[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 181 (Wednesday, November 13, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H8805-H8809]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  VERIFICATION ALIGNMENT AND SERVICE-DISABLED BUSINESS ADJUSTMENT ACT

  Mr. SCHNEIDER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 1615) to transfer the responsibility of verifying small 
business concerns owned and controlled by veterans or service-disabled 
veterans to the Small Business Administration, and for other purposes, 
as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1615

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

       (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the 
     ``Verification Alignment and Service-disabled Business 
     Adjustment Act'' or the ``VA-SBA Act''.
       (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act 
     is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Transfer date.
Sec. 3. Amendment to and transfer of veteran-owned and service-disabled 
              veteran-owned business database.
Sec. 4. Additional requirements for database.
Sec. 5. Procurement program for small business concerns owned and 
              controlled by service-disabled veterans.
Sec. 6. Certification for small business concerns owned and controlled 
              by veterans.
Sec. 7. Status of self-certified small business concerns owned and 
              controlled by service-disabled veterans.
Sec. 8. Transfer of the Center for Verification and Evaluation of the 
              Department of Veterans Affairs to the Small Business 
              Administration.
Sec. 9. Report.
Sec. 10. Determination of budgetary effects.

     SEC. 2. TRANSFER DATE.

       For purposes of this Act, the term ``transfer date'' means 
     the date that is 2 years after the date of enactment of this 
     Act, except that such date may be extended an unlimited 
     number of times by a period of not more than 6 months if the 
     Administrator of the Small Business Administration and the 
     Secretary of Veterans Affairs jointly issue a notice to 
     Congress and the Law Revision Counsel of the House of 
     Representatives containing--
       (1) a certification that such extension is necessary;
       (2) the rationale for and the length of such extension; and
       (3) a plan to comply with the requirements of this Act 
     within the timeframe of the extension.

     SEC. 3. AMENDMENT TO AND TRANSFER OF VETERAN-OWNED AND 
                   SERVICE-DISABLED VETERAN-OWNED BUSINESS 
                   DATABASE.

       (a) Amendment of Veteran-Owned and Service-Disabled 
     Veteran-Owned Business Database.--Effective on the transfer 
     date, section 8127 of title 38, United States Code, is 
     amended--
       (1) in subsection (e)--
       (A) by striking ``the Secretary'' and inserting ``the 
     Administrator''; and
       (B) by striking ``subsection (f)'' and inserting ``section 
     36 of the Small Business Act'';
       (2) in subsection (f)--
       (A) by striking ``the Secretary'' each place such term 
     appears, other than in the last place such term appears under 
     paragraph (2)(A), and inserting ``the Administrator'';
       (B) in paragraph (1), by striking ``small business concerns 
     owned and controlled by veterans with service-connected 
     disabilities'' each place such term appears and inserting 
     ``small business concerns owned and controlled by service-
     disabled veterans'';
       (C) in paragraph (2)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``to access'' and 
     inserting ``to obtain from the Secretary of Veterans 
     Affairs''; and
       (ii) by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(B) For purposes of this subsection--
       ``(i) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall--
       ``(I) verify an individual's status as a veteran or a 
     service-disabled veteran; and
       ``(II) establish a system to permit the Administrator to 
     access, but not alter, such verification; and
       ``(ii) the Administrator shall verify--
       ``(I) the status of a business concern as a small business 
     concern; and
       ``(II) the ownership and control of such business concern.
       ``(C) The Administrator may not certify a concern under 
     subsection (b) or section 36A if the Secretary of Veterans 
     Affairs cannot provide the verification described under 
     subparagraph (B)(i)(I).'';
       (D) by striking paragraphs (4) and (7);
       (E) by redesignating paragraphs (5) and (6) as paragraphs 
     (4) and (5), respectively, and redesignating paragraph (8) as 
     paragraph (6);
       (F) in paragraph (4), as so redesignated, by striking ``The 
     Secretary'' and inserting ``The Administrator''; and
       (G) in paragraph (6), as so redesignated--
       (i) in subparagraph (A)--

       (I) by striking ``verify the status of the concern as a 
     small business concern or the ownership or control of the 
     concern'' and inserting ``certify the status of the concern 
     as a small business concern owned and controlled by veterans 
     (under section 36A) or a small business concern owned and 
     controlled by service-disabled veterans (under section 
     36(g))''; and
       (II) by striking ``verification'' and inserting 
     ``certification'';

       (ii) in subparagraph (B)--

       (I) in clause (i), by striking ``small business concern 
     owned and controlled by veterans with service-connected 
     disabilities'' and inserting ``small business concern owned 
     and controlled by service-disabled veterans''; and
       (II) in clause (ii)--

       (aa) by amending subclause (I) to read as follows:
       ``(I) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs or the 
     Administrator; or''; and
       (bb) in subclause (II), by striking ``the contracting 
     officer of the Department'' and inserting ``the applicable 
     contracting officer''; and
       (iii) by striking subparagraph (C);
       (3) by redesignating subsection (k) (relating to 
     definitions) as subsection (l);
       (4) by inserting after subsection (j) (relating to annual 
     reports) the following:
       ``(k) Annual Transfer for Certification Costs.--For each 
     fiscal year, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
     reimburse the Administrator in an amount necessary to cover 
     any cost incurred by the Administrator for certifying small 
     business concerns owned and controlled by veterans that do 
     not qualify as small business concerns owned and controlled 
     by service-disabled veterans for the Secretary for purposes 
     of this section and section 8128 of this title. The 
     Administrator is authorized to accept such reimbursement. The 
     amount of any such reimbursement shall be determined jointly 
     by the Secretary and the Administrator and shall be provided 
     from fees collected by the Secretary under multiple-award 
     schedule contracts. Any disagreement about the amount shall 
     be resolved by the Director of the Office of Management and 
     Budget.''; and
       (5) subsection (l) (relating to definitions), as so 
     redesignated, by adding at the end the following:
       ``(4) The term Administrator means the Administrator of the 
     Small Business Administration.''.
       (b) Transfer of Requirements Relating to Database to the 
     Small Business Act.--Effective on the transfer date, 
     subsection (f) of section 8127 of title 38, United States 
     Code (as amended by subsection (a)), is transferred to 
     section 36 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 657f), 
     inserted so as to appear after subsection (e).
       (c) Conforming Amendments.--The following amendments shall 
     take effect on the transfer date:
       (1) Small business act.--Section 3(q)(2)(C)(i)(III) of the 
     Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632(q)(2)(C)(i)(III)) is 
     amended by striking ``section 8127(f) of title 38, United 
     States Code'' and inserting ``section 36''.
       (2) Title 38.--Section 8128 of title 38, United States 
     Code, is amended by striking ``section 8127(f) of this 
     title'' and inserting ``section 36 of the Small Business 
     Act''.

     SEC. 4. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR DATABASE.

       (a) Administration Access to Database Before the Transfer 
     Date.--During the period between the date of the enactment of 
     this Act and the transfer date, the Secretary of Veterans 
     Affairs shall provide the Administrator of the Small Business 
     Administration with access to the contents of the database 
     described under section 8127(f) of title 38, United States 
     Code.
       (b) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this Act or the 
     amendments made by this Act may be construed--
       (1) as prohibiting the Administrator of the Small Business 
     Administration from combining the contents of the database 
     described under section 8127(f) of title 38, United States 
     Code, with other databases maintained by the Administration; 
     or
       (2) as requiring the Administrator to use any system or 
     technology related to the database described under section 
     8127(f) of title 38, United States Code, on or after the

[[Page H8806]]

     transfer date to comply with the requirement to maintain a 
     database under subsection (f) of section 36 of the Small 
     Business Act (as transferred pursuant to section 3(b) of this 
     Act).
       (c) Recognition of the Issuance of Joint Regulations.--The 
     date specified under section 1832(e) of the National Defense 
     Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (15 U.S.C. 632 note) 
     shall be deemed to be October 1, 2018.

     SEC. 5. PROCUREMENT PROGRAM FOR SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS OWNED 
                   AND CONTROLLED BY SERVICE-DISABLED VETERANS.

       (a) Procurement Program for Small Business Concerns Owned 
     and Controlled by Service-Disabled Veterans.--Section 36 of 
     the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 657f) is amended--
       (1) by striking subsections (d) and (e);
       (2) by redesignating subsections (a), (b), and (c) as 
     subsections (c), (d), and (e) respectively;
       (3) by inserting before subsection (c), as so redesignated, 
     the following:
       ``(a) Contracting Officer Defined.--For purposes of this 
     section, the term `contracting officer' has the meaning given 
     such term in section 2101 of title 41, United States Code.
       ``(b) Certification of Small Business Concerns Owned and 
     Controlled by Service-Disabled Veterans.--With respect to a 
     procurement program or preference established under this Act 
     that applies to prime contractors, the Administrator shall--
       ``(1) certify the status of the concern as a `small 
     business concern owned and controlled by service-disabled 
     veterans'; and
       ``(2) require the periodic recertification of such 
     status.'';
       (4) in subsection (d), as so redesignated, by striking 
     ``and that the award can be made at a fair market price'' and 
     inserting ``, that the award can be made at a fair market 
     price, and if each concern is certified by the Administrator 
     as a small business concern owned and controlled by service-
     disabled veterans''; and
       (5) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(g) Certification Requirement.--Notwithstanding 
     subsection (c), a contracting officer may only award a sole 
     source contract to a small business concern owned and 
     controlled by service-disabled veterans or a contract on the 
     basis of competition restricted to small business concerns 
     owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans if such a 
     concern is certified by the Administrator as a small business 
     concern owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans.
       ``(h) Enforcement; Penalties.--
       ``(1) Verification of eligibility.--In carrying out this 
     section, the Administrator shall establish procedures 
     relating to--
       ``(A) the filing, investigation, and disposition by the 
     Administration of any challenge to the eligibility of a small 
     business concern to receive assistance under this section 
     (including a challenge, filed by an interested party, 
     relating to the veracity of a certification made or 
     information provided to the Administration by a small 
     business concern under subsection (b)); and
       ``(B) verification by the Administrator of the accuracy of 
     any certification made or information provided to the 
     Administration by a small business concern under subsection 
     (b).
       ``(2) Examinations.--
       ``(A) Examination of applicants.--The procedures 
     established under paragraph (1) shall provide for a program 
     of examinations by the Administrator of any small business 
     concern making a certification or providing information to 
     the Administrator under subsection (b), to determine the 
     veracity of any statements or information provided as part of 
     such certification or otherwise provided under subsection 
     (b).
       ``(B) Examination of certified concerns.--The procedures 
     established under paragraph (1) shall provide for the 
     examination of risk-based samples of small business concerns 
     certified under subsection (b), or of any small business 
     concern that the Administrator believes poses a particular 
     risk or with respect to which the Administrator receives 
     specific and credible information alleging that the small 
     business concern no longer meets eligibility requirements to 
     be certified as a small business concern owned and controlled 
     by service-disabled veterans.
       ``(3) Penalties.--In addition to the penalties described in 
     section 16(d), any small business concern that is determined 
     by the Administrator to have misrepresented the status of 
     that concern as a small business concern owned and controlled 
     by service-disabled veterans for purposes of subsection (b), 
     shall be subject to--
       ``(A) section 1001 of title 18, United States Code;
       ``(B) sections 3729 through 3733 of title 31, United States 
     Code; and
       ``(C) section 8127(g) of title 38, United States Code.
       ``(i) Provision of Data.--Upon the request of the 
     Administrator, the head of any Federal department or agency 
     shall promptly provide to the Administrator such information 
     as the Administrator determines to be necessary to carry out 
     subsection (b) or to be able to certify the status of the 
     concern as a small business concern owned and controlled by 
     veterans under section 36A.''.
       (b) Penalties for Misrepresentation.--Section 16 of the 
     Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 645) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (d)(1)--
       (A) by striking ``,, a'' and inserting ``, a `small 
     business concern owned and controlled by service-disabled 
     veterans', a `small business concern owned and controlled by 
     veterans', a''; and
       (B) in paragraph (A), by striking ``9, 15, or 31'' and 
     inserting ``8, 9, 15, 31, 36, or 36A''; and
       (2) in subsection (e), by striking ``,, a'' and inserting 
     ``, a `small business concern owned and controlled by 
     service-disabled veterans', a `small business concern owned 
     and controlled by veterans', a''.

