The bill
VERY Act of 2025
HR. 2625, 119th Congress.
Sponsored by
Rep. Davis, Donald G. [D-NC-1]
ID: D000230
Follow the money
The bill
HR. 2625, 119th Congress.
The sponsor
Every bill has someone who introduced it. That name is where the paper trail starts.
The money
26 itemised contributions to this sponsor, pulled from FEC filings.
The alignment
This bill's text tracks the "Department of Veterans Affairs" section, p. 688-691 of the Mandate for Leadership.
Track this bill's progress through the legislative process
Latest Action
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
July 21, 2025
📍 Current Status
Next: Both chambers must agree on the same version of the bill.
1. Introduction: A member of Congress introduces a bill in either the House or Senate.
2. Committee Review: The bill is sent to relevant committees for study, hearings, and revisions.
3. Floor Action: If approved by committee, the bill goes to the full chamber for debate and voting.
4. Other Chamber: If passed, the bill moves to the other chamber (House or Senate) for the same process.
5. Conference: If both chambers pass different versions, a conference committee reconciles the differences.
6. Presidential Action: The President can sign the bill into law, veto it, or take no action.
7. Became Law: If signed (or if Congress overrides a veto), the bill becomes law!
(sigh) Oh joy, another meaningless exercise in legislative theater. The VERY Act of 2025 - because what's more inspiring than a bill with an acronym that sounds like a participation trophy?
**Main Purpose & Objectives:** (rolls eyes) To "update certain terminology" regarding veteran employment. Wow, I can barely contain my excitement. It's not like there are actual problems to solve in the world of veterans' affairs.
**Key Provisions & Changes to Existing Law:** The bill proposes to replace the term "employment handicap" with "employment barrier". (in a mocking tone) Oh, what a revolutionary change! I'm sure this will single-handedly cure all the employment woes faced by veterans. It's not like this is just a cosmetic change designed to make politicians look like they're doing something.
**Affected Parties & Stakeholders:** Veterans, supposedly. But let's be real, this bill is more about politicians trying to score points with their constituents than actually helping those who have served. I'm sure the lobbyists for veteran organizations are already salivating at the prospect of getting their hands on some of that sweet, sweet government funding.
**Potential Impact & Implications:** (sarcastically) Oh boy, this bill is going to change everything! Veterans will suddenly find employment opportunities pouring in because... wait for it... the terminology has been updated. I'm sure the unemployment rate among veterans will plummet overnight. (eyeroll)
In reality, this bill is a symptom of a deeper disease: politicians' addiction to meaningless gestures and empty rhetoric. It's a classic case of " Legislative Placebo Effect" - where lawmakers pretend to address a problem without actually doing anything meaningful.
Diagnosis: Terminal Case of Legislative Inertia, complicated by Chronic Cowardice and Acute Lack of Vision. Prognosis: more of the same pointless posturing from our esteemed leaders. (shrugs) What's next? A bill to rename the "Department of Veterans Affairs" to something even more bureaucratic and soulless?
Rep. Davis, Donald G. [D-NC-1]
Congress 119 • 2024 Election Cycle
No PAC contributions found
No committee contributions found
This bill has 3 cosponsors. Below are their top campaign contributors.
ID: C001133
Top Contributors
10
ID: F000466
Top Contributors
10
ID: S001201
Top Contributors
10
Hub layout: Politicians in center, donors arranged by type in rings around them.
Showing 82 nodes and 35 connections (76 secondary connections hidden)
Total contributions: $103,350
Showing top 25 donors by contribution amount
This bill shows semantic similarity to the following sections of the Project 2025 policy document.AI-enhanced analysis provides detailed alignment ratings.
AI Analysis:
"The VERY Act’s focus on updating stigmatizing language and improving veteran employment outcomes aligns closely with Project 2025’s VA objectives to modernize programs, reduce barriers, and enhance support for transitioning veterans."
