Vietnam Veterans of America Legislative Update

To Add "Veteran" to Driver's License

AB 1725 by Assemblywoman Bonnie Lowenthal, the Chair of the Assembly Transportation Committee. This bill is jointly sponsored by the American Legion-Department of CA, AMVETS-Department of CA, CA Association of County Veterans Service Officers, and the Vietnam Veterans of America-CA State Council.

There are approximately 2 million veterans in California, but there is no state data base with this information. California literally has no single database which identifies info on who these veterans are. This legislation will begin the process of identifying California veterans so that the CA Department of Veterans Affairs can contact them through its CALVET Connect Program to notify them about any federal on state benefits they may be eligible for. This legislation supports Governor Brown's Executive Order establishing the Interagency Council on Veterans, which is designed to breakdown the stovepipes among California state agencies so that more services can efficiently be delivered to veterans. The DMV has recently begun sharing data with the CDVA. This bill will expand this effort. This bill is modeled after similar legislation in several other states, such as Texas.

This will give veterans an opportunity to display their pride in being veterans. It would also identify them to California businesses who wish to offer discounts as shows of support for our nation's warriors. The bill is available for download here.