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Bill would push states to help jobless veterans

An Ohio congressman believes he has a way to expand job opportunities for separating service members: Link federal funding to a requirement that states have licensing and professional certification rules that recognize the value of military training.

Rep. Steve Stivers, R-Ohio, an Army National Guard lieutenant colonel with 26 years of service, gives credit for the idea to veterans who met with him last fall to discuss the high unemployment rate for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans.

His bill, HR 4115, is fairly simple: As a condition of receiving employment and training funds from the Labor Department for veterans programs, a state would have to consider granting state licenses and certificates based on military training and experience. This is not a guarantee for a credential, only a requirement that the value of training be taken into account.

The measure, introduced Wednesday, was referred to the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee for review. That panel is working on a package of employment-related legislation that it hopes to pass by the end of March.

“With the number of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, we need to make every effort to help our returning troops get back to work right away,” said Strivers, who served in Iraq. “There is no reason that if someone can perform a job when serving in a war zone, they can’t do the exact same job back home once they leave the military.”

He cited truck drivers and nursing assistants as two professions for which military training should be sufficient to get private-sector jobs.

The Defense, Veterans Affairs and Labor departments have been looking at ways to make it easier for people to receive civilian certifications for military-learned skills, but their efforts have faced problems because requirements vary from state to state. Strivers’ bill would allow states to keep their own licensing and certificate rules, but push them to at least think about the value of military training.

The bill is cosponsored by Rep. Tim Walz, D-Minn., a retired Army National Guard command sergeant major.