Protecting Apprenticeship Training for Veterans Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 8426 To provide for modified requirements relating to apprenticeship and on- job training programs during the COVID–19 emergency under the edu- cational assistance programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES SEPTEMBER 29, 2020 Mr. LAMB (for himself, Mr. FITZPATRICK, and Mr. CISNEROS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs A BILL To provide for modified requirements relating to apprentice- ship and on-job training programs during the COVID– 19 emergency under the educational assistance programs 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 ‘‘Protecting Apprentice- 4 ship Training for Veterans Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:31 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8426.IH H8426 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 8426 IH SEC. 2. APPRENTICESHIP OR ON-JOB TRAINING REQUIRE- 1 MENTS. 2 (a) IN GENERAL.—During the period described in 3 subsection (b), subsection (e) of section 3687 of title 38, 4 United States Code, shall be applied by substituting the 5 following for paragraph (2): 6 ‘‘(2)(A) Subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C), 7 for any month in which an individual fails to com- 8 plete 120 hours of training, the entitlement other- 9 wise chargeable under paragraph (1) shall be re- 10 duced in the same proportion as the monthly train- 11 ing assistance allowance payable is reduced under 12 subsection (b)(3). 13 ‘‘(B) In the case of an individual who is unem- 14 ployed during any month, the 120-hour requirement 15 under subparagraph (A) for that month shall be re- 16 duced proportionately to reflect the individual’s pe- 17 riod of unemployment, except that the amount of 18 monthly training assistance otherwise payable to the 19 individual under subsection (b)(3) shall not be re- 20 duced. 21 ‘‘(C) Any period during which an individual is 22 unemployed shall not— 23 ‘‘(i) be charged against any entitlement to 24 educational assistance of the individual; or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:31 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8426.IH H8426 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 8426 IH ‘‘(ii) be counted against the aggregate pe- 1 riod for which section 3695 of this title limits 2 the receipt of educational assistance by such in- 3 dividual. 4 ‘‘(D) Any amount by which the entitlement of 5 an individual is reduced under subparagraph (A) 6 shall not— 7 ‘‘(i) be charged against any entitlement to 8 educational assistance of the individual; or 9 ‘‘(ii) be counted against the aggregate pe- 10 riod for which section 3695 of this title limits 11 the receipt of educational assistance by such in- 12 dividual. 13 ‘‘(E) In the case of an individual who fails to 14 complete 120 hours of training during a month, but 15 who completed more than 120 hours of training dur- 16 ing the preceding month, the individual may apply 17 the number of hours in excess of 120 that the indi- 18 vidual completed for that month to the month for 19 which the individual failed to complete 120 hours. If 20 the addition of such excess hours results in a total 21 of 120 hours or more, the individual shall be treated 22 as an individual who has completed 120 hours of 23 training for that month. Any excess hours applied to 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:31 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8426.IH H8426 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 8426 IH a different month under this subparagraph may only 1 be applied to one such month. 2 ‘‘(F) This paragraph applies to amounts de- 3 scribed in section 3313(g)(3)(B)(iv) and section 4 3032(c)(2) of this title and section 16131(d)(2) of 5 title 10. 6 ‘‘(G) In this paragraph: 7 ‘‘(i) The term ‘unemployed’ includes being 8 furloughed or being scheduled to work zero 9 hours. 10 ‘‘(ii) The term ‘fails to complete 120 hours 11 of training’ means, with respect to an indi- 12 vidual, that during any month, the individual 13 completes at least one hour, but fewer than 120 14 hours, of training, including in a case in which 15 the individual is unemployed for part of, but 16 not the whole, month.’’. 17 (b) APPLICABILITY PERIOD.—The period described 18 in this section is the period beginning on March 1, 2020, 19 and ending on December 21, 2021. 20 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:31 Oct 24, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H8426.IH H8426 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS