Texas Veterans Held Hostage by Texas Workforce Commission

[travisab1]

Thought You Might Want To Know This!!!

From: Rhod Charles rhodeb@sbcglobal.net
Subject: Texas Veterans Held Hostage by Texas Workforce Commission


If you have not seen it take a look at www.texasvfw.org.


Texas Veterans Held Hostage by Texas Workforce Commission
LEGISLATIVE ALERT A series of communications and CALL TO ACTION brought about by the Texas Workforce Commission's failure to fill veteran staff positions in local Texas communities.


NOTE:The following message (further below) forms the basis of a series of communications (linked in bullet-list below) with Mike Olen, former Texas Workforce Commission Veterans Services Manager, with Texas Govenor Richard Perry & staff. The VFW believes this is an important ACTION ISSUE warranting your input concerning the erosion of veterans benefits here in Texas. We urge all of you to contact your Representatives and Senators as well as Govenor Perry to express your concerns on this important issue .
1st letter sent to Govenor Perry on October 14, 2003 - Dear Govenor Perry
Letter from Govenor Perry, November 7, 2003 - Letter from Govenor Perry
Letter from Mr. Luis Macias, Director Texas Workforce Commission, (characterized by Mr. Olen as "basically smoke and mirrors") - TWC letter Vet Staff Vacancies
2nd letter sent to Govenor Perry on December 7, 2003 - Govenor Perry Letter
TWC SAMS Data tables reflecting decreases in veterans services during the same period cited by Mr. Macias (above) as being productive - TWC SAMS DATA
Email "from Govenor's Staff" (actually Mr Olen's Analysis of Govenor Perry's 2nd letter above)- Email
Questions for Texas Workforce Commission to answer - Questions for TWC

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Texas Veterans Held Hostage by Texas Workforce Commission
The Politically appointed leaders of the Texas Workforce Commission are holding the veterans of Texas hostage while they pursue yet another political agenda.

The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) Chair, Ms. Diane Rath, has frozen the filling of over 25 vacant veteran staff positions in local communities due to her dispute with Federal leaders as to how Federal funding for veteran support should be utilized. These local positions provide job assistance and counseling to veterans that are unemployed. Ms. Rath's contention is, that as the Chair of the Commission, her Agency is not required to follow the Federal Grant funding articles of specification which were stipulated at the time of grant funding to Texas. Instead, Ms. Rath continually asks for waivers and directs action contrary to the grant requirements, while actively working to decrease services to Texas Veterans.

The Federal Funding in question is the Department of Labor Veterans' Employment and Training Service (DOL-VETS) grant to Texas for Disabled Veteran's Outreach Program (DVOP) and Local Veteran's Employment Representative (LVER) staff established under Chapter 41, Title 38, U.S.C. This grant provides Texas, via the Texas Workforce Commission, over nine million dollars annually to provide dedicated staff in local areas to support veterans in their job search.

Two recent Agency decisions illustrate Ms. Rath's attack on Texas veterans. First, the 25 vacant positions for veteran staff (DVOP/LVER) were frozen while she requested that DOL-VETS allow Texas to replace the existing state staff with local contract staff. Rather than fill the positions to continue serving veterans and await a decision, Ms. Rath chose to decrease the services. This has resulted in over 1,200 veterans failing to receive jobs in the past three months. Moreover, since these positions were not filled, as required by the Federal Grant, and the Agency agreement to get the grant, Texas is now faced with returning over one half million dollars back to the Federal government because TWC did not spend it according to the agreement.

With the many problems facing Texas and this year's Budget, it is indefensible for a state agency and the elected officials, to overtly take action to not serve Texans and then give money back to the Federal government that could have been utilized in Texas.

TWC officials will no doubt hold the party line that they are merely trying to reduce the number of state employees and save Texan's tax dollars. This is but another case of smoke, mirrors and rhetoric. In reality there is no actual savings to the Texas people at all. The state employees in question are all paid by a Federal grant and not Texas tax revenue. The funds received from the Federal government for this program and these staff would be passed down to local boards for their use. There will be no fund savings at all.

Make no mistake about it TWC in the past has had an exceptional veterans program winning awards at both the State and National levels. From 1998 to 2002, TWC led the nation in putting veterans to work, as reflected in the Agency's testimony before the Texas Legislature and on Capitol Hill before Congress. But that was before Ms. Rath decided to devolve the veterans program from state operations and give it to her friends.

This is yet another clear case of political power plays that hurt Texas Veterans, which are apparently condoned by the Governor. It is interesting that an Agency Official, albeit politically appointed, would actively promote harm to veteran citizens, and yet not be challenged about it.

Michael A. Olen, former TWC Veteran Services Manager 1998-2002

Regards,
Travis