, the
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith). These provisions would allow
servicemembers such as those seriously disabled during the Iraq War to
obtain special adapted housing grants before being discharged from
military service. These grants are available only to the most severely
disabled veterans.
Under current law, servicemembers with severe disabilities may have
their hospital discharge delayed if, for example, they do not have a
wheelchair-accessible home available. But we can speed up the process
by giving them their assistance immediately. Since they will meet the
requirements as soon as they are discharged, there is no reason to
delay providing them with assistance while their discharge is pending.
This is a sensible, cost-effective and humane provision.
Section 5 of the bill would reinstate a particularly effective VA
vendee home loan program, and I am puzzled as to what the reasons were
for terminating such an effective, cost-saving program; and I am
pleased that Congress is taking action to reinstate it.
H.R. 1460 also includes a provision of H.R. 241, which removes the
time limitation on accrued benefits paid to the families of veterans
who died while a claim for veterans benefits is pending. I have
veterans in my district in Maine with claims which have been pending
for many years. I hope none of them passes away while waiting for a
decision. Should they do so, I want their families to see the full
retroactive benefit to which the veteran is entitled.
I urge all Members to support this bill.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, I note with sadness the passing of a long-time
friend of this Nation's veterans and former chair of our committee, Bob
Stump. Although I did not have the opportunity to work with Mr. Stump,
I appreciate the legacy of bipartisan cooperation he has left with the
Committee on Veterans Affairs, similar to the gentleman from New Jersey
(Chairman Smith).
I would like to extend my sympathy and that of all members of this
body to his wife and his children.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may
consume to the distinguished gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Renzi), the
author of the bill.
Mr. RENZI. Mr. Speaker, I too want to share the words and the
memories of Congressman Bob Stump. I am privileged to serve a major
portion of the district in Arizona that he served so greatly for many,
many years and more so, to learn more about him through the experience
of his staff members who now work for me here in Washington. In
addition, what I have learned greatly with serving with the Committee
on Veterans Affairs under his mentorship and leadership has been a
great influence on me.
I thank the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) for those words,
and to the gentleman from Maine (Mr. Michaud) I am also grateful. I
will pass those on at the ceremony honoring Bob Stump this Wednesday in
Arizona.
{time} 1500
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to stand here today in support of the
thousands of service-disabled veteran small business owners across the
Nation who want to do business with the Federal Government. The
distinguished members of our community and the successful small
businesses are an integral part of the backbone of our economy; the
same economy they fought for so bravely; the same economy that they
gave their personal sacrifice to preserve and protect.
[[Page H5678]]
I want to thank the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), the
chairman, because it is he who saw this many years ago and helped pull
together the various portions of this legislation to build a bill that
the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans), the ranking member, has
supported, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Manzullo), the gentlewoman
from New York (Ms. Velazquez), and also our distinguished ranking
member on the subcommittee, the gentleman from Maine (Mr. Michaud). I
also want to thank the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Brown) for
allowing me to move forward this legislation, though it came under
jurisdiction of his committee, and I especially want to thank the
Committee on Veterans Affairs staff for their leadership and guidance
in developing this legislation. They put a lot of hours into making
this bill a reality.
This bill is a first step in improving our current practice of
contracting opportunities, and I look forward to working with the
Committee on Veterans Affairs in the future and with the Committee on
Small Business to further extend these small business opportunities.
Our purpose in introducing this legislation was to give service-
disabled business owners and Federal contractors the tools they need to
meet the government-wide statutory goal of 3 percent established in
Public Law 106-50. When the Committee on Veterans Affairs held an
oversight hearing chaired by our committee chairman, the gentleman from
New Jersey (Mr. Smith), on February 5, the state of veterans
entrepreneurship program was discouraging to hear. In many cases, there
were only several agencies that had Federal contracts with any of our
service-disabled veterans and many did not even reach 1 percent. This
is unacceptable and our veterans deserve better.
This bill sets out to lift these barriers that have denied service-
disabled veterans the opportunities to fully participate in Federal
contracting, and we are morally bound to promote the successful
employment of those who have borne the battle and bear the scars of
freedom for all Americans.
For the first time, this legislation, H.R. 1460, will allow veterans
to use the Montgomery GI bill to educate themselves and to take
entrepreneurial courses from small business centers. The National
Veterans Business Development Centers Corporation will also be included
in their ability to teach many of our veterans. This gives veterans the
business education and training they need to successfully operate small
businesses, and it is a real investment towards improving our economy
and our veterans' livelihood.
Secondly, we recognize certified small business owners as a source of
Federal procurement programs. Service-disabled veterans have a tougher
journey ahead of them when they return from duty with a disability, and
these veterans are comprised of individuals of all races and both
genders. Veterans have earned the right to compete for contracts on the
same level as other classes of individuals.
We hope that in the future those who have served within the
Department of Defense and have provided homeland security will also
have a priority in contracting with DOD and the Department of Homeland
Security.
Small business-contracting Federal officers will note that Public Law
106-50 directed the creation of a database of small businesses that
have identified themselves as being owned by service-disabled American
veterans. This has been a labor intensive task, and I commend the
Department of Veterans Affairs for their progress in realizing this
effort. It is critically important that our Federal contractors have
access to this information and be able to identify veteran-owned
businesses that qualify for prime and subcontractor awards.
This legislation is a beginning. This tool can be used by veteran
contracting officers to find service-disabled veteran businesses and
help them achieve the statutory goal of 3 percent.
I want to thank again the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) for
his leadership and his kindness towards me and generosity. I thank
everyone on the Committee on Veterans Affairs, and I hope disabled
American veterans will find a way now to help grow their businesses and
prosper.
Mr. MICHAUD. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself an additional
minute.
I again want to thank my friends on the other side of the aisle for
their good hard work on this legislation, and I especially want to
thank the extraordinary work by the author of it, the gentleman from
Arizona (Mr. Renzi). This is a bill that will help so many of our
veterans who are service-connected disabled who are in the business
realm to get the kind of government contracts that they are deserving
of and hopefully will lead to greater wealth and a capability on their
part to provide for their families and for their loved ones.
This is a good bill. It is pro-business, it is pro-veteran, and it
deserves the support of everybody in this Chamber.
Mr. Speaker, again, I want to thank our subcommittee chairman, the
gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Brown), and again, the gentleman
from Maine (Mr. Michaud), who is the ranking member, for their work on
this bill, for marking it up and bringing it forward to the full
committee where we marked it up and passed it unanimously.
Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I support H.R. 1460, the Veterans'
Entrepreneurship and Benefits Improvement Act of 2003 and urge passage
by this Chamber. I would like to thank Chris Smith, chairman of the
full committee, the Benefits Subcommittee chairman, Henry Brown and
ranking member, Michael Michaud, for their hard work in bringing this
legislation to the floor. I also want to acknowledge the contributions
of Don Manzullo and Nydia Velazquez, chairman and ranking member of the
House Small Business Committee, along with their respective staffs for
assisting us in crafting this legislation.
I am proud to be an original cosponsor of this bill as it provides
increased opportunities for veterans to develop their entrepreneurial
skills and become successful small business owners. Mr. Speaker, H.R.
1460 is a good bill and a step in the right direction with respect to
its small business contracting provisions. The Federal Government
engages in procurement contracts of up to $235 billion a year. Surely,
service-disabled veteran small business owners deserve an opportunity
to participate in this system.
Section 2 authorizes the use of VA education assistance to pay for
nondegree and noncredit business courses at approved institutions. This
provision should expand the educational and training opportunities for
service-disabled veterans.
Section 3 authorizes Federal agency contracting officers to create
sole source and restricted competition contracts for ``certified''
service-disabled veteran small business owners; requires the collection
of relevant data and a report to Congress on service-disabled small
business owners; and establishes a 4-year pilot program at the
Department of Veterans Affairs through which service-disabled veteran
small business owners would receive equal priority among all small
business programs.
Section 4 is derived from a bill, H.R. 761, which I introduced. It
would allow servicemembers to apply for and receive a grant for
specially adapted housing while still in military service. This
legislation was prompted by reports of seriously disabled
servicemembers having to remain hospitalized until they were discharged
from military services because they could not obtain a grant for
specially adapted housing until after leaving military service. Without
such a grant they were unable to obtain accessible housing. There is no
question that these servicemembers will be discharged from military
service. In order to qualify for the specially adapted housing grant,
severe disabilities incompatible with continued military service are
required. I hope that the Senate will act quickly to pass this
legislation. I do not want to see severely disabled servicemembers from
the recent Iraq war unnecessarily hospitalized due to the lack of
accessible housing.
Section 5 reinstates the VA's vendee loan program. The vendee loan
program is a successful program that allows VA to finance loans to a
new veteran or non-veteran purchaser when the prior loan has been
foreclosed upon and VA has received the property. By allowing vendee
loans, the VA is able to sell the property more quickly and at a higher
cost than is possible with conventional financing. VA abruptly ended
this program earlier this year. I strongly favor its reinstatement.
