Rep. Mike Coffman of Aurora is the legislator or the year for the Vietnam Veterans of America the organization announced Friday morning.

“We are recognizing Congressman Coffman for his leadership in introducing and fighting for bills that will have a profound impact on veterans of all eras, as well their children and their children’s children,” John Rowan, the organization’s national president said in a statement.

Coffman was in New Orleans to accept the award Friday morning at VVA’s national convention.

“I’m so honored to receive this award from the Vietnam Veterans of American,” he said in a statement provided Thursday night. “My heart has always been with them for having fought such a difficult war without the full support of the American people.”

The veterans organization also cited his recently introduced Veteran Urgent Access to Mental Healthcare Act, which would offer mental health services to military sexual assault victims and combat veterans with other-than-honorable discharges. The bill passed the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs with unanimously unanimously last month. (Rep. Scott Tipton, R-Cortez, is the only Colorado co-sponsor.)

“The bill also calls for the VA Secretary to establish a formal character of service determination process to rightfully trigger reviews of the character of discharge for potential eligibility of VA benefits,” the Vietnam Veterans of America said.

Colorado Politics told you two weeks ago that Coffman scored a big win passing the VA Procurement Efficiency and Transparency Act out of the House to the Senate with strong bipartisan support. The bill was motivated by cost overruns and questions surrounding the new VA hospital in Coffman’s district.

Coffman, born on a military base, the son of a Army soldier, is himself a Marine Corps combat veteran. With 21 years in uniform, Coffman is the only member of Congress who served in both Iraq wars.

He sits on the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee and the Armed Services Committee, where he chairs Military Personnel Subcommittee.