Bipartisan BRAVE Act rewards contractors that hire high rates of full-time veteran employees, creates an incentive for others to do the same
(Long Island, NY) U.S. Representative Kathleen Rice’s first legislation passed in the House today with unanimous bipartisan support. H.R. 1382, the Boosting Rates of American Veteran Employment (BRAVE) Act, which Rice introduced in March, passed by a vote of 404-0. The legislation authorizes the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, when awarding VA contracts, to give preference to companies that have high concentrations of full-time veteran employees, which will reward contractors that actively hire veterans and create an incentive for other contractors to do the same. The BRAVE Act’s co-lead sponsor is Representative Paul Cook (R-CA), a combat veteran who retired after 26 years as a Colonel in the United States Marine Corps. Other cosponsors include Representatives Ralph Abraham (R-LA), Mark Takano (D-CA), Aumua Amata Coleman Radewagen (R-American Samoa), Ann McLane Kuster (D-NH), John Garamendi (D-CA), Mike Thompson (D-CA), and Derek Kilmer (D-WA). The bill has been endorsed by several major veterans service organizations, including Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), the American Legion, and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA).
“Veterans have what it takes to thrive in the civilian workforce. They don’t need charity, they don’t need handouts, they just need an opportunity,” said Rep. Rice. “This bipartisan legislation will create an incentive for contractors to proactively seek out and provide veterans with that opportunity for meaningful full-time employment. I’m grateful to Chairman Miller, Ranking Member Brown and my fellow members of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee for acting so quickly to bring this bill to the floor, and I want to thank Representative Cook and our other cosponsors for their efforts to ensure it passed with such tremendous bipartisan support. I urge the Senate to take up this important legislation so we can send it to the President for his signature.”
The Department of Veterans Affairs establishes long-term contracts with private businesses for medical equipment, supplies, services, and more. Currently, the VA gives preference for these contracts to veteran-owned small businesses, but not to businesses that actively employ veterans. The BRAVE Actwould allow the VA to consider the proportion of veterans employed on a full-time basis by a prospective contractor when awarding federal contracts. The VA is authorized for $19 billion in total procurement and contracting spending, so this bill would not induce any additional costs or burdens on the taxpayers. The bill provides oversight of VA contractors by requiring the debarment of any company that knowingly misrepresents the number or proportion of veterans they employ.
