Rep. Craig Williams, who represents parts of Chester and Delaware counties, has been appointed to the National Conference of State Legislatures’ (NCSL) Military and Veterans Affairs Task Force. The appointment was made by state House Speaker Joanna McClinton.
The NCSL task force is a group of lawmakers from across the United States that works on bipartisan policy issues affecting veterans, service members, and their families. The areas addressed by the task force include the transition to civilian life, access to health care, behavioral health needs, workforce opportunities, housing, education, and navigation of state and federal benefits.
Williams said, “As a retired veteran, advocating for this community remains very personal to me. Appointment to the Task Force gives Pennsylvania a seat at the table to share the best of our ideas and hear those of other states, so we might fight for our veterans constantly. Serving our veterans every day is a mission which never ends.”
Williams has played a role in several bipartisan initiatives supporting veterans in Pennsylvania. He sponsored legislation that was recently signed into law protecting deployed military parents through the Uniform Deployed Parents Custody and Visitation Act. This law sets clear rules to prevent deployed service members from losing custody or visitation rights due to their military duties.
He also sponsored legislation that clarified eligibility for education benefits under the Educational Assistance Program for members of the Pennsylvania National Guard and their families after reenlistment. This measure addressed confusion over continued eligibility for those planning higher education while serving.
“I am grateful for the Speaker’s bipartisan confidence in me to represent veterans and look forward to representing Pennsylvania’s interests in this national forum,” Williams said.
Williams is a retired Marine Corps Colonel with nearly thirty years of service. He flew 56 combat missions during the Gulf War as an F/A-18D “Hornet” pilot and received two decorations for valor in combat. He attended law school through a Marine Corps program and served as head prosecutor at Camp Pendleton in California. He later worked as Deputy Legal Counsel to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff with responsibilities including ethics and detainee matters in federal court before retiring as head prosecutor of the Marine Corps Reserve.
