I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3719 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish in the Department 

of Veterans Affairs a Veterans Economic Opportunity Administration, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 6, 2009 

Mr. BUYER (for himself and Mr. MICHAUD) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

A BILL 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish in the 

Department of Veterans Affairs a Veterans Economic 

Opportunity Administration, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Veterans Economic 

5 Opportunity Administration Act of 2009’’. 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 3719 IH

1 SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF VETERANS ECONOMIC OPPOR2 TUNITY ADMINISTRATION OF DEPARTMENT 

3 OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

4 (a) ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY ADMINISTRATION.— 

5 Part V of title 38, United States Code, is amended by 

6 adding at the end the following new chapter: 

7 ‘‘CHAPTER 80—VETERANS ECONOMIC 

8 OPPORTUNITY ADMINISTRATION 

‘‘8001. Organization of Administration. 

‘‘8002. Functions of Administration. 

‘‘8003. Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization. 

9 ‘‘§ 8001. Organization of Administration 

10 ‘‘(a) VETERANS ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY ADMINIS11 TRATION.—There is in the Department of Veterans Af12 fairs a Veterans Economic Opportunity Administration. 

13 The primary function of the Veterans Economic Oppor14 tunity Administration is the administration of the pro15 grams of the Department which provide assistance related 

16 to economic opportunity to veterans and their dependents 

17 and survivors. 

18 ‘‘(b) UNDER SECRETARY FOR ECONOMIC OPPOR19 TUNITY.—The Veterans Economic Opportunity Adminis20 tration is under the Under Secretary for Veterans Eco21 nomic Opportunity, who is directly responsible to the Sec22 retary for the operations of the Administration. 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 3719 IH

1 ‘‘§ 8002. Functions of Administration 

2 ‘‘The Veterans Economic Opportunity Administra3 tion is responsible for the administration of the following 

4 programs of the Department: 

5 ‘‘(1) Vocational rehabilitation and employment 

6 programs. 

7 ‘‘(2) Educational assistance programs. 

8 ‘‘(3) Veterans’ housing loan and related pro9 grams. 

10 ‘‘(4) Veterans entrepreneurship programs. 

11 ‘‘(5) Programs for homeless veterans. 

12 ‘‘§ 8003. Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business 

13 Utilization 

14 ‘‘Notwithstanding section 15(k) of the Small Busi15 ness Act (15 U.S.C. 644(k)), the head of the Office of 

16 Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization shall report 

17 directly to both the Secretary and the Under Secretary 

18 for Veterans Economic Opportunity.’’. 

19 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The tables of chap20 ters at the beginning of title 38, and of part V of title 

21 38, are each amended by inserting after the item relating 

22 to chapter 79 the following new item: 

‘‘80. Veterans Economic Opportunity Administration ........ 8001’’. 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 3719 IH

1 SEC. 3. UNDER SECRETARY FOR VETERANS ECONOMIC OP2 PORTUNITY. 

3 (a) UNDER SECRETARY.—Chapter 3 of title 38, 

4 United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 

5 306 the following new section: 

6 ‘‘§ 306A. Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Op7 portunity 

8 ‘‘(a) UNDER SECRETARY.—There is in the Depart9 ment an Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Oppor10 tunity, who is appointed by the President, by and with 

11 the advice and consent of the Senate. The Under Sec12 retary for Veterans Economic Opportunity shall be ap13 pointed without regard to political affiliation or activity 

14 and solely on the basis of demonstrated ability in— 

15 ‘‘(1) fiscal management; and 

16 ‘‘(2) the administration of programs within the 

17 Veterans Economic Opportunity Administration or 

18 programs of similar content and scope. 

19 ‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Under Secretary for 

20 Veterans Economic Opportunity is the head of, and is di21 rectly responsible to the Secretary for the operations of, 

22 the Veterans Economic Opportunity Administration. 

23 ‘‘(c) VACANCIES.—(1) Whenever a vacancy in the po24 sition of Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Oppor25 tunity occurs or is anticipated, the Secretary shall estabVerDate Nov 24 2008 04:30 Oct 07, 2009 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3719.IH H3719

wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 3719 IH

1 lish a commission to recommend individuals to the Presi2 dent for appointment to the position. 

