WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Gary Peters’ (D-Mich.) bipartisan legislation to expand apprenticeship opportunities for veterans is headed to President Donald Trump’s desk to be signed into law, after passing the U.S. House of Representatives today. The Support for Veterans in Effective Apprenticeships Act previously passed the U.S. Senate in December 2019. The bill would increase veterans’ access to financial assistance they can use in connection with an apprenticeship program.

“For our men and women in uniform to successfully transition into civilian life, they need to know all the opportunities available to them through apprenticeships,” Senator Capito said. “Expanding access to these work training programs will better prepare our veterans for their future careers. I’m grateful to Senator Peters for his bipartisan support, and I’m thrilled President Trump will be signing the bill into law soon.”

“Returning servicemembers should have every opportunity to gain access to the programs that can help them use their unique skillsets to earn good-paying jobs,” said Senator Peters. “This commonsense measure would allow more of our nation’s returning heroes to use the benefits they have earned to secure quality apprenticeships, and I look forward to this bipartisan bill getting signed into law.”

BACKGROUND:

The bipartisan bill would take three commonsense steps to expand opportunities for veterans to use financial assistance in connection with a quality apprenticeship program:

  • New apprenticeship programs applying to register through the Department of Labor (DoL) would need to provide a written assurance that they are aware of GI Bill assistance and committed to taking the steps to enable veteran apprentices to access these benefits.
     
  • Apprenticeships would need to factor the skills, training, and experiences gained through military service into where the veteran is placed in the program, which could mean a more advanced placement with higher apprentice wages.

  • DoL would need to notify the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) of newly registered apprenticeship programs. This would enable the VA to be more proactive in outreach to registered programs not yet approved for GI Bill benefits.

 

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