Solid Start Act of 2020

II 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 4724 To improve and expand the Solid Start program of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES SEPTEMBER 24, 2020 Ms. HASSAN (for herself, Mr. CRAMER, and Mr. CASSIDY) introduced the fol- lowing bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Vet- erans’ Affairs A BILL To improve and expand the Solid Start program of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Solid Start Act of 4 2020’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 (1) In 2020, veterans continue to die by suicide 8 at higher rates than civilians. Many of those vet- 9 erans have no ties to the Department of Veterans 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:42 Oct 15, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4724.IS S4724 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 4724 IS Affairs, limiting the ability of the Department to 1 help in times of crisis. 2 (2) The first year after separating from the 3 military is a critical time in the transition to civilian 4 life for a member of the Armed Forces. Many 5 changes occur during that transition, from career 6 and location changes to shifts in financial cir- 7 cumstances and health care coverage. 8 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 9 It is the sense of Congress that the United States 10 must strive to better serve members of the Armed Forces 11 and veterans who are transitioning to civilian life by— 12 (1) providing up-to-date information and access 13 to resources that such members of the Armed 14 Forces may not be aware of; 15 (2) supporting the critical time of transition by 16 ensuring that mental health needs are met in a time- 17 ly manner; and 18 (3) assisting members of the Armed Forces and 19 veterans in accessing newly available services. 20 SEC. 4. PURPOSES. 21 The purposes of this Act are— 22 (1) to build the capacity of the Department of 23 Veterans Affairs to efficiently and effectively re- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:42 Oct 15, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4724.IS S4724 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 4724 IS spond to the queries and needs of veterans who have 1 recently separated from the Armed Forces; and 2 (2) to systemically integrate and coordinate ef- 3 forts to assist veterans, including efforts— 4 (A) to proactively reach out to newly sepa- 5 rated veterans to inform them of their eligibility 6 for programs of and benefits provided by the 7 Department; and 8 (B) to connect veterans in crisis to re- 9 sources that address their immediate needs. 10 SEC. 5. ACTIVITIES OF THE SOLID START PROGRAM OF THE 11 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 12 (a) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary of Vet- 13 erans Affairs, in coordination with the Secretary of De- 14 fense, shall carry out the Solid Start program of the De- 15 partment of Veterans Affairs by— 16 (1) collecting up-to-date contact information 17 during transition classes or separation counseling for 18 all members of the Armed Forces who are sepa- 19 rating from the Armed Forces, while explaining the 20 existence and purpose of the Solid Start program; 21 (2) calling each veteran, regardless of separa- 22 tion type or characterization of service, not less than 23 twice within the first year after separation from the 24 Armed Forces; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:42 Oct 15, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4724.IS S4724 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •S 4724 IS (3) providing information about the Solid Start 1 program on the website of the Department and in 2 materials of the Department, especially transition 3 booklets and other resources; 4 (4) ensuring calls are truly tailored to the needs 5 of each veteran’s unique situation by conducting 6 quality assurance tests; and 7 (5) prioritizing outreach to veterans who have 8 accessed mental health resources prior to separation 9 from the Armed Forces. 10 (b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary of 11 Veterans Affairs, in coordination with the Secretary of De- 12 fense, may carry out the Solid Start program by— 13 (1) encouraging members of the Armed Forces 14 who are transitioning to civilian life to authorize al- 15 ternate points of contact who can be reached should 16 the member be unavailable during the first year fol- 17 lowing the separation of the member from the 18 Armed Forces; 19 (2) following up missed phone calls with tai- 20 lored mailings to ensure the veteran still receives 21 similar information; and 22 (3) striving to reach out to veterans who sepa- 23 rated prior to the initiation of the Solid Start pro- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:42 Oct 15, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4724.IS S4724 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •S 4724 IS gram to provide similar services to those veterans, 1 when feasible. 2 SEC. 6. ASSESSMENT BY GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY 3 OFFICE OF SOLID START PROGRAM OF THE 4 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 5 (a) ASSESSMENT.— 6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning on the date that 7 is one year after the date of the enactment of this 8 Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 9 shall carry out an assessment of the Solid Start pro- 10 gram of the Department of Veterans Affairs. 11 (2) ELEMENTS.—The assessment required by 12 paragraph (1) shall analyze the following: 13 (A) How many veterans have been con- 14 tacted through the Solid Start program since 15 the establishment of the program as compared 16 to how many veterans have not been reached. 17 (B) Whether feedback on the Solid Start 18 program indicates that the program is working. 19 (C) Whether the Solid Start program is 20 meeting the purposes described in section 4. 21 (D) Improvements that could be made to 22 the Solid Start program. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:42 Oct 15, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4724.IS S4724 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •S 4724 IS (b) REPORT.—Not later than 120 days after the date 1 described in subsection (a)(1), the Comptroller General 2 shall— 3 (1) complete the assessment required by such 4 subsection; and 5 (2) submit a report on the findings of the as- 6 sessment to— 7 (A) the Committee on Veterans Affairs’ 8 and the Committee on Armed Services of the 9 Senate; and 10 (B) the Committee on Veterans Affairs’ 11 and the Committee on Armed Services of the 12 House of Representatives. 13 SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 14 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 15 this Act the greater of— 16 (1) such sums as may be necessary for each fis- 17 cal year to carry out this Act; or 18 (2) the amount expended by the Department of 19 Veterans Affairs during fiscal year 2020 to carry 20 out activities of the Solid Start program. 21 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:42 Oct 15, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S4724.IS S4724 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS