Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the House amendment to S. 2248, the Veterans Benefit and Transition Act of 2018. This bipartisan measure contains legislation championed by my House and Senate colleagues on both sides of the aisle and is a testament to the bipartisan relationships we cultivate and preserve on both the House and Senate Veterans' Affairs Committees.

I thank Chairman Roe and all members of the House and Senate Veterans' Affairs Committees, both Democrats and Republicans, for their hard work putting together this legislative package that will improve the benefits and support our country owes America's veterans.

I want to specifically acknowledge my Democratic colleagues, Ranking Member Walz, now Governor-elect of Minnesota--and, yes, Chairman Roe, it is very cold there--Congressman Scott Peters, Congressman Correa, Congresswoman Pingree, Congressman Himes, and Congresswoman Bustos, who have made valuable contributions to this legislation.

I would also like to take this time to thank Dr. Roe for his leadership as chairman of this committee in this Congress. I look forward to working with Dr. Roe as ranking member of the 116th Congress so that we can continue to function as a productive committee in the 116th, free from partisan gridlock, on behalf of the veterans whom we represent.

Now, as a former teacher--actually, a current teacher--and advocate for improving educational and training opportunities for veterans, I am pleased this legislation contains several provisions written by my colleagues that will improve the lives of our student veterans and those of our Gold Star spouses.

This package also includes a provision that helps our reservists and National Guard members access the valuable help that the vocational rehabilitation program can provide.

I would first like to highlight legislation written by Mr. Peters, our colleague on this committee. This measure contains his bill, H.R. 5538, that would provide parity to our National Guard and Reserve servicemembers involuntarily mobilized to Active Duty under 12304b of title 10 in support of commands that conduct combat missions.

As our country continues to utilize our Guard and Reserve members as an operational reserve force, it is critically important that we modernize our statutes to treat our Guard and Reserve members who have served shoulder to shoulder with Active-Duty servicemembers on multiple deployments with parity while they serve in uniform.

This bill allows Guard and Reserve members to stop the clock on the 12-year limit to use vocational rehabilitation programs while they are supporting active combat missions. Currently, the clock is stopped for most other instances in which National Guard and Reserve are mobilized, but this particular authority was overlooked.

This is an important fix because the Department of Defense continues to increase the use of its 12304b authority. With this provision, Congress has the authority to be proactive in addressing the needs of our servicemembers.

Now, let me turn to Congressman Himes' bill, H.R. 3634, the Securing Electronic Records for Veterans' Ease Act of 2017. It is included in this measure as well.

For student veterans, the VA does not currently provide sufficient information about the exact amount of housing stipend that a beneficiary will receive under the GI Bill benefits; but many veterans rely on their housing stipend to pay for housing while they are attending school, making it necessary for them to show proof of their housing allowance as proof of income. Without this proof of income, veterans often find themselves unable to secure housing before the start of school.

Now, this is a commonsense piece of documentation that VA can electronically provide to allow our veterans to easily use their earned benefits, and I am pleased this great idea by Congressman Himes was included in this package.

Congresswoman Bustos' legislation, H.R. 5882, the Gold Star Spouses Leasing Relief Act, would allow the spouse of a deceased servicemember to terminate a housing lease following the death of his or her loved one.

Servicemembers and their families are often stationed far from home due to the needs of the service. In the sad and difficult time after the passing of a servicemember, spouses should not be locked into a rental lease far away from their home and support network and face an additional financial burden to return home.

This small detail can make life a lot easier for a grieving spouse, and I am pleased to see my colleague's bill included in this package.

Congressman Lou Correa, our colleague on this committee, introduced H.R. 4335, the Servicemember Family Burial Act, which makes permanent VA's practice of providing burials and headstones for the family of servicemembers who predecease them.

When an Active-Duty servicemember loses a spouse or a child, it is always in tragic and difficult circumstances. VA should continue to seamlessly provide this benefit with dignity, sensitivity, and compassion.

I want to thank Congressman Correa for sponsoring this legislation, and I am pleased to see it included in this measure.

I also wish to highlight legislation written by Congresswoman Pingree, the Veterans Fair Debt Notice Act of 2017, which is included in this legislative package.

The American Legion, the Disabled American Veterans, the Paralyzed Veterans of America, the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars testified before our committee that the debt collection letters VA sends veterans are confusing, do not clearly explain the reason for the debt or clearly describe the steps a veteran must take to dispute or mitigate the debt.

This legislation would require VA to explain the reason the veteran incurred a debt in plain language and clearly explain the steps they can take to dispute or repay the debt.

It would also require VA to give veterans the option to opt-in to electronic notification and require VA to determine the number of veterans who are not receiving debt notification letters due to incorrect addresses on file, which prevents veterans from taking action because they have not been notified. This legislation forces VA to make these changes within 90 days of enactment.

Finally, I wish to thank my good friend, Ranking Member Tim Walz, for his leadership on this committee during the 115th Congress. The Governor-elect of Minnesota leaves the United States House of Representatives with a legacy of bipartisan legislative accomplishments that will undoubtedly improve the lives of veterans for years to come.

I want to thank Chairman Roe and our Senate colleagues for including his bill, H.R. 4245, the Veterans' Electronic Health Record Modernization Oversight Act of 2017, in this measure, enabling this committee to continue its oversight of the $16 billion Electronic Health Record Modernization, or EHRM, program over the next 10 years.

Mr. Speaker, I say to the gentleman, Chairman Roe, we are going to do intensive oversight of this project; I guarantee you that.

This legislation requires the VA to submit contract, technical, and other documents to Congress and to provide updated documents on a quarterly basis.

The legislation also requires VA to notify Congress about program challenges, including incidents affecting patient safety, cost overruns over $1 million, and a milestone delay of 30 days or more, bid protests, or a data or privacy breach.

Now, we know that we will likely need to expand these reporting requirements in the future to include other contract and technical documents as the program matures and additional technical capabilities are achieved. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the next Congress to ensure that we maintain close oversight of this program and hold VA accountable, if necessary.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the House amendment to S. 2248, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, may I inquire how much time I have remaining?

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Correa), my colleague, my good friend and fellow Californian, and member of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Maine (Ms. Pingree), my good friend.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Himes), my good friend and also a member of the House Intelligence Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers.

I want to urge all my colleagues to join me in passing this important legislation, S. 2248. I want to announce my intention to work with Mr. Roe, my colleague from Tennessee, in the next Congress, that we will preserve the sacred bipartisan space that we have here for America's veterans in the Veterans' Affairs Committee. We have so much more to do, and I hope it lays the groundwork for this Congress to continue to heal and reach out to each other and serve America as well as our veterans.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of California State Senator Robert Presley. His life's work represents some of the best of what Riverside can produce.

He was a war hero and was awarded the Bronze Star in World War II. He was an honorable law enforcement officer, and earned the reputation of being a fair truth seeker, even during times of unrest in Riverside. He was an honest public servant. He accomplished great things for Riverside, and moved our State forward as a California State Senator.

When I was in my twenties, Bob gave me a chance. He named me as his alternate to the Central Committee of the Riverside County Democratic Party, which allowed me to follow my passion for public service, and for that, I will always be grateful.

Bob will be dearly missed, but his name, his work, his Democratic spirit, and the legacy he left behind will be cherished by our community forever.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Henry W. Coil, Jr., a Riverside native and a champion of education in the arts.

Henry has left an indelible legacy as a visionary and as a philanthropist who loved and supported his community. Through his generous and highly successful construction work, he helped build and restore schools and infrastructure throughout the Inland Empire in southern California.

I knew Henry through his love for Riverside Community College, which he attended before moving on to UC Berkeley. At RCC, we worked to establish a new school for the arts, and it was Henry's philanthropy that helped turn this vision into a reality.