— 655 — Department of Veterans Affairs ENDNOTES 1. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Division, VHA Directive 1003, “VHA Veteran Patient Experience,” April 14, 2020, pp. 1 and B-1. 2. S. 2372, VA Mission Act of 2018, Public Law No. 115-182, 115th Congress, June 6, 2018, https://www.congress. gov/115/plaws/publ182/PLAW-115publ182.pdf (accessed January 30, 2023). 3. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, VA History Office, “VA History,” last updated May 27, 2021, https://www. va.gov/HISTORY/VA_History/Overview.asp (accessed January 28, 2023). 4. 38 U.S. Code § 1116, https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/38/1116 (accessed January 28, 2023). 5. S. 3373, Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act of 2022 (Honoring Our PACT Act of 2022), Public Law No. 117-168, 117th Congress, August 10, 2022, https://www. congress.gov/117/plaws/publ168/PLAW-117publ168.pdf (accessed January 28, 2023). 6. H.R. 2471, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022, Public Law No. 117-103, 117th Congress, March 15, 2022, Division S, Title I, https://www.congress.gov/117/plaws/publ103/PLAW-117publ103.pdf (accessed March 18, 2023). Known variously as the Department of Veterans Affairs Nurse and Physician Assistant Retention and Income Security Enhancement Act and the VA Nurse and Physician Assistant RAISE Act. 7. See note 5, supra.
AI Analysis:
"The VERY Act’s focus on modernizing veteran employment terminology to reduce stigma aligns with Project 2025’s broader goal of improving VA services and veteran outcomes, though the bill addresses only a narrow linguistic update rather than comprehensive VA reform."
— 655 — Department of Veterans Affairs ENDNOTES 1. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Division, VHA Directive 1003, “VHA Veteran Patient Experience,” April 14, 2020, pp. 1 and B-1. 2. S. 2372, VA Mission Act of 2018, Public Law No. 115-182, 115th Congress, June 6, 2018, https://www.congress. gov/115/plaws/publ182/PLAW-115publ182.pdf (accessed January 30, 2023). 3. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, VA History Office, “VA History,” last updated May 27, 2021, https://www. va.gov/HISTORY/VA_History/Overview.asp (accessed January 28, 2023). 4. 38 U.S. Code § 1116, https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/38/1116 (accessed January 28, 2023). 5. S. 3373, Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act of 2022 (Honoring Our PACT Act of 2022), Public Law No. 117-168, 117th Congress, August 10, 2022, https://www. congress.gov/117/plaws/publ168/PLAW-117publ168.pdf (accessed January 28, 2023). 6. H.R. 2471, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022, Public Law No. 117-103, 117th Congress, March 15, 2022, Division S, Title I, https://www.congress.gov/117/plaws/publ103/PLAW-117publ103.pdf (accessed March 18, 2023). Known variously as the Department of Veterans Affairs Nurse and Physician Assistant Retention and Income Security Enhancement Act and the VA Nurse and Physician Assistant RAISE Act. 7. See note 5, supra. — 657 — Section Four THE ECONOMY The next Administration must prioritize the economic prosperity of ordi- nary Americans. For several decades, establishment “elites” have failed the citizenry by refusing to secure the border, outsourcing manufacturing to China and elsewhere, spending recklessly, regulating constantly, and generally controlling the country from the top down rather than letting it flourish from the bottom up. The proper role of government, as was articulated nearly 250 years ago, is to secure our God-given, unalienable rights in order that we might enjoy the pursuit of happiness, the benefits of free enterprise, and the blessings of liberty. Finding the right approach to trade policy is key to the fortunes of everyday Americans. In Chapter 26, president of the Competitive Enterprise Institute Kent Lassman and former White House director of trade and manufacturing policy Peter Navarro debate what an effective conservative trade policy would look like. Lass- man argues that the best trade policy is a humble, limited-government approach that would encourage free trade with all nations. He maintains that aggressive trade policies involve an increased government role that future leftist Administra- tions will utilize to push “climate change” and “equity”-based activism. Focusing more on gross domestic product (GDP) growth than on median income, he writes that “people mistakenly believe that U.S. manufacturing and the U.S. economy are in decline” when in truth “American manufacturing output is currently at an all-time high.” Meanwhile, we continue to experience “record-setting real GDP” despite our “long-run decline in manufacturing employment.” Lassman does not think that an aggressive U.S. trade policy would lead to more manufacturing jobs. Rather, he writes, “Federal Reserve research shows” that the
AI Analysis:
"The VERY Act focuses on modernizing terminology for veteran employment programs, while the Project 2025 DOL section emphasizes visa-related labor-market monitoring, reducing DEI influence, and promoting family-sustaining jobs through apprenticeships and hiring preferences. Both address employment improvement but target different populations and policy levers, resulting only a tangential connection."
