PSI Sci
New here? Follow the money and the votes · Not sure of your district? Find your U.S. House member · Find your state legislators

H.R. 186: Veterans Jobs Opportunity Act

Before you vote › Federal bills

H.R. 186: Veterans Jobs Opportunity Act

116th Congress · introduced 2019-01-03 · Taxation · Latest: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2019-01-03 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Rep. Lawson, Al, Jr. [D-FL-5] · what a sponsor is
  3. What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
  4. Where it stands now: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
  5. If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Veterans Jobs Opportunity Act

Plain summary

Veterans Jobs Opportunity Act This bill allows a new business-related tax credit for the start-up expenses of a veteran-owned small business in an underserved community. The allowable amount of such credit is 15% of start-up expenditures that do not exceed $80,000. To be eligible for the credit, the small business must (1) be owned and controlled by one or more veterans or spouses of veterans, and (2) have a principal place of business in an underserved community. An "underserved community" is any area located within (1) a HUBZone (as defined by the Small Business Act), (2) an empowerment zone or an enterprise community, (3) an area of low income or moderate income (as recognized by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council), or (4) a county with persistent poverty (as classified by the Economic Research Service of the Department of Agriculture).

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Veterans Jobs Opportunity Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

AI explanation – may be wrong, check the official text

No AI explanation yet. It takes up to a minute to write and is then saved for everyone.

Limited to a few requests an hour per person.

The strongest published arguments

Arguments for (supporters)

Needs sources: no published arguments on this side yet. We only show items backed by a published source. Suggest one.

Arguments against (opponents)

Needs sources: no published arguments on this side yet. We only show items backed by a published source. Suggest one.

Alternatives

Needs sources: no published alternatives yet (for example a different bill, a law instead of an amendment, or keeping current law). We only show items backed by a published source. Suggest one.

How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Lawson, Al, Jr. [D-FL-5] · 37 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY), Darren Soto (D-FL), Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (D-GA), James P. McGovern (D-MA), Frederica S. Wilson (D-FL), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Julia Brownley (D-CA), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Janice D. Schakowsky (D-IL), Kathy Castor (D-FL), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. (D-GA), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Donald Norcross (D-NJ), J. Luis Correa (D-CA), Lauren Underwood (D-IL)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (1)
Bill
A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Record fed-us-cong116-hr186 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong116 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong116