(a) The Department of Labor, in coordination with the Department of Revenue, the Department of Economic and Community Affairs, and the Department of Veterans' Affairs shall:

(1) Promote awareness of the unemployed veteran tax credit authorized in this article to employers and eligible veterans.

(2) Establish procedures for prequalifying an individual as an unemployed veteran and for providing notice to the Department of Labor when a new full-time employee is hired.

(3) Establish procedures for certifying a qualified employer's compliance, or in the case of a credit under subsection (b) of Section 40-18-323, a recently deployed unemployed veteran's compliance, with the eligibility and expense verification requirements to claim the credit authorized under this section.

(4) Adopt measurable goals, outcomes, and an audit strategy to assess the utilization and performance of the credits authorized in this article.

(5) On or before January 15, 2014, submit a written report on its assessment of the credits to the Alabama House Committees on Military and Veterans Affairs, Commerce and Small Business and Ways and Means-Education, and to the Alabama Senate Committees on Veterans and Military Affairs, Finance and Taxation-ETF, and Job Creation and Economic Development.

(6) Engage in efforts to promote the hiring of unemployed veterans through hiring practices of the State of Alabama.

(b) The tax credits authorized by Act 2018-194 shall not be claimed by a qualified employer until the status of the unemployed veteran is verified by the Alabama Department of Labor.

(c) The tax credits authorized by Act 2018-194 shall not be available for any unemployed veteran hired after December 31, 2023, unless extended by an act of the Legislature.

(d) The Department of Revenue shall, on an annual basis, provide the Legislative Services Agency with the total amount of credits claimed under the Veterans Employment Act in accordance with Act 2015-237.