SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Veterans Opportunity to Work Act of 2011’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
TITLE I—RETRAINING VETERANS 
Sec. 101. Veterans retraining assistance program. 
TITLE II—IMPROVING THE TRANSITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM 
Sec. 201. Transition Assistance Program contracting. 
Sec. 202. Mandatory participation in Transition Assistance Program. 
Sec. 203. Report on Transition Assistance Program. 
Sec. 204. Transition Assistance Program outcomes. 
Sec. 205. Comptroller General review. 
TITLE III—IMPROVING THE TRANSITION OF VETERANS TO 
CIVILIAN EMPLOYMENT 
Sec. 301. Reauthorization and improvement of demonstration project on 
credentialing and licensure of veterans. 
Sec. 302. Inclusion of performance measures in annual report on veteran job 
counseling, training, and placement programs of the Depart-
ment of Labor. 
Sec. 303. Clarification of priority of service for veterans in Department of 
Labor job training programs. 
Sec. 304. Evaluation of individuals receiving training at the National Veterans’ 
Employment and Training Services Institute. 
Sec. 305. Requirements for full-time disabled veterans’ outreach program spe-
cialists and local veterans’ employment representatives. 
Sec. 306. Report on findings of the Department of Defense and Department of 
Labor credentialing work group. 
TITLE IV—IMPROVEMENTS TO UNIFORMED SERVICES 
EMPLOYMENT AND REEMPLOYMENT RIGHTS 
Sec. 401. Clarification of benefits of employment covered under USERRA. 
TITLE V—OTHER MATTERS 
Sec. 501. Extension of certain expiring provisions of law. 
Sec. 502. Department of Veterans Affairs housing loan guarantees for surviving 
spouses of certain totally disabled veterans. 
Sec. 503. Reimbursement rate for ambulance services. 
Sec. 504. Annual reports on Post-9/11 Educational Assistance Program and 
Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational Assistance Program. 
Sec. 505. Limitation on amount authorized to be appropriated for employee 
travel, printing, and fleet vehicles.
Sec. 506. Extension of reduced pension for certain veterans covered by Med-
icaid plans for services furnished by nursing facilities. 
Sec. 507. Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010. 
TITLE I—RETRAINING 
VETERANS 
SEC. 101. VETERANS RETRAINING ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 
(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with this sec-
tion, during the period beginning on June 1, 2012, 
and ending on March 31, 2014, the Secretary of 
Labor shall provide for monthly payments of retrain-
ing assistance to eligible veterans. Payments of re-
training assistance under this section shall be made 
by the Secretary of Labor through the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs. 
(2) NUMBER
OF
ELIGIBLE
VETERANS.—The 
number of eligible veterans who participate in the 
program may not exceed— 
(A) 45,000 during fiscal year 2012; and 
(B) 55,000 during the period beginning 
October 1, 2012, and ending March 31, 2014. 
(b) RETRAINING ASSISTANCE.—Except as provided 
by subsection (i), each veteran who participates in the pro-
gram established under subsection (a)(1) shall be entitled 
to up to 12 months of retraining assistance, as determined 
by the Secretary of Labor. Such retraining assistance may 
only be used by the veteran to pursue a program of edu-
cation (as such term is defined in section 3452(b) of title 
38, United States Code) or training on a full-time basis 
that— 
(1) is approved under chapter 36 of such title; 
(2) is offered by a community college or tech-
nical school; 
(3) leads to an associates degree or a certificate 
(or other similar evidence of the completion of the 
program of education or training); and 
(4) is designed to provide training for a high- 
demand occupation, as determined by the Secretary 
of Labor. 
(c) MONTHLY CERTIFICATION.—Each veteran who 
participates in the program established under subsection 
(a)(1) shall certify to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
the enrollment of the veteran in a program of education 
described in subsection (b) for each month in which the 
veteran participates in the program. 
(d) AMOUNT OF ASSISTANCE.—The monthly amount 
of the retraining assistance payable under this section is 
the amount in effect under section 3015(a)(1) of title 38, 
United States Code. 
(e) ELIGIBILITY.—For purposes of this section, an 
eligible veteran is a veteran who—
(1) is at least 35 years of age but not more 
than 60 years of age; 
(2) was last discharged from active duty service 
in the Armed Forces with an honorable discharge; 
(3) as of the date of the submittal of the appli-
cation for assistance under this section, has been un-
employed for a period of time determined by the 
Secretary, with special consideration given to vet-
erans who have been unemployed for at least 26 con-
tinuous weeks; 
(4) is not eligible to apply for educational as-
sistance under chapter 30, 31, 33, or 35 of title 38, 
United States Code; and 
(5) by not later than October 1, 2013, submits 
to the Secretary of Labor an application containing 
such information and assurances as the Secretary 
may require. 
(f) REPORT.—Not later than July 1, 2014, the Sec-
retary of Labor and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
shall jointly submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Af-
fairs of the Senate and the House of Representatives a 
report on the retraining assistance provided under this 
section, including— 
(1) the total number of— 
(A) eligible veterans who participated;
(B) credit hours completed; and 
(C) 
associates 
degrees 
or 
certificates 
awarded (or other similar evidence of the com-
pletion of the program of education or training 
earned); and 
(2) data related to the employment status of el-
igible veterans who participated. 
(g) JOINT AGREEMENT.—The Secretary of Labor 
and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall enter into an 
agreement on carrying out this section. 
(h) SOURCE OF FUNDS.—Payments under this sec-
tion shall be made from amounts appropriated to the read-
justment benefits account of the Department of Veterans 
Affairs. 
(i) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.—The authority to 
make payments under this section shall terminate on 
March 31, 2014. 
TITLE 
II—IMPROVING 
THE 
TRANSITION 
ASSISTANCE 
PROGRAM 
SEC. 
