In the House of Representatives, U. S.,

December 8, 2006.

Resolved, That the bill from the Senate (S. 3421) entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize major medical facility projects and 

major medical facility leases for the Department of Veterans 

Affairs for fiscal years 2006 and 2007, and for other purposes’’, do pass with the following

AMENDMENTS:

Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Vet3 erans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology 

4 Act of 2006’’. 

5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

6 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. References to title 38, United States Code. 

TITLE I—ATTORNEY REPRESENTATION MATTERS 

Sec. 101. Agent or attorney representation in veterans benefits cases before the 

Department of Veterans Affairs. 

TITLE II—HEALTH MATTERS 

Sec. 201. Additional mental health providers. 

Sec. 202. Pay comparability for the Chief Nursing Officer, Office of Nursing 

Services. 

Sec. 203. Improvement and expansion of mental health services. 

Sec. 204. Disclosure of medical records. 

Sec. 205. Expansion of telehealth services. 

Sec. 206. Strategic plan for long-term care. 
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Sec. 207. Blind rehabilitation outpatient specialists. 

Sec. 208. Extension of certain compliance reports. 

Sec. 209. Parkinson’s Disease research, education, and clinical centers and multiple sclerosis centers of excellence. 

Sec. 210. Repeal of term of office for the Under Secretary for Health and the 

Under Secretary for Benefits. 

Sec. 211. Modifications to State home authorities. 

Sec. 212. Office of Rural Health. 

Sec. 213. Outreach program to veterans in rural areas. 

Sec. 214. Pilot program on improvement of caregiver assistance services. 

Sec. 215. Expansion of outreach activities of Vet Centers. 

Sec. 216. Clarification and enhancement of bereavement counseling. 

Sec. 217. Funding for Vet Center program. 

TITLE III—EDUCATION MATTERS 

Sec. 301. Expansion of eligibility for Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational 

Assistance program. 

Sec. 302. Restoration of lost entitlement for individuals who discontinue a program of education because of being ordered to full-time National 

Guard duty. 

Sec. 303. Exception for institutions offering Government-sponsored nonaccredited 

courses to requirement of refunding unused tuition. 

Sec. 304. Extension of work-study allowance. 

Sec. 305. Deadline and extension of requirement for report on educational assistance program. 

Sec. 306. Report on improvement in administration of educational assistance 

benefits. 

Sec. 307. Technical amendments relating to education laws. 

TITLE IV—NATIONAL CEMETERY AND MEMORIAL AFFAIRS 

MATTERS 

Sec. 401. Provision of Government memorial headstones or markers and memorial inscriptions for deceased dependent children of veterans 

whose remains are unavailable for burial. 

Sec. 402. Provision of Government markers for marked graves of veterans at private cemeteries. 

Sec. 403. Eligibility of Indian tribal organizations for grants for the establishment of veterans cemeteries on trust lands. 

Sec. 404. Removal of remains of Russell Wayne Wagner from Arlington National 

Cemetery. 

TITLE V—HOUSING AND SMALL BUSINESS MATTERS 

Sec. 501. Residential cooperative housing units. 

Sec. 502. Department of Veterans Affairs goals for participation by small businesses owned and controlled by veterans in procurement contracts. 

Sec. 503. Department of Veterans Affairs contracting priority for veteran-owned 

small businesses. 

TITLE VI—EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING MATTERS 

Sec. 601. Training of new disabled veterans’ outreach program specialists and 

local veterans’ employment representatives by NVTI required. 
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Sec. 602. Rules for part-time employment for disabled veterans’ outreach program 

specialists and local veterans’ employment representatives. 

Sec. 603. Performance incentive awards for employment service offices. 

Sec. 604. Demonstration project on credentialing and licensure of veterans. 

Sec. 605. Department of Labor implementation of regulations for priority of service. 

TITLE VII—HOMELESS VETERANS ASSISTANCE 

Sec. 701. Reaffirmation of national goal to end homelessness among veterans. 

Sec. 702. Sense of Congress on the response of the Federal Government to the 

needs of homeless veterans. 

Sec. 703. Authority to make grants for comprehensive service programs for homeless veterans. 

Sec. 704. Extension of treatment and rehabilitation for seriously mentally ill and 

homeless veterans. 

Sec. 705. Extension of authority for transfer of properties obtained through foreclosure of home mortgages. 

Sec. 706. Extension of funding for grant program for homeless veterans with special needs. 

Sec. 707. Extension of funding for homeless veteran service provider technical assistance program. 

