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Kaine cosponsors bill to expand Disabled Veterans Outreach Program for surviving spouses

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The Disabled Veterans Outreach Program provides every state with funding to hire specialists who provide individualized career counseling services to eligible veterans.

The Gold Star and Surviving Spouse Career Services Act would expand the program, which is housed within the Veterans’ Employment and Training Service at the Department of Labor, to include surviving spouses.

U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, cosponsored the bipartisan bill to increase access to job counseling services for spouses of members of the Armed Forces who died while on active duty.

“Gold Star families have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country,” Kaine said. “We have a responsibility to provide surviving spouses with crucial support, including access to high-quality career counseling services. This bipartisan bill would help us do that, and I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join us in standing with Gold Star families by getting this legislation signed into law.”

Rebecca Barnabi

Rebecca Barnabi

Rebecca J. Barnabi is the national editor of Augusta Free Press. A graduate of the University of Mary Washington, she began her journalism career at The Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star. In 2013, she was awarded first place for feature writing in the Maryland, Delaware, District of Columbia Awards Program, and was honored by the Virginia School Boards Association’s 2019 Media Honor Roll Program for her coverage of Waynesboro Schools. Her background in newspapers includes writing about features, local government, education and the arts.