THE VOW TO HIRE HEROES ACT OF 2011

THE VOW TO HIRE HEROES ACT OF 2011 Remember we offer partner services through New Horizon's Computer Learning Center. http://veteranrescue.org/?page_id=141 VETERANS MAY QUALIFY FOR ADDITIONAL EDUCATION BENEFITS The Veterans Retraining Assistance Program (VRAP) offers up to 12 months of retraining assistance to Veterans who meet all the following criteria: Unemployed At least 35 but no more than 60 years old Have an other than dishonorable discharge Not eligible for any other VA education benefit programs (e.g., the Post-9/11 GI Bill, Montgomery GI Bill, Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment) Not in receipt of VA compensation due to Individual Unemployability (IU) Not enrolled in a federal or state job training program Applications for VRAP are currently being accepted. Participating Veterans may receive up to 12 months of assistance equal to the full-time Montgomery GI Bill – Active Duty rate of $1,564 per month, effective October 1, 2012. Assistance under this benefit program ends on March 31, 2014. Programs must meet the following criteria to qualify for VRAP benefits: Be offered by a community college or technical school Lead to an Associates Degree or Certificate Train the Veteran for a high demand occupation UNEMPLOYED VETERANS WITH A SERVICE-CONNECTED DISABILITY MAY QUALIFY FOR ADDITIONAL VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION AND EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS To qualify, Veterans must: Have previously completed a VA Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment program Apply within six months of exhausting initial claim for unemployment compensation Apply to VA by March 31, 2014 VA offers incentive payments to encourage employers to hire and train program participants. Veterans must apply and qualify for VA vocational rehabilitation benefits prior to being hired VA may reimburse up to one-half the Veterans annual salary for 6 months or longer Gives Veterans a competitive advantage with employers **For more information on these great benefits and how to apply, please visit us online at www.benefits.va.gov/VOW or call toll free at 1-800-827-1000. http://benefits.va.gov /vow/docs/VOW_Factsheet.pdf November 21, 2011, 2:20 pm 4 Comments President Obama Signs Veterans Tax Credit Bill By JAMES DAO If anyone doubted that veterans remain potent political symbols, they need look no further than Congress’s ability to set aside partisan gridlock last week and overwhelmingly enact legislation providing tax credits to businesses that hire veterans. Flanked by veterans advocates, President Obama signed the bill into law this morning. The “VOW to Hire Heroes Act” will provide tax credits of up to $2,400 for employers who hire veterans who have been unemployed at least 4 weeks; up to $5,600 for hiring veterans who have been unemployed longer than 6 months; and up to $9,600 for businesses that hire veterans who have service-connected disabilities and have been unemployed longer than 6 months. Though the unemployment rate among veterans of all ages is actually lower than the overall population, the rate is high among veterans of the current wars, standing at 12 percent, compared with about 9 percent for the population at large. The higher rate is driven largely by widespread joblessness among veterans under 25 years old, whose unemployment rate was 30 percent last month. There has long been debate among economists over whether tax credits actually create jobs, or simply reward businesses for hiring people that they would have hired anyway. In theAtlantic.com, Daniel Indiviglio wrote recently that the tax credits might create at most a few new jobs, but that they were mainly likely to encourage the hiring of veterans over nonveterans when their qualifications are similar. “Few employers will create new jobs from scratch just to try to bring on more veterans and obtain the credit,” Mr. Indiviglio wrote. But Mr. Indiviglio also asserted that shifting the proportion of new hires toward veterans would be a good thing by helping to correct what he called “a grave injustice.” “If these brave men and women chose not to fight for their country but merely remained civilians instead years ago, then many would more likely be employed today,” he said. That sentiment seems to be shared across ideological lines on Capitol Hill and in many business circles right now. An editorial on Bloomberg.com last week, for instance, made the case that even if the tax credits do not stimulate the economy or create new jobs, they are morally the right thing to do. “We have no illusion that these credits are going to create lots of new jobs,” the editorial said. “But they will encourage employers to favor veterans when hiring. In a robust, growing economy, that might be an unnecessary accommodation to returning military personnel. However, after a decade of brutal warfare in Iraq and Afghanistan, where fighting men and women have served grueling multiple deployments, it seems a small and entirely just recompense.” On a White House blog, a Marine Corps veteran, Justin Constantine, wrote on Monday that the tax credits were not “an overall panacea to our veterans’ unemployment problems,” but when combined with other measures, might at least make a dent in the unemployment rate. “Unfortunately, our youngest veterans are entering the private workforce at a very challenging time,” Mr. Constantine wrote. “Many of them are likely to be employed in industries such as construction, manufacturing and transportation, which have all struggled in the last few years. Further, many of these vets come from and return to rural parts of the country, and do not have the benefit of a college degree. Another critical issue is that there currently does not exist a truly effective and cohesive transition assistance program for them. And on top of all that, a staggering number of our returning service members suffer from behavioral health issues, including Post Traumatic Stress, but these issues are not being adequately addressed.” Similarly, Peter Kramer, author of Listening to Prozac, said on NYTimes.com’s Room for Debate on Monday that reducing joblessness among veterans might combat their high suicide rate. The new tax credits, he says, are “a step in the right direction.” “Study after study correlates unemployment with suicidality,” Dr. Kramer wrote. “The workplace can be stressful, but especially for the mentally vulnerable, there is no substitute for what jobs offer in the way of structure, support and meaning.” Still, the bipartisan support for the Hire Heroes Act underscores another truism of Washington politics: Congress loves tax credits, which are an easy way to show concern for large or politically potent voting blocs. In the Washington Post earlier this month, Steve Bell, senior director of the economic policy project of the Bipartisan Policy Center, called it “ironic” and “incongruous” that both parties would get behind new tax credits amid the emerging national debate over tax simplification. “Tax entitlement reform will be tougher than direct spending entitlement reform,” he said.