BILL NUMBER: AJR 7CHAPTERED BILL TEXT RESOLUTION CHAPTER 122 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE JULY 21, 2015 ADOPTED IN SENATE JULY 6, 2015 ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 22, 2015 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 22, 2015 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 14, 2015 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 21, 2015 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Mathis (Coauthors: Assembly Members Chvez, Achadjian, Atkins, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang, Chau, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wilk, Williams, and Wood) FEBRUARY 25, 2015 Relative to veterans business enterprise. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AJR 7, Mathis. Veterans: first businesses. This measure would request the Congress of the United States of America to further amend the GI Bill of Rights to make benefits available to veterans for use as startup capital in the establishment of first businesses. WHEREAS, Men and women of the State of California volunteer to serve in the Armed Forces of the United States in greater numbers than those from any other state; and WHEREAS, California is currently home to more than 1,800,000 veterans of our Armed Forces; and WHEREAS, California veterans have been grateful recipients of the financial support of their fellow Americans through the Veterans Administration and the GI Bill; and WHEREAS, The Congress of the United States passed, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed, the GI Bill of Rights in 1944 to support our veterans of World War II in their transition back to civilian life; and WHEREAS, The Congress of the United States in 2008 added significant new benefits for those who enlisted to serve the nation in the wake of the attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001; and WHEREAS, Up to 10 percent of veterans choose to start, run, and own their own businesses; and WHEREAS, Over 30 percent of veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, and other fronts on the war against terrorism are receiving disability ratings from the federal Veterans Administration; and WHEREAS, More than five million Americans, including over one-half million Californians, served in those conflicts; and WHEREAS, The State of California is the recognized national leader in the establishment and success of veteran business owner procurement support programs; and WHEREAS, Veteran businesses make a significant contribution to the state's economy and serve as a source of employment for fellow veterans; and WHEREAS, Finding enough capital to successfully launch a new business or buy an existing business is the largest challenge that new business owners face; now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Assembly and the Senate of the State of California, jointly, That the Legislature requests that the Congress of the United States of America further amend the GI Bill of Rights to make benefits available, with all appropriate safeguards, to all veterans for use as startup capital in the establishment of first businesses; and be it further Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the President and Vice President of the United States, to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the Majority Leader of the Senate, and to each Senator and Representative from California in the Congress of the United States.