This week, legislation introduced by Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Tom Cotton (R-AR) unanimously passed the Senate and will head to the President’s desk to be signed into law. The Veteran Apprenticeship and Labor Opportunity Reform (VALOR) Act would increase access to apprenticeship-training programs for veterans by streamlining the certification process for non-federal apprenticeship programs based in more than one state.

“I applaud Congress for passing the VALOR Act on a bipartisan basis to reduce burdensome requirements on businesses so apprenticeship programs will be more accessible to veterans,” said Senator Tillis.
 
Background
Under current law non-federal apprenticeship training programs located in multiple states have to register with each state approval agency individually, subjecting them to mountains of paperwork and multiple burdensome review processes. In response, employers have decided to limit their programs to a smaller number of states and, as a result, hire fewer veterans. The VALOR Act would amend current law to allow for a single, more streamlined approval process.
 
Congressman Ro Khanna (D-CA), Jodey Arrington (R-TX), and Beto O’Rourke (D-TX) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.