Madam Chairwoman, Ranking Member, and members of the subcommittee, on behalf of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America’s one hundred and eighty thousand members and supporters,I would like to thank you for the opportunity to testify before your committee today.
As a special note, I am new to the IAVA team and to Washington DC. This is my first appearance in front of this committee and in fact my first congressional testimony. I am honored to be here.
My name is Tim Embree and I served two combat tours with the United States Marine Corps Reserve in Iraq.
During my time in uniform I saw many fellow deployed Marines struggle with strained family relationships and wrestle with the transition from military back to civilian life.
I remember coming back to the FOB - heading over to the phone tent to wait hours in line to call home.
There was no privacy - and while waiting I would often hear heart wrenching conversations throughout the tent.
I would watch men cry, begging their wife not to leave them.
I would see the anguish on a Marine’s face, talking to her young child knowing her kid is confused because they don’t recognize their mother’s voice.
I didn’t like going to the phone tent;
not because I didn’t want to call my family and tell them I was ok, but because I couldn’t stand seeing all of the horrible stories play out in front of me.
The Marines in that phone tent needed to be focused on their mission but too often were worried about a mortgage payment back home or a failing marriage.
Much of the legislation being considered today will profoundly affect veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan and their families.
These bills will help the folks in the phone tent and I appreciate this opportunity to offer our feedback.
IAVA supports The Military Family Leave Act, H.R. 3257.
Imagine having the chance to see your husband, wife, son, or daughter for only two weeks every year and working the 8-hour day shift every day they are home.
When you are deployed the little time you see your family is more valuable than gold. You want to spend every waking moment with them.
It is hard enough to say goodbye after such a short period of time but it is tragic to deny families a single hour during those two short weeks.
This bill will also help the spouse left at home, who must fill the role of both mom and dad, find the time for all the unexpected tasks, errands and responsibilities that come up during a deployment.
IAVA also sees an opportunity to care for our men and women in by supporting H.R. 4469 amending the Servicemember Civil Relief Act.
We constantly receive letters from veterans telling us that their service deployments are being used against them in child custody disputes. By protecting deploying parents we will help ensure servicemembers are focused on the mission at hand and not on whether their service will come between them and their child.
We are pleased that this committee is working on a broad spectrum of issues. From servicemembers and their families to upgrading the wildly popular Post-9/11 GI Bill.
The Post-9/11 GI Bill has helped so many veterans and their families but there is still more to be done. For that reason IAVA enthusiastically supports H.R. 3813, also known as The Veterans Training Act.
It is unfair and confusing that a veteran is reimbursed under the Post-9/11 GI Bill for studying to be an EMT at their local community college, but they cannot take the same course at a vocational school.
The other day we received an e-mail from Daniel in Nevada about this very issue. Daniel is an OIF vet and wants to train to become an EMT at the National College of Technical Instruction. Without this change to the Post 9/11 GI Bill Daniel cannot afford to go to school to become an EMT. IAVA believes veterans like Daniel must have the opportunity to return to public service in their community.
We know that veterans are always looking for opportunities to continue their service. So much so that many student veterans assist their school Certifying Officials processing GI Bill paperwork and mentoring other veterans. Therefore, IAVA proudly supports H.R. 3484 to reauthorize the VA work-study allowance program for another four years.
The Post-9/11 GI Bill is so important to our transitioning veterans therefore we also support H.R. 3948, otherwise known as The Test Prep for Heroes Act.
Currently, veterans can use the Post-9/11 GI Bill to cover the cost of a single licensing or certification test, up to $2,000, but must pay out of pocket for their prep courses. And we know those prep courses do make a difference. It would be irresponsible to show up to take the bar, without taking a prep course.
We need to further improve this benefit by not penalizing veterans whose career path requires multiple certification tests. For example, a future mechanic is currently only reimbursed for one of their many, needed certifications which can cost around twenty five dollars each while an aspiring attorney could receive full reimbursement for their one bar exam which can cost upwards of twelve hundred dollars.
Including multiple licensing and certification tests will level the playing field and provide a more equitable benefit for veterans.
Our men and women are still in phone tents in dangerous places around the world with more responsibility and stress weighing on their shoulders than most people will ever understand – the weight of war and weight of what is waiting when they come home. We must pass these important bills to help these men and women and their families.
Links:
[1] http://media.iava.org/testimonies/Embree_HVAC022510.pdf