3 ‘‘(2) A commission established under this subsection 

4 shall be composed of the following members appointed by 

5 the Secretary: 

6 ‘‘(A) Three persons representing education and 

7 training, vocational rehabilitation, employment, real 

8 estate, mortgage finance and related industries, and 

9 survivor benefits activities affected by the Veterans 

10 Economic Opportunity Administration. 

11 ‘‘(B) Two persons representing veterans served 

12 by the Veterans Economic Opportunity Administra13 tion. 

14 ‘‘(C) Two persons who have experience in the 

15 management of veterans benefits programs or pro16 grams of similar content and scope. 

17 ‘‘(D) The Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs. 

18 ‘‘(E) The chairman of the Veterans’ Advisory 

19 Committee on Education formed under section 3692 

20 of this title. 

21 ‘‘(F) One person who has held the position of 

22 Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Oppor23 tunity, if the Secretary determines that it is desir24 able for such person to be a member of the commis25 sion. 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 3719 IH

1 ‘‘(3) A commission established under this subsection 

2 shall recommend at least three individuals for appoint3 ment to the position of Under Secretary for Veterans Eco4 nomic Opportunity. The commission shall submit all rec5 ommendations to the Secretary. The Secretary shall for6 ward the recommendations to the President with any com7 ments the Secretary considers appropriate. Thereafter, the 

8 President may request the commission to recommend ad9 ditional individuals for appointment. 

10 ‘‘(4) The Assistant Secretary or Deputy Assistant 

11 Secretary of Veterans Affairs who performs personnel 

12 management and labor relations functions shall serve as 

13 the executive secretary of a commission established under 

14 this subsection. 

15 ‘‘(d) QUALIFICATIONS OF RECOMMENDED INDIVID16 UALS.—Each individual recommended to the President by 

17 the commission for appointment to the position of Under 

18 Secretary for Veterans Economic Opportunity shall be an 

19 individual who has held a senior level position in the pri20 vate sector with responsibilities relating to at least one of 

21 the following: 

22 ‘‘(1) Education policy. 

23 ‘‘(2) Vocational rehabilitation. 

24 ‘‘(3) Employment. 

25 ‘‘(4) Home loan finance. 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 3719 IH

1 ‘‘(5) Small business development.’’. 

2 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

3 at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting 

4 after the item relating to section 306 the following new 

5 item: 

‘‘306A. Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Opportunity.’’. 

6 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Such title is fur7 ther amended— 

8 (1) in section 7701(a), by inserting after ‘‘as9 sistance’’ the following: ‘‘, other than assistance re10 lated to economic opportunity,’’; 

11 (2) in section 7703, by striking paragraphs (2) 

12 and (3) and redesignating paragraphs (4) and (5) as 

13 paragraphs (2) and (3), respectively; 

14 (3) in section 306(c)(2), by striking subpara15 graphs (A) and (E) and redesignating subpara16 graphs (B), (C), (D), and (F), as subparagraphs (A) 

17 through (D), respectively; 

18 (4) in section 317(d), by inserting after ‘‘Under 

19 Secretary for Benefits’’ the following: ‘‘, the Under 

20 Secretary for Veterans Economic Opportunity,’’; 

21 (5) in section 318(d)(2), by inserting after 

22 ‘‘Under Secretary for Benefits’’ the following: ‘‘, the 

23 Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Oppor24 tunity,’’; 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 3719 IH

1 (6) in section 516(e)(2)(C), by striking ‘‘Health 

2 and the Under Secretary for Benefits’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘Health, the Under Secretary for Benefits, and the 

4 Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Oppor5 tunity’’; 

6 (7) in section 541(a)(2)(B), by striking ‘‘Health 

7 and the Under Secretary for Benefits’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘Health, the Under Secretary for Benefits, and the 

9 Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Oppor10 tunity’’; 

11 (8) in section 542(a)(2)(A)(iii), by striking 

12 ‘‘Health and the Under Secretary for Benefits’’ and 

13 inserting ‘‘Health, the Under Secretary for Benefits, 

14 and the Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Op15 portunity’’; 

16 (9) in section 544(a)(2)(B)(vi), by striking 

17 ‘‘Health and the Under Secretary for Benefits’’ and 

18 inserting ‘‘Health, the Under Secretary for Benefits, 

19 and the Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Op20 portunity’’; and 

21 (10) in section 709(c)(2)(A), by inserting after 

22 ‘‘Under Secretary for Benefits’’ the following: ‘‘, the 

23 Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Oppor24 tunity,’’. 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 3719 IH

1 SEC. 4. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS-DEPART2 MENT OF LABOR-SMALL BUSINESS ADMINIS3 TRATION JOINT EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE ON 

4 ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY. 

