Veterans Readiness and Employment Program Integrity Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Veterans Readiness and Employment Program Integrity Act changes VA's chapter 31 vocational rehabilitation program. Section 2 bars VA from providing an initial VR&E evaluation until the veteran submits an application with the substantive work record and educational transcripts the Secretary determines appropriate. Section 3 limits assistance under the covered employment-assistance provision to 365 days, with up to 180 additional days if a VR&E counselor certifies that the veteran is actively seeking employment. Section 4 requires VA to report to the House and Senate Veterans' Affairs Committees on employment for veterans who participate in chapter 31 vocational rehabilitation, including the responsible regional office and annual wages before and after program completion. VA must also publicly report each year the average time between a veteran's request for a vocational rehabilitation program and the first counselor meeting. Finally, within one year, VA must seek a contract with a non-VA entity with vocational rehabilitation expertise to review chapter 31 rehabilitation programs and recommend improvements and modernization within one year after the contract.
Who Benefits and How
VA regional office managers, VR&E counselors, House Veterans' Affairs Committee staff, Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee staff, veterans actively seeking employment, veterans comparing regional wait times, non-VA vocational rehabilitation consultants, and public watchdogs benefit because the bill creates cleaner intake records, counselor certification for extensions, wage-outcome data, regional accountability, public wait-time measures, and an outside modernization review.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Veterans seeking VR&E services, veterans missing transcripts or work records, veterans receiving employment assistance longer than 365 days, Department of Veterans Affairs program staff, VA regional offices, VR&E counselors, VA data teams, VA contracting officers, and non-VA vocational rehabilitation consultants bear burdens because the bill adds application documentation prerequisites, caps assistance duration absent certification, requires wage and wait-time reporting, and creates outside review and contracting work.
Key Provisions
- Requires veterans to submit substantive work records and educational transcripts before an initial VR&E evaluation.
- Limits covered employment assistance to 365 days.
- Allows up to 180 additional days when a counselor certifies that the veteran is actively seeking employment.
- Requires VA reports to congressional veterans committees on regional office responsibility and wages before and after program completion.
- Requires annual public reporting of average wait time to a first counselor meeting.
- Requires VA to seek a contract for an outside review of chapter 31 rehabilitation programs and modernization recommendations.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Tightens Veterans Readiness and Employment program administration by requiring work records and educational transcripts before initial evaluations, limiting certain employment assistance to 365 days with a possible 180-day counselor-certified extension for active job search, requiring employment outcome and counselor wait-time reporting, and directing VA to seek an outside vocational-rehabilitation review.
Key Policy Areas
Veterans, Workforce Development, Government Oversight
Primary Purpose
Tightens Veterans Readiness and Employment program administration by requiring work records and educational transcripts before initial evaluations, limiting certain employment assistance to 365 days with a possible 180-day counselor-certified extension for active job search, requiring employment outcome and counselor wait-time reporting, and directing VA to seek an outside vocational-rehabilitation review.
Policy Domains
Substantive provisions
Identified Gains
- VA regional office managers
- VR&E counselors
- House Veterans' Affairs Committee staff
- Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee staff
- Veterans actively seeking employment
- Veterans comparing regional wait times
- Non-VA vocational rehabilitation consultants
- Public watchdogs
Identified Costs
- Veterans seeking VR&E services
- Veterans missing transcripts
- Veterans missing work records
- Veterans receiving extended employment assistance
- Department of Veterans Affairs program staff
- VA regional offices
- VR&E counselors
- VA data teams
- VA contracting officers
- Non-VA vocational rehabilitation consultants
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
Passed HouseReceived; read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' …
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to …
Passed House (inferred from eh version)
Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without …
Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H4288)
On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, …
DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate …
Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules …
Mr. Bost moved to suspend the rules and pass the …
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the …
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Department of Veterans Affairs program staff, House Veterans' Affairs Committee staff, Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee staff
Department of Veterans Affairs program staff, VR&E counselors face effects in multiple directions
Positive-direction: House Veterans' Affairs Committee staff, Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee staff
Negative-direction: VA contracting officers, VA data teams, VA regional offices
Veterans actively seeking employment, Veterans comparing regional wait times, Veterans missing transcripts
Positive-direction: Veterans actively seeking employment, Veterans comparing regional wait times
Negative-direction: Veterans missing transcripts, Veterans missing work records, Veterans receiving extended employment assistance, Veterans seeking VR&E services
Non-VA vocational rehabilitation consultants
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "vre"
- → Veterans Readiness and Employment program under chapter 31 of title 38
- "rehabilitation_program"
- → term defined in 38 U.S.C. 3101
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology