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House Wounded Warrior Program: Background
Overview, Origin, and Purpose
Table 1. Appropriations for the Wounded Warrior
Program by Fiscal Year
The House Wounded Warrior Program was established in
in millions of dollars
2008 by the leadership of the House of Representatives and
the Committee on House Administration. According to
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House publications, the goal of the program is to assist
2.5
0a
2.0
2.5
2.4
2.5
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2.5
2.5
wounded veterans in the transition to the civilian workforce
and to “make the House a model for other federal, state and
Source: CRS analysis of legislative branch appropriations acts.
municipal agencies to employ these talented, patriotic
Notes: Includes any rescissions and sequestration.
Americans to whom we are all greatly indebted” (annual
a. For an explanation of the planned use in FY2010 of prior year
unobligated funds, see the report accompanying the FY2010
budget justifications; see also press release announcing the
legislative branch appropriations bill (H.Rept. 111-160).
program, issued February 27, 2008; and H.Rept. 110-924).
Expenses
The program provides two-year paid fellowships within the
House of Representatives for disabled veterans. Fellows
All House Wounded Warrior Program expenditures are
may work in House Member offices either in Washington,
reported online in the quarterly Statement of Disbursements
DC, or in district offices, with the majority located in
of the House.
district offices. The specific job duties may vary by office
and are determined by the Member, although many fellows
According to the Statements, personnel compensation is by
serve as caseworkers in district offices and focus on
far the program’s largest category of expense, ranging
military and veterans’ issues.
between 89% and 96% of expenses between FY2009 and
FY2016. It is followed by travel. No other category of
The program is operated through the House of
expense exceeded 1% of program spending in a fiscal year.
Representatives Chief Administrative Officer’s (CAO’s)
office.
Figure 1. Wounded Warrior Program Expenditures
Funding for fellows’ salaries is separate from office budgets
FY2009-FY2016
provided to Members through the Members’
Representational Allowance (MRA). Fellows do not count
against the employment ceiling for Member offices.
Employment beyond the two-year fellowship is not
guaranteed, although some fellows have transitioned to full-
time employment with the House.
Patricia Orsini, a retired Master Gunnery Sergeant who
served in the United States Marine Corps, was the first
director of the program, and served from February 2008
until September 2016. In December 2016, John McIntyre
(Mac) Tolar, a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the United
States Marine Corps Reserve, was announced as the new
director.
According to a report from the House CAO, from its
inception through December 2016, the program hired 183
Source: CRS calculations based on the Statements of Disbursement of
fellows. Of these fellows, according to this report, “79%
the House.
have accepted full-time positions or returned to school after
Notes: The Statements of Disbursement of the House are available at
completing their fellowship.”
http://disbursements.house.gov/. “Other” includes expenses in the
following categories: “rent, utilities, and communications”; “printing
Funding
and reproduction”; “other services”; “supplies and materials”; and
“equipment.”
The House Wounded Warrior Program is funded in the
“allowances and expenses” portion of the appropriation for
Additional support for the program may be provided
through other House accounts. For example, as with other
the House of Representatives in the annual legislative
House employees, any government contributions for
branch appropriations acts. Funding since inception in
employee benefits are paid through the “Government
FY2009 is listed in Table 1.
Contributions” line in the “Allowances and Expenses”
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House Wounded Warrior Program: Background
portion of the appropriation for the House of
Selection and Placement of Wounded Warrior
Representatives, and not through the line-item for the
Fellows
Wounded Warrior Program.
Available positions are listed on the House Wounded
Qualifications for Eligibility
Warrior website. Positions are allocated equally between
majority and minority House Members.
The House may establish criteria for participation in the
Applicants may send the application and required
program.
documentation (including a current resume, last DD214
The CAO’s website currently states:
form and proof of a minimum 30% disability rating for a
service connected condition) to the House at
Any disabled veteran who has served on active duty since
housewoundedwarriors@mail.house.gov.
September 11, 2001, has fewer than 20 years of military
service, and has received either a Memorandum Rating of
Applicants do not need to be residents of the Member’s
30 percent or greater from their service Physical
district. Relocation expenses, however, cannot be
Evaluation Board or a VA service-connected disability
reimbursed.
rating of 30 percent or greater is eligible to apply for
positions with this program. Candidates for employment
Additional Congressional Actions
must have been honorably discharged and possess a high
school diploma or GED certificate.
Periodically, the House Appropriations Committee and the
For additional information on disability ratings and
Committee on House Administration have examined the
programs generally, see CRS Report R44837, Benefits for
operations of the Wounded Warrior program.
Service-Disabled Veterans, by Benjamin Collins, Scott D.
Of particular interest has been assessing the program’s
Szymendera, and Libby Perl and CRS Report RL34751,
success in assisting participants’ transition to civilian
Military Retirement: Background and Recent
employment, either with the House of Representatives or
Developments, by Kristy N. Kamarck.
elsewhere (for example, see H.Rept. 111-160, H.Rept. 112-
148).
Pay for Wounded Warrior Fellows
Additionally, the overall number of authorized participants
The Wounded Warrior Program website states:
was increased in October 2015. The Committee on House
Salaries will vary from job to job, depending on the duties
Administration approved an expansion from 50 positions,
and recommendations from the office or Congressional
which was the authorized level since the program had
Member that hires the Wounded Warrior.
begun, to 54 positions (H.Rept. 114-901).
Salaries for fellows follow the House Employees Schedule
Ida A. Brudnick, Specialist on the Congress
(HES), which is a classification system that applies to many
employees of House officers. The HES, including revisions
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to the pay scale and position standards and descriptions, is
subject to the oversight of the Committee on House
Administration.
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House Wounded Warrior Program: Background
Disclaimer
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