; and (2) facilitate employment, training, and placement services furnished to veterans and disabled veterans in a State under the applicable State employment service delivery systems. (c) Requirement for qualified veterans (1) Except as provided by paragraph (2), a State shall, to the maximum extent practicable, employ qualified veterans to carry out the services referred to in subsection (a). Preference shall be given in the appointment of such specialists to qualified disabled veterans. Preference shall be accorded in the following order: (A) To qualified service-connected disabled veterans. (B) If no veteran described in subparagraph (A) is available, to qualified eligible veterans. (C) If no veteran described in subparagraph (A) or (B) is available, then to qualified eligible persons. (2) During any period in which more than 10 percent of the individuals employed to carry out the services referred to in subsection (a) are non-veterans, the preference accorded under paragraph (1) shall be as follows: (A) To qualified service-connected disabled veterans. (B) If no veteran described in subparagraph (A) is available, to qualified eligible veterans. (3) (A) Each State that employs a veteran employment specialist under this section shall submit to the Secretary an annual report on the qualifications used by the State in making hiring determinations for such specialists and the salary structure under which such specialists are compensated. (B) The Secretary shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives an annual report summarizing the reports submitted under subparagraph (A). (C) The first report submitted by the Secretary under subparagraph (B) shall include an evaluation of whether the pay for veteran employment specialists should be scheduled on a standard basis for each State and include locality pay. (d) Part-Time employees A part-time veteran employment specialist shall perform the functions of a veteran employment specialist under this section on a halftime