Military and Veterans Affairs Task Force Agenda and Presentations

NCSL 2012 Fall Forum

Washington, D.C.
Dec. 4-6, 2012

Tuesday, Dec. 4

NCSL Military and Veterans Affairs Task Force Convenes

Presiding:  Representative John Grange, Kansas and Representative Dan Flynn, Texas
Opening Remarks: Representatives Grange and Representative Dan Flynn

Self Introductions – Task Force Members and All Participants

Task Force Housekeeping Items: Jim Reed, NCSL

• Review Meeting Summary from August 2012 Chicago Meeting
• Review Meeting Folder Contents
• Task Force Funding Update and Draft Deliverables

Preventing Encroachment: Case Studies and an Update on REPI

This session highlighted instructive case studies where multiple party partnerships were able to protect military installations from incompatible encroachment, while serving environmental goals and meeting the needs of affected governments and citizens.  A tool to enable such partnerships is the Readiness and Environmental Protection Initiative (REPI), an established mechanism by which DoD partners with outside organizations to protect land uses that are compatible with the military mission. 

Presiding: Representative John Grange, Kansas
Speakers:

Nancy Natoli, Program Director, Readiness and Environmental Protection Initiative (REPI), Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Installations and Environment, Alexandria, VA   PDF Presentation

Tom McCarthy, Land Acquisition and Planning, Maryland Department of Natural Resources  PDF Presentation

Update on DoD Wind Energy Efforts and State Activity

Speaker: Mike Aimone, Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Installations and Environment, U.S. Department of Defense, Washington, D.C.

Potential Defense Cuts and Possible Impacts on States and Communities

Presiding: Representative Dan Flynn, Texas
Speaker:  Tim Ford, Chief Executive Officer, Association of Defense  Communities, Washington, D.C.   PDF Presentation

Presentation on Department of Defense energy consumption reduction effort

Presiding: Representative John Grange, Kansas
Speaker: John Conger, Acting Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Installations and Environment, U.S. Department of Defense, Washington, D.C.

Sentinel Landscapes Discussion

Sentinel Landscapes are watersheds, counties, or specifically bounded geographic areas where conservation, working lands, and national defense interests converge. These are places exhibiting important attributes supporting military facilities, habitat for wildlife species at risk, or compatible land uses that underlie military training routes. Texas A & M is exploring this concept and how it might work in the states.

Speaker:  Bruce Beard, Program Manager, Military Collaboration Institute for Renewable Natural Resources, Texas A&M University, Washington, D.C.  PDF Presentation

Update on Activities of Veterans Service Organizations

Speaker: Steve Gonzalez, American Legion, Washington, D.C.  PDF Presentation

Update on Military Service Member Licensing and Credentialing Efforts: Federal and State Activities

Presiding: Representative Dan Flynn, Texas
Speakers:  Marion Cain, Associate Director, Training Readiness and Strategy, U. S. Department of Defense, Washington, D.C.   PDF Presentation
Representatives John Grange and Tom Sloan, Kansas
Representative Tanya Pullin, Kentucky

Update on In-State Tuition and Higher Education Issues for Military Service Members

Speakers: Ed Kringer, Director, State Liaison and Education Opportunity, Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Military Community and Family Policy, Washington, D.C.
PDF Presentation,  Department of Defense – Mission and Key Issues handout, DoD  State Liaison Office--Regional and State Liaison handout 

Mary Beth Lakin and Anne Hickey, American Council on Education, Washington, D.C.

Thursday, Dec. 6

Expanding Employment for Military Veterans

(Joint Session with the Labor and Economic Development Committee and the Task Force on Military and Veterans’ Affairs)

This session focused on work being done to expand and grow job opportunities for military veterans. We heard from the Department of Veterans Affairs as well as other groups that help coordinate services to our veterans.

Moderator: Representative Brent Yonts, Kentucky (Vice Chair, Labor and Economic Development Committee)
Speakers: Deputy Assistant Secretary John Garcia, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, D.C.
Curtis Coy, Deputy Under Secretary, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, D.C.
Ted Daywalt, President Vet Jobs, Marietta, Georgia Kevin Stakelum and Josh Galle, Talent Acquisition, Humana’s Veteran and Military Spouse Initiative, Kentucky