Sec. 708. Additional element in annual report on assistance to homeless veterans. 

Sec. 709. Advisory Committee on Homeless Veterans. 

Sec. 710. Rental assistance vouchers for Veterans Affairs supported housing program. 

TITLE VIII—CONSTRUCTION MATTERS 

Subtitle A—Construction and Lease Authorities 

Sec. 801. Authorization of fiscal year 2006 major medical facility projects. 

Sec. 802. Extension of authorization for certain major medical facility construction projects previously authorized in connection with Capital 

Asset Realignment Initiative. 

Sec. 803. Authorization of fiscal year 2007 major medical facility projects. 

Sec. 804. Authorization of advance planning and design for a major medical facility, Charleston, South Carolina. 

Sec. 805. Authorization of fiscal year 2006 major medical facility leases. 

Sec. 806. Authorization of fiscal year 2007 major medical facility leases. 

Sec. 807. Authorization of appropriations. 

Subtitle B—Facilities Administration 

Sec. 811. Director of Construction and Facilities Management. 

Sec. 812. Increase in threshold for major medical facility projects. 

Sec. 813. Land conveyance, city of Fort Thomas, Kentucky. 

Subtitle C—Reports on Medical Facility Improvements 

Sec. 821. Report on option for medical facility improvements in San Juan, Puerto Rico. 

Sec. 822. Business plans for enhanced access to outpatient care in certain rural 

areas. 

Sec. 823. Report on option for construction of Department of Veterans Affairs 

Medical Center in Okaloosa County, Florida. 
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TITLE IX—INFORMATION SECURITY MATTERS 

Sec. 901. Short title. 

Sec. 902. Department of Veterans Affairs information security programs and requirements. 

Sec. 903. Information security education assistance programs. 

TITLE X—OTHER MATTERS 

Sec. 1001. Notice to congressional veterans committees of certain transfers of 

funds. 

Sec. 1002. Clarification of correctional facilities covered by certain provisions of 

law. 

Sec. 1003. Extension of authority for health care for participation in DOD chemical and biological warfare testing. 

Sec. 1004. Technical and clerical amendments. 

Sec. 1005. Codification of cost-of-living adjustment provided in Public Law 109–

361. 

Sec. 1006. Coordination of provisions with Veterans Programs Extension Act of 

2006.

1 SEC. 2. REFERENCES TO TITLE 38, UNITED STATES CODE. 

2 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 

3 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of 

4 an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provision, 

5 the reference shall be considered to be made to a section or 

6 other provision of title 38, United States Code. 

7 TITLE I—ATTORNEY 

8 REPRESENTATION MATTERS 

9 SEC. 101. AGENT OR ATTORNEY REPRESENTATION IN VET10 ERANS BENEFITS CASES BEFORE THE DE11 PARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

12 (a) QUALIFICATIONS AND STANDARDS OF CONDUCT

13 FOR INDIVIDUALS RECOGNIZED AS AGENTS OR ATTOR14 NEYS.—
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1 (1) ADDITIONAL QUALIFICATIONS AND STAND2 ARDS FOR AGENTS AND ATTORNEYS GENERALLY.—

3 Subsection (a) of section 5904 is amended—

4 (A) by inserting ‘‘RECOGNITION.—(1)’’ after 

5 ‘‘(a)’’; 

6 (B) by striking ‘‘The Secretary may recog7 nize’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in 

8 paragraph (4), the Secretary may recognize’’; 

9 (C) by striking the second sentence; and 

10 (D) by adding at the end the following new 

11 paragraphs: 

12 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall prescribe in regulations (con13 sistent with the Model Rules of Professional Conduct of the 

14 American Bar Association) qualifications and standards of 

15 conduct for individuals recognized under this section, in16 cluding a requirement that, as a condition of being so recog17 nized, an individual must—

18 ‘‘(A) show that such individual is of good moral 

19 character and in good repute, is qualified to render 

20 claimants valuable service, and is otherwise com21 petent to assist claimants in presenting claims; 

22 ‘‘(B) have such level of experience or specialized 

23 training as the Secretary shall specify; and 
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1 ‘‘(C) certify to the Secretary that the individual 

2 has satisfied any qualifications and standards pre3 scribed by the Secretary under this section. 

4 ‘‘(3) The Secretary shall prescribe in regulations re5 quirements that each agent or attorney recognized under 

6 this section provide annually to the Secretary information 

7 about any court, bar, or Federal or State agency to which 

8 such agent or attorney is admitted to practice or otherwise 

9 authorized to appear, any relevant identification number 

10 or numbers, and a certification by such agent or attorney 

11 that such agent or attorney is in good standing in every 

12 jurisdiction where the agent or attorney is admitted to 

13 practice or otherwise authorized to appear. 

14 ‘‘(4) The Secretary may not recognize an individual 

15 as an agent or attorney under paragraph (1) if such indi16 vidual has been suspended or disbarred by any court, bar, 

17 or Federal or State agency to which the individual was pre18 viously admitted to practice and has not been subsequently 

19 reinstated. 

20 ‘‘(5) The Secretary may prescribe in regulations rea21 sonable restrictions on the amount of fees that an agent or 

22 attorney may charge a claimant for services rendered in 

23 the preparation, presentation, and prosecution of a claim 

24 before the Department. A fee that does not exceed 20 percent 
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1 of the past due amount of benefits awarded on a claim shall 

2 be presumed to be reasonable. 

3 ‘‘(6)(A) The Secretary may charge and collect an as4 sessment from an individual recognized as an agent or at5 torney under this section in any case in which the Secretary 

6 pays to the agent or attorney, from past-due benefits owed 

7 to a claimant represented by the agent or attorney, an 

8 amount as a fee in accordance with a fee arrangement be9 tween the claimant and the agent or attorney. 

10 ‘‘(B) The amount of an assessment under subpara11 graph (A) shall be equal to five percent of the amount of 

12 the fee required to be paid to the agent or attorney, except 

13 that the amount of such an assessment may not exceed $100. 

14 ‘‘(C) The Secretary may collect an assessment under 

15 subparagraph (A) by offsetting the amount of the fee other16 wise required to be paid to the agent or attorney from the 

17 past-due benefits owed to the claimant represented by the 

18 agent or attorney. 

19 ‘‘(D) An agent or attorney who is charged an assess20 ment under subparagraph (A) may not, directly or indi21 rectly, request, receive, or obtain reimbursement for such as22 sessment from the claimant represented by the agent or at23 torney. 

24 ‘‘(E) Amounts collected under this paragraph shall be 

25 deposited in the account available for administrative ex-
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1 penses for veterans’ benefits programs. Amounts so depos2 ited shall be merged with amounts in such account and 

3 shall be available for the same purpose, and subject to the 

4 same conditions and limitations, as amounts otherwise in 

5 such account.’’. 

6 (2) SUSPENSION OF RECOGNIZED REPRESENTA7 TIVES OF VETERANS SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS.—Sec8 tion 5902(b) is amended—

9 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and 

10 (2) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively; 

11 (B) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(b)’’; and 

12 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

13 paragraph: 

14 ‘‘(2) An individual recognized under this section shall 

15 be subject to the provisions of section 5904(b) of this title 

16 on the same basis as an individual recognized under section 

17 5904(a) of this title.’’. 

18 (3) SUSPENSION OF INDIVIDUALS RECOGNIZED

19 FOR PARTICULAR CLAIMS.—Section 5903 is amend20 ed—

21 (A) by inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—’’ be22 fore ‘‘The Secretary’’; and 

23 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

24 subsection: 
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1 ‘‘(b) SUSPENSION.—An individual recognized under 

2 this section shall be subject to the provisions of section 

3 5904(b) of this title on the same basis as an individual rec4 ognized under section 5904(a) of this title.’’. 

5 (b) ADDITIONAL BASES FOR SUSPENSION OF INDIVID6 UALS.—Subsection (b) of section 5904 is amended—

7 (1) by inserting ‘‘SUSPENSION OF AGENTS AND

8 ATTORNEYS.—’’ after ‘‘(b)’’; 

9 (2) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 

10 end; 

11 (3) in paragraph (5), by striking the period and 

12 inserting a semicolon; and 

13 (4) by adding at the end the following new para14 graphs: 

15 ‘‘(6) has presented to the Secretary a frivolous 

16 claim, issue, or argument, involving conduct incon17 sistent with ethical standards for the practice of law; 

18 ‘‘(7) has been suspended or disbarred by any 

19 court or bar to which such agent or attorney was pre20 viously admitted to practice, or has been disqualified 

21 from participating in or appearing before any Fed22 eral agency, and has not been subsequently reinstated; 

23 ‘‘(8) has charged excessive or unreasonable fees, 

24 as determined by the Secretary in accordance with 

25 subsection (c)(3)(A); or 
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1 ‘‘(9) has failed to comply with any other condi2 tion specified in regulations prescribed by the Sec3 retary for purposes of this subsection.’’. 