For most of his life, Henry was a successful businessman, but his dedication to his community set him apart. He served briefly on the Riverside City Council, and he was a devoted supporter of the Boy Scouts. In fact, he even went on to earn the Boy Scouts' Distinguished Eagle Scout Award, recognizing 50 years of his continued service to the Boy Scouts.

Above all, what made Henry special was his character. He stood up to bigotry and prejudice. I recall him saying to me how misguided he thought it was that a local politician was running a homophobic campaign. This was a bold position to take at the time, but this statement has stuck with me, throughout my life and career, as a mark of his character.

While Henry may no longer be with us, the positive change he created will never be forgotten.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 3479, the Department of Veterans Affairs Expiring Authorities Act of 2018.

S. 3479 makes sure that some of the vital programs we have in place to take care of our veterans continue past the end of the fiscal year and continue to help our veterans. Included in this bill are provisions related to healthcare, benefits, homeless veterans, and other related issues.

I am pleased to support extending programs related to support services for caregivers, childcare for certain veterans receiving healthcare, and a pilot program on counseling in retreat settings for women veterans newly separated from service.

It also has provisions to extend the authority related to rehabilitation and vocational benefits to members of the Armed Forces with severe injuries or illnesses, homeless veterans reintegration programs, homeless women veterans and homeless veterans with children, and providing housing assistance and counseling to homeless and at-risk veterans.

Also included are several extensions of authority for programs to help our disabled veterans, as well as the authority to enter into agreements with the National Academy of Sciences to review the research on links between diseases and dioxin exposure, a critical step in creating new Agent Orange presumptions. These provisions are crucial in helping our aging Vietnam-era veteran population.

The package also contains several technical corrections to the MISSION Act that we passed earlier this year.

These corrections will help VA implement the law correctly, and all sides agree that they must become law quickly.

In short, this is a bill that both the majority and the minority support, and we all agree that it must be signed into law as soon as possible. I urge all my fellow Members to support its passage. I thank the chairman and his staff for working with the minority on this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, likewise, I thank the gentleman from Texas for his friendship and for the work that we have done together in a bipartisan fashion on the Veterans' Affairs Committee. I am also proud of the bipartisan work that we have accomplished together on behalf of our veterans. I say God bless our veterans as well.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in passing S. 3479, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of Kathleen Daley--a friend, a trusted colleague, and a respected member of the Riverside community.

I met Kathleen Daley when I was elected to the RCC board of trustees. As I got to know her, I realized that she and I could not be more different. She was a conservative Republican, and I am a progressive Democrat. She was a tax accountant, and, back then, I was still a public schoolteacher. But in spite of these differences, when we served on the board of trustees, we were always able to work together and put the needs of students first.

I respected her for her expertise in finance. The board trusted her to chair the finance committee during her tenure. I admired her for her knowledge and experience, and so did my colleagues. We often unanimously supported her to be the presiding officer of the board. And I befriended her because of the dedicated person she was, because she always worked in the best interest of students.

Riverside has lost a great public servant, and I join our community in remembering Kathleen Daley's passion for student success and recognizing her contributions.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Texas for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to H.R. 6691, the Community Safety and Security Act of 2018.

Mr. Speaker, I want to bring to my colleague's attention an issue I don't think the majority considered when rushing this bill to the floor without any hearings or markup. They departed from regular order, and doing so always has some, I think, unintended consequences.

H.R. 6691 will help deport veterans, people who have served in our military and often who have served in combat. Current law makes certain crimes a deportable offense for legal permanent residents. For the thousands of servicemembers and veterans who are legal permanent residents, this bill will make it easier to deport them.

If a soldier comes home with PTSD or if a veteran is struggling with substance abuse or gets in trouble with the law, this bill makes it harder to grant them any kind of discretion.

I have met with dozens of deported veterans who have served their country honorably, even been to war, but were deported when they came home. They made mistakes. They paid their debt to society, and their service meant nothing when it came time to permanently banish them from our country.

Now, that is unfair. It is cruel and unusual punishment. I believe that if anyone deserves a second chance in our country, it is our veterans.

Now, I agree with many of my colleagues that the Supreme Court is right and that we need to change the vagueness in the current law; however, we need to do that through regular order. This bill would classify certain crimes as violent, even if no one was harmed in the act. These are serious issues and they deserve a serious process.

Mr. Speaker, this bill will have many unintended consequences if made into law. I implore my colleagues to vote against it and have it go through regular order and get the hearings that it merits.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, to begin, I thank Representative Higgins for his hard work on this legislation, and I support H.R. 5693, as amended.

This bipartisan legislation is a forward-thinking first step toward better aligning VA's long-term care options with veteran preferences.

Medical foster homes are a solution for veterans that may not be comfortable in a traditional institutional setting, such as a nursing home, yet still need some form of daily assistance and care. These homes provide caregiving services in a group setting for veterans that lack access to caregiving services at home.

By allowing VA to cover the cost of medical foster homes, VA will be able to ensure veterans are achieving the most appropriate level of care in the most appropriate setting.

The care delivered at medical foster homes is less intensive; therefore, less expensive. Additionally, the sense of community and the familiar home-like setting can promote a veteran's physical and mental health.

Again, I appreciate my colleague's hard work on this legislation and look forward to voting in favor of the bill. I congratulate the gentleman from Louisiana's hard work.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Correa), a member of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and let it also be known that prior to his coming to Congress, he chaired a veterans committee in the California State Legislature.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 5693, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2409, as amended, to allow certain servicemembers to terminate their cable, satellite television, and Internet service contracts while deployed. This is an important part of modernizing the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act and helps it reflect the current lifestyle of servicemembers.

Internet and television access have become necessities in the modern world. The SCRA is key to protecting the rights of servicemembers and allowing them to fulfill their service obligations.

I would like to thank the chairman for working with the minority to match this bill to the changes we are making under H.R. 5882, as amended, the Gold Star Spouses Leasing Relief Act, which we will also be voting on today.

I would also like to thank the chairman for working with us on including National Guard and reservist servicemembers who are killed while on duty.

Lastly, I want to recognize Mr. Kilmer and Mr. McGovern for working with Mr. Costello to bring this important bill forward.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Kilmer), my good friend.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 2409, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2787, as amended, the Vet MD Act.

The Department of Veterans Affairs, like the Nation, is experiencing a shortage of healthcare providers. With shortages in areas like mental healthcare and medical administration, it can become increasingly difficult to maintain a facility's efficiency and quality. That is why it is increasingly important to promote medical education and employment within VA as soon in a student's educational career as is possible.

This bill allows VA to capture students as they complete their premedical undergraduate degrees by offering them the opportunity to shadow medical professionals in VA facilities. Not only does this create a familiarity with VA among the students, but allows VA to continue to do one of the things it does best: educate the Nation's future healthcare providers.

I appreciate the hard work of my colleague, Representative Kaptur, and urge my colleagues to vote in favor of the Vet MD Act.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), the author of this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 45 seconds to the gentlewoman from Ohio.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, as I was listening to my friend from the State of Ohio, I was struck by just how the process of legislating in this body works, how ideas come from very real people seeking to solve problems through their Representative. And I watched this legislation move through committee, the gentlewoman graciously accepting the changes and approving the bill.

I know that my colleague from Tennessee, a doctor himself, cares so much about medical education. We worked together on expanding the number of medical residencies.

I am delighted this bill has come to the floor so expeditiously. Often, legislation takes so much time to win its way through, but an idea that was very worthy moved through and, I think, in record time.

So, again, Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 2787, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5538, the Reserve Component Vocational Rehabilitation Parity Act.

