Amata and House Veterans Committee Seek to Improve Transition to Civilian Life for Veterans
Washington, D.C. –Thursday, Congresswoman Aumua Amata, and the House Veterans Affairs Committee (HVAC) conducted a legislative hearing on several bills that have been brought before the committee.
Congresswoman Amata and other HVAC Members during a recent RoundTable discussion
“The Transition Assistance Program (TAP) is an extremely useful tool for those service members transitioning to civilian life,” said Amata. “The assistance the program provides to these heroes in finding meaningful and well-paying jobs is vital to their continued success following their service to our nation. However, inadvertently the program may not be currently providing the right kind of assistance to those veterans of minority groups, which is why I am an original cosponsor of Rep. Takano’s bill, the Women, Disabled and Minority Veterans’ Transition Improvement Act,” continued the Congresswoman.
During the hearing, the committee heard testimony on several pieces of legislation that would impact our veterans, including Rep. Takano’s TAP improvement bill. Specifically, the Women, Disabled and Minority Veterans’ Transition Improvement Act would require the Department of Labor (DOL) to initiate a research program, in collaboration with the Department of Defense (DOD) and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), to better understand if and how the current TAP addresses the different needs, challenges, and post-service aspirations of women veterans, disabled veterans, Native American veterans, and other groups of minority veterans as identified by the DOL, DOD and VA Secretaries. The agencies would also recommend changes to the current TAP program that would appropriately address barriers and better serve these groups of veterans in their pursuit of meaningful employment following their military service.
“I want to thank Representative Takano for introducing this important legislation that will help to assist those minority veteran groups as they transfer to civilian life. I would also like to thank the American Legion for their foresight in helping to ensure that those veterans in the Insular Areas were considered in the drafting of the bill. It seems that my persistent questions regarding the inclusion of the territories are beginning to pay off,” said Amata jokingly.
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