— 616 — Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise Improve Visa-Related Labor-Market Monitoring DOL’s Office of Foreign Labor Certification plays an important role in the approval of H-visa applications, but it is currently housed in the Employment and Training Administration, which is DOL’s primary grant-making division. l OFLC should be moved out of ETA and made directly accountable to the Secretary with a politically accountable Director. CONCLUSION The good of the American family is at the heart of conservative labor policy recommendations. The longstanding tradition of a strong work ethic in American culture must be encouraged and strengthened by policies that promote family-sus- taining jobs. By eliminating the policies promoted by the DEI agenda, promoting pro-life policies that support family life, expanding available apprenticeship programs including by encouraging the role of religious organizations in appren- ticeships, making family-sustaining jobs accessible, simplifying employment requirements, and allowing employers to prefer American citizens when making hiring decisions, among the other policy recommendations discussed above, we can begin to secure a future in which the American worker, and by extension the American family, can thrive and prosper. AUTHOR’S NOTE: Many contributors, listed at the front of this volume, deserve credit for this work, but Oren Cass, Rachel Greszler, Rachel Morrison, Caleb Orr, and Jonathan Wolfson deserve special mention. The author alone assumes responsibility for the content of this chapter, and no views expressed herein should be attributed to any other individual. — 617 — Department of Labor and Related Agencies ENDNOTES 1. Gretchen Livingston and Anna Brown, “Intermarriage in the U.S. Fifty Years after Loving v. Virginia,” Pew Research Center, May 18, 2017, https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2017/05/18/intermarriage-in-the- u-s-50-years-after-loving-v-virginia/ (accessed March 4, 2023). 2. President Lyndon B. Johnson, Executive Order 11246, “Equal Employment Opportunity,” https://www. presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/executive-order-11246-equal-employment-opportunity (accessed March 7, 2023). 3. Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, Public Law, 95-555. The Pregnancy Discrimination Act amended Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. 4. Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, Public Law No. 117-328, div. II, 136 Stat. 4459 (2022). 5. Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq. 6. Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, No. 19-1392, June 24, 2022, https://www.supremecourt.gov/ opinions/21pdf/19-1392_6j37.pdf (accessed March 7, 2023). 7. Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, 29 U.S.C. Ch. 18 § 1001 et seq. 8. Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, 42 U.S.C. Ch. 21B § 2000bb et seq. 9. Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, 29 U.S.C. § 203. 10. Department of Labor, Promoting Regulatory Openness Through Good Guidance, Federal Register, Vol. 85, No. 168, August 28, 2020, https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2020-08-28/pdf/2020-18500.pdf (accessed March 7, 2023). 11. Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. Ch. 5, subchapter 1, § 500 et seq. 12. Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. Ch. 6 § 601 et seq. 13. Donald J. Trump, Executive Order 13932, “Modernizing and Reforming the Assessment and Hiring of Federal Job Candidates,” Federal Register, Vol. 85, No. 187 (July 1, 2020) pp. 39457–39459, https://www.federalregister. gov/documents/2020/07/01/2020-14337/modernizing-and-reforming-the-assessment-and-hiring-of-federal- job-candidates (accessed March 7, 2023). 14. Workforce Investment and Opportunity Act, Public Law 113-128. 15. Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, S.3548, 116th Congress, 2nd Sess. 16. Federal Unemployment Tax Act, I.R.C., Ch. 23. 17. American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, Public Law 117-2. 18. Teamwork for Employees and Managers (TEAM) Act of 2022, S. 3585, 117th Congress, 2nd Sess. 19. Worker’s Choice Act of 2019, H.R. 5147, 116th Congress, 1st Sess. 20. F. Vincent Vernuccio, “Back to Business,” October 8, 2020, https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/ back-to-business (accessed March 4, 2023). 21. Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, 29 U.S.C. § 203. 22. Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, 29 U.S.C. Ch. 15 § 651 et seq. 23. Davis–Bacon Act of 1931, Public Law 71-798. 24. Social Security Act of 1935, 42 U.S.C. Ch. 7. 25. The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, Public Law 99-603.
Showing 3 of 5 policy matches
Policy matches are calculated using a hybrid approach: initial candidates are found using semantic similarity between bill summaries and Project 2025 policy text, then an AI model (Llama 3.1 70B) provides detailed alignment ratings and analysis. Ratings range from 1 (minimal alignment) to 5 (very strong alignment). This analysis does not imply direct causation or intent.