Rep. James Walkinshaw, D-Va., introduced a bill on Monday that aims to strengthen the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Veteran Employment Through Technology Education Courses (VET TEC) program, which supports veterans training to work in high-tech fields.
The VET TEC program provides financial support to veterans enrolled in high-tech programs through eligible training providers. It helps veterans quickly learn skills in fields such as computer programming, computer software, data processing, or information sciences.
More than 20,300 veterans enrolled in the five-year VET TEC pilot, which began in April 2019, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report from September 2025. The pilot ended in 2024, but in January 2025, Congress enacted legislation to establish a new VET TEC program through September 2027.
“Veterans are heroes who served our country with courage and sacrifice, and we must do everything in our power to support their transition into civilian life,” Walkinshaw said in a Feb. 23 press release. “Central to that transition is ensuring our nation’s heroes have strong and competitive career prospects after their service.”
“This program has real promise, and my bill strengthens transparency and accountability so veterans have clear information about outcomes, and taxpayers can trust resources are being used responsibly,” he said.
Specifically, the bill would require the VA to publicly report participants’ employment outcomes, standardize how job outcomes are calculated to ensure accuracy, and prevent inflated reporting tied to training providers.
Additionally, it would expand the VA’s reporting on full-time, part-time, and self-employment outcomes. The bill would also task the VA secretary with analyzing feedback from program participants and using such feedback to improve the implementation of the program.
Rep. Morgan McGarvey, D-Ky., joined as an original cosponsor of Walkinshaw’s legislation.
Walkinshaw’s office said that the legislation follows recent GAO reports that revealed gaps in how employment outcomes and participant feedback are collected and reported, making it difficult to evaluate and improve the VET TEC program.
For instance, the September report from GAO found that veterans reported multiple challenges with training providers, but the VA did not explicitly collect or analyze ongoing feedback.
“This legislation responds by strengthening oversight and ensuring veterans get a clear, accurate picture of performance to make an informed decision on whether to participate in the VET TEC program,” Walkinshaw’s office said in the release.