,,ii #aaeth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #dch ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,february #ag 7legislative day1 ,february #af71 #bjag,mr4 ,blunt 7for himself and ,mr4 ,manchin7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions ,a ,,bill ,to encourage effective1 voluntary investments to recruit1 employ1 and retain men and women who have served in the ,united ,states military with annual ,federal awards to employers recognizing such efforts1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,honoring ,investments in ,recruiting and ,employing ,american ,military ,veterans ,act of #bjag or the ,,hire ,vets ,act4 #b4 ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award program 7a7 ,program ,established ,not later than #b years after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary of ,labor shall establish1 by rule1 a ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,program to solicit voluntary information from employers for purposes of recognizing1 by means of an award to be designated a ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award1 verified efforts by such employers-- 7#a7 to recruit1 employ1 and retain veterans2 and 7#b7 to provide community and charitable services supporting the veteran community4 7b7 ,application ,process ,beginning in the calendar year following the calendar year in which the ,secretary establishes the program1 the ,secretary shall annually-- 7#a7 solicit and accept voluntary applications from employers in order to consider whether those employers should receive a ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award2 7#b7 review applications received in each calendar year2 7#c7 notify such recipients of their awards2 and 7#d7 at a time to coincide with the annual commemoration of ,veterans ,day-- 7,a7 announce the names of such recipients2 7,b7 recognize such recipients through publication in the ,federal ,register2 and 7,c7 issue to each such recipient-- 7i7 a ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award of the level determined under section #c2 and 7ii7 a certificate stating that such employer is entitled to display such ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award4 7c7 ,timing 7#a7 ,solicitation period ,the ,secretary shall solicit applications not later than ,january #cast of each calendar year for the ,awards to be awarded in ,november of that calendar year4 7#b7 ,end of acceptance period ,the ,secretary shall stop accepting applications not earlier than ,april #cjth of each calendar year for the ,awards to be awarded in ,november of that calendar year4 7#c7 ,review period ,the ,secretary shall finish reviewing applications not later than ,august #cast of each calendar year for the ,awards to be awarded in ,november of that calendar year4 7#d7 ,selection of recipients ,the ,secretary shall select the employers to receive ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,awards not later than ,september #cjth of each calendar year for the ,awards to be awarded in ,november of that calendar year4 7#e7 ,notice to recipients ,the ,secretary shall notify employers who will receive ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,awards not later than ,october #aath of each calendar year for the ,awards to be awarded in ,november of that calendar year4 7d7 ,limitation ,an employer who receives a ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award for one calendar year is not eligible to receive a ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award for the subsequent calendar year4 #c4 ,selection of recipients 7a7 ,application review process 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall review all applications received in a calendar year to determine whether an employer should receive a ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award1 and1 if so1 of what level4 7#b7 ,application contents ,the ,secretary shall require that all applications provide information on the programs and other efforts of applicant employers during the calendar year prior to that in which the medallion is to be awarded1 including the categories and activities governing the level of award for which the applicant is eligible under subsection 7b74 7#c7 ,verification ,the ,secretary shall verify all information provided in the applications1 to the extent that such information is relevant in determining whether or not an employer should receive a ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award or in determining the appropriate level of ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award for that employer to receive1 including by requiring the chief executive officer or the chief human relations officer of the employer to attest under penalty of perjury that the employer has met the criteria described in subsection 7b7 for a particular level of ,award4 7b7 ,awards 7#a7 ,large employers 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall establish #b levels of ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,awards to be awarded to employers employing #ejj or more employees1 to be designated the ,gold ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award and the ,platinum ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award4 7,b7 ,gold ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award ,no employer shall be eligible to receive a ,gold ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award in a given calendar year unless-- 7i7 veterans constitute not less than #g percent of all employees hired by such employer during the prior calendar year2 7ii7 such employer has retained not less than #ge percent of the veteran employees hired during the calendar year preceding the preceding calendar year for a period of at least #ab months from the date on which the employees were hired2 7iii7 such employer has established an employee veteran organization or resource group to assist new veteran employees with integration1 including coaching and mentoring2 and 7iv7 such employer has established programs to enhance the leadership skills of veteran employees during their employment4 7,c7 ,platinum ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award ,no employer shall be eligible to receive a ,platinum ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award in a given calendar year unless-- 7i7 the employer meets all the requirements for eligibility for a ,gold ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award under subparagraph 7,b72 7ii7 veterans constitute not less than #aj percent of all employees hired by such employer during the prior calendar year2 7iii7 such employer has retained not less than #he percent of the veteran employees hired during the calendar year preceding the preceding calendar year for a period of at least #ab months from the date on which the employees were hired2 7iv7 such employer employs dedicated human resources professionals to support hiring and retention of veteran employees1 including efforts focused on veteran hiring and training2 7v7 such employer provides each of its employees serving on active duty in the ,united ,states ,national ,guard or ,reserve with compensation sufficient1 in combination with the employee's active duty pay1 to achieve a combined level of income commensurate with the employee's salary prior to undertaking active duty2 and 7vi7 such employer has a tuition assistance program to support veteran employees' attendance in postsecondary education during the term of their employment4 7,d7 ,exemption for smaller employers ,an employer shall be deemed to meet the requirements of subparagraph 7,c77iv7 if such employer-- 7i7 employs #e1jjj or fewer employees2 and 7ii7 employs at least one human resources professional whose regular work duties include those described under subparagraph 7,c77iv74 7,e7 ,additional criteria ,the ,secretary may provide1 by rule1 additional criteria with which to determine qualifications for receipt of each level of ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award4 7#b7 ,small- and medium-sized employers ,the ,secretary shall establish similar awards in order to recognize achievements in supporting veterans by-- 7,a7 employers with #ej or fewer employees2 and 7,b7 employers with more than #ej but fewer than #ejj employees4 7c7 ,design by ,secretary ,the ,secretary shall establish the shape1 form1 and design of each ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award1 except that the ,award shall be in the form of a certificate and shall state the year for which it was awarded4 #d4 ,display of award 7a7 ,in general ,the recipient of a ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award may-- 7#a7 publicly display such ,award through the end of the calendar year following receipt of such ,award2 and 7#b7 publicly display the ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award ,certificate issued in conjunction with such ,award4 7b7 ,unlawful display prohibited ,it is unlawful for any employer to publicly display a ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award1 in connection with1 or as a part of1 any advertisement1 solicitation1 business activity1 or product-- 7#a7 for the purpose of conveying1 or in a manner reasonably calculated to convey1 a false impression that the employer received the ,award through the ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award ,program1 if such employer did not receive such ,award through the ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award ,program2 or 7#b7 for the purpose of conveying1 or in a manner reasonably calculated to convey1 a false impression that the employer received the ,award through the ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award ,program for a year for which such employer did not receive such ,award4 #e4 ,application fee and funding 7a7 ,fund established ,there is established in the ,treasury of the ,united ,states a fund to be designated the ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award ,fund4 ,amounts appropriated to the fund pursuant to subsection 7c7 shall remain available until expended4 7b7 ,fee authorized ,the ,secretary may assess a reasonable fee on employers that apply for receipt of a ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award and the ,secretary shall deposit such fees into the ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award ,fund4 ,the ,secretary shall establish the amount of the fee such that the amounts collected as fees and deposited into the ,fund are sufficient to cover the costs associated with carrying out this ,act4 7c7 ,use of funds ,amounts in the ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award ,fund shall be available1 subject to appropriation1 to the ,secretary to carry out the ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award ,program4 #f4 ,initial implementation ,the ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,program shall begin to solicit applications on ,january #ca of the year that is #b fiscal years after the fiscal year during which funds are first appropriated to carry out this ,act4 #g4 ,report to ,congress 7a7 ,reports ,beginning not later than #b years after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary shall submit to ,congress annual reports on-- 7#a7 the fees collected from applicants for ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,awards in the prior year and any changes in fees to be proposed in the present year2 7#b7 the cost of administering the ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award ,program in the prior year2 7#c7 the number of applications for ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,awards received in the prior year2 and 7#d7 the ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,awards awarded in the prior year1 including the name of each employer to whom a ,,hire ,vets ,medallion ,award was awarded and the level of medallion awarded to each such employer4 7b7 ,committees ,the ,secretary shall provide the reports required under subsection 7a7 to the ,chairman and ,ranking ,member of-- 7#a7 the ,committees on ,education and the ,workforce and ,veterans' ,affairs of the ,house of ,representatives2 and 7#b7 the ,committees on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions and ,veterans' ,affairs of the ,senate4 #h4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7a7 ,the term employer means any person1 institution1 organization1 or other entity that pays salary or wages for work performed or that has control over employee opportunities1 except that such term does not include-- 7#a7 the ,federal ,government2 or 7#b7 any ,state government1 as defined in such section4 7b7 ,the term ,secretary means the ,secretary of ,labor4 7c7 ,the term veteran has the meaning given such term under section #aja of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code4