{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://garbarino.house.gov/media/press-releases/congressman-garbarino-launches-veterans-advisory-council", "Congressman Garbarino Launches Veterans Advisory Council", "2021-08-20", "2021", "2021-08", "Republican", "House", "NY", "Andrew R. Garbarino", "G000597", "garbarino.house.gov", "garbarino", "https://garbarino.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "MASSAPEQUA, NY \u2013 Today, Congressman Andrew Garbarino (R-NY-02) launched his Veterans Advisory Council comprised of local veterans and veterans\u2019 groups. The Council is a standing advisory body that will provide guidance and recommendations to Rep. Garbarino on issues of importance to our nation's heroes so that he can make informed policy decisions on behalf of Long Island veterans.\n\n\"Long Island veterans have served this country bravely and they deserve a voice,\" said Rep. Garbarino. \"It's frustrating to hear how difficult it is for so many veterans to receive basic healthcare or to find jobs and adequate housing. It's unacceptable how many veterans with PTSD and depression as a result of their service go untreated or undertreated due to roadblocks to care. Our veterans deserve the federal government's full and unwavering support and, while there are many issues to address, it is within Congress' power to solve many of these problems. It is my hope that this Advisory Council will help me better advocate for the veteran community and address the challenges veterans are facing through policy change at the federal level.\"\n\nThe inaugural meeting was held on Friday at the American Legion in Babylon, New York. Topics covered included:\n\nThe withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan\n\nNeeded improvements to VA services and processes\n\nVeteran mental health services\n\nWomen veterans health services and lack of women participation in VA services\n\nVeteran homelessness and food insecurity\n\nVeterans in the workforce\n\nThis was the first in what will be a reoccurring series of meetings where Rep. Garbarino will update the council on legislative efforts and hear from council members about issues and concerns of top priority to the veteran community on Long Island. Members of the Veterans Advisory Council include:\n\nKevin Imparato: Nassau Police Veterans Association\n\nDanny Gavigan: Suffolk Police Veterans Association\n\nJoseph Burns: American Legion Post of Sayville\n\nDavid Isaac: American Legion Post of Sayville\n\nFred DiFabio: Long Island Air Force Association\n\nDave Rogers: Former Senior Vice Commander at Suffolk County Council VFW\n\nStacy Tapler: Women's Marines Corps Association\n\nJames Beecher: American Legion Nassau County\n\nEileen Shannahan: Warrior Ranch Foundation/PTSD Services for Veterans\n\nMichael Hernandez: American Legion Post 94 Commander\n\nRay Raguso: Former US ARMY Captain\n\nKevin Gallagher: Veteran, Town of Islip\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T20:11:17Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://garbarino.house.gov/media/press-releases/congressman-garbarino-launches-veterans-advisory-council"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8707439992576838, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}