[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4105 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4105
To amend title 10, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Labor
to carry out a grant program to help certain members of the Armed
Forces, veterans, and their spouses, obtain employment in the energy
industry.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 24, 2025
Mrs. Kiggans of Virginia (for herself, Ms. Houlahan, and Mr. Veasey)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Armed Services, and in addition to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs,
for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case
for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of
the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 10, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Labor
to carry out a grant program to help certain members of the Armed
Forces, veterans, and their spouses, obtain employment in the energy
industry.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans Energy Transition Act of
2025'' or the ``VET Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF GRANT PROGRAM TO HELP CERTAIN MEMBERS OF THE
ARMED FORCES, VETERANS, AND THEIR SPOUSES OBTAIN
EMPLOYMENT IN THE ENERGY INDUSTRY.
(a) Repeal of Expired Authorities.--Sections 1152 and 1153 of title
10, United States Code, are repealed.
(b) Establishment.--Chapter 58 of such title is amended by
inserting, after section 1151, the following new section 1152:
``Sec. 1152. Assistance to separating members, veterans, and spouses to
obtain employment in the energy industry
``(a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Labor, in consultation with
the Transition Executive Committee, shall carry out a program to
provide grants to eligible entities that hire covered individuals.
``(b) Covered Individuals.--(1) An covered individual under this
section is--
``(A) a member of the Armed Forces eligible for preseparation
counseling under section 1142 of this title;
``(B) a veteran; or
``(C) a spouse of such a member or veteran.
``(2) In the selection of covered individuals for assistance under
a grant agreement under this section, preference shall be given to a
covered individual (or the spouse of a covered individual) who--
``(A) is involuntarily separated, approved for separation
under section 1174a or 1175 of this title, or retires pursuant
to the authority provided in section 4403 of the Defense
Conversion, Reinvestment, and Transition Assistance Act of 1992
(division D of Public Law 102-484; 10 U.S.C. 1293 note);
``(B) has a military occupational specialty, training, or
experience related to energy production, construction, or
manufacturing, or meets other criteria prescribed by the
Secretary;
``(C) resides in a qualified opportunity zone; or
``(D) has a service-connected disability, is a homeless
veteran, or faces another significant barrier to employment.
``(c) Eligible Entities.--(1) An entity is eligible for a grant
under this section if the primary function of such entity is any of the
following:
``(A) The generation, transmission, storage, or
distribution of energy.
``(B) The manufacture or distribution of equipment and
components critical to the energy industry.
``(2) In the selection of eligible entities for a grant under this
section, preference shall be given to an eligible entity that--
``(A) operates in a qualified opportunity zone; or
``(B) is a small business concern.
``(d) Grant Funds: Authorized Uses; Maximum Amounts.--(1) Grant
funds awarded under this section shall be used to reimburse a grantee
for costs incurred by such grantee in the course of hiring a covered
individual. Such costs may include the following:
``(A) Costs for the relevant licensure, certification,
training, or education of the eligible employee.
``(B) Recruitment costs.
``(C) Orientation, administrative, and relocation costs.
``(2) In any fiscal year, a grantee may not be awarded--
``(A) more than $10,000 per covered individual hired by
such grantee; and
``(B) more than $500,000 under this section.
``(e) Terms.--As a condition of receiving a grant under this
section, an eligible entity shall agree to--
``(1) submit to the Secretary a report for each fiscal year
in which the grantee receives funds under such grant that
includes information regarding--
``(A) use of grant funds;
``(B) whether a covered individual is still
employed by such eligible entity;
``(C) the rates of retention and employee
satisfaction of covered individuals employed by such
eligible entity; and
``(D) the salaries and benefits paid by such
eligible entity to covered individuals;
``(2) comply with an audit by the Inspector General of the
Department of Labor or the Comptroller General of the United
States; and
``(3) repay the Federal Government any grant funds used by
the eligible entity for any purpose not described in subsection
(d)(1).
``(f) Coordination With Existing Programs.--(1) The Secretary of
Labor shall coordinate with the Secretaries of Defense and Veterans
Affairs regarding the grant program under this section and other
programs for members separating from active duty, including--
``(A) the Transition Assistance Program under sections 1142
and 144 of this title;
``(B) Skillbridge under section 1143(e) of this title; and
``(C) the Solid Start program under section 6320 of title
38.
``(2) In the course of such coordination, the Secretaries shall--
``(A) seek to avoid the duplication of services to covered
individuals under such programs;
``(B) promote the grant program under this section to
covered individuals; and
``(C) submit to the appropriate congressional committees,
not less than once each fiscal year in which the Secretary of
Labor carries out such grant program, a report regarding such
coordination.
``(g) Report.--Not later than September 30, 2030, the Secretary of
Labor shall submit to Congress a report containing the evaluation of
the Secretary of the grant program under this section. Such report
shall include the recommendation of the Secretary whether to expand,
extend, or otherwise amend the grant program.
``(h) Authorization of Appropriations; Administrative Costs.--(1)
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Department of Labor, to
carry out this section, $60,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2026
through 2031.
``(2) In a fiscal year, the Secretary may not spend more than 15
percent of the funds appropriated to carry out this section on
administrative costs.
``(i) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) The term `appropriate congressional committee' means
the following:
``(A) The Committee on Armed Services of the House
of Representatives.
``(B) The Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the
House of Representatives.
``(C) The Committee on Education and Workforce of
the House of Representatives.
``(D) The Committee on Armed Services of the
Senate.
``(E) The Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the
Senate.
``(F) The Committee on Health, Education, Labor,
and Pensions of the Senate.
``(2) The term `equipment and components critical to the
energy industry' includes the following:
``(A) Batteries.
``(B) Solar energy components.
``(C) Wind energy components.
``(D) Nuclear energy components.
``(E) Electronics.
``(F) Control systems.
``(G) Transformers.
``(H) Fuel cell technologies.
``(I) Advanced materials.
``(3) The term `homeless veteran' has the meaning given
such term in section 2002 of title 38.
``(4) The term `qualified opportunity zone' has the meaning
given such term in section 1400Z-1 of the Internal Revenue Code
of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 1400Z-1).
``(5) The terms `service-connected' and `veteran' have the
meanings given such terms in section 101 of title 38.
``(6) The term `small business concern' has the meaning
given such term in section 3 of the Small Business Act (Public
Law 85-536; 15 U.S.C. 632).
``(7) The term `Transition Executive Committee' means the
subordinate committee, established under section 320(b)(2) of
title 38, of the Veterans Affairs-Department of Defense Joint
Executive Committee.''.
(c) Coordination Plans.--The Secretary of Labor shall submit to the
appropriate congressional committees, as such term is defined in
section (i) of section 1152 of such title, as added by this section, a
report regarding--
(1) the initial plan of the Secretary to coordinate under
subsection (f) of such section not later than 180 days after
the date of the enactment of this Act; and
(2) the final such plan not later than one year after such
date.
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