In 20-plus years representing thousands of clients who are military veterans, Zachary Stolz, a law partner at Chisholm Chisholm & Kilpatrick Ltd., has seen them wait months or years to receive disability benefits.
“Delay is always a problem,” Stolz said. “It can take quite a bit of time for a veteran to get a decision on a disability claim, and the complexity of the system has been difficult for people to navigate.”
The Providence firm, which focuses on veterans affairs, often works with veterans attempting to navigate the system. Some have injuries or diseases that have progressed to the point where they’re unable to work at all, Stolz said, while others can work in a limited capacity – in the latter case, veterans must receive a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs disability rating, which determines compensation amounts.
Typically, the VA will render a decision within 120 days, Stolz said. But if a veteran is denied and seeks to appeal the decision, going through the courts can amount to a yearslong process, Stolz said.
But Stolz and other veteran advocates are hopeful that a law enacted earlier this year, the Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act – otherwise known as the Dole Act – will help streamline this process.
The legislation, signed into law by then-President Joe Biden at the end of his term in January, received strong bipartisan support. In addition to updating the claims process for disability benefits, the expansive act also calls for new and upgraded services related to long-term care, workforce and training initiatives, and housing and homelessness initiatives.
“It can help working veterans to bridge the gap,” Stolz said. “There are things to streamline the process and get that disability rating to them earlier.”
Tyrone Smith, director of supportive services for veterans at Johnston-based Operation Stand Down Rhode Island, said that the nonprofit, which provides services for homeless and at-risk veterans, often works with individuals experiencing these issues, including difficulties with disability claims and appeals.
“We see a lot of veterans who deal with these problems, and they don’t necessarily seek that service protection piece, or they struggle with the appeals process if they get denied,” Smith said. “So navigating that piece is essential.”
Additionally, the Dole Act includes an initiative to connect veterans with in-demand technology jobs and better access to education and training opportunities.
The act establishes a High Technology Program, intended to provide up to 4,000 veterans per year with educational assistance in pursuing technology-related careers.
The technology sector represents an area of untapped potential for veterans, Smith said.
Operation Stand Down runs its own workforce development programming and sees many veterans transition into sectors such as manufacturing and health care, Smith said, while technology jobs remain “few and far between” as landing spots.
“But we see Rhode Island has this wind and energy sector where [the state] is trying to grow these programs and meet the needs,” he said.
Housing assistance and transportation measures, which the legislation also affects, play another vital role in helping veterans reach a point where they can focus on training and career opportunities, according to Smith.
“You can’t really focus on anything if you’re worried about housing,” Smith said. “If we can eliminate some of those barriers and assist with income needs ... then you have [better-prepared] people for that marketplace.”
The High Technology Program is preceded by the VA’s Veteran Employment Through Technology Education Courses, or VET TEC, which concluded in April 2024 and matched veterans and transitioning service members with technology-related programming. The five-year pilot ultimately dispersed $45 million annually.
Working within the G.I. Bill, the VA-administered program provided eligible veterans financial assistance with tuition, housing and other education-related fees.
More than 14,000 veterans completed a technology program through VET TEC, according to the VA, with almost half of these graduates later reporting that they secured employment with an average salary of $65,000.
The U.S. Government Accountability Office issued a report in 2023 finding that VET TEC provided “key benefits” such as “an accelerated path to employment and virtual training,” but also noted application delays and a need for the VA to establish “consistent, clear, and measurable program objectives.”
“Education is long term,” Smith said. “I’m asking a veteran, if they’re going into one of these technology-based programs to attend for ‘X’ amount of time.
“But during that education piece, whether it be a couple of months, six months, or a year, we’re going to have to provide some sort of subsidy towards transportation costs,” he said, making support services in this area another “huge” aspect of increasing workforce opportunities for veterans.