This bill protects an overlooked provision related to our National Guard and Reserve servicemembers who are mobilized under 12304b authorities. This bill allows servicemembers to pause the clock on the 12-year limit to use vocational rehabilitation programs while mobilized on Active Duty orders. Currently, this is allowed for mostly mobilization authorities, but this particular authority was overlooked. Simply, the bill adds to 12304a and 12304b authorities to the 12304 provision already listed within the statute.

This is an important fix because of the increased use of 12304b authority by the Department of Defense over the past few years, and the increases planned for the future. As we move the Reserve components from a strategic reserve to an operational reserve concept, it is critically important that we modernize our statutes to ensure benefits parity while servicemembers are in uniform. This is a step in the right direction.

With this bill, Congress has the opportunity to be proactive, instead of reactive, to the needs of our servicemembers.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Peters for bringing this issue forward and identifying a fix. He is a reliable and critical advocate for our country's National Guard and Reserve servicemembers. I also thank Mr. Bergman for reaching across the aisle and joining Mr. Peters in introducing this bill. And I thank the co-chairs of the House's National Guard and Reserve Components Caucus, Mr. Walz and Mr. Palazzo, for supporting the initiative. Lastly, I thank the six other members of our committee who were original cosponsors of the bill, including Mr. O'Rourke, Ms. Brownley, and Ms. Kuster.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Peters), a member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, the author of this bill, and my good friend.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 5538, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5649, as amended, the Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer William ``Bill'' Mulder (Ret.) Transition Improvements Act of 2018.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the Economic Opportunity Subcommittee chairman, Mr. Arrington, and ranking member, Mr. O'Rourke, for their bipartisan focus on this issue and the bipartisan way they have crafted this piece of legislation and have moved it forward.

This bill was generated out of feedback from our veteran service organization partners, rigorous oversight, and many, many hearings. It includes a number of curriculum changes, expansion of services, as well as first steps to making TAP a part of a larger transition effort.

It also includes Ms. Brownley's Reduce Unemployment for Veterans of All Ages Act, which eliminates the period of eligibility for vocational rehabilitation services. Currently, veterans have only 12 years after their military service to utilize vocational rehabilitation services. This removes that deadline and allows anyone who qualifies for vocational rehabilitation to access those services in perpetuity.

It also includes Mr. Poe's Veterans Education Disaster Act that provides continued educational assistance to students impacted by natural disasters. This is similar to the benefits that are provided for veterans whose schools suddenly close their doors, in order to ensure that veterans are not struggling while they seek to restart their education. This would also allow veterans to continue collecting their housing benefits even though their schools closed from natural disasters, and allow them to stop and restart their tuition benefits once their schools reopen.

We also pay for this bill by closing a loophole in flight school costs, while also making modifications to law that allows for the unique nature of flight schools.

All of these provisions have been crafted to fix issues we have seen in the field, and they will make life a little bit easier for our veterans.

Mr. Speaker, again, I thank Mr. O'Rourke and Mr. Arrington for these necessary improvements to the Transition Assistance Program. A testament to their work is the broad support they have received from committee members for this bill, including Ms. Kuster, Mr. Peters, and Ms. Esty. I look forward to their future work on this as they continue to focus on and refine the program.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

The work of this subcommittee is the work of great heart, and I appreciate the heartfelt work that the chairman, Mr. Arrington, has put forward.

I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. O'Rourke), my good friend, the ranking member of the Economic Opportunity Subcommittee, a gentleman with great heart for veterans.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. Esty), my good friend, and the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, this is a very special piece of legislation to me. I was once the ranking member of this very subcommittee, and I applaud the work of Ranking Member Beto O'Rourke and Chairman Arrington. This is a work of great heart, of great compassion, and we all know that we need to improve the transition from military service to civilian life for our servicemembers.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 5649, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5882, as amended, the Gold Star Spouses Leasing Relief Act.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to first start by thanking the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Bustos) for drafting this bill. It would allow the spouse of a servicemember to terminate their lease after the death of the servicemember.

Oftentimes, servicemembers and their families are required to move far away from home due to the needs of the service and where the servicemember is stationed. In the difficult time after the passing of a servicemember, spouses should not be stuck in a lease far away from their home and support network. This may seem like a small detail, but it is something that can make life just a little bit easier in a very trying time.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the chairman for working with us on including National Guard and Reserve servicemembers who are killed while on duty.

As we move the Reserve components from a Strategic Reserve to an Operational Reserve concept, we are seeing too many deaths of National Guardsmen and -women and reservists while they are in uniform. It is critically important that we modernize our statutes to ensure benefits parity while servicemembers are in uniform.

Mr. Speaker, again, I would like to thank the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Bustos), for working on this issue and Mr. Wenstrup for joining her in introducing the bill. I would also like to thank our fellow committee members, Ms. Kuster, Ms. Brownley, and Miss Gonzalez- Colon, for cosponsoring this bill and raising the profile of this issue.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Bustos), my good friend and the author of this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I have no more speakers. I am prepared to close, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 5882, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Illinois for introducing this important piece of legislation. I am dumbfounded that we have landlords who would not recognize the situation of a fallen soldier, but this law is necessary, and I urge all my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5864, as amended, the VA Hospitals Establishing Leadership Performance Act, or VA HELP Act.

Due to nationwide shortages, nuanced certification and licensing requirements, and complex position descriptions, human resource professionals working in the healthcare industry must possess a unique set of skills and qualifications.

Human resource professionals working within the VA must further develop their skills while learning how to leverage the many hiring initiatives, budgetary concerns, and Federal resources in a way that can compete with the private sector's financial incentives.

The VA HELP Act is an effort to assist the VA in finding the unique talent it needs to fill these health-specific human resource officers by requiring the VA to establish qualifications and standardized performance metrics for each human resource position within VHA.

By further defining the human resource positions within VHA and standardizing performance metrics, the VA will be able to more easily to attract, access, and retain quality human resource officers.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I am prepared to close.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 5864, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5938, as amended, the Veterans Serving Veterans Act of 2018.

Veterans exit the military with the highest quality of education and experience in their respective fields. We, along with the private sector, have worked diligently to ensure servicemembers are able to translate their skills to the private industry. However, this bill takes our efforts a step further by allowing the VA to create a searchable vacancy and recruitment database containing each VA vacancy and the corresponding military occupation code or skill that corresponds to the positions.

The database will also allow interested servicemembers to opt in to be included in the database, so that the VA may begin recruiting transitioning servicemembers to fill vacant positions before their discharges are complete.

In addition to the creation of the database, the bill also allows the Secretary to create a pilot program to train servicemembers who served as basic healthcare technicians while serving in the Armed Forces to be trained as intermediate care technicians at the VHA.

By creating a pipeline from service to bedside, the VA can better treat the 9 million veterans who depend on its services.

I appreciate the gentlewoman from Puerto Rico (Miss Gonzalez-Colon) for her hard work on this bill, and I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 5938, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5974, as amended, the Department of Veterans Affairs Creation of On-Site Treatment Systems Affording Veterans Improvements and Numerous General Safety Enhancements Act, otherwise known as the VA COST SAVINGS Enhancements Act.

Mr. Speaker, the current funding issues currently surrounding VA are evidence of the need for creative cost savings measures. I must thank Representative Denham in identifying and championing one such creative solution.

The VA COST SAVINGS Enhancements Act simply asks VHA to review its current medical waste disposal system and determine whether hosting this disposal onsite would result in cost savings over the next 5 years. If so, then the facility is required to implement onsite disposal.

Onsite medical waste disposal is safer and far more efficient in most cases, and this bill would simply require VHA to ensure they are achieving the safest and most cost-effective method of medical waste disposal.

Again, I thank Representative Denham for his work on the bill, and I

urge my colleagues to vote in favor of the measure.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I ask my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 5974, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.