     SEC. 6. CERTIFICATION FOR SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS OWNED AND 
                   CONTROLLED BY VETERANS.

       The Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is amended 
     by inserting after section 36 the following new section:

     ``SEC. 36A. CERTIFICATION OF SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS OWNED 
                   AND CONTROLLED BY VETERANS.

       ``(a) In General.--With respect to the program established 
     under section 8127 of title 38, United States Code, the 
     Administrator shall--
       ``(1) certify the status of the concern as a `small 
     business concern owned and controlled by veterans'; and
       ``(2) require the periodic recertification of such status.
       ``(b) Enforcement; Penalties.--
       ``(1) Verification of eligibility.--In carrying out this 
     section, the Administrator shall establish procedures 
     relating to--
       ``(A) the filing, investigation, and disposition by the 
     Administration of any challenge to the eligibility of a small 
     business concern to receive assistance under this section 
     (including a challenge, filed by an interested party, 
     relating to the veracity of a certification made or 
     information provided to the Administration by a small 
     business concern under subsection (a)); and
       ``(B) verification by the Administrator of the accuracy of 
     any certification made or information provided to the 
     Administration by a small business concern under subsection 
     (a).
       ``(2) Examination of applicants.--The procedures 
     established under paragraph (1) shall provide for a program 
     of examinations by the Administrator of any small business 
     concern making a certification or providing information to 
     the Administrator under subsection (a), to determine the 
     veracity of any statements or information provided as part of 
     such certification or otherwise provided under subsection 
     (a).
       ``(3) Penalties.--In addition to the penalties described in 
     section 16(d), any small business concern that is determined 
     by the Administrator to have misrepresented the status of 
     that concern as a small business concern owned and controlled 
     by veterans for purposes of subsection (a), shall be subject 
     to--
       ``(A) section 1001 of title 18, United States Code;
       ``(B) sections 3729 through 3733 of title 31, United States 
     Code; and
       ``(C) section 8127(g) of title 38, United States Code.''.

     SEC. 7. STATUS OF SELF-CERTIFIED SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS 
                   OWNED AND CONTROLLED BY SERVICE-DISABLED 
                   VETERANS.

       (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
     law, any small business concern that self-certified as a 
     small business concern owned and controlled by service-
     disabled veterans shall--
       (1) if the concern files a certification application with 
     the Administrator of the Small Business Administration before 
     the end of the 1-year period beginning on the transfer date, 
     maintain such self-certification until the Administrator 
     makes a determination with respect to such certification; and
       (2) if the concern does not file such a certification 
     application before the end of the 1-year period beginning on 
     the transfer date, lose, at the end of such 1-year period, 
     any self-certification of the concern as a small business 
     concern owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans.
       (b) Non-Applicability to Department of Veterans Affairs.--
     Subsection (a) shall not apply to participation in contracts 
     (including subcontracts) with the Department of Veterans 
     Affairs.
       (c) Notice.--The Administrator shall notify any small 
     business concern that self-certified as a small business 
     concern owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans 
     about the requirements of this Act, including the transfer 
     date and any extension of such transfer date made pursuant to 
     section 2, and make such notice publicly available, on--
       (1) the date of the enactment of this Act; and
       (2) the date on which an extension described under section 
     2 is approved.

     SEC. 8. TRANSFER OF THE CENTER FOR VERIFICATION AND 
                   EVALUATION OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 
                   AFFAIRS TO THE SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION.

       (a) Abolishment.--The Center for Verification and 
     Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs defined 
     under section 74.1 of title 38, Code of Federal Regulations, 
     is abolished effective on the transfer date.
       (b) Transfer of Functions.--All functions that, immediately 
     before the effective date of this section, were functions of 
     the Center for Verification and Evaluation shall--
       (1) on the date of enactment of this Act, be functions of 
     both the Center for Verification and Evaluation and the Small 
     Business Administration, except that the Small Business 
     Administration shall not have any authority to carry out any 
     verification functions of the Center for Verification and 
     Evaluation; and

[[Page H8807]]

       (2) on the transfer date, be functions of the Small 
     Business Administration.
       (c) Transfer of Assets.--So much of the personnel, 
     property, and records employed, used, held, available, or to 
     be made available in connection with a function transferred 
     under this section shall be available to the Small Business 
     Administration at such time or times as the President directs 
     for use in connection with the functions transferred.
       (d) References.--Any reference in any other Federal law, 
     Executive order, rule, regulation, or delegation of 
     authority, or any document of or pertaining to a function of 
     the Center for Verification and Evaluation that is 
     transferred under this section is deemed, after the transfer 
     date, to refer to the Small Business Administration.

     SEC. 9. REPORT.

       Not later than the end of the 1-year period beginning on 
     the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 6 months 
     thereafter until the transfer date, the Administrator of the 
     Small Business Administration and Secretary of Veterans 
     Affairs shall jointly issue a report to the Committees on 
     Appropriations, Small Business, and Veterans' Affairs of the 
     House of Representatives and the Committees on 
     Appropriations, Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and 
     Veterans' Affairs of the Senate on the planning for the 
     transfer of functions and property required under this Act 
     and the amendments made by this Act on the transfer date. 
     Such report shall include--
       (1) whether and how the verification database and 
     operations of the Center for Verification and Evaluation of 
     the Department of Veterans Affairs will be incorporated into 
     the existing certification database of the Small Business 
     Administration;
       (2) projections for the numbers and timing, in terms of 
     fiscal year, of--
       (A) already verified concerns that will come up for 
     recertification; and
       (B) self-certified concerns that are expected to apply for 
     certification;
       (3) an explanation of how outreach to veteran service 
     organizations, the service-disabled veteran-owned and 
     veteran-owned small business community, and other 
     stakeholders will be conducted; and
       (4) other pertinent information determined by the 
     Administrator and the Secretary.

     SEC. 10. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS.

       The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 
     complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go-Act of 2010, shall 
     be determined by reference to the latest statement titled 
     ``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act, 
     submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the 
     Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such 
     statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Schneider) and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Chabot) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Illinois.


