I 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4592 

To provide for the establishment of a pilot program to encourage the 

employment of veterans in energy-related positions. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 3, 2010 

Mr. TEAGUE (for himself and Mr. PERRIELLO) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

A BILL 

To provide for the establishment of a pilot program to encourage the employment of veterans in energy-related 

positions. 

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 referred to as the ‘‘Energy Jobs for 

5 Veterans Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PILOT PROGRAM TO ENCOURAGE THE EMPLOY7 MENT OF VETERANS IN ENERGY-RELATED 

8 POSITIONS. 

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT PROGRAM.—To en10 courage the employment of eligible veterans in energy-reVerDate Nov 24 2008 01:22 Feb 04, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4592.IH H4592

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1 lated positions, the Secretary of Labor, through the As2 sistant Secretary of Labor for Veterans’ Employment and 

3 Training, shall establish a pilot program to be known as 

4 the ‘‘Veterans Energy-Related Employment Program’’. 

5 Under the pilot program, the Secretary shall award com6 petitive grants to each of 2 States for the establishment 

7 and administration of a State program to make payments 

8 to energy employers who employ eligible veterans, to be 

9 known as a ‘‘State Energy-Related Employment Pro10 gram’’. 

11 (b) ELIGIBILITY FOR GRANTS.—To be eligible for a 

12 grant under the pilot program, a State shall submit to 

13 the Secretary an application that— 

14 (1) includes a proposal for a State program 

15 that satisfies the requirements in subsection (d); and 

16 (2) demonstrates that the State has— 

17 (A) a population of eligible veterans of an 

18 appropriate size to carry out the State program; 

19 (B) a robust and diverse energy industry; 

20 and 

21 (C) the ability to carry out the State pro22 gram in paragraph (1). 

23 (c) SELECTION.—Under the pilot program, grants 

24 shall be awarded to 2 States that, in the determination 

25 of the Secretary, have proposed and have the ability to 


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1 carry out a State program that, for the greatest number 

2 of eligible veterans, will provide marketable energy job 

3 skills and employment experience and ensure lasting and 

4 sustainable employment in well-paying energy jobs. The 

5 Secretary shall base such determination on the proposal 

6 and criteria referred to in paragraphs (1) and (2) of sub7 section (b), respectively. 

8 (d) REQUIREMENTS FOR STATE PROGRAM.—Under 

9 a State program: 

10 (1) AMOUNT OF PAYMENTS.—A State shall pay 

11 to an energy employer, with respect to each eligible 

12 veteran employed in an apprenticeship or provided 

13 on-job training referred to in subsection (h)(2)(A) by 

14 the energy employer in the State, an amount not to 

15 exceed 50 percent of the product of— 

16 (A) the hourly rate of wages paid to the el17 igible veteran by the energy employer; and 

18 (B) the number of hours worked by the eli19 gible veteran. 

20 (2) LIMITATIONS.—With respect to each eligible 

21 veteran in paragraph (1): 

22 (A) AGGREGATE LIMITATION.—The aggre23 gate amount paid to an energy employer shall 

24 not exceed $20,000. 


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1 (B) MONTHLY LIMITATION.—The amount 

2 paid to an energy employer for any month shall 

3 not exceed one-twelfth of the amount specified 

4 in clause (i). 

5 (C) PAYMENT PERIOD LIMITATION.—Pay6 ments to an energy employer shall not be made 

7 for a period of more than 12 months. 

8 (3) PAYMENT FREQUENCY.—Payments to an 

9 energy employer shall be made on a quarterly basis. 

10 (4) REPORTING.—An energy employer that re11 ceives payments shall be required to submit to the 

12 State, for each quarter, a report— 

13 (A) in which the energy employer and eligi14 ble veteran certify the wages paid by the energy 

15 employer to the eligible veteran for such quarter 

16 under the program; and 

17 (B) containing such other information as 

18 the Secretary may specify. 

19 (5) OUTREACH.—A State shall conduct out20 reach to inform energy employers and veterans, in21 cluding veterans in rural areas, of their eligibility or 

22 potential eligibility for participation in the State pro23 gram. 

24 (e) GRANT.—Under the pilot program: 


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1 (1) AMOUNT.—Grants to a State shall be in 

2 such amounts as the Secretary, based on the pro3 posal by the State in subsection (b)(1), determines 

4 necessary for the State to— 

5 (A) make payments under subsection 

6 (d)(1) with respect to eligible veterans who first 

7 begin work under the State program in fiscal 

8 years 2011 through 2015; and 

9 (B) pay the reasonable costs of admin10 istering the State program until the date on 

11 which no eligible veteran under subparagraph 

12 (A) is working under the State program. 

13 (2) FREQUENCY.—Grants shall be made for 

14 such periods as the Secretary determines appro15 priate. 

16 (f) CONDITIONS.—Under the pilot program, each 

17 grant to a State shall be subject to the following condi18 tions: 

19 (1) PAYMENT.—The State shall pay to the Sec20 retary, on such date as shall be determined by the 

21 Secretary, any amount received under the grant that 

22 is not used for the purposes in subparagraphs (A) 

23 or (B) of paragraph (1) of subsection (e). 

24 (2) REPORTING.—The State shall submit to the 

25 Secretary a report at such time and containing such 


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1 information as the Secretary shall require, including 

2 information on the use of grant funds. 

3 (g) REPORTING.—The Secretary shall include as part 

4 of the annual report required by section 4107(c) of title 

5 38, United States Code, a detailed description of activities 

6 carried out under this section. 

7 (h) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 

8 (1) ELIGIBLE VETERAN.—The term ‘‘eligible 

9 veteran’’ means an individual entitled to educational 

10 assistance under subsection (a) of section 3311 of 

11 title 38, United States Code. 

12 (2) ENERGY EMPLOYER.—The term ‘‘energy 

13 employer’’ means an employer who— 

14 (A) employs an eligible veteran in a pro15 gram of apprenticeship or provides to an eligi16 ble veteran other on-job training approved as 

17 provided in paragraph (1) or (2), as appro18 priate, of subsection (a) of section 3687 of title 

19 38, United States Code; and 

20 (B) employs such eligible veteran in a 

21 trade or business in— 

22 (i) the energy-efficient building, con23 struction, and retrofits industries; 


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1 (ii) the renewable electric power in2 dustry, including the wind and solar en3 ergy industries; 

4 (iii) the biofuels industry; 

5 (iv) the energy efficiency assessment 

6 industry that serves the residential, com7 mercial, or industrial sectors; 

8 (v) the oil and natural gas industry; 

9 or 

10 (vi) the nuclear industry. 

11 (3) PILOT PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘pilot pro12 gram’’ means the Veterans Energy-Related Employ13 ment Program established under subsection (a). 

14 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

15 the Secretary of Labor. 

16 (5) STATE PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘State pro17 gram’’ means a State Energy-Related Employment 

18 Program referred to in subsection (a). 

19 (i) APPROPRIATIONS.—There is authorized to be ap20 propriated to the Secretary $5,000,000 for each of fiscal 

21 years 2011 through 2015, for the purpose of carrying out 

22 the pilot program. 

Æ 


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