VA Construction Assistance Act of 2014

Summary: VA Construction Assistance Act of 2014 - (Sec. 2) Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the management of the major medical center construction projects of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has been an abysmal failure; and (2) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs should fully implement all recommendations made by the Comptroller General in an April 2013 report to improve VA construction procedures. (Sec. 3) Requires the Secretary, for any construction or alteration project that is a major medical facility project, to: (1) use the services of a medical equipment planner as part of the architectural and engineering firm for the project, (2) develop and use a project management plan to ensure clear and consistent communication among all parties, (3) subject the project to construction peer excellence review, (4) develop a metrics program to enable the monitoring of change-order processing time and goals for the change-order process consistent with the best practices of other federal agencies, and (5) use design-build processes to minimize multiple change orders. (Sec. 4) Directs the Secretary to procure the services of the Army Corps of Engineers with respect to appointing not less than one special project manager who has experience in managing construction projects that exceed $60 million to oversee such covered projects until completion. Requires a special project manager to submit to specified congressional committees detailed plans of a covered project and progress reports, which shall include an analysis of all changes ordered by the VA and recommendations for improving the operation of any construction-related activity to reduce costs or complete the project in a more timely manner. Defines &quot;covered projects&quot; to mean each construction project that is a major medical facility project that: (1) was the subject of a report by the Comptroller General (GAO) titled &quot;Additional Actions Needed to Decrease Delays and Lower Costs of Major Medical-Facility Projects,&quot; published in April 2013; and (2) has not been activated to accept patients as of this Act's enactment. (Sec. 5) Prohibits additional funds from being authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``VA Construction Assistance Act of 
2014''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) According to testimony by the Director of Physical 
        Infrastructure of the General Accountability Office before the 
        Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives 
        in May 2013, schedule delays of major medical center 
        construction projects of the Department of Veterans Affairs 
        have averaged 35 months, with the delays ranging from 14 months 
        to 74 months.
            (2) The average cost increase attributed to such delays has 
        been $336,000,000 per project.
            (3) Management of the major medical facility projects 
        currently underway as of the date of the enactment of this Act 
        in Denver, Colorado, Orlando, Florida, and New Orleans, 
        Louisiana, should be subject to the oversight of a special 
        project manager of the Army Corps of Engineers that is 
        independent of the Department of Veterans Affairs because, 
        according to the Comptroller General of the United States, such 
        projects have experienced continuous delays and a total cost 
        increase of nearly $1,000,000,000.
    (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) the management of the major medical center construction 
        projects of the Department of Veterans Affairs has been an 
        abysmal failure; and
            (2) in order to minimize repeated delays and cost increases 
        to such projects, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs should 
        fully implement all recommendations made by the Comptroller 
        General of the United States in an April 2013 report to improve 
        construction procedures and practices of the Department.

SEC. 3. IMPLEMENTATION OF MAJOR MEDICAL FACILITY CONSTRUCTION REFORMS.

    Section 8104 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(i)(1) With respect to each project described in paragraph (2), 
the Secretary shall--
            ``(A) use the services of a medical equipment planner as 
        part of the architectural and engineering firm for the project;
            ``(B) develop and use a project management plan to ensure 
        clear and consistent communication among all parties;
            ``(C) subject the project to construction peer excellence 
        review;
            ``(D) develop--
                    ``(i) a metrics program to enable the monitoring of 
                change-order processing time; and
                    ``(ii) goals for the change-order process 
                consistent with the best practices of other departments 
                and agencies of the Federal Government; and
            ``(E) to the extent practicable, use design-build processes 
        to minimize multiple change orders.
    ``(2) A project described in this paragraph is a construction or 
alteration project that is a major medical facility project.''.

SEC. 4. SPECIAL PROJECT MANAGER FOR CERTAIN MEDICAL CENTER CONSTRUCTION 
              PROJECTS.

    (a) Appointment of Special Project Manager.--Not later than 180 
days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs shall enter into an agreement with the Army Corps of 
Engineers to procure, on a reimbursable basis, the services of the Army 
Corps of Engineers with respect to appointing not less than one special 
project manager who has experience in managing construction projects 
that exceed $60,000,000 to oversee covered projects until the date on 
which the project is completed.
    (b) Duties.--A special project manager appointed under subsection 
(a) to oversee a covered project shall--
            (1) conduct oversight of all construction-related 
        operations at the project, including with respect to--
                    (A) the performance of the Department of Veterans 
                Affairs involving the prime contractors; and
                    (B) the compliance of the Department with the 
                Federal Acquisition Regulation, including the VA 
                Acquisition Regulation;
            (2) advise and assist the Department in any construction-
        related activity at the project, including the approval of 
        change-order requests for the purpose of achieving a timely 
        completion of the project; and
            (3) conduct independent technical reviews and recommend to 
        the Department best construction practices to improve 
        operations for the project.
    (c) Plans and Report.--
            (1) Completion plans.--Not later than 90 days after being 
        appointed under subsection (a), a special project manager shall 
        submit to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
        Representatives and the Senate detailed plans of the covered 
        project for which the special project manager is so appointed.
            (2) Progress reports.--Not later than 180 days after being 
        appointed under subsection (a), and each 180-day period 
        thereafter until the date on which the covered project is 
        completed, a special project manager shall submit to the 
        Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives 
        and the Senate a report detailing the progress of the covered 
        project for which the special project manager is so appointed. 
        Each report shall include--
                    (A) an analysis of all advice and assistance 
                provided to the Department under subsection (b);
                    (B) an analysis of all changes ordered by the 
                Department with respect to the project, or claimed to 
                have been made by contract between the Department and 
                the prime contractor, including the extent to which 
                such changes comply with the Federal Acquisition 
                Regulation, including the VA Acquisition Regulation;
                    (C) an analysis of the communication and working 
                relationship between the Department and the prime 
                contractor, including any recommendations made by the 
                prime contractor to aid in the completion of the 
                project; and
                    (D) identification of opportunities and 
                recommendations with respect to improving the operation 
                of any construction-related activity to reduce costs or 
                complete the project in a more timely manner.
    (d) Cooperation.--
            (1) Information.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
        provide a special project manager appointed under subsection 
        (a) with any necessary documents or information necessary for 
        the special project manager to carry out subsections (b) and 
        (c).
            (2) Assistance.--Upon request by the special project 
        manager, the Secretary shall provide to the special project 
        manager administrative assistance necessary for the special 
        project manager to carry out subsections (b) and (c).
    (e) Covered Projects Defined.--In this section, the term ``covered 
projects'' means each construction project that is a major medical 
facility project (as defined in section 8104(a)(3)(A) of title 38, 
United States Code) that--
            (1) was the subject of a report by the Comptroller General 
        of the United States titled ``Additional Actions Needed to 
        Decrease Delays and Lower Costs of Major Medical-Facility 
        Projects'', numbered GAO-13-302, and published in April 2013; 
        and
            (2) has not been activated to accept patients as of the 
        date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 5. PROHIBITION ON NEW APPROPRIATIONS.

    No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 
this Act and the amendments made by this Act, and this Act and such 
amendments shall be carried out using amounts otherwise made available 
for such purposes.

            Passed the House of Representatives September 16, 2014.

            Attest:

                                                 KAREN L. HAAS,

                                                                 Clerk.