201. 
TRANSITION 
ASSISTANCE 
PROGRAM 
CON-
TRACTING. 
(a) 
TRANSITION
ASSISTANCE
PROGRAM
CON-
TRACTING.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Section 4113 of title 38, 
United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘§ 4113. Transition Assistance Program personnel 
‘‘(a) AUTHORITY TO CONTRACT.—In accordance 
with section 1144 of title 10, the Secretary shall enter into 
a contract with an appropriate private entity or entities 
to provide the functions described in subsection (b) at all 
locations where the program described in such section is 
carried out. 
‘‘(b) FUNCTIONS.—Contractors under subsection (a) 
shall provide to members of the Armed Forces who are 
being separated from active duty (and the spouses of such 
members) the services described in section 1144(a)(1) of 
title 10, including— 
‘‘(1) counseling; 
‘‘(2) assistance in identifying employment and 
training opportunities and help in obtaining such 
employment and training; 
‘‘(3) other related information and services 
under such section; and 
‘‘(4) any other services that the Secretary de-
termines are appropriate.’’. 
(2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec-
tions at the beginning of chapter 41 of title 38, 
United States Code, is amended by striking the item
small business concern owned and controlled by service- 
disabled veterans and that is included in the database of 
veteran-owned businesses maintained under subsection (f) 
of section 8127 of title 38 and verified by the Secretary 
pursuant to paragraph (4) of that subsection. 
‘‘(ii) If the Secretary of Labor is unable to enter into 
the contract under subparagraph (A) with a qualified busi-
ness concern described in clause (i), the Secretary shall 
enter into such contract with another qualified appropriate 
entity. 
‘‘(C) The Secretary of Labor shall enter into the con-
tract under this paragraph using funds made available for 
the State grant program authorized under section 4102A 
of title 38.’’. 
SEC. 204. TRANSITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM OUTCOMES. 
Section 1144 of title 10, United States Code, as 
amended by section 202 and 203, is further amended by 
adding at the end the following new subsection: 
‘‘(f) PROGRAM OUTCOMES.—The Secretary of Labor 
shall develop a method to assess the outcomes for individ-
uals who participate in the program established under this 
section. The Secretary of Defense shall provide to the Sec-
retary of Labor any data on participation in the program 
that is necessary for the Secretary of Labor to develop
such method. Such method shall be designed to determine 
the following outcomes: 
‘‘(1) The length of the period during which the 
individual was unemployed following the individual’s 
separation from active duty. 
‘‘(2) The beginning salary paid to the individual 
for the first job the individual obtained following 
such separation. 
‘‘(3) The number of months of school or other 
training the individual attended during the first 12- 
month period following such separation.’’. 
SEC. 205. COMPTROLLER GENERAL REVIEW. 
Not later than one year after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 
States shall conduct a review of the Transition Assistance 
Program under section 1144 of title 10, United States 
Code, and submit to Congress a report on the results of 
the review and any recommendations of the Comptroller 
General for improving the program.
TITLE 
III—IMPROVING 
THE 
TRANSITION 
OF 
VETERANS 
TO CIVILIAN EMPLOYMENT 
SEC. 301. REAUTHORIZATION AND IMPROVEMENT OF DEM-
ONSTRATION PROJECT ON CREDENTIALING 
AND LICENSURE OF VETERANS. 
Section 4114 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) in subsection (b)— 
(A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘not less 
than 10’’ and inserting ‘‘not less than 5 but not 
more than 10’’; and 
(B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘consult 
with appropriate Federal, State, and industry 
officials’’ and inserting ‘‘enter into a contract 
with an appropriate entity representing a coali-
tion of State governors’’; 
(2) in subsection (g)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘Veterans Benefits, Health 
Care, and Information Technology Act of 
2006’’ and inserting the ‘‘Veterans Opportunity 
to Work Act of 2011’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘September 30, 2009’’ and 
inserting ‘‘September 30, 2014’’; 
(3) in subsection (h)—
(A) by striking ‘‘utilizing unobligated 
funds’’ and inserting ‘‘using not more than 
$180,000 of the funds in each fiscal year’’; and 
(B) by inserting before the period at the 
end the following: ‘‘, to be derived from 
amounts otherwise made available to carry out 
sections 4103A and 4104 of this title’’; and 
(4) by adding at the end the following new sub-
section: 
‘‘(i) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 30 days 
after the last day of a fiscal year during which the dem-
onstration project under this section is carried out, the 
Assistant Secretary, in coordination with the entity with 
which the Assistant Secretary enters into a contract under 
subsection (b)(2), shall submit to the Committees on Vet-
erans’ Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives 
a report on the implementation of the demonstration 
project during that fiscal year.’’. 
SEC. 302. INCLUSION OF PERFORMANCE MEASURES IN AN-
NUAL REPORT ON VETERAN JOB COUN-
SELING, TRAINING, AND PLACEMENT PRO-
GRAMS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR. 
Section 4107(c) of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended—
(1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘clause (1)’’ 
and inserting ‘‘paragraph (1)’’; 
(2) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 
end; 
(3) in paragraph (6), by striking the period and 
inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(4) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraphs: 
‘‘(7) performance measures for the provision of 
assistance under this chapter, including— 
‘‘(A) the percentage of participants in pro-
grams under this chapter who are employed 
after the 180-day period following their comple-
tion of the program; 
‘‘(B) the percentage of such participants 
who are employed after the one-year period fol-
lowing their completion of the program; 
‘‘(C) the median earnings of such partici-
pants after the 180-day period following their 
completion of the program; 
‘‘(D) the median earnings of such partici-
pants after the one-year period following their 
completion of the program; and 
‘‘(E) the percentage of participants in such 
program who complete a certificate, degree, di-