[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 78 (Wednesday, May 20, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1218]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           VETERANS EMPLOYMENT RIGHTS REALIGNMENT ACT OF 2009

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                         HON. HARRY E. MITCHELL

                               of arizona

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 19, 2009

  Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1089, the 
Veterans Employment Rights Realignment Act of 2009. I thank 
Representative Herseth Sandlin of South Dakota for her leadership on 
the issues of veteran employment and education, and I commend her for 
bringing this bill to the Floor today.
  Members of the Armed Forces--including the National Guard and 
Reserves--serve our nation with selflessness and courage. They deserve 
our gratitude, and in these difficult economic times, I believe that 
means we must redouble our efforts to ensure they have full and fair 
access to employment after their service.
  H.R. 1089 will remove bureaucratic hurdles for veterans in search of 
redress for discriminatory employment practices, and it will allocate 
new resources to the Office of Special Counsel--the federal 
investigative and prosecutorial agency tasked with protecting federal 
employees from prohibited personnel practices.
  In 1994, Congress put in place a strong set of employment protections 
for service members and veterans in the Uniformed Services Employment 
and Reemployment Rights Act. We need to enforce this law quickly and 
efficiently, and the Veterans Employment Rights Realignment Act of 2009 
will help the Office of Special Counsel to do just that.
  I was proud to support H.R. 1089 when it was considered by the House 
Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and I am pleased to support this bill 
on the House floor today. I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for 
this important legislation to protect service members and veterans from 
inappropriate employment practices.

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