Posts Tagged ‘Military Families’

A measure to implement President Obama’s Veterans Jobs Corps initiative was blocked from moving ahead in the Senate on Wednesday after it fell two votes short of overcoming a procedural objection by Republicans over the bill’s budgetary impact. The legislation would have authorized $900 million to employ veterans in conservation, national park and historic preservation projects, and $100 million to hire veterans as police and firefighters. It also would have provided assistance for service members transitioning to civilian life for mentoring and job training …

Only a little more than half of the family housing at Aberdeen Proving Ground in northeastern Maryland is occupied by active members of the military, a direct consequence of the installation’s shift from a training base to a research and development mission largely staffed by civilians. Civilian federal workers and military retirees are living in 44 percent of the facility’s occupied homes, according to Picerne Military Housing, the Army’s housing privatization partner …

The Senate on Tuesday voted to take up a measure to implement President Obama’s Veterans Jobs Corps initiative, which would provide $1 billion over the next five years to hire post-9/11 military veterans for public works jobs and give them preference for police and firefighter positions. The legislation, S. 3457, would authorize $900 million to employ veterans in conservation, national park and historic preservation projects, and $100 million to hire veterans as police and firefighters. The bill is intended to address the high unemployment rate for veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan, which rose to 10.9 percent last month …

The Veterans Affairs Medical Center in west Los Angeles has generated at least $28 million in rental income over the last dozen years from a variety of enterprises unrelated to helping veterans, including a baseball stadium for UCLA and a laundry facility for Marriott Hotels, reports NPR. The 400-acre medical center is able to skirt legislation preventing it from leasing property by “sharing” it, according to NPR, which estimated its rental income could be even higher than $40 million …

The unemployment rate for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans rose to 10.9 percent in August, reversing a pattern in which the rate had dropped for six straight months. In July, the unemployment rate for post-9/11 veterans had been 8.9 percent, according to the Labor Department’s employment report. The August rate is not much better than the 11.3 percent average in 2011 …

Reviews are overwhelming positive as a Cleveland court for military veterans facing misdemeanor charges approaches its one-year anniversary. Half of the cases handled by Cleveland Municipal Court’s Veterans Treatment Docket involve alcohol-related offenses, with the remainder including driving with a suspended license, assault, theft, resisting arrest and drug offenses, reports Cleveland.com. Veterans opting for the treatment docket are subject to counseling or substance-abuse treatment, requirements they must demonstrate they are complying with by returning to the court for monthly hearings …

The military’s refashioned Transition Assistance Program will better support separating service members about to enter the civilian workplace, but won’t by itself defeat the high unemployment rate for veterans, according to a commentary in the Huffington Post. To achieve better results, three steps are needed, write the co-founders of Switch, a career transition blog for veterans: (1) military commands must emphasize the importance of preparing for transition and provide personnel the flexibility to manage their military obligations and career preparation; (2) DOD should establish one central office to serve as a matchmaker between veterans and employers …

A measure easing the way for military spouses to obtain professional licenses after moving to California is headed to the desk of Gov. Jerry Brown following the bill’s passage this week by the state Assembly. AB 1904 would expedite the licensure process for military spouses with a current, valid license in their career field from another jurisdiction. Obtaining a new license can cause lengthy re-employment delays for military spouses moving between states …

The Pentagon is in the midst of a five-year, $3.7 billion effort to improve the physical condition of department schools that are in poor or failing condition, Marilee Fitzgerald, director of the DOD Education Activity, told reporters Thursday. “Today, we have 49 schools in design. I believe eight schools are under construction, and we’ve opened up some new schools,” Fitzgerald said during a Pentagon news conference. The initiative is intended to upgrade 134 of the system’s 194 schools …

At 15 percent, the unemployment rate for military wives in 2010 was more than twice as high as the rate for their civilian counterparts, according to a new study from Congress’ Joint Economic Committee. Sen. Bob Casey, the committee’s chairman, released the report Tuesday to build support for legislation he introduced that would offer a tax credit to any military spouse who needs to renew or transfer a professional license following a change in their family’s duty station …