4 (c) MODIFICATION OF DATE FOR COMMENCEMENT OF

5 SERVICES SUBJECT TO FEES.—

6 (1) MODIFICATION.—Effective as provided in 

7 subsection (h), paragraph (1) of subsection (c) of such 

8 section is amended—

9 (A) by striking ‘‘the Board of Veterans’ Ap10 peals first makes a final decision in’’ and insert11 ing ‘‘a notice of disagreement is filed with re12 spect to’’; 

13 (B) by striking the second sentence; and 

14 (C) in the third sentence, by inserting ‘‘fees 

15 charged, allowed, or paid for’’ before ‘‘services 

16 provided’’. 

17 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 42 months after the 

18 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Vet19 erans Affairs shall submit to Congress a report that 

20 sets forth an assessment of the effects of allowing 

21 agents and attorneys recognized under section 5904 of 

22 title 38, United States Code, to charge a fee to a 

23 claimant for services rendered in the preparation, 

24 presentation, and prosecution of a claim before the 

25 Department of Veterans Affairs after a notice of dis-
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1 agreement has been filed. Such report shall include 

2 the recommendations of the Secretary with respect to 

3 agent and attorney representation. 

4 (d) MODIFICATION OF REQUIREMENTS TO FILE AT5 TORNEY FEE AGREEMENTS.—Effective as provided in sub6 section (h), paragraph (2) of subsection (c) of such section 

7 is amended—

8 (1) by striking ‘‘after the Board first makes a 

9 final decision in the case’’ and inserting ‘‘after a no10 tice of disagreement is filed with respect to the case’’; 

11 (2) by striking ‘‘with the Board at such time as 

12 may be specified by the Board’’ and inserting ‘‘with 

13 the Secretary pursuant to regulations prescribed by 

14 the Secretary’’; and 

15 (3) by striking the second and third sentences. 

16 (e) ATTORNEY FEES.—Subsection (c) of such section 

17 is further amended—

18 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘paragraph 

19 (3)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (4)’’; and 

20 (2) by redesignating paragraph (3) as para21 graph (4); 

22 (3) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol23 lowing new paragraph (3): 

24 ‘‘(3)(A) The Secretary may, upon the Secretary’s own 

25 motion or at the request of the claimant, review a fee agree-
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1 ment filed pursuant to paragraph (2) and may order a re2 duction in the fee called for in the agreement if the Sec3 retary finds that the fee is excessive or unreasonable. 

4 ‘‘(B) A finding or order of the Secretary under sub5 paragraph (A) may be reviewed by the Board of Veterans’ 

6 Appeals under section 7104 of this title. 

7 ‘‘(C) If the Secretary under subsection (b) suspends or 

8 excludes from further practice before the Department any 

9 agent or attorney who collects or receives a fee in excess 

10 of the amount authorized under this section, the suspension 

11 shall continue until the agent or attorney makes full restitu12 tion to each claimant from whom the agent or attorney col13 lected or received an excessive fee. If the agent or attorney 

14 makes such restitution, the Secretary may reinstate such 

15 agent or attorney under such rules as the Secretary may 

16 prescribe.’’. 

17 (f) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

18 Subsection (d) of such section is amended—

19 (1) by inserting ‘‘PAYMENT OF FEES OUT OF

20 PAST-DUE BENEFITS.—’’ after ‘‘(d)’’; 

21 (2) by inserting ‘‘agent or’’ before ‘‘attorney’’ 

22 each place it appears; 

23 (3) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘of this sub24 section’’ after ‘‘paragraph (2)’’; 
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1 (4) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ‘‘of this 

2 paragraph’’ after ‘‘subparagraph (A)’’; and 

3 (5) in paragraph (3)—

4 (A) by striking ‘‘attorneys’ fee’’ and insert5 ing ‘‘fee to an agent or attorney’’; and 

6 (B) by striking ‘‘of this subsection’’ after 

7 ‘‘paragraph (1)’’. 

8 (g) REPEAL OF PENALTY FOR CERTAIN ACTS.—Sec9 tion 5905 is amended by striking ‘‘(1)’’ and all that follows 

10 through ‘‘(2)’’. 

11 (h) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by sub12 sections (c)(1) and (d) shall take effect on the date that is 

13 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act and 

14 shall apply with respect to services of agents and attorneys 

15 that are provided with respect to cases in which notices of 

16 disagreement are filed on or after that date. 

