ICYMI: Congresswoman Lee, Veterans Discuss Bipartisan Bill to Help Student Veterans Find Jobs
Last week, Congresswoman Susie Lee (NV-03) visited Strike Solutions, a woman veteran owned small business in Summerlin, to discuss her Hire Student Veterans Act. This bipartisan legislation would provide tax incentives to businesses who hire student veterans for paid internships, part-time or full-time roles.
“Nevada’s veterans fought to keep our country safe, and as they transition back to civilian life, finding a good-paying, rewarding job shouldn’t be another battle. We need to make sure our vets, especially our student vets, have a roadmap to start new careers and start their civilian life back home in Nevada,” said Congresswoman Susie Lee. “That’s why I will be reintroducing the Hire Student Veterans Act this Congress. We need this bipartisan, commonsense bill to provide our student veterans with the training, resources, and opportunities they need to start new careers, all while creating incentives for businesses to hire veterans.”
Congresswoman Lee was joined by Isaac Velazquez, a current student and 2nd Lieutenant in the Nevada National Guard and Emma Przybyslawski, CEO of Strike Solutions and former Air Force Special Operations Intelligence Officer.
“Those who have served or are currently serving know how hard it is to transition out of the military, let alone go back to school and pursue a higher education degree. As a national guardsman, I know the difficulties of balancing military responsibilities with education, as well as trying to get into the workforce at the same time,” said Isaac Velazquez, a current student and 2nd Lieutenant in the Nevada National Guard. “I’d like to acknowledge Congresswoman Susie Lee for her for support in ensuring veterans have access to the opportunities and support that we need. This act is more than acknowledgement to our service; it creates conditions for veterans to thrive academically and professionally and start their careers.”
“Here at Stike Solutions, we rely on our veteran workforce – we are predominantly a veteran run and led company. The Hire Student Veterans Act is critical, frankly, for companies like ours. In two ways is that true: One, it only eases the transition for veterans who are highly qualified from their time in service to high-tech, high-paying jobs like we offer here at our company. And on the flip side, it helps companies like ours capitalize on such a strong workforce that we can bring into the company and lend itself to even more innovation,” said Emma Przybyslawski, CEO of Strike Solutions and former Air Force Special Operations Intelligence Officer. “As a defense startup, we couldn’t be more thankful for the introduction of the Hire Student Veterans Act, and we’re very excited to hopefully see it pass soon and take advantage.”
Congresswoman Lee’s bipartisan Hire Student Veterans Act would expand the existing Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC), which is available to employers who hire individuals from groups that have faced significant barriers to employment, to include student veterans using their educational benefits. Currently, employers can only qualify by hiring veterans who have a service-connected disability or have been unemployed for more than four weeks. This change would ensure that all student veterans using their GI benefits can take advantage of valuable paid internships or work opportunities.
This bipartisan and bicameral legislation seeks to make three important changes to the WOTC that will incentivize businesses to hire more student veterans. The Hire Student Veterans Act will:
- Automatically qualify employers who hire student veterans using their GI Bill benefits for WOTC’s 40 percent tax credit on the first $6,000 of a new employee’s first-year wages;
- Reduce the existing tax credit’s 400-hour work requirement to 120 hours if a newly-hired employee is a veteran using their GI Bill benefits, allowing a student veteran to work part-time while in school; and
- Directly incentivize employers to hire more student veterans for part-time work and paid internships.
Congresswoman Lee will be reintroducing the Hire Student Veterans Act in 119th Congress. The Hire Student Veterans Act has been endorsed by Veterans of Foreign Wars, UNLV Military and Veteran Service Center, and Minority Veterans of America.
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