[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 16924-16925]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         VOW TO HIRE HEROES ACT

  Mr. REED. Mr. President, I rise specifically to speak in strong 
support of the VOW to Hire Heroes Act of 2011. This legislation 
incorporates key components of the American Jobs Act and other 
bipartisan proposals designed to help veterans find jobs, including the 
Hiring Heroes Act, of which I am a proud cosponsor. These are 
commonsense policies that Congress can and should pass immediately.

[[Page 16925]]

  We are in the midst of an unemployment crisis that is obvious to 
every American, and it is a growing problem that is sapping not only 
our economic strength but indeed our sense of national purpose and our 
morale. The national unemployment rate has been hovering around 9 
percent, and that means 14 million Americans are looking for work in 
one of the toughest economies since the Great Depression. But what is 
unfortunate--some might even say shameful--is that almost 1 million of 
those Americans looking for work are veterans returning home after 
valiantly serving our country. The unemployment rate for veterans of 
Afghanistan and Iraq is an indefensible 12.1 percent. It represents a 
significant blow to young men and women who are returning home after 
serving their country in very difficult circumstances. In 2010, 36 
percent of Afghanistan and Iraq-era veterans were unemployed for longer 
than 26 weeks. Again, that is a shameful statistic.
  This unfortunate trend is mirrored in my home State of Rhode Island. 
We have a very high unemployment rate--10.5 percent, one of the highest 
in the Nation. We have been unfortunately in that category for almost 2 
years now. But for veterans, the rate is 11.1 percent. They are doing 
even worse than other nonveterans in the unemployment category. That is 
one more reason, by the way, that we should extend the unemployment 
compensation legislation that is so necessary. I have joined Senators 
Durbin, Whitehouse, Levin, Merkley, and Gillibrand, and we have 
proposed to do this with the Emergency Unemployment Compensation 
Extension Act of 2011. We still have people coming back from 
Afghanistan; we still have people who are holding on to a job but very 
well might lose it. They need these benefits, and if we don't pass this 
legislation, then beginning next January, there is a very real 
possibility that they will not be able to get these benefits which are 
so essential.
  We have to work together. I think it is a very good example of the 
work Senator Enzi, Senator Alexander, Senator Durbin, myself, and 
others have done with respect to this legislation on sales tax. But we 
have to work across the aisle, particularly for our American veterans, 
but also for American workers throughout this country.
  Again today we have a component of the American Jobs Act before us. 
This bill is focused on veterans, but the jobs act overall should be 
passed. We have argued for it endlessly, because it will put Americans 
to work, it is fully paid for, and it will be an investment in our 
infrastructure and in other programs that are long-term needs of this 
Nation.
  This particular legislation before us targeted at veterans would 
provide incentives for businesses to hire these veterans, including a 
tax credit of $2,400 for hiring a veteran who has been unemployed for 
more than 4 weeks but less than 6 months, a $5,600 tax credit for 
hiring a veteran who has been looking for a job for more than 6 months, 
and a $9,600 tax credit for hiring veterans with service-connected 
disabilities who have been looking for a job more than 6 months. These 
incentives will help veterans secure employment and they should be 
passed immediately.
  These veterans deserve our help as they transition from their 
military service to their civilian careers. They have incredible skills 
of leadership, of diligence, of dedication, of self-discipline that add 
to their technical skills and make them incredibly important for the 
growth of our economy, and they have to have the opportunity to use 
these skills for the benefit of their communities, as they did to 
defend their country. This legislation provides that critical 
assistance.
  It has other aspects to it. First, it would provide opportunities for 
military personnel who are leaving active service for transitional 
assistance to be able to participate in workshops sponsored by the 
Department of Defense, the Department of Labor, and the Department of 
Veterans Affairs. The workshops will help them write resumes, receive 
career counseling, and other things.
  Second, it expands education and training opportunities for older 
unemployed veterans by essentially providing an additional year of 
Montgomery GI bill benefits for use at community colleges and technical 
schools. It also allows servicemembers to begin to seek civilian jobs 
in the Federal Government prior to formally separating from their 
military service.
  Earlier this week I was with the President when we announced these 
initiatives and more. After that visit to the Rose Garden, I went to 
Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda to visit those 
young men and women who have served and who are now wounded warriors. 
Trust me, their spirit is undeterred, as is their commitment to their 
country. We owe them much more than we can ever repay, and the first 
payment of that huge debt is passing immediately--this week--this 
legislation to help our veterans. So as we celebrate Veterans Day with 
speeches, we will have a real accomplishment to bring to the American 
people and the veterans who serve and defend us today.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from West Virginia.
  Mr. ROCKEFELLER. I note the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

                          ____________________