[Federal Register: November 13, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 218)]

[Presidential Documents]
[Page 58533-58536]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr13no09-126]


Presidential Documents


Title 3--
The President

[[Page 58533]]

Executive Order 13518 of November 9, 2009


Employment of Veterans in the Federal Government

By the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
the laws of the United States of America, including
section 301 of title 3 of the United States Code, I
hereby order as follows:

Section 1. Policy. Veterans have served and sacrificed
in defense of our Nation. When they complete their
service, we must do everything in our power to assist
them in re-entering civilian life and finding
employment. Government as well as private employers
should play a prominent role in helping veterans who
may be struggling to find jobs. As one of the Nation's
leading employers, the Federal Government is in need of
highly skilled individuals to meet agency staffing
needs and to support mission objectives. Our veterans,
who have benefited from training and development during
their military service, possess a wide variety of
skills and experiences, as well as the motivation for
public service, that will help fulfill Federal
agencies' staffing needs. It is therefore the policy of
my Administration to enhance recruitment of and promote
employment opportunities for veterans within the
executive branch, consistent with merit system
principles and veterans' preferences prescribed by law.
The Federal Government will thereby help lead by
example in promoting veterans' employment.

Sec. 2. Council on Veterans Employment. There is hereby
established an interagency Council on Veterans
Employment (Council), to be co-chaired by the
Secretaries of Labor and Veterans Affairs. The Director
of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) shall serve
as Vice Chair of the Council.

(a) Mission and Function of the Council. The Council
shall:

(i) advise and assist the President and the Director of OPM in establishing
a coordinated Government-wide effort to increase the number of veterans
employed by the Federal Government by enhancing recruitment and training;

(ii) serve as a national forum for promoting veterans' employment
opportunities in the executive branch; and

(iii) establish performance measures to assess the effectiveness of, and
submit an annual report to the President on the status of, the Veterans
Employment Initiative described in section 3 of this order.

(b) Membership of the Council. The Council shall
consist of the heads of the following agencies and such
other executive branch agencies as the President may
designate:

(i) the Department of State;

(ii) the Department of the Treasury;

(iii) the Department of Defense;

(iv) the Department of Justice;

(v) the Department of the Interior;

(vi) the Department of Agriculture;

(vii) the Department of Commerce;

(viii) the Department of Labor;

(ix) the Department of Health and Human Services;

(x) the Department of Housing and Urban Development;

[[Page 58534]]

(xi) the Department of Transportation;

(xii) the Department of Energy;

(xiii) the Department of Education;

(xiv) the Department of Veterans Affairs;

(xv) the Department of Homeland Security;

(xvi) the Environmental Protection Agency;

(xvii) the National Aeronautics and Space Administration;

(xviii) the Agency for International Development;

(xix) the General Services Administration;

(xx) the National Science Foundation;

(xxi) the Nuclear Regulatory Commission;

(xxii) the Office of Personnel Management;

(xxiii) the Small Business Administration; and

(xxiv) the Social Security Administration.

A member of the Council may designate, to perform the
Council functions of the member, a senior official who
is part of the member's agency, and who is a full-time
officer or employee of the Federal Government.

(c) Administration of the Council. The Co-Chairs shall
convene meetings of the Council, determine its agenda,
and direct its work. At the direction of the Co-Chairs,
the Council may establish subgroups consisting
exclusively of Council members or their designees, as
appropriate. The Vice Chair shall designate an
Executive Director for the Council to support the Vice
Chair in managing the Council's activities. The OPM
shall provide administrative support for the Council to
the extent permitted by law and within existing
appropriations.

(d) Steering Committee. There is established within the
Council a Steering Committee consisting of the
Secretaries of Defense, Labor, Veterans Affairs, and
Homeland Security, the Director of OPM, and any other
Council member designated by the Co-Chairs. The
Steering Committee shall be responsible for providing
leadership, accountability, and strategic direction to
the Council.

Sec. 3. Veterans Employment Initiative. The agencies
represented on the Council shall participate in a
Veterans Employment Initiative (Initiative). Under the
Initiative, each participating agency shall, to the
extent permitted by law:

(a) develop an agency-specific Operational Plan for
promoting employment opportunities for veterans,
consistent with the Government-wide Veterans
Recruitment and Employment Strategic Plan described in
section 4 of this order, merit system principles, the
agency's strategic human capital plan, and other
applicable workforce planning strategies and
initiatives;

(b) within 120 days of the date of this order,
establish a Veterans Employment Program Office, or
designate an agency officer or employee with full-time
responsibility for its Veterans Employment Program, to
be responsible for enhancing employment opportunities
for veterans within the agency, consistent with law and
merit system principles, including developing and
implementing the agency's Operational Plan, veterans
recruitment programs, and training programs for
veterans with disabilities, and for coordinating
employment counseling to help match the career
aspirations of veterans to the needs of the agency;

(c) provide mandatory annual training to agency human
resources personnel and hiring managers concerning
veterans' employment, including training on veterans'
preferences and special authorities for the hiring of
veterans;

[[Page 58535]]

(d) identify key occupations for which the agency will
provide job counseling and training to better enable
veterans to meet agency staffing needs associated with
those occupations; and

(e) coordinate with the Departments of Defense and
Veterans Affairs to promote further development and
application of technology designed to assist
transitioning service members and veterans with
disabilities.