                             General Leave

  Mr. SCHNEIDER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material on the measure under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Illinois?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SCHNEIDER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1615, the Verification 
Alignment and Service-Disabled Business Adjustment Act, or the VA-SBA 
Act.
  I want to first take this opportunity to thank Chairman Takano and 
Ranking Member Roe of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. This bill is 
a culmination of years of collaboration to ensure we are doing right by 
our Nation's veteran business owners. I thank the gentlemen for their 
cooperation and recognize the staff of our respective committees, both 
majority and minority, for seeing this effort through.
  Mr. Speaker, considering how veteran-owned businesses increase 
competition and solidify our industrial base, Congress created the 
SBA's Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business, SDVOSB, program to 
maximize their participation in the Federal marketplace.
  In 2018, the Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business 
procurement program awarded $20.6 billion to over 180,000 contracts. 
Such awards accounted for approximately 4.27 percent of all contracts, 
exceeding the 3 percent statutory goal.
  While this accomplishment should be applauded, the structure and 
resources of the program have not kept pace with the growth. Currently, 
the Department of Veterans Affairs requires all participants to go 
through a rigorous certification process. In contrast, the SBA allows 
businesses to self-certify that they meet the regulatory threshold.
  The problem with two certification processes is simple: It creates 
confusion for business owners and contracting officers alike.
  This bill harmonizes the two conflicting contracting programs by 
eliminating the VA certification and transferring it to the SBA. It 
also institutes a certification process under the SBA program to 
prevent concerns of fraud and abuse.
  I thank all the members of the respective committees who have 
sponsored this bill, because it is certainly a step in the right 
direction to eliminate duplication and confusion between the two 
agencies. This bipartisan legislation will make it easier for the 
veteran-owned business to do business with our government.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge Members to support this bipartisan piece of 
legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.
                                         House of Representatives,


                               Committee on Veterans' Affairs,

                                 Washington, DC, November 4, 2019.
     Hon. Nydia M. Velazquez,
     Chairwoman, Committee on Small Business, House of 
         Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairwoman Velazquez: I am writing with respect to 
     H.R. 1615, the Verification Alignment and Service-Disabled 
     Business Adjustment Act. Thank you for consulting with the 
     Committee on Veterans' Affairs regarding the matters in H.R. 
     1615 that fall within the Committee's jurisdiction.
       As a result of your consultation with us on this measure 
     and in order to expeditiously move the bill to the floor, I 
     forego further consideration of H.R. 1615. The Committee on 
     Veterans' Affairs takes this action with our mutual 
     understanding that we do not waive any jurisdiction over the 
     subject matter contained in this or similar legislation, and 
     the Committee will be appropriately consulted and involved as 
     the bill or similar legislation moves forward so that we may 
     address any remaining issues that fall within our 
     jurisdiction. Further, I request your support for the 
     appointment of an appropriate number of conferees from the 
     Committee on Veterans' Affairs during any House-Senate 
     conference involving this or similar legislation.
       Finally, I would appreciate your response to this letter 
     confirming this understanding regarding H.R. 1615 and would 
     ask that a copy of our exchange of letters on this matter be 
     included in the Committee Report and the Congressional Record 
     during floor consideration of the measure. Thank you for the 
     cooperative spirit in which you have worked regarding this 
     matter and others between our respective committees.
           Sincerely,
                                                      Mark Takano,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

                                         House of Representatives,


                                  Committee on Small Business,

                                 Washington, DC, November 5, 2019.
     Hon. Mark Takano,
     Chairman, Committee on Veterans' Affairs, House of 
         Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Takano: Thank you for your letter regarding 
     the Committee on Veterans' Affairs jurisdictional interest in 
     H.R. 1615, the ``Verification Alignment and Service-Disabled 
     Business Adjustment Act'' and your willingness to forego 
     consideration of H.R. 1615 by your committee. I agree that 
     the Committee on Veterans' Affairs has a valid jurisdictional 
     interest in certain provisions of H.R. 1615 and that the 
     Committee's jurisdiction will not be adversely affected by 
     your decision to forego consideration of H.R. 1615. As you 
     have requested, I will support your request for an 
     appropriate appointment of outside conferees from your 
     Committee in the event of a House-Senate conference on this 
     or similar legislation should such a conference be convened.
       Finally, I will include a copy of your letter and this 
     response in the Committee Report and in the Congressional 
     Record during the floor consideration of this bill. Thank you 
     again for your cooperation.
           Sincerely,
                                               Nydia M. Velazquez,
                                                       Chairwoman.

