[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 25 (Monday, February 13, 2017)]
[House]
[Pages H1111-H1112]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
BOOSTING RATES OF AMERICAN VETERAN EMPLOYMENT ACT
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 974) 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.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 974
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 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) may
be debarred from contracting with the Department for a period
of not less than five years.
``(2) If the Secretary carries out 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 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
Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) and the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Walz)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida.
{time} 1715
General Leave
Mr. BILIRAKIS. I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5
legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Florida?
There was no objection.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. 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. 974
would authorize the Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs to
consider how many veterans an offeror employs during a
[[Page H1112]]
decision to award a contract. Under this bill, the Secretary may give a
preference to such employers based on the percentage of the workforce
made up of veterans. It makes sense.
The bill would also allow the Secretary to debar any offeror who
willfully and intentionally misrepresents the number of veterans they
employ. I am glad that provision is in there.
Mr. Speaker, the unemployment rate among certain age groups of
veterans still exceeds their nonveteran peers, and this legislation is
one commonsense step to incentivize employers to bring veterans into
their workforce and increase job opportunities for veterans of all
ages.
I firmly believe that we should do all we can to encourage both small
and large businesses to provide job opportunities for veterans as well
as provide the Secretary the authority to consider such hires when
making contracting decisions. This will further incentivize government
contractors to make a positive investment in their companies by making
investments in our Nation's veterans.
I thank Miss Rice for her hard work on this bill, and it has my full
support.
I urge all of my colleagues to support H.R. 974.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I, too, rise in support of H.R. 947, the Boosting Rates
of American Veteran Employment Act, or BRAVE Act.
I thank the vice chairman for his kind words on this bill, and I
especially would like to thank the gentlewoman from New York (Miss
Rice), an unwavering advocate of our veterans and author of this smart
piece of legislation.
Both parties agree it is unacceptable that men and women returning
home from our most recent conflicts don't have good, reliable jobs
waiting for them. We can start right here in the Federal Government.
The VA establishes long-term contracts with private companies for
medical equipment, construction, supplies, services, and more.
Currently, the VA gives preferences to veteran-owned small
businesses. That is great. What this piece of legislation does is
expand this contracting preference to allow the VA Secretary to give a
preference to companies that actively search out and employ veterans, a
policy that would incentivize companies to even hire more veterans.
This is already a smart approach for those companies because veterans
bring to a job the skills they have learned over the years and make the
company even stronger.
This bipartisan piece of legislation adds no cost to the taxpayers.
It allows for debarment of any company that knowingly misrepresents its
portion of veteran employees in order to receive the contracting
preference.
The BRAVE Act represents a win-win for the private sector, the
Federal Government, and, most importantly, for our veterans.
Again, I would like to thank the gentlewoman from New York (Miss
Rice), who will tell us a little more about this in a few moments, and
Chairman Roe of Tennessee and Vice Chairman Bilirakis for continuing to
bring good pieces of veterans legislation to the floor. We are grateful
for that.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from New
York (Miss Rice), the author, the lead sponsor of this piece of
legislation, a member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee since coming
to Congress, and a fierce advocate for those warriors.
Miss RICE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 974, the
Boosting Rates of American Veteran Employment Act, which I introduced
along with Congressman and Colonel Paul Cook of California.
The BRAVE Act is commonsense, bipartisan legislation that will
authorize the VA Secretary, when awarding Federal contracts, to give
preference to contractors with high concentrations of full-time veteran
employees. This bill will cost taxpayers absolutely nothing.
It will, first, reward companies that actively hire and invest in our
veterans, companies that seek out veterans and give them opportunities
to bring their unique skills, training, and experience to the civilian
workforce.
Second, it will create an incentive for other companies to do the
same and bring more veterans into their workforce.
Most importantly, as more and more companies hire more and more
veterans, they will ultimately see that investing in veterans is good
for business. That is the real incentive here. It is not just an
advantage in securing Federal contracts; it is getting the benefit of
employees who have worn the uniform, who have been trained by the
greatest military in the world, and who have learned to get the job
done, no matter what that job is.
We need more businesses in the private sector to recognize the value
of investing in the men and women who have served our country. It is
not an act of charity. Veterans are not looking for a handout; they
just need an opportunity. The BRAVE Act will help ensure that more
veterans have those opportunities.
I want to thank Chairman Roe of Tennessee, Vice Chairman Bilirakis,
and Ranking Member Walz for supporting this bill and for helping to
bring it to the floor today.
This legislation passed unanimously in the last Congress, and I urge
my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to, once again, give it the
bipartisan support it deserves.
Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers on my side.
I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 974.
I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, once again, I encourage all Members to
support this legislation. I commend Representative Rice for her good
work.
I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 974.
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. BILIRAKIS. 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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