Sec. 4. Additional Responsibilities of the Director of
the Office of Personnel Management. The Director of OPM
shall, in consultation with the Council and to the
extent permitted by law:

(a) develop a Government-wide Veterans Recruitment and
Employment Strategic Plan, to be updated at least every
3 years, addressing barriers to the employment of
veterans in the executive branch and focusing on:

(i) identifying actions that agency leaders should take to improve
employment opportunities for veterans;

(ii) developing the skills of transitioning military service members and
veterans;

(iii) marketing the Federal Government as an employer of choice to
transitioning service members and veterans;

(iv) marketing the talent, experience, and dedication of transitioning
service members and veterans to Federal agencies; and

(v) disseminating Federal employment information to veterans and hiring
officials;

(b) provide Government-wide leadership in recruitment
and employment of veterans in the executive branch;

(c) identify key occupations, focusing on positions in
high-demand occupations where talent is needed to meet
Government-wide staffing needs, for which the Federal
Government will provide job counseling and training
under section 5(a) of this order to veterans and
transitioning military service personnel;

(d) develop mandatory training for both human resources
personnel and hiring managers on veterans' employment,
including veterans' preference and special hiring
authorities;

(e) compile and post on the OPM website Government-wide
statistics on the hiring of veterans; and

(f) within 1 year of the date of this order and with
the advice of the Council, provide recommendations to
the President on improving the ability of veterans'
preference laws to meet the needs of the new generation
of veterans, especially those transitioning from the
conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the needs of
Federal hiring officials.

Sec. 5. Responsibilities of the Secretaries of Defense,
Labor, Veterans Affairs, and Homeland Security. The
Secretaries of Defense, Labor, Veterans Affairs, and
Homeland Security shall take the following actions, to
the extent permitted by law:

(a) The Secretaries of Defense, Labor, Veterans
Affairs, and Homeland Security shall, in consultation
with OPM, develop and implement counseling and training
programs to align veterans' and transitioning service
members' skills and career aspirations to Federal
employment opportunities, targeting Federal occupations
that are projected to have heavy recruitment needs.

(b) The Secretary of Labor shall conduct employment
workshops for veterans and transitioning military
service personnel as part of the Transition Assistance
Program (TAP), and integrate in those workshops
information about the Federal hiring process, veterans'
preference laws, special hiring authorities, and
Federal job opportunities.

(c) The Secretary of Defense and Secretary of Homeland
Security (with respect to the Coast Guard) shall:

[[Page 58536]]

(i) reinforce military leadership's commitment and support of the service
members' transition process; and

(ii) institute policies that encourage every eligible service member to
take the opportunity to enroll in any or all of the four components of the
TAP.

(d) The Secretaries of Labor and Veterans Affairs
shall:

(i) assist veterans and transitioning service members in translating
military skills, training, and education to Federal occupations through
programs developed under subsection (a) of this section; and

(ii) provide training to employment and rehabilitation counselors on the
Federal hiring process, veterans' preferences, special hiring authorities,
and identifying Federal employment opportunities for veterans.

Sec. 6. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order
shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i) authority granted by law to a department or agency or the head thereof;
or

(ii) functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget
relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with
applicable law and subject to the availability of
appropriations.

(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create
any right or benefit, substantive or procedural,
enforceable at law or in equity by any party against
the United States, its departments, agencies, or
entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any
other person.


(Presidential Sig.)

THE WHITE HOUSE,

November 9, 2009.

[FR Doc. E9-27441
Filed 11-12-09; 8:45 am]

Billing code 3195-W9-P

I guess it can't be said that the current POTUS isn't for the Rights of Veterans.

And I noticed that it was signed into effect right before Veterans Day.

Can we say Photo-Op boys and girls?

Although, in all honesty, it seems like one of the better Executive Orders I've seen in a long while.

(If I'm overlooking something more nefarious in the Order, please point it out, because it seems pretty innocuous to me.)

Nice work by Obama, wonder what the people who dont like him fault him for this on what reason. It'll be hard but somehow they would do it, I'm sure.

Kinda makes wonder why this was not in the news. Oh I know if it cant cant be misconstrued then those Obama haters wont open there mouths.

My only issue with this, in a struggling economy, this order gives preferential status to those that serve in the government and for the government. With hundreds of thousands out of work...those that agree with government policies and are willing to support the cause by signing up for the military, engaging in undeclared wars, and supporting a profit motivated system will get the best paying jobs.

So in essence, sign up for the military if you wish to have money to buy and sell.