Finally, section 6 would allow a surviving spouse or dependent
children to receive accrued benefits if the veteran dies while a claim
for VA periodic monetary benefits is being processed. Currently there
is a 2-year time
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limit on the retroactive period. I have introduced legislation to allow
family members to continue the claims of veterans who die while a claim
is pending. This provision is a good first step. The government should
not be allowed to deny retroactive payments when the government's
inaction is responsible for delayed adjudication of a claim.
Again, I thank my colleagues on the Veterans' Affairs Committee for
their hard work and I urge my colleagues to vote to pass this
legislation.
Mr. BROWN of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, as an original sponsor of
H.R. 1460, as amended, the ``Veterans Entrepreneurship and Benefits
Improvement Act of 2003. I encourage my colleagues to support this
legislation. I commend representative Renzi, Chairman Smith and Ranking
Member Evans of the Committee on Veterans Affairs, and Chairman
Manzullo and Ranking Member Velazquez of the Small Business Committee
for bringing this important legislation to the floor for consideration.
I especially want to comment on sections two and three of the bill.
Section two would allow veterans, disabled veterans, dependents of
totally disabled or deceased veterans, and active-duty members of the
Selected Reserve to use their VA benefits to pursue pre-
entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship courses offered under the
auspices of Small Business Development Centers and the National
Veterans Business Development Corporation. Small businesses in the last
decade accounted for about 70 percent of the new jobs created in our
economy.
The men and women who have served in our military indeed are engaging
and resourceful individuals. Indeed, the 1999 report of the bipartisan
Congressional Commission on Servicemembers and Veterans Transition
Assistance found the following: ``a 5-year profile survey of veteran-
owned businesses in Massachusetts conducted in the late 1980's and
early 1990's showed that a pool of approximately 2,000 veterans engaged
in micro businesses generated $74 million in taxable income for the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts.'' And that is just in one state. With
the availability of training under this bill, more veterans will be
able to obtain the skills they need to start and grow their own small
businesses. As Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Dr. Leo S. Mackay,
Jr. testified at our April 30th hearing, ``the potential for positive
effects on the economy, with enhanced competition and creativity within
the marketplace, is significant.''
Section three of the bill would place disabled veteran-owned and
controlled small businesses on a par with socially and economically
disadvantaged veterans in the 8(a) contracting program for procurement
contracts offered by the Department of Veterans Affairs for the next
four years. This authority would apply to ``setaside'' and restricted
competition contracts to be applied by contracting officers on a
discretionary basis. For all Federal agencies, disabled veteran-owned
and controlled small businesses would rank ahead of HUBZone and women-
owned businesses in procurement preferences, but behind the 8(a)
program. I find these types of preference as a needed `first step'
because of two additional findings of the Transition Commission: first,
``Disabled-veteran entrepreneurs require additional assistance because
these business owners encounter costs and impediments that are not
factors for their non-disabled competitors. Second, as a matter of
fundamental fairness, Congress should accord veterans a full
opportunity to participate in the economic system that their service
sustains.''
Lastly, Mr. Speaker, I would note for the Record that the current
independent Task Force for Veterans Entrepreneurship, the
aforementioned Transition Commission, the 1981 expert report of the SBA
Veterans Project, and the 1980 White House Conference on Small Business
all recommended some type of federal ``setaside'' authority for
disabled-veteran owned and controlled small businesses in the purchase
of goods and services.
I encourage my colleagues to support this legislation.
Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1460. The
provisions of this legislation remove barriers to small business
ownership for veterans. H.R. 1460 allows veterans to use their
education benefits to pay for non-degree or non-credit courses of
entrepreneurship, enabling them to learn the skills that they will need
when starting and running their own businesses. The bill additionally
amends the Small Business Act to give small businesses owned by service
disabled veterans the opportunity to secure sole source contracts from
the Federal Government. By giving those participating in a veteran's
rehabilitation program the chance to name self-employment as their
vocational goal, H.R. 1460 makes entrepreneurship a viable career
option for many for whom it was not before.
The passage of this legislation would mean a lot for those veterans
who, like so many other Americans, dream of working for themselves. The
opportunities that H.R. 1460 provides for self-employment are
especially meaningful when salaried jobs can be so difficult to find.
Large numbers of veterans live in my home district of El Paso, Texas
where we unfortunately also have a high unemployment rate. A community
like mine is a prime example of why we must provide veterans with the
tools they need to become successful entrepreneurs. I urge my
colleagues to join me in supporting this bipartisan legislation.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for
time, and I yield back the balance of our time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Aderholt). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) that the House
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1460, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of
those present have voted in the affirmative.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas-and-
nays.
The yeas-and-nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be
postponed.
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