Veterans groups seek to expand outreach programs
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By Peter Hirschfeld Vermont Press Bureau - Published: July 28, 2008
BURLINGTON — A coalition of veterans officials from across the nation is seeking to retool the way federal funds are allocated for outreach programs.
Last week, members of the National Association of State Directors of Veterans Affairs met informally with Sen. Bernard Sanders in his Burlington office. John Scocus, head of the group, said state-run offices are often better equipped to conduct the federally funded outreach work currently overseen by the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs.
"We're on the front lines, where the rubber meets the road," said Scocus, head of the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs. "We feel that we have insights into what it is veterans want and need that would allow us to effectively deploy those federal resources."
Clayton Clark, head of the Vermont Office of Veterans Affairs, lauded the bevy of services available through VA clinics and hospitals. But veterans in Vermont and elsewhere, he said, don't necessarily know those benefits even exist.
"One of the problems we have is that the government is not good at marketing itself," Clark said.
Outreach specialists in Clark's office traverse the breadth of Vermont, visiting veterans at their homes to assess their needs and help them navigate the federal bureaucracy.
"The federal government really does not have a marketing or outreach mission," Clark said. "They provide benefits, and if somebody calls to ask them about benefits, they'll be happy to answer. But they have a very limited role in beating the bushes to find people who are eligible — that role falls to states and veterans' services organizations."
An infusion of federal money, Clark said, would allow his seven-person office to expand those efforts.
"We'd probably bring in some additional staff, come up with a better Web site, come up with much more professional marketing material," he said.
The state-run offices are inherently more inclined to perform good outreach work, according to Clark.
"(The VA) doesn't really have an incentive to go out and find everyone that's eligible, because that just means more money they have to spend," Clark said. "But we do have an incentive to go out and find folks."
Clark emphasized that his seven-person office, with a $700,000 annual operating budget, isn't seeking to replace the VA or take over its programs.
"We want to make sure that if a veteran is having problems, that the underlying issues are addressed, and the way to do that is primarily through the federal VA."
The group's meeting with Sanders last Monday was part of an ongoing effort to broaden its influence in Congress. State-funded veterans affairs departments exist in all 50 states and disburse about $4 billion in services and benefits to veterans annually.
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