Vets Jobs Bill Heads to the Senate Floor

Montana’s senior U.S. Senator Max Baucus’ VETS Jobs Bill (Veteran Employment Transition Act) would reinstate a tax credit that expired at the end of 2010 for employers who hire servicemen and women who’ve left the service in the last five years, and it would simplify the credit so it’s easier for businesses to use. The credit for businesses is worth up to $2,400 per veteran hired.

The bill goes to the Senate floor after its approval by the Senate Committee on Finance.

The bipartisan legislation now has 22 co-sponsors in the Senate, and 55 co-sponsors in the House.

The bill would make it easier for employers to get the credit by eliminating previous administrative red tape that made the old tax credit difficult for small businesses to use.

The VETs Jobs bill will ensure that recently-discharged servicemen and women can provide documentation from the Department of Defense without having to go through the current certification process, which is often lengthy. Any recently discharged veteran that has discharge paperwork showing 180 days of qualified active duty will be eligible, including men and women who were activated by their states as members of the National Guard.

The bill also requires the military to educate service members on how employers may qualify for the tax credit by hiring them, providing veterans with an added tool in their job search.

At 20.1 %, Montana currently has the 4th highest unemployment rate among Iraq and Afghanistan veterans in the nation, according to Sen. Baucus.

Nationwide, the unemployment rate among Iraq and Afghanistan veterans averaged 11.5 percent in 2010, up from about 7 percent in 2008. In Montana, the average unemployment rate among veterans jumped from an average 4.3 percent in 2005, 0.7 percent below civilians, to 9.8 percent in 2009, which is two percentage points higher than civilians.

Baucus first introduced the VETs Jobs bill in May 2010, and he reintroduced the updated version in January 2011, which was the first day bills could be introduced in the new Congress.  The bill is cosponsored by Montana Senator Jon Tester and Republican Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa.

It also has the support of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), the National Guard Association, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

President Obama recently announced support for the proposals in Baucus’ VETs Jobs Bill, and included a similar provision in his American Jobs Act.  The bill includes a version of Baucus’ tax credit for businesses that hire veterans, along with the Hiring Heroes Act, which Baucus co-sponsored along with Montana Senator Jon Tester. The tax cut piece will provide a $5,600 tax credit for hiring long term unemployed veterans, $2,400 for hiring short term unemployed veterans, and credits up to $9,600 for hiring unemployed veterans with service-related disabilities.

“The unemployment level we are seeing among our veterans is a disgrace, and it hits home especially hard in Montana, because we have more vets per capita than almost anywhere else.  This bill will make it easier for businesses to hire veterans and help make veterans more competitive in the job market - it’s a win for our economy and the right thing to do for our veterans,” Baucus said.

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