Summary

The legislation changes rules for the VA’s Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) program: it requires veterans to submit work and education records before an initial VR&E evaluation, limits standard employment assistance to 365 days (with a possible 180-day extension if a counselor certifies active job search), and requires the VA to collect and publish employment outcome data, report average wait times for first counseling visits, and commission an independent review of VR&E services to recommend improvements. The bill does not appropriate new funds but places new documentation, time-limit, data-collection, and oversight requirements on the VA and affects veterans who seek VR&E services, VA staff who manage and deliver those services, and vocational rehabilitation counselors who must certify extensions.

• Initial VR&E evaluations cannot be provided until veterans submit required substantive work records and educational transcripts.
• Standard employment assistance under VR&E is capped at 365 days per veteran.
• An additional 180-day extension of assistance is allowed only with a counselor’s certification that the veteran is actively seeking employment.
• VA must collect and report employment outcomes, including regional office and annual wage data before and after program participation.
• VA must publish average wait times for first counseling visits to increase transparency on initial access.
• An independent review of VR&E programs is required and the VA must contract for and receive a follow-up report with improvement recommendations.
• The bill imposes administrative and reporting duties on VA but does not include explicit new appropriations.
• Counselors gain formal authority to certify eligibility for extended assistance, affecting case management practice and decisions.