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Chapter 3 of title 38, United 

6 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol7 lowing new section: 

8 ‘‘§ 323. Department of Veterans Affairs-Department of 

9 Labor-Small Business Administration 

10 Joint Executive Committee on Economic 

11 Opportunity 

12 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—(1) There is established an 

13 interagency committee to be known as the Department of 

14 Veterans Affairs-Department of Labor-Small Business 

15 Administration Joint Executive Committee on Economic 

16 Opportunity (hereinafter in this section referred to as the 

17 ‘Committee’). 

18 ‘‘(2) The Committee is composed of— 

19 ‘‘(A) the Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs 

20 for Veterans Economic Opportunity; 

21 ‘‘(B) the Director of Homeless Programs of the 

22 Department of Veterans Affairs; 

23 ‘‘(C) the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Vet24 erans Employment and Training; and 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 3719 IH

1 ‘‘(D) the Associate Administrator of the Small 

2 Business Administration for Veterans Business De3 velopment. 

4 ‘‘(b) ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS.—(1) The Deputy 

5 Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the Under Secretary of 

6 Labor, and the Administrator of the Small Business Ad7 ministration shall jointly determine the administrative and 

8 procedural guidelines for the operation of the Committee. 

9 ‘‘(2) The two Departments and the Small Business 

10 Administration shall supply appropriate staff and re11 sources to provide administrative support and services. 

12 Support for such purposes shall be provided at a level suf13 ficient for the efficient operation of the Committee. 

14 ‘‘(c) RECOMMENDATIONS.—(1) The Committee shall 

15 recommend to the Secretaries and the Administrator stra16 tegic direction for the joint coordination and sharing ef17 forts between and within the two Departments and the 

18 Administration to promote and administer veterans eco19 nomic opportunity programs for education and training, 

20 vocational rehabilitation, employment, small business, and 

21 homelessness under section 8111 of this title, and shall 

22 oversee implementation of those efforts. 

23 ‘‘(2) The Committee shall submit to the two Secre24 taries and the Administrator and directly to Congress an 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 3719 IH

1 annual report containing such recommendations as the 

2 Committee considers appropriate. 

3 ‘‘(d) FUNCTIONS.—In order to enable the Committee 

4 to make recommendations in its annual report under sub5 section (c)(2), the Committee shall do the following: 

6 ‘‘(1) Review existing policies, procedures, and 

7 practices relating to the coordination and sharing of 

8 resources between the two Departments. 

9 ‘‘(2) Identify changes in policies, procedures, 

10 and practices that, in the judgment of the Com11 mittee, would promote mutually beneficial coordina12 tion, use, or exchange of use of services and re13 sources of the two Departments and the Administra14 tion, with the goal of improving the quality, effi15 ciency and effectiveness of the delivery of benefits 

16 and services to veterans, service members, military 

17 retirees, and their families through a relationship 

18 among the Department of Veterans Affairs, the De19 partment of Labor, and the Small Business Admin20 istration. 

21 ‘‘(3) Identify and assess further opportunities 

22 for the coordination and collaboration between the 

23 Departments and the Administration that, in the 

24 judgment of the Committee, would not adversely af25 fect the range of services, the quality of care, or the 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 3719 IH

1 established priorities for benefits provided by either 

2 of the Departments or the Administration. 

3 ‘‘(4) Review the plans of both Departments and 

4 the Administration for the acquisition of additional 

5 resources, especially new facilities and major equip6 ment and technology, in order to assess the potential 

7 effect of such plans on further opportunities for the 

8 coordination and sharing of resources. 

9 ‘‘(5) Review the implementation of activities de10 signed to promote the coordination and sharing of 

11 resources between the Departments and the Admin12 istration. 

13 ‘‘(e) CONSULTATION WITH CERTAIN ORGANIZA14 TIONS.—In carrying out its responsibilities under this sec15 tion, the Committee may consult with appropriate organi16 zations that promote employment.’’. 

17 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

18 at the beginning of such chapter is amended by adding 

19 at the end the following new item: 

‘‘323. Department of Veterans Affairs-Department of Labor-Small Business Administration Joint Executive Committee on Economic Opportunity.’’. 

Æ 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with BILLS