Over three dozen companies plan to participate in an event in Davenport this Thursday aimed at connecting veterans with job openings in Iowa. It’s part of the state’s “Home Base Iowa” initiative and Governor Terry Branstad plans to be there for the job fair.
“Last November I announced the new program, including an incentive package for veterans, that would help recruit veterans to work in Iowa after they complete their military service,” Branstad says.
So far 86 veterans have contacted the State of Iowa through the Home Base Iowa website and officials say 23 veterans have gotten jobs through the program. Branstad signed legislation on Memorial Day that erases state income taxes on military pensions and allows veterans and their families to pay in-state tuition if they go to an Iowa college or university. Howard County and Greene County have offered additional local incentives for veterans and have been declared “Home Base Iowa” communities. To earn the designation, an area must get at least 10 percent of the area’s businesses to agree to hire veterans.
“Scranton Manufacturing is located in Greene County,” Branstad says. “They have already hired a veteran throught the Home Base Iowa program and they have interviewed several additional veterans.”
Twenty-nine other cities and counties are completing the paperwork in hopes of being declared “Home Base Iowa” communities as well. Branstad says national publications for the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion have listed the new benefits available in Iowa for soldiers who are leaving the military.