[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1786 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1786
To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to submit to Congress a
report on the Warrior Training Advancement Course, to direct the
Secretary of the Interior to administer a pilot program to employ
veterans in positions that relate to conservation and resource
management activities of the Department of the Interior, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 24, 2023
Mr. Levin (for himself and Mr. Wittman) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in
addition to the Committee on Natural Resources, for a period to be
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration
of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee
concerned
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A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to submit to Congress a
report on the Warrior Training Advancement Course, to direct the
Secretary of the Interior to administer a pilot program to employ
veterans in positions that relate to conservation and resource
management activities of the Department of the Interior, and for other
purposes.
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 ``Get Rewarding Outdoor Work for our
Veterans Act'' or the ``GROW Act''.
SEC. 2. REPORTING ON THE WARRIOR TRAINING ADVANCEMENT COURSE OF THE
VETERANS BENEFIT ADMINISTRATION.
(a) Reports Required.--
(1) Initial report.--Not later than six months after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs shall submit to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of
the Senate and House of Representatives a report on WARTAC.
(2) Annual report.--One year after the submission under
paragraph (1) and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall
submit to such Committees a report that contains the elements
under paragraphs (1) and (3) of subsection (b) with regards to
the preceding year.
(b) Elements.--Subject to subsection (a)(2), the reports under this
section shall include the following elements:
(1) Best practices.--With regards to best practices of
WARTAC--
(A) how many covered members have applied to
participate in WARTAC;
(B) how many covered members have participated in
WARTAC;
(C) how the Secretary provides training to covered
members during TAP;
(D) how many covered members have completed WARTAC;
and
(E) any other information the Secretary determines
appropriate.
(2) Cost savings.--With regards to cost savings of WARTAC--
(A) how much money the Secretary determines WARTAC
saves the United States each fiscal year;
(B) how much money the Secretary determines WARTAC
has saved the United States since its establishment;
and
(C) the determination of the Secretary whether
other Federal agencies may save money by establishing a
program similar to WARTAC.
(3) Hiring.--With regards to hiring covered members who
complete WARTAC--
(A) how the Secretary identifies positions in the
Department of Veterans Affairs for which such covered
members may qualify;
(B) the grades of such positions on the General
Schedule under section 5332 of title 5, United States
Code; and
(C) how many such covered members the Secretary has
hired to such positions.
(c) Distribution.--Not later than 30 days after submitting the
report under subsection (a)(1), the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
transmit a copy of the report under this section to each head of a
Federal agency.
(d) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) The term ``covered member'' means members of the Armed
Forces participating in TAP.
(2) The term ``TAP'' means the Transition Assistance
Program of the Department of Defense under sections 1142 and
1144 of title 10, United States Code.
(3) The term ``WARTAC'' means the Warrior Training
Advancement Course of the Veterans Benefit Administration, in
which the Secretary provides training to covered members so
such covered members may qualify for certain employment in the
Veterans Benefit Administration.
SEC. 3. PILOT PROGRAM TO EMPLOY VETERANS IN POSITIONS RELATING TO
CONSERVATION AND RESOURCE MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES.
(a) Best Practices for Other Departments.--The Assistant Secretary
of Labor for Veterans' Employment and Training, in consultation with
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, shall establish guidelines
containing best practices for departments and agencies of the Federal
Government that carry out programs to employ veterans who are
transitioning from service in the Armed Forces. Such guidelines shall
include the findings of the report required under section 2.
(b) Pilot Program.--
(1) Establishment.--The Secretary of the Interior, in
consultation with the Assistant Secretary of Labor for
Veterans' Employment and Training and the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs, shall establish a pilot program under which veterans
are employed by the Federal Government in positions that relate
to the conservation and resource management activities of the
Department of the Interior.
(2) Positions.--The Secretary of the Interior shall--
(A) identify vacant positions in the Department of
the Interior that are appropriate to fill using the
pilot program; and
(B) to the extent practicable, fill such positions
using the pilot program.
(3) Application of civil service laws.--A veteran employed
under the pilot program shall be treated as an employee as
defined by section 2105 of title 5, United States Code.
(4) Briefings and report.--
(A) Initial briefing.--Not later than 60 days after
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of
the Interior and the Assistant Secretary of Labor for
Veterans' Employment and Training shall jointly provide
to the appropriate congressional committees a briefing
on the pilot program under this subsection, which shall
include--
(i) a description of how the pilot program
will be carried out in a manner to reduce the
unemployment of veterans; and
(ii) any recommendations for legislative
actions to improve the pilot program.
(B) Implementation briefing.--Not later than one
year after the date on which the pilot program under
subsection (a) commences, the Secretary of the Interior
and the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Veterans'
Employment and Training shall jointly provide to the
appropriate congressional committees a briefing on the
implementation of the pilot program.
(C) Final report.--Not later than 30 days after the
date on which the pilot program under subsection (a) is
completed, the Secretary of the Interior and the
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Veterans' Employment
and Training shall jointly submit to the appropriate
congressional committees a report on the pilot program
that includes the following:
(i) The number of veterans who applied to
participate in the pilot program.
(ii) The number of such veterans employed
under the pilot program.
(iii) The number of veterans identified in
clause (ii) who transitioned to full-time
positions with the Federal Government after
participating in the pilot program.
(iv) Any other information the Secretary
and the Assistant Secretary determine
appropriate with respect to measuring the
effectiveness of the pilot program.
(5) Duration.--The authority to carry out the pilot program
under this subsection shall terminate on the date that is two
years after the date on which the pilot program commences.
(c) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.--In this section,
the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(1) the Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the Committee on
Natural Resources of the House of Representatives; and
(2) the Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the Committee on
Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate.
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