17 (i) LIMITATION ON COLLECTION OF FEE ASSESS18 MENT.—No assessments on fees may be collected under 

19 paragraph (6) of section 5904(a) of title 38, United States 

20 Code (as added by subsection (a)(1)(D) of this section), 

21 until the date on which the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 

22 prescribes the regulations required by the amendments made 

23 by this section. 
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1 TITLE II—HEALTH MATTERS 

2 SEC. 201. ADDITIONAL MENTAL HEALTH PROVIDERS. 

3 (a) APPOINTMENTS.—Section 7401(3) is amended by 

4 inserting after ‘‘social workers,’’ the following: ‘‘marriage 

5 and family therapists, licensed professional mental health 

6 counselors,’’. 

7 (b) QUALIFICATIONS.—Section 7402(b) is amended—

8 (1) by redesignating paragraph (10) as para9 graph (12); and 

10 (2) by inserting after paragraph (9) the fol11 lowing new paragraphs: 

12 ‘‘(10) MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPIST.—To be eli13 gible to be appointed to a marriage and family therapist 

14 position, a person must—

15 ‘‘(A) hold a master’s degree in marriage and 

16 family therapy, or a comparable degree in mental 

17 health, from a college or university approved by the 

18 Secretary; and 

19 ‘‘(B) be licensed or certified to independently 

20 practice marriage and family therapy in a State, ex21 cept that the Secretary may waive the requirement of 

22 licensure or certification for an individual marriage 

23 and family therapist for a reasonable period of time 

24 recommended by the Under Secretary for Health. 
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1 ‘‘(11) LICENSED PROFESSIONAL MENTAL HEALTH

2 COUNSELOR.—To be eligible to be appointed to a licensed 

3 professional mental health counselor position, a person 

4 must—

5 ‘‘(A) hold a master’s degree in mental health 

6 counseling, or a related field, from a college or univer7 sity approved by the Secretary; and 

8 ‘‘(B) be licensed or certified to independently 

9 practice mental health counseling.’’. 

10 (c) REPORT ON MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY

11 WORKLOAD.—

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

13 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Under Sec14 retary for Health of the Department of Veterans Af15 fairs shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Af16 fairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ 

17 Affairs of the House of Representatives a report on 

18 the provision of treatment for post-traumatic stress 

19 disorder by marriage and family therapists employed 

20 by the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

21 (2) CONTENTS.—The report submitted under 

22 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

23 (A) The actual and projected workloads in 

24 facilities of the Veterans Readjustment Coun25 seling Service and the Veterans Health Adminis-
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1 tration for the provision of marriage and family 

2 counseling for veterans diagnosed with, or other3 wise in need of treatment for, post-traumatic 

4 stress disorder. 

5 (B) The resources available and needed to 

6 support the projected workload described in sub7 paragraph (A). 

8 (C) An assessment by the Under Secretary 

9 for Health of the effectiveness of treatment for 

10 post-traumatic stress disorder that is provided 

11 by marriage and family therapists. 

12 (D) Recommendations, if any, for improve13 ments in the provision of such treatment by such 

14 therapists. 

15 SEC. 202. PAY COMPARABILITY FOR THE CHIEF NURSING 

16 OFFICER, OFFICE OF NURSING SERVICES. 

17 Section 7404 is amended—

18 (1) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘subchapter III 

19 and in’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (e), subchapter III, 

20 and’’; and 

21 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub22 section: 

23 ‘‘(e) The position of Chief Nursing Officer, Office of 

24 Nursing Services, shall be exempt from the provisions of sec25 tion 7451 of this title and shall be paid at a rate determined 
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1 by the Secretary, not to exceed the maximum rate estab2 lished for the Senior Executive Service under section 5382 

3 of title 5.’’. 

4 SEC. 203. IMPROVEMENT AND EXPANSION OF MENTAL 

5 HEALTH SERVICES. 

6 (a) REQUIRED CAPACITY FOR COMMUNITY-BASED

7 OUTPATIENT CLINICS.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans Af9 fairs shall ensure that each community-based out10 patient clinic of the Department of Veterans Affairs 

11 has the capacity to provide, or monitor the provision 

12 of, mental health services to enrolled veterans who, as 

13 determined by the Secretary, are in need of such serv14 ices. 

