Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program Enhancement Act

Mr. President, I rise in support of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program Enhancement Act that I am introducing today with Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan. This bipartisan legislation would address the shortage of veterinarians in many areas of this Nation by helping to increase the placement of more veterinarians in areas of the country where they are desperately needed.

Veterinarians are a critical part of ensuring our access to a safe and high-quality food supply. Americans depend on veterinarians to help ensure food safety and public health, improve animal health and welfare, promote sustainable economic development and safeguard our homeland from foreign animal disease. Unfortunately, nearly every state has a rural community that is suffering from a shortage in essential veterinary services.

To help address this concern, in 2003, Congress established the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program, VMLRP. This program assists selected food animal and public health veterinarians with student loan repayment for a three-year commitment to practice in areas of the country facing a veterinarian shortage. This program helps veterinarians with daunting student loan debt with making a living in a community where starting a practice may be otherwise financially impossible. Through the program, more than 280 veterinarians have been placed in communities throughout the country--a benefit for food safety, the communities, farmers and ranchers, the veterinarians and more.

The problem is the VMLRP is subject to a significant Federal withholding tax on the assistance provided to qualifying veterinarians. This affects the amount of limited resources that can go toward this worthy effort and the reach of its benefits. The legislation we are introducing will address this by providing an exemption from the Federal income withholding tax for payments received under the VMLRP and similar State programs. Thus, more veterinarians would have the opportunity to practice in small, rural communities where their services are so desperately needed and more communities will have much- needed veterinarian services.

To illustrate the need for the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program Enhancement Act, consider the following example. In October 2014, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture announced more than $4.5 million was awarded to 51 veterinarians through the VMLRP. The awards announced in October will fill shortage needs in 22 States. However, estimates show that if this withholding tax were to be eliminated, an additional veterinarian could be placed in a shortage area for every three currently participating in the program. That means approximately 17 additional awards could have been issued last year had this tax been eliminated.

This legislation would also help bring the tax treatment of this program in line with the tax treatment of assistance for doctors and nurses who are serving areas of the country in need through the National Health Service Corps' loan repayment program. In 2004, Congress exempted the benefits available under the National Health Service Corps' loan repayment program from the federal withholding tax. Enactment of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Enhancement Act would create tax parity for the counterpart program for veterinary medicine.

So far, 15 Senators--including Senators Thad Cochran, Johnny Isakson, Jim Risch, Pat Roberts, Michael Bennet, Kirsten Gillibrand, Amy Klobuchar, Al Franken, Mazie Hirono, Angus King, Jr., Pat Leahy, Bernie Sanders, and Tammy Baldwin--from both sides of the aisle have cosponsored this important legislation and 152 national and local organizations support the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program Enhancement Act. Congress can help ensure that every community across America has access to needed veterinary care. Please join us in this effort to place more veterinarians in areas of the country where they are desperately needed and support passage of this bipartisan, commonsense legislation.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a letter of support be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I rise in support of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program Enhancement Act that I am introducing today with Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan. This bipartisan legislation would address the shortage of veterinarians in many areas of this Nation by helping to increase the placement of more veterinarians in areas of the country where they are desperately needed.

Veterinarians are a critical part of ensuring our access to a safe and high-quality food supply. Americans depend on veterinarians to help ensure food safety and public health, improve animal health and welfare, promote sustainable economic development and safeguard our homeland from foreign animal disease. Unfortunately, nearly every state has a rural community that is suffering from a shortage in essential veterinary services.

To help address this concern, in 2003, Congress established the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program, VMLRP. This program assists selected food animal and public health veterinarians with student loan repayment for a three-year commitment to practice in areas of the country facing a veterinarian shortage. This program helps veterinarians with daunting student loan debt with making a living in a community where starting a practice may be otherwise financially impossible. Through the program, more than 280 veterinarians have been placed in communities throughout the country--a benefit for food safety, the communities, farmers and ranchers, the veterinarians and more.

The problem is the VMLRP is subject to a significant Federal withholding tax on the assistance provided to qualifying veterinarians. This affects the amount of limited resources that can go toward this worthy effort and the reach of its benefits. The legislation we are introducing will address this by providing an exemption from the Federal income withholding tax for payments received under the VMLRP and similar State programs. Thus, more veterinarians would have the opportunity to practice in small, rural communities where their services are so desperately needed and more communities will have much- needed veterinarian services.

To illustrate the need for the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program Enhancement Act, consider the following example. In October 2014, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture announced more than $4.5 million was awarded to 51 veterinarians through the VMLRP. The awards announced in October will fill shortage needs in 22 States. However, estimates show that if this withholding tax were to be eliminated, an additional veterinarian could be placed in a shortage area for every three currently participating in the program. That means approximately 17 additional awards could have been issued last year had this tax been eliminated.

This legislation would also help bring the tax treatment of this program in line with the tax treatment of assistance for doctors and nurses who are serving areas of the country in need through the National Health Service Corps' loan repayment program. In 2004, Congress exempted the benefits available under the National Health Service Corps' loan repayment program from the federal withholding tax. Enactment of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Enhancement Act would create tax parity for the counterpart program for veterinary medicine.

So far, 15 Senators--including Senators Thad Cochran, Johnny Isakson, Jim Risch, Pat Roberts, Michael Bennet, Kirsten Gillibrand, Amy Klobuchar, Al Franken, Mazie Hirono, Angus King, Jr., Pat Leahy, Bernie Sanders, and Tammy Baldwin--from both sides of the aisle have cosponsored this important legislation and 152 national and local organizations support the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program Enhancement Act. Congress can help ensure that every community across America has access to needed veterinary care. Please join us in this effort to place more veterinarians in areas of the country where they are desperately needed and support passage of this bipartisan, commonsense legislation.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a letter of support be printed in the Record.