Mark Takano

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 1947. Before I close, let me say that I appreciate the kind words of the ranking member, Dr. Roe of Tennessee, and I associate myself with his eloquent tributes to his classmates and the people who did not get to live the full lives that he, himself, has been able to live. I, myself, have also known people who have served our country and who have also paid the ultimate price. I certainly do share his sentiments as we enter this Memorial Day weekend, as all Americans reflect on the ultimate sacrifice of all the people buried in our national cemeteries and cemeteries that aren't national cemeteries that are marked by VA grave markers. It is always a poignant moment to walk through my national cemetery and to watch the Girl Scouts and the Cub Scouts planting American flags on each and every grave and to see it all happen within 20 minutes because there are so many Americans who want to come to my cemetery to make sure that every grave is honored. To my colleague from Tennessee, I wish him a pleasant Memorial Day weekend, but, also, to all Americans, let us reflect on what Memorial Day weekend does mean to our Nation. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Levin), my good friend, chairman of the Economic Opportunity Subcommittee, and also a cosponsor of H.R. 2045.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, when our servicemembers conclude their military service, they are taxed with returning to civilian life after putting their lives on hold for years. This is the sacrifice they make for our security. In exchange, we owe them more than a thank you and well wishes. We owe them a commitment that their transition to civilian life will go smoothly, and a VA that responds to their needs. That is why we passed the first GI Bill nearly 75 years ago, and why we continue today to make improvements to provide veterans with the benefits they have earned. Unfortunately, VA has struggled to track the effectiveness of education and employment programs and, consequently, Congress has struggled to determine the Department's resource needs. We have identified a contributing factor through hearings and discussions with our Veterans Service Organizations that the Veterans Benefits Administration is simply asked to do too much. With the focus on managing countless compensation claims, the responsibility of managing transition education, and housing benefits often takes a back seat. To put it in perspective, the Veterans Benefit Administration's structure has not significantly changed since the creation of the Department of Veterans Affairs in 1930. During the last 89 years, the services needed by veterans have drastically changed, and that is why our committee has an Economic Opportunity Subcommittee. It is time for the VA to understand this as well. The VET OPP Act, as amended, would create a new administration within the department to manage educational assistance, vocational rehabilitation and employment, education and career counseling programs, and broadly defined transition assistance programs that are shared across agencies. Now, that means veterans' education, housing, and economic programs will have a dedicated Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Opportunity and Transition. The Veterans Economic Opportunity and Transition Administration will solely focus on fulfilling these promises to veterans, so that they get the education that that they want, the housing they need, and the careers they deserve. During our April 9 Economic Opportunity legislative hearing, this proposal received support from the Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Enterprise Institute, and the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors. Now these organizations know firsthand how hard it is to navigate the process of using benefits, so I want to thank the hard work of our Economic Opportunity Subcommittee for holding hearings on H.R. 2045, as amended, where this legislation received universal acclaim from our VSO community. I also want to thank our VSO community, and the American Federation of Government Employees, who worked with us to make this legislation work for all veterans and all employees currently employed at the VA. This is a bipartisan bill because we are not trying to make a political point or attack the VA. Instead, we simply want to make the VA run more effectively for the veterans it serves. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee), my good friend.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman an additional 30 seconds.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I might consume. Madam Speaker, if anyone thinks that business as usual is working at the VA, I would only ask you to look at the implementation of the Forever GI Bill. My good friend the ranking member knows that there were definite issues with the implementation. It did not go well. We are still months away from implementation, which should have happened last year. When the IG and others evaluated what went wrong, one thing was very clear: There was no accountable leader. That is what happens when programs are buried in layers of bureaucracy, and that is why I urge my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 2045, as amended, the VET OPP Act, which will establish an accountable leader at VA for all of those programs that we have under the purview of our Economic Opportunity Subcommittee. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2045, as amended.

Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2045) to amend title 38, United States Code, to establish the Veterans Economic Opportunity and Transition Administration and the Under Secretary for Veterans Economic Opportunity and Transition of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues in the House to support H.R. 1812, as amended, so we can finally pass it into law and get justice for these veterans. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. I want to thank Congresswoman Underwood for introducing H.R. 2372, and the tremendous, tremendous professional background she brings to her role in Congress, and for introducing legislation that will ensure that we hold private organizations to the same standard of care that we impose internally on the VA. So I do urge all of my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 2372, as amended. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Underwood), my good friend, member of the Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee, and author of H.R. 2372.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, to meet the needs of veterans, VA has long relied on community partners to provide outreach and services, particularly to address mental health needs and suicide prevention. The number of mental health- and suicide prevention-related agreements between VA and these organizations has increased exponentially since 2014. It is anticipated that these relationships will continue to grow in the months following the signing of Executive Order No. 13861 on March 5, 2019. Now, this executive order seeks to establish grants to local communities to better collaborate and integrate service delivery and resources for veterans. As reliance on outside groups grows, Congress must better understand the effectiveness of the programs and mental health services these private organizations offer. VA must also ensure such partnered organizations are able to provide quality, culturally competent, evidence-based services to veterans. Congresswoman Underwood's legislation, H.R. 2372, as amended, would require the Government Accountability Office to study the effectiveness of these partnerships between VA and organizations providing services related to suicide prevention and mental healthcare. When complete, GAO would report their findings to the House and Senate Veterans' Affairs Committees. As part of the assessment, GAO is required to look at several factors, such as the staffing structure of the organization, its accreditations or licensures, the level of oversight and tracking of outcomes by VA, and the secure exchange of data and information. The GAO would also be required to study the ability of these organizations to serve unique subsets of the veteran population, including, women, minorities, older and younger veteran cohorts, families, and veterans who reside in U.S. insular areas. I thank Ms. Underwood for introducing this legislation because it will ensure VA is responsibly leveraging its community partnerships to reduce veteran suicide and support VA in its transformation to a public health approach to suicide prevention. This public health approach focuses on prevention and intervention before veterans are in crisis. As I previously mentioned, a two-pronged strategy is necessary to address the national crisis of veteran suicide. These Federal, State, and local partnerships are integral to the first prong of the strategy of prevention and early intervention. It is critical that we develop these partnerships as part of an infrastructure to support veterans. This legislation will ensure we are using taxpayer funds effectively to partner with those organizations providing quality, evidence-based programs. Madam Speaker, I am proud to support this legislation, and I encourage all my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 2372, as amended. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2372, as amended.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2372) to direct the Comptroller General of the United States to conduct an assessment of all memoranda of understanding and memoranda of agreement between Under Secretary of Health and non- Department of Veterans Affairs entities relating to suicide prevention and mental health services, as amended.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I, too, join my ranking member in asking all of our colleagues to pass H.R. 1200. I thank Chairwoman Luria and Ranking Member Bost of the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs for their hard work. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1200, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Luria), who is my good friend and the chairwoman of the Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee and also a cosponsor of H.R. 1200.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, H.R. 1200, the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2019 would require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to increase the rates of disability compensation for service-connected veterans and the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for survivors of veterans, effective December 1, 2019. Now, this bill would also increase these rates by the same percentage as the percentage by which Social Security benefits are increased effective December 1, 2019, and require that VA publish the increased rates in the Federal Register. To me, the actual cost-of-living adjustment to veterans' benefits, otherwise known as COLA, is much more than a rate adjustment tied to inflation. In reality, it is a quality-of-life guarantee in retirement years, especially for veterans suffering with service-connected disabilities and ailments. It also comes with the assurance for veterans that their survivors will not see a steady decline in benefits if the economy changes and costs rise after they are gone. This guarantee is a great source of comfort for veterans as they age. I know this because they tell me this everywhere I go. The yearly COLA increase is a recognition and appreciation of a grateful nation of the service and sacrifice of those who volunteer to wear the uniform of our country. Participating in this gesture of appreciation is one of the most rewarding responsibilities of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. As chairman, I am honored to be leading this effort to say thank you. I want to recognize the work of the Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee chair, Elaine Luria, and ranking member, Mike Bost, for sponsoring H.R. 1200 and for bringing this bill to the floor today. I am pleased that we are considering this bill early this year so veterans will not be concerned about its passage by the December 1 deadline. I wholeheartedly support H.R. 1200 and urge all my colleagues to do so as well. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 1200.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1200) to increase, effective as of December 1, 2019, the rates of compensation for veterans with service-connected disabilities and the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for the survivors of certain disabled veterans, and for other purposes.

Mr. TAKANO

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I, too, ask my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 2340, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, since the beginning of this year, seven--seven-- veterans have died by suicide in or on the grounds of VA facilities. Sadly, another suicide occurred at a VA hospital in Washington just this weekend. Currently, VA staff notify both the House and Senate Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the events as a matter of courtesy; however, should the Department's leadership change, there is no assurance this courtesy would continue. I have made veteran suicide prevention the top priority for the Committee on Veterans' Affairs because 20 suicides a day is far too many. One suicide is far too many. But to address this alarming trend, Congress must be informed when a suicide occurs on a VA campus and must be provided all relevant data. This information will allow the committee to conduct appropriate oversight, write legislation that will improve outcomes, and, when necessary, hold individuals accountable when there are clear failures that impact the timely and adequate care for veterans. As such, H.R. 2340, as amended, the FIGHT Veteran Suicides Act, would require the VA Secretary to notify Congress following an attempted or a completed suicide by a veteran in or on the grounds of a VA facility. This measure also requires VA to provide Congress with communications guidance to deter the sensationalism of suicide, provide information on identifying the warning signs often exhibited by veterans at risk of suicide, and identify resources offered by the Department for at-risk veterans, including the Veterans Crisis Line and Vet Center readjustment counseling. It is essential that this information be shared, regardless of leadership at VA, what party controls Congress, or who occupies the White House. I thank Congressman Rose, a combat veteran, for leading the fight against this tragic national public health crisis, and I want to commend him for his leadership and for writing this important legislation that will ensure Congress has all the data it needs to truly understand and reduce veteran suicide. I encourage my colleagues to join me in voting ``yes'' on this bill. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2340, as amended.

Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2340) to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide to Congress notice of any suicide or attempted suicide of a veteran in a Department of Veterans Affairs facility, and for other purposes, as amended.