15 (2) SETTINGS.—In carrying out paragraph (1), 

16 the Secretary shall ensure that mental health services 

17 are provided through—

18 (A) a community-based outpatient clinic of 

19 the Department by an employee of the Depart20 ment; 

21 (B) referral to another facility of the De22 partment; 

23 (C) contract with an appropriate mental 

24 health professional in the community; or 

25 (D) telemental health services. 
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1 (b) CLINICAL TRAINING AND PROTOCOLS.—

2 (1) COLLABORATION.—The National Center on 

3 Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder of the Department of 

4 Veterans Affairs shall collaborate with the Secretary 

5 of Defense—

6 (A) to enhance the clinical skills of military 

7 clinicians on matters relating to post-traumatic 

8 stress disorder through training, treatment pro9 tocols, web-based interventions, and the develop10 ment of evidence-based interventions; and 

11 (B) to promote pre-deployment resilience 

12 and post-deployment readjustment among mem13 bers of the Armed Forces serving in Operation 

14 Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Free15 dom. 

16 (2) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

17 There are authorized to be appropriated for the De18 partment of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2007 

19 $2,000,000 to carry out this subsection. 

20 (c) MENTAL HEALTH OUTREACH.—The Secretary of 

21 Veterans Affairs shall—

22 (1) develop additional educational materials on 

23 post-traumatic stress disorder; and 

24 (2) undertake additional efforts to educate vet25 erans about post-traumatic stress disorder. 
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1 (d) REVIEW OF PTSD CLINICAL GUIDELINES.—The 

2 Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall—

3 (1) review the clinical guidelines of the Depart4 ment of Veterans Affairs on post-traumatic stress dis5 order and all appropriate protocols related to post6 traumatic stress disorder; 

7 (2) revise such guidelines and protocols as the 

8 Secretary considers appropriate to ensure that clini9 cians are able to effectively distinguish between diag10 noses with similar symptoms that may manifest as 

11 post-traumatic stress disorder, including traumatic 

12 brain injury; and 

13 (3) develop performance measures for the treat14 ment of post-traumatic stress disorder among vet15 erans. 

16 SEC. 204. DISCLOSURE OF MEDICAL RECORDS. 

17 (a) LIMITED EXCEPTION TO CONFIDENTIALITY OF

18 MEDICAL RECORDS.—Section 5701 is amended by adding 

19 at the end the following new subsection: 

20 ‘‘(k)(1)(A) Under regulations that the Secretary shall 

21 prescribe, the Secretary may disclose the name and address 

22 of any individual described in subparagraph (C) to an enti23 ty described in subparagraph (B) in order to facilitate the 

24 determination by such entity whether the individual is, or 
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1 after death will be, a suitable organ, tissue, or eye donor 

2 if—

3 ‘‘(i) the individual is near death (as determined 

4 by the Secretary) or is deceased; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) the disclosure is permitted under regula6 tions promulgated pursuant to section 264 of the 

7 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act 

8 of 1996 (42 U.S.C. 1320d–2 note). 

9 ‘‘(B) An entity described in this subparagraph is—

10 ‘‘(i) an organ procurement organization, includ11 ing eye and tissue banks; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) an entity that the Secretary has deter13 mined—

14 ‘‘(I) is substantially similar in function, 

15 professionalism, and reliability to an organ pro16 curement organization; and 

17 ‘‘(II) should be treated for purposes of this 

18 subsection in the same manner as an organ pro19 curement organization. 

20 ‘‘(C) An individual described in this subparagraph 

21 is—

22 ‘‘(i) a veteran; or 

23 ‘‘(ii) a dependent of veteran. 

24 ‘‘(2) In this subsection, the term ‘organ procurement 

25 organization’ has the meaning given the term ‘qualified 
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1 organ procurement organization’ in section 371(b) of the 

2 Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 273(b)).’’. 

3 (b) DISCLOSURES FROM CERTAIN MEDICAL

4 RECORDS.—Section 7332(b)(2) is amended by adding at 

5 the end the following new subparagraph: 

6 ‘‘(E) To an entity described in paragraph (1)(B) 

7 of section 5701(k) of this title, but only to the extent 

8 authorized by such section.’’. 

9 (c) DEADLINE FOR PRESCRIBING REGULATIONS.—The 

10 Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall prescribe regulations 

11 under subsection (k) of section 5701 of title 38, United 

12 States Code, as added by subsection (a), not later than 180 

13 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

14 SEC. 205. EXPANSION OF TELEHEALTH SERVICES. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs 

16 shall increase the number of facilities of the Readjustment 

17 Counseling Service that are capable of providing health 

18 services and counseling through telehealth linkages with fa19 cilities of the Veterans Health Administration. 

20 (b) PLAN.—Not later than July 1, 2007, the Secretary 

21 shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the 

22 Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House 

23 of Representatives a plan to implement the requirement in 

24 subsection (a). The plan shall specify which facilities of the 

25 Readjustment Counseling Service will have the capabilities 
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1 described in subsection (a) as of the end of each of fiscal 

2 years 2007, 2008, and 2009. 

3 SEC. 206. STRATEGIC PLAN FOR LONG-TERM CARE. 

4 (a) PUBLICATION.—Not later than 180 days after the 

5 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans 

6 Affairs shall publish a strategic plan for the provision of 

7 long-term care by the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

8 (b) POLICIES AND STRATEGIES.—The plan published 

9 under subsection (a) shall contain policies and strategies 

10 for—

11 (1) the delivery of care in domiciliaries, residen12 tial treatment facilities, and nursing homes and for 

13 seriously mentally ill veterans; 

14 (2) maximizing the use of State veterans homes; 

15 (3) locating domiciliary units as close to patient 

16 populations as feasible; and 

17 (4) identifying freestanding nursing homes as an 

18 acceptable care model. 

19 (c) DATA.—The plan published under subsection (a) 

20 shall include data on—

21 (1) the provision of care of catastrophically dis22 abled veterans; and 

23 (2) the geographic distribution of catastroph24 ically disabled veterans. 
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1 (d) NONINSTITUTIONAL LONG-TERM CARE OPTIONS.—

2 The plan published under subsection (a) shall address the 

3 spectrum of noninstitutional long-term care options, in4 cluding each of the following: 

5 (1) Respite care. 

6 (2) Home-based primary care. 

7 (3) Geriatric evaluation. 

8 (4) Adult day health care. 

9 (5) Skilled home health care. 

10 (6) Community residential care. 

11 (e) ADDITIONAL MATTERS TO BE INCLUDED.—The 

12 plan published under subsection (a) shall provide—

13 (1) cost and quality comparison analyses of all 

14 the different levels of long-term care for veterans; 

15 (2) detailed information about geographic dis16 tribution of services and gaps in care; and 

17 (3) specific plans for working with Medicare, 

18 Medicaid, and private insurance companies to expand 

19 the availability of such care. 

20 SEC. 207. BLIND REHABILITATION OUTPATIENT SPECIAL21 ISTS. 

22 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following findings: 

23 (1) There are approximately 135,000 blind vet24 erans throughout the United States, including ap25 proximately 35,000 who are enrolled with the Depart-
24

•S 3421 EAH 

1 ment of Veterans Affairs. An aging veteran popu2 lation and injuries incurred in Operation Iraqi Free3 dom and Operation Enduring Freedom are increas4 ing the number of blind veterans. 

5 (2) Since 1996, when the Department of Veterans 

6 Affairs hired its first 14 blind rehabilitation out7 patient specialists (referred to in this section as ‘‘Spe8 cialists’’), Specialists have been a critical part of the 

9 continuum of care for blind and visually impaired 

10 veterans. 

11 (3) The Department of Veterans Affairs operates 

12 10 residential blind rehabilitation centers that are 

13 considered among the best in the world. These centers 

14 have had long waiting lists, with as many as 1,500 

15 blind veterans waiting for openings in 2004. 

16 (4) Specialists provide—

17 (A) critically needed services to veterans 

18 who are unable to attend residential centers or 

19 are waiting to enter a residential center pro20 gram; 

21 (B) a range of services for blind veterans, 

22 including training with living skills, mobility, 

23 and adaptation of manual skills; and 

24 (C) pre-admission screening and follow-up 

25 care for blind rehabilitation centers. 
25

•S 3421 EAH 

1 (5) There are not enough Specialist positions to 

2 meet the increased numbers and needs of blind vet3 erans. 

4 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF ADDITIONAL SPECIALIST PO5 SITIONS.—Not later than 30 months after the date of the 

6 enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 

7 shall establish an additional Specialist position at not 

8 fewer than 35 additional facilities of the Department of Vet9 erans Affairs. 

10 (c) SELECTION OF FACILITIES.—In identifying the 

11 most appropriate facilities to receive a Specialist position 

12 under this section, the Secretary shall—

13 (1) give priority to facilities with large numbers 

14 of enrolled legally blind veterans; 

15 (2) ensure that each facility does not have such 

16 a position; and 

17 (3) ensure that each facility is in need of the 

18 services of a Specialist. 

19 (d) COORDINATION.—The Secretary shall coordinate 

20 the provision of blind rehabilitation services for veterans 

21 with services for the care of the visually impaired offered 

22 by State and local agencies, especially to the extent to which 

23 such State and local agencies can provide necessary services 

24 to blind veterans in settings located closer to the residences 

25 of such veterans at similar quality and cost to the veteran. 
26

•S 3421 EAH 

1 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are 

2 authorized to be appropriated for the Department of Vet3 erans Affairs to carry out this section $3,500,000 for each 

4 of fiscal years 2007 through 2012. 

5 SEC. 208. EXTENSION OF CERTAIN COMPLIANCE REPORTS. 

6 (a) MANAGEMENT OF HEALTH CARE.—Section 

7 1706(b)(5)(A) is amended by striking ‘‘2004’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘2008’’. 

9 (b) ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON WOMEN VETERANS.—

10 Section 542(c)(1) is amended by striking ‘‘2004’’ and in11 serting ‘‘2008’’. 

12 SEC. 209. PARKINSON’S DISEASE RESEARCH, EDUCATION, 

13 AND CLINICAL CENTERS AND MULTIPLE 

14 SCLEROSIS CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE. 

15 (a) REQUIREMENT FOR ESTABLISHMENT OF CEN16 TERS.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 73 is 

18 amended by adding at the end the following new sec19 tions: 

20 ‘‘§ 7329. Parkinson’s Disease research, education, and 

21 clinical centers 

22 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF CENTERS.—(1) The Sec23 retary, upon the recommendation of the Under Secretary 

24 for Health, shall designate not less than six Department 
27

•S 3421 EAH 

1 health-care facilities as the locations for centers of Parkin2 son’s Disease research, education, and clinical activities. 

3 ‘‘(2) Subject to the availability of appropriations for 

4 such purpose, the Secretary shall establish and operate cen5 ters of Parkinson’s Disease research, education, and clinical 

6 activities centers at the locations designated pursuant to 

7 paragraph (1). 

8 ‘‘(b) CRITERIA FOR DESIGNATION OF FACILITIES.—(1) 

9 In designating Department health-care facilities for centers 

10 under subsection (a), the Secretary, upon the recommenda11 tion of the Under Secretary for Health, shall assure appro12 priate geographic distribution of such facilities. 

13 ‘‘(2) Except as provided in paragraph (3), the Sec14 retary shall designate as the location for a center of Parkin15 son’s Disease research, education, and clinical activities 

16 pursuant to subsection (a)(1) each Department health-care 

17 facility that as of January 1, 2005, was operating a Par18 kinson’s Disease research, education, and clinical center. 

19 ‘‘(3) The Secretary may not under subsection (a) des20 ignate a facility described in paragraph (2) if (on the rec21 ommendation of the Under Secretary for Health) the Sec22 retary determines that such facility—

23 ‘‘(A) does not meet the requirements of subsection 

24 (c); or 

25 ‘‘(B) has not demonstrated—
28

•S 3421 EAH 

1 ‘‘(i) effectiveness in carrying out the estab2 lished purposes of such center; or 

3 ‘‘(ii) the potential to carry out such pur4 poses effectively in the reasonably foreseeable fu5 ture. 

6 ‘‘(c) REQUIREMENTS FOR DESIGNATION.—(1) The Sec7 retary may not designate a Department health-care facility 

8 as a location for a center under subsection (a) unless the 

9 peer review panel established under subsection (d) has deter10 mined under that subsection that the proposal submitted 

11 by such facility as a location for a new center under sub12 section (a) is among those proposals that meet the highest 

13 competitive standards of scientific and clinical merit. 

14 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may not designate a Department 

15 health-care facility as a location for a center under sub16 section (a) unless the Secretary (upon the recommendation 

17 of the Under Secretary for Health) determines that the facil18 ity has (or may reasonably be anticipated to develop) each 

19 of the following: 

20 ‘‘(A) An arrangement with an accredited med21 ical school that provides education and training in 

22 neurology and with which the Department health-care 

23 facility is affiliated under which residents receive 

24 education and training in innovative diagnosis and 
29

•S 3421 EAH 

1 treatment of chronic neurodegenerative diseases and 

2 movement disorders, including Parkinson’s Disease. 

3 ‘‘(B) The ability to attract the participation of 

4 scientists who are capable of ingenuity and creativity 

5 in health-care research efforts. 

6 ‘‘(C) An advisory committee composed of vet7 erans and appropriate health-care and research rep8 resentatives of the Department health-care facility 

9 and of the affiliated school or schools to advise the di10 rectors of such facility and such center on policy mat11 ters pertaining to the activities of the center during 

12 the