  Mr. CHABOT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, 
and I rise in support of H.R. 1615.
  Before I speak on the bill, I want to thank the gentleman from 
Mississippi (General Kelly) and the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. 
Crow)--both veterans, by the way--for their leadership on this 
important legislation and for their service to our country. We 
appreciate it greatly.
  So many of our Nation's heroes come home to become entrepreneurs, and 
many choose to continue with their service to the country by entering 
the Federal contracting space.
  Federal contracting can be a confusing minefield of red tape and 
bureaucracy, and it is up to us to make the process as easy as 
possible.

[[Page H8808]]

  Unfortunately, the process is complicated and rife with disparities. 
In fact, there currently exists an unnecessary duplication of small 
business programs at the SBA and the VA. Both operate under separate 
and conflicting standards.
  Veterans attempting to make sense of these two programs often feel 
overwhelmed and frustrated, sometimes to the point where they decline 
to join the Federal marketplace altogether.
  This should not be the case. We need to encourage veteran 
entrepreneurship by reducing barriers to entry, not creating more 
confusion.
  It is well past time that these two programs consolidate under a 
single agency, the SBA, and that all rules and regulations governing 
the Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business program are unified 
for the benefit of our veteran entrepreneurs. H.R. 1615 takes that 
critical step in the right direction.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank both of these gentlemen for their leadership on 
this. I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. SCHNEIDER. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume to 
the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Crow), my friend and colleague.
  Mr. CROW. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Verification 
Alignment and Service-Disabled Business Adjustment Act, or the VA-SBA 
Act.
  I start by thanking my friend and colleague from Mississippi (Mr. 
Kelly)--or, as a former Army captain myself, I like to call him General 
Kelly--for his leadership and friendship and hard work on this bill as 
well.
  Veterans are uniquely qualified and have a valuable perspective as 
they start and manage small businesses.
  In my home State of Colorado, there are over 52,000 small businesses 
owned by veterans that continue to give back to the country, the 
community, and our economy every single day. These veteran-owned 
businesses have also proven to go above and beyond to hire other 
veterans, including those who have been injured in the line of duty.
  Currently, service-disabled veterans who want to start a business 
have to go through a complicated, confusing, and redundant application 
process through both the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Small 
Business Administration.
  The VA-SBA Act removes duplication in regulation and cuts red tape to 
ensure the Federal Government can provide the support and resources 
that our veterans deserve. It also ensures that data on service-
disabled veteran-owned businesses and veteran-owned small businesses is 
located at the Small Business Administration, which is uniquely 
equipped to serve veterans who want to start small businesses.
  This bill will greatly ease the burden on our veteran-owned small 
businesses by cutting unnecessary red tape.
  I thank Chairwoman Velazquez and Ranking Member Chabot, as well as 
Mr. Schneider and all my colleagues on the Committee on Small Business. 
This truly is an example of bipartisan cooperation, as we have all come 
together to do the right thing by our veterans and our small 
businesses, a true win-win for the country and for our communities.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. CHABOT. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Kelly), General Trent Kelly.
  Mr. KELLY of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Velazquez 
and Ranking Member Chabot for working to bring the VA-SBA Act to the 
House floor. I also thank my friend and cosponsor from Colorado (Mr. 
Crow) for working on this very important legislation. I thank all of 
them for being champions of both our veterans and our small businesses 
all across America.
  As we have heard in the hearings held in the Committee on Small 
Business, the VA proactively verifies service-disabled veteran-owned 
small businesses while the SBA allows business owners to self-certify. 
This process creates inconsistent outcomes, such as a business 
qualifying as a service-disabled veteran business for VA contracts but 
not other Federal agency contracts.
  While the SBA-certified businesses' awards are subject to scrutiny, 
the lack of a front-end verification leaves the door open for fraud and 
abuse.
  We have already made significant strides in the right direction. The 
National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2017 instructed the 
SBA and VA to unify the definitions for service-disabled veteran-owned 
small businesses and began moving regulatory responsibility from the VA 
to the SBA. Additionally, this administration has made substantial 
improvements in streamlining certifications for small business Federal 
procurement programs.
  The VA-SBA Act marks the next significant step towards unification of 
the two programs under one umbrella at the SBA and reduces red tape and 
confusion for veteran small business owners.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues for supporting this bill.
  Mr. SCHNEIDER. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my 
time.

  Mr. CHABOT. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the 
gentlewoman from Puerto Rico (Miss Gonzalez-Colon).
  Miss GONZALEZ-COLON of Puerto Rico. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in full 
support of H.R. 1615, known as the VA-SBA Act of 2019, introduced by my 
dear friend, General Kelly from Mississippi.
  Why this bill is important for me: in Puerto Rico, we do have more 
than 100,000 veterans registered by the VA system.
  Our men and women in uniform are an invaluable asset during their 
time of service and upon separating from the Armed Forces as well. One 
of the main challenges upon retiring and adjusting to life as a 
civilian is actually securing employment.
  Many decide to open and operate their own business, employing the 
community and generating robust gains for our economy. According to the 
Small Business Administration, close to 2.5 million businesses in the 
United States are minority-owned by veterans, with a total annual 
revenue of over $1 trillion--and Puerto Rico is not a part of these 
statistics.
  Yet, there are additional issues to consider, and that is the reason 
this bill is presented today. Both the Department of Veterans Affairs 
and the Small Business Administration are involved in the process of 
certifying American service-disabled veteran-owned businesses.
  These businesses have the option to self-certify with the SBA for 
contracting purposes with the Federal Government, but, additionally, 
the Veterans Affairs Administration has its own process for certifying 
these same businesses through a more rigorous evaluation for Federal 
contracts within the VA.
  This is another hardship for many of those veterans. Having two paths 
for what is essentially the same outcome can be confusing for service-
disabled veteran business owners and creates an opportunity for fraud, 
waste, and abuse.
  This bill will help rectify this problem by streamlining the process 
and making clear certification requirements for service-disabled 
veteran-owned small businesses and shifting this responsibility to the 
Small Business Administration, which has the technical expertise to 
administer small business programs and properly work with these cases.
  By releasing the VA from this task, we help eliminate inconsistencies 
in the certification process and previous loopholes that impact Federal 
contracting and also allow the VA to focus on their main mission. We 
also help focus the VA's attention to its core mission of administering 
the healthcare services for our veterans.
  Mr. Speaker, I am a proud original cosponsor of this bill, and I 
think we should all vote for it.
  Mr. CHABOT. Mr. Speaker, it is vitally important to reduce the red 
tape and bureaucracy our Nation's heroes endure just to try to contract 
with the Federal Government.
  There currently exists an unnecessary duplication of programs at the 
SBA and the VA which operate under separate and conflicting standards. 
This bill is a step in the right direction to eliminate some of that 
red tape for our Nation's veterans.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I yield 
back the balance of my time.

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                              {time}  1345

  Mr. SCHNEIDER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  As the largest purchaser of goods and services in the world, the 
Federal Government is in a unique position to support veteran-owned 
businesses, yet navigating this process remains complicated to many 
veteran entrepreneurs.
  One of the most challenging obstacles for veteran-owned businesses is 
getting certified. This first step toward contracting with the Federal 
Government is the most important, but also the most complex. This is 
largely due to the fact that the SBA established its own program, which 
applies government-wide, and the VA administrators established their 
own program as well.
  Although the two programs share the same goal, each has its own 
participation requirements. Creating more confusion is the fact that 
firms can self-certify for the SBA programs, ones verified by the VA 
may not necessarily be found eligible to receive an SBA set-aside 
contract, and vice versa.
  Coordinating certifications between the SBA and the VA can allow the 
Federal Government to reap the benefits of goods and services provided 
by veteran-owned businesses.
  Again, I would like to thank Chairman Takano and Ranking Member Roe. 
Finally, I commend the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Kelly) for 
leading this long effort and continuing to keep the needs of our 
veteran business owners in mind, as well as my colleague from Colorado 
(Mr. Crow).
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield 
back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Schneider) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1615, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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