Consolidating Veteran Employment Services for Improved Performance Act
Sponsored By: Representative Hamadeh, Abraham J. [R-AZ-8]
In Committee
Summary
This bill would move key veteran employment functions from the Department of Labor to the Department of Veterans Affairs and create a new Deputy Under Secretary to run economic opportunity and transition programs. It would also merge existing outreach staff into a unified corps of veteran employment specialists and require a joint study to plan the transfer.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 3 mixed.
States would hire veteran employment specialists
If enacted, the bill would combine Disabled Veterans' Outreach Program staff and Local Veterans' Employment Representatives into a single 'veteran employment specialists' role. States would, subject to VA approval, hire and assign full- or half-time specialists who must give intensive help first to special disabled veterans, then other disabled veterans, then other eligible veterans. The law would require strong emphasis on economically or educationally disadvantaged and homeless veterans, a cap so no more than 10% of the specialist cadre are non-veterans, quarterly reporting to State managers and VA, annual State reports to the VA Secretary, and VA oversight of training and pay evaluations. These rules aim to focus services on high-need veterans but add hiring, reporting, and staffing constraints for State employment services.
VA would run veteran job programs
If enacted, the bill would move major veteran employment and reintegration programs from the Department of Labor to the Department of Veterans Affairs on October 1, 2027. This includes job counseling, training, and placement (chapter 41), federal hiring services (under current federal hiring rules), reintegration for homeless veterans (chapter 20), and administration of reemployment rights (chapter 43). All related staff, assets, records, and liabilities would transfer, and ongoing lawsuits or proceedings would be preserved during the move. The President would include requested funding for these functions in the VA budget beginning in fiscal year 2028. This could improve coordination for veterans but also cause short-term service or staffing disruption during implementation.
Many legal references would point to VA
If enacted, the bill would make many conforming changes in Title 38 effective October 1, 2027 so laws refer to the VA official instead of the Department of Labor official. Examples include replacing references to the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Veterans' Employment and Training with the new VA Deputy Under Secretary, changing Department of Labor references to the Department, striking section 4108, and adjusting committee and ex‑officio membership where needed. These are administrative edits about where authority and program rules are found. The edits could improve clarity in some places but require legal and regulatory updates that may cause transitional confusion for agencies and stakeholders.
New VA job official for veterans
If enacted, the bill would create a Deputy Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Opportunity and Transition at VA starting October 1, 2027. That official would run and coordinate VA policy for the transferred employment, reintegration, and reemployment functions. The role is intended to centralize responsibility so veterans can find and use job and reintegration services more easily. The change would not itself change benefit amounts.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Hamadeh, Abraham J. [R-AZ-8]
AZ • R
Cosponsors
There are no cosponsors for this bill.
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
View on Congress.gov