WASHINGTON -- U.S. Sen. John Boozman, a Republican from Rogers, was in the East Room of the White House on Thursday when President Barack Obama signed the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act.
The bill requires annual third-party evaluations of the Department of Veterans Affairs' mental health and suicide prevention programs.
The bill also creates a peer support and community outreach pilot program to assist returning service members. In addition, it creates a pilot program to help repay the student-loan debt of psychiatry graduates who go to work for Veterans Affairs.
Hunt, a decorated Marine who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. After failing to get the right medication and disability ranking through the VA, he committed suicide in 2011.
"The best way to honor this young man who should be here is to make sure that more veterans like him are here for all the years to come and able to make extraordinary contributions, building on what they've already done for our safety and our security," Obama said at the ceremony.
The Senate passed the bill 99-0 on Feb. 3. The House passed it Jan. 12 by a 403-0 vote.
MARRIAGE LICENSE
Former U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor and Joi Whitfield of North Little Rock were issued a marriage license last week.
Pryor proposed to Whitfield after dinner at a Washington restaurant shortly before leaving the Senate in December. The couple have known each other for decades -- they attended sixth and seventh grade together at Pulaski Heights Middle School.
DELEGATION
The House and Senate are not meeting this week, and representatives are back in their districts.
Wednesday is U.S. Rep. Steve Womack's 58th birthday, and the congressman plans to be in Springdale to tour the South Coast Baking Company at 9 a.m. and speak to a Springdale School of Innovation class of eighth-graders at noon.
On Thursday, the Rogers Republican will be in Fort Smith and Van Buren. On Friday, he'll host a Coffee with the Congressman event in Bella Vista from 8:30 to 10 a.m. at Bella Vista City Hall, 101 Town Center.
U.S. Rep. Bruce Westerman, a Republican from Hot Springs, plans to attend the Drew County Chamber of Commerce dinner Tuesday night in Monticello.
At 4 p.m. Thursday, he will host an open house at his new district office, 101 Reserve St., Suite 200, in Hot Springs.
U.S. Rep. French Hill, a Republican from Little Rock, plans to have an open house at 4 p.m. Wednesday at his Conway office, 1105 Deer St., Suite 12, and at 3 p.m. Thursday at his Little Rock office, 1501 N. University Ave., Suite 150.
He also is scheduled to tour Welspun Tubular LLC in Little Rock and the Bryant Boys & Girls Club on Tuesday.
In Washington last week, U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton met with members of the Arkansas Prosecuting Attorneys Association and the Arkansas Rural Water Association on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the Dardanelle Republican met with Arkansans from the U.S. Rice Producers Association, the Fraternal Order of Police Members and the American Federation of Government Employees.
Also in Washington, Boozman met with Arkansas Secretary of State Mark Martin, Deputy Secretary of State Joseph Wood and the Conway Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday. He met with Maj. Gen. Mark Berry of the Arkansas National Guard and former Panamanian President Ricardo Martinelli, a University of Arkansas alumnus, on Thursday.
INTERNS
U.S. Rep. Rick Crawford is looking for unpaid summer interns. Interested applicants can send a resume and cover letter to Dana.Esposito@mail.house.gov.
HOUSING GRANT
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development on Thursday awarded $16.3 million split among more than 100 public housing authorities in Arkansas for large-scale improvements to their housing units such as replacing roofs, plumbing or electrical systems.
Altogether, the agency awarded nearly $1.8 billion in grants to public housing authorities in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The annual grants are through the Capital Fund Program, which offers annual funding to approximately 3,100 public housing authorities.
Planning to visit the nation's capital? Know something happening in Washington, D.C.? Contact us at (202) 662-7690 or swire@arkansasonline.com.
SundayMonday on 02/15/2015