BILL ANALYSIS
By: Van de Putte
Defense Affairs & State-Federal Relations
Committee Report (Substituted)
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
The federal government funds the disabled veteran outreach program and local veterans employment representative (DVOP/LVER) programs. The Texas DVOP/LVER programs are administered by the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC).
Currently, DVOP/LVER staffers are state employees working at each local workforce
development board, and current Texas statute specifies that block grant funding for local workforce development areas is not applicable for veteran employment programs. However, some people have attempted to bring the federal DVOP/LVER program staff under block grants in order to privatize the programs. Under the block grant programs, private contractors administer the local boards. These programs were specifically exempted from block grant
funding, at both the federal and state level, because the state needs to maintain its high
prioritization of veterans.
S.B. 1714 requires that the DVOP/LVER programs be operated, rather than administered, by the Veterans Commission, and that the staff of these programs be state employees and serve only veterans, as required by the terms of the federal grants.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that rulemaking authority is expressly granted to the Texas Veterans Commission in SECTION 4 of this bill.
ANALYSIS
SECTION 1 requires an additional duty of the Texas Veterans Commission (TVC) to operate programs in this state to enhance the employment opportunities of veterans of the armed forces of the United States, including the employment program funded under Chapters 41 and 42, Title 38, United States Code.
This SECTION also requires that the programs must exclusively enhance the employment opportunities of eligible veterans, and the services provided under those programs must be provided by state employees and the employee responsible for the program provide service only to veterans.
SECTION 2 removes these veterans programs from the Texas Workforce Commission.
SECTION 4 sets out that the TWC and the TVC shall establish a transition team to transfer the programs and that the transition shall be complete not later than October 1, 2006.
EFFECTIVE DATE
This Act takes effect September 1, 2005.
COMPARISON OF ENGROSSED TO SUBSTITUTE
The Committee substitute in SECTION 4 sets out a program transition team and moves the transition of the programs to October 1, 2006.