[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 76 (Monday, May 18, 2015)]
[House]
[Pages H3261-H3263]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
BOOSTING RATES OF AMERICAN VETERAN EMPLOYMENT ACT
Mr. WENSTRUP. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 1382) to amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in awarding a contract for the
procurement of goods or services, to give a preference to offerors that
employ veterans, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 1382
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 ``Boosting Rates of American
Veteran Employment Act'' or the ``BRAVE Act''.
SEC. 2. PREFERENCE FOR OFFERORS EMPLOYING VETERANS.
(a) In General.--Subchapter II of chapter 81 of title 38,
United States Code, is amended by adding after section 8128
the following new section:
``Sec. 8129. Preference for offerors employing veterans
``(a) Preference.--In awarding a contract (or task order)
for the procurement of goods or services, the Secretary may
give a preference to offerors that employ veterans on a full-
time basis. The Secretary shall determine such preference
based on the percentage of the full-time employees of the
offeror who are veterans.
``(b) Enforcement Penalties for Misrepresentation.--(1) Any
offeror that is determined by the Secretary to have willfully
and intentionally misrepresented the veteran status of the
employees of the offeror for purposes of subsection (a) shall
be debarred from contracting with the Department for a period
of not less than five years.
``(2) In the case of a debarment under paragraph (1), the
Secretary shall commence debarment action against the offeror
by not later than 30 days after determining that the offeror
willfully and intentionally misrepresented the veteran status
of the employees of the offeror as described in paragraph (1)
and shall complete debarment actions against such offeror by
not later than 90 days after such determination.
``(3) The debarment of an offeror under paragraph (1)
includes the debarment of all
[[Page H3262]]
principals in the offeror for a period of not less than five
years.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the
beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the
item relating to section 8128 the following new item:
``8129. Preference for offerors employing veterans.''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Ohio (Mr. Wenstrup) and the gentlewoman from Nevada (Ms. Titus) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Ohio.
General Leave
Mr. WENSTRUP. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks
and to add extraneous material on H.R. 1382, as amended.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Ohio?
There was no objection.
Mr. WENSTRUP. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, to improve employment opportunities for veterans and
business opportunities for the companies that employ them, H.R. 1382,
as amended, would require the Secretary to consider the number of
veterans working for an offerer in the decision to award a contract.
Under the bill, the Secretary may give a preference to such employers
based on the percentage of the workforce made up by veterans. The bill
would also provide the Secretary with debarment authority for any
offerer who willfully and intentionally misrepresents the number of
veterans they employ.
Mr. Speaker, the unemployment rate among certain age groups of
veterans still exceeds their nonveteran peers, and this is one
commonsense step to increase job opportunities for veterans of all
ages.
I thank Miss Rice for her hard work on this bill.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. TITUS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I rise in support of H.R. 1382, as amended, the Boosting Rates of
American Veteran Employment Act, or BRAVE Act, of 2015.
According to the April 2015 Bureau of Labor Statistics report, almost
7 percent of post-9/11 veterans are unemployed, which is higher than
the national average.
{time} 1630
These men and women have dutifully served their country. Now it is
our job as Members of Congress to craft policies that will improve and
increase employment opportunities for them. This includes improving the
Federal contracting process to incentivize private sector companies to
hire more veterans when they come home.
The Department of Veterans Affairs establishes long-term contracts
with private sector businesses to provide veterans medical equipment,
supplies, services, and other things. Currently, the VA gives
preference for these contracts to veteran-owned small businesses, but
it does not give preference to businesses that actively employ
veterans. This bipartisan BRAVE Act allows the VA to consider the
proportion of veterans employed by a prospective contractor when
awarding those Federal contracts. It also encourages and incentivizes
current VA contractors to employ more veterans.
H.R. 1382 deters companies from exaggerating the number of veterans
they employ in order to become more competitive for procurement,
requiring debarment for any company that knowingly misrepresents its
proportion of veteran employees.
H.R. 1382 does not require offsets nor does it add any burdens on
taxpayers. This bipartisan legislation will reward companies who hire
veterans, thus incentivizing the private sector recruitment of veteran
employees. It is, indeed, a win-win-win policy for the private sector,
for the Federal Government, and, most importantly, for the veterans,
themselves.
I want to thank Miss Rice, who is the sponsor of this bill, Chairman
Miller for bringing it to the floor, and Dr. Wenstrup and Mr. Takano--
the chairman and ranking member of the Subcommittee on Economic
Opportunity--for their work on the bill.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. WENSTRUP. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. TITUS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from New
York (Miss Rice), who is the sponsor of this important legislation.
Miss RICE of New York. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my
legislation, H.R. 1382, the Boosting Rates of American Veteran
Employment Act.
I doubt there is a single Member of this body who would disagree that
American veterans--men and women who have stepped up to protect our
country and preserve the freedom that we cherish--deserve our full
support when they have completed their service. They deserve the
opportunity to find a good job, to support themselves and their
families. They deserve the opportunity to succeed in civilian life, to
adapt their extraordinary skills, training, and experience in order to
thrive in a civilian workforce, and to continue making a meaningful
contribution to our economy.
We have seen real progress in adding veterans to the workforce, but
we cannot be satisfied with that progress while so many men and women
still struggle to find the good jobs they deserve. We cannot be
satisfied when the unemployment rate among post-9/11 veterans remains
higher than the national average. We cannot be satisfied if even a
single American veteran who wants to work is not given the opportunity
to do so--is left jobless, homeless, forgotten, and abandoned by the
country he or she served.
Unemployment among veterans is not only a stain on the character of
our country, it is not only a dereliction of the promise we make to the
people who risk their lives to protect us; it is a missed opportunity.
Veterans have received the most advanced and sophisticated training
the world has to offer. They have unique skills and experience. They
know how to work as members of a team. They know how to succeed in the
most difficult conditions. They know how to get the job done, whatever
that job may be. They received that training, they developed those
skills, and gained that experience because we invested in them as
servicemembers, and we would be foolish not to double down on that
investment. We would be foolish not to invest in them as veterans--
invest in their potential to adapt their training and skills and
experience so they may use it to thrive in a civilian workforce and
contribute to our economy.
We need businesses in the private sector to recognize the benefit of
having veterans in their workforces. We need businesses to recognize
that it is in their self-interest to actively seek out and employ
veterans, not as an act of charity, but because they are excellent
workers who know how to get the job done and how to bring out the best
in their fellow employees. That is why it is so important that we pass
H.R. 1382.
This legislation will make the kind of investment that Members of
both parties can be pleased to support--the kind that costs no money.
The Department of Veterans Affairs is already authorized for $19
billion in total procurement and contracting spending. This legislation
will simply ensure that, when the Secretary of the VA is awarding those
contracts, he has the authority to give preference to businesses with
high concentrations of full-time veteran employees, businesses that
make it a priority to actively seek out veterans and provide them with
meaningful full-time employment.
As has been noted, the VA can already give such preference to
veteran-owned businesses, as it should. We should give that same
advantage to contractors who actively invest in veterans, who recognize
their value and their potential to thrive in the civilian workforce.
Such companies do exist, and this legislation will reward them for
their commitment to giving veterans the opportunities they have earned.
But in doing so, in creating such an advantage, this legislation will
also create an incentive for other contractors to do the same, to be
proactive, to make it a priority to seek out veterans who are looking
for employment. In time, I have no doubt that they will recognize the
value of investing in veterans as they will find themselves with a more
productive, efficient, and effective workforce.
[[Page H3263]]
Mr. Speaker, I want to give a special thanks to my colead sponsor on
the other side of the aisle, Congressman Paul Cook, a combat veteran
who served 26 years and retired as a colonel from the United
States Marine Corps.
I also think it is important to note that this bill has the support
of several major veteran service organizations, including the Veterans
of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, and the Iraq and Afghanistan
Veterans of America.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, I would like to express my support for another
bill that I am proud to cosponsor, Dr. Wenstrup's legislation--H.R.
474, the Homeless Veterans' Reintegration Programs Reauthorization Act.
The HVRP provides critical support to help reintegrate homeless
veterans into the workforce and to address the underlying issues that
so often lead to life on the streets--services ranging from job
training, job placement, and career counseling to clothing, housing,
transportation, and treatment for mental health and substance abuse
disorders. This program has been successful, and passing a 5-year
reauthorization will secure its future and allow State and local
agencies to plan long-term programming.
I thank Dr. Wenstrup for his leadership on this issue, and I urge my
colleagues to give H.R. 474 their full support.
Ms. TITUS. Mr. Speaker, I strongly support H.R. 1382, and I urge my
colleagues to do the same.
I don't have any additional speakers, so I yield back the balance of
my time.
Mr. WENSTRUP. Mr. Speaker, once again, I encourage all Members to
support H.R. 1382, as amended, and I thank Miss Rice for presenting
this legislation.
I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Wenstrup) that the House suspend the rules and
pass the bill, H.R. 1382, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. WENSTRUP. 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, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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