,,ii  #aagth ,,congress  #ast ,session  
,s4 #aaih  ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of     
,,the ,,united ,,states  ,april #ae1    
#bjba,ms4 ,hassan 7for herself1 ,mr4    
,cramer1 and ,mr4 ,cassidy7 introduced  
the following bill2 which was read twice
 and referred to the ,committee on      
,veterans' ,affairs  ,a ,,bill  ,to     
amend title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code1 
to improve and expand the ,solid ,start 
program of the ,department of ,veterans 
,affairs1 and for other purposes4  #a4  
,short title ,this ,act may be cited as 
the ,solid ,start ,act of #bjba4  #b4   
,findings ,congress finds the following3
 7#a7 ,in #bjba1 veterans continue to   
die by suicide at higher rates than     
civilians4 ,many of those veterans have 
no ties to the ,department of ,veterans 
,affairs1 limiting the ability of the   
,department to help in times of crisis4 
7#b7 ,the first year after separating   
from the military is a critical time in 
the transition to civilian life for a   
member of the ,armed ,forces4 ,many     

changes occur during that transition1   
from career and location changes to     
shifts in financial circumstances and   
health care coverage4  #c4 ,sense of    
,congress ,it is the sense of ,congress 
that the ,united ,states must strive to 
better serve members of the ,armed      
,forces and veterans who are            
transitioning to civilian life by-- 7#a7
 providing up-to-date information and   
access to resources that such members of
 the ,armed ,forces and veterans may not
 be aware of2  7#b7 supporting the      
critical time of transition by ensuring 
that mental health needs are met in a   
timely manner2 and  7#c7 assisting      
members of the ,armed ,forces and       
veterans in accessing newly available   
services4  #d4 ,solid ,start program of 
the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs   
7a7 ,in general ,chapter #fc of title   
#ch1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended  
by adding at the end the following new  
subchapter3  ,,ii ,other outreach       
programs and activities  #fcbj4 ,solid  

,start program  7a7 ,purposes ,the      
purposes of this section are-- 7#a7 to  
build the capacity of the ,department to
 efficiently and effectively respond to 
the queries and needs of veterans who   
have recently separated from the ,armed 
,forces2 and  7#b7 to systemically      
integrate and coordinate efforts to     
assist veterans1 including efforts--    
7,a7 to proactively reach out to newly  
separated veterans to inform them of    
their eligibility for programs of and   
benefits provided by the ,department2   
and  7,b7 to connect veterans in crisis 
to resources that address their         
immediate needs4  7b7 ,activities of the
 ,solid ,start program  7#a7 ,the       
,secretary1 in coordination with the    
,secretary of ,defense1 shall carry out 
the ,solid ,start program of the        
,department by-- 7,a7 collecting        
up-to-date contact information during   
transition classes or separation        
counseling for all members of the ,armed
 ,forces who are separating from the    

,armed ,forces1 while explaining the    
existence and purpose of the ,solid     
,start program2  7,b7 calling each      
veteran1 regardless of separation type  
or characterization of service1 three   
times within the first year after       
separation of the veteran from the      
,armed ,forces2  7,c7 providing         
information about the ,solid ,start     
program on the website of the           
,department and in materials of the     
,department1 especially transition      
booklets and other resources2  7,d7     
ensuring calls are truly tailored to the
 needs of each veteran's unique         
situation by conducting quality         
assurance tests2  7,e7 prioritizing     
outreach to veterans who have accessed  
mental health resources prior to        
separation from the ,armed ,forces2     
7,f7 providing women veterans with      
information that is tailored to their   
specific health care and benefit needs2 
7,g7 as feasible1 providing information 
on access to ,state and local resources1

 including ,vet ,centers and veterans   
service organizations2 and  7,h7        
gathering and analyzing data assessing  
the effectiveness of the ,solid ,start  
program4  7#b7 ,the ,secretary1 in      
coordination with the ,secretary of     
,defense1 may carry out the ,solid      
,start program by-- 7,a7 encouraging    
members of the ,armed ,forces who are   
transitioning to civilian life to       
authorize alternate points of contact   
who can be reached should the member be 
unavailable during the first year       
following the separation of the member  
from the ,armed ,forces2  7,b7 following
 up missed phone calls with tailored    
mailings to ensure the veteran still    
receives similar information2 and  7,c7 
striving to reach out to veterans who   
separated prior to the initiation of the
 ,solid ,start program to provide       
similar services to those veterans1 as  
feasible4  7#c7 ,in this subsection3    
7,a7 ,the term ,vet ,center has the     
meaning given that term in section      

#agab;,a7h7 of this title4  7,b7 ,the   
term veterans service organization means
 an organization recognized by the      
,secretary for the representation of    
veterans under section #eijb of this    
title4  7c7 ,obligations of amounts     
,subject to the availability of         
appropriations1 the ,secretary may not1 
in a fiscal year1 obligate an amount to 
carry out the ,solid ,start program that
 is less than the total amount obligated
 in the previous fiscal year to carry   
out the program1 unless the ,secretary  
determines that increased efficiencies  
of the program warrant the obligation of
 a lesser amount4  4  7b7 ,conforming   
amendments ,chapter #fc of such title1  
as amended by subsection 7a71 is further
 amended-- 7#a7 by inserting before     
section #fcja the following3  ,i        
,outreach services program  2  and  7#b7
 in sections #fcja1 #fcjc1 #fcjd1 #fcje1
 #fcjf1 and #fcjg1 by striking this     
chapter each place it appears and       
inserting this subchapter4  7c7         

,clerical amendments ,the table of      
contents at the beginning of chapter #fc
 of such title is amended-- 7#a7 by     
inserting before the item relating to   
section #fcja the following new item3   
,subchapter ,i--,outreach services      
program2  and  7#b7 by adding at the end
 the following new items3  ,subchapter  
,,ii--,other outreach programs and      
activities#fcbj4 ,solid ,start program4 
4