{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://coffman.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/coffman-s-fairness-for-veterans-proposal-included-in-ndaa", "Coffmans Fairness for Veterans Proposal Included in NDAA", "2016-12-02", "2016", "2016-12", "Republican", "House", "CO", "Mike Coffman", "C001077", "coffman.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DC -- U.S. Representative Mike Coffman (CO-06) today applauded the passage of the\u00a0FY17 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which contained a number of provisions proposed by Coffman.\nIn particular, Coffman\u2019s\u00a0Fairness for Veterans\u00a0Act\u00a0was added to the final version of NDAA.\u00a0H.R. 4683,\u00a0the Fairness for Veterans Act,\u00a0is\u00a0a measure Coffman introduced in March\u00a0as part of his set of initiatives to provide veterans with better access to mental health services.\n\u201cAs a retired Marine and a combat veteran myself, I know how stressful combat deployments are and the impact they can often have years after returning to civilian life,\" Coffman said. \"Many of\u00a0our soldiers\u00a0develop PTSD while deployed in a combat zone and then get kicked out of the military for minor behavioral problems directly linked to their combat-related PTSD.\u00a0Today\u2019s vote on NDAA is a critical step\u00a0in\u00a0ensuring that we take care of those who have served our nation and now need our nation to help them.\"\nCoffman developed the\u00a0Fairness for Veterans Act\u00a0to address a very disturbing trend.\u00a0Since 2009, more than 20,000\u00a0service members with medical histories indicating they may have PTSD have been improperly discharged from the U.S. Army with other- than-honorable discharges, oftentimes for minor misconduct.\nIn 2009, at the height of combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, the U.S. Army had about 555,000 soldiers. Since then, the Army has been cut back to an active duty force of 485,000. From these figures, it appears that the Army has used these minor misconduct violations an excuse to quickly discard these combat veterans get its active duty numbers down. This is particularly troublesome because veterans\u00a0with\u00a0other-than-honorable discharges are often ineligible for a broad range of healthcare and\u00a0other\u00a0benefits\u00a0from the Department of Veteran\u2019s Affairs, including critical mental healthcare services. \u00a0\nCoffman and U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI), in a bipartisan, bicameral effort supported by more than 40 Veterans Service Organizations, worked side-by-side to include\u00a0Fairness for Veterans\u00a0language in FY17 NDAA,\u00a0which\u00a0creates\u00a0a presumption in favor of\u00a0a\u00a0combat veteran\u00a0with a diagnosis of PTSD\u00a0during the post-discharge appeals process.\n\u201cOur nation\u2019s heroes who honorably served our country should not lose access to the benefits they\u2019ve earned because they are suffering the invisible wounds of war,\u201d said Senator Peters, a former Lt. Commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve. \u201cI am pleased the House approved the Fairness for Veterans amendment with widespread bipartisan support, and I will be working to ensure swift passage in the Senate so veterans are given the fairness they deserve when petitioning for an upgraded discharge status.\n\u201cWe are heartened to learn that the \u2018Fairness for Veterans\u2019 provision has been included in the conferenced version of the NDAA,\u201d\u00a0said John Rowan, National President of Vietnam Veterans of America.\u00a0\u201cThis is one small step towards the much-needed reforms of the Department of Defense\u2019s Discharge Review Boards. VVA is especially thankful to Congressman Mike Coffman for his support of this common-sense legislation which will go a long way in protecting our country\u2019s most vulnerable veterans. For that, we are exceedingly grateful.\u201d\nIn addition to\u00a0Fairness for Veterans, Coffman\u2019s successful NDAA initiatives include:\n Increasing Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) funding\u00a0by nearly $15 million so military\u00a0bases\u00a0can prevent encroachment. As property around a base is developed, it can limit or restrict military training, testing, and operations. Buckley Air Force Base in Colorado\u2019s 6th Congressional District is currently competing for REPI funds to expand the buffer areas surrounding it. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\n\tReforms\u00a0that\u00a0streamline\u00a0and simplify the current processes used in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and Small Business Administration (SBA) to certify\u00a0veteran-owned small businesses (VOSB) and service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSB). The current processes vary between the VA and SBA and this reform reforms, streamlines, and simplifies the current process VA and SBA use to certify these businesses as eligible.\n A Marine Corps combat veteran, Coffman serves on the House Armed Services Committee and House Veteran\u2019s Affairs Committee, where he is the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "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": ["http://coffman.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/coffman-s-fairness-for-veterans-proposal-included-in-ndaa"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5459249261766672, "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"}