“Veterans have made innumerable sacrifices to defend this country and the freedoms we hold so dear. As chair of the Assembly Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, I will always fight to ensure they get the services they deserve. My Assembly colleagues and I included critical funding for veterans programs in this year’s Assembly budget proposal to honor that commitment.

“This spending plan restores $850,000 to support various programs for veterans to transition back to civilian life. These programs help returning service men and women use their skills to find employment and connect them with resources to support their reintegration home. These programs support older LGBTQ vets and provide legal and other services to low-income active-duty members. The Assembly plan also changes the name of the state Division of Veterans’ Affairs to the Division of Veterans’ Services to avoid confusion with the federal department and allocates $203,000, allowing it to fully fund county and city service agencies. Additionally, we included $1 million in our spending plan for Veterans Treatment Courts to help veterans who are arrested for crimes stemming from and exacerbated by the transition from their military service.

“To help veterans facing mental and behavioral health issues, I’m also pushing to fully fund the Joseph P. Dwyer Veteran Peer Support Program statewide, which was left out of the executive budget, in the final state budget. This important program provides vet-to-vet counseling to assist veterans of all eras and their families cope with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injuries (TBI) and other mental and behavioral health. These heroes put their lives on the line protecting our nation, facing harrowing situations most can’t imagine. Making this program available across the state would help veterans get help close to home, while connecting with fellow veterans who understand their experience in ways others may not.

“As chair of the Assembly Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, I want to ensure that proper attention is brought to initiatives like the Joseph P. Dwyer Veteran Peer Support Program. As we craft the final state budget, I’ll work with my colleagues to secure funding for services that help our vets to reintegrate back into civilian life, whether it’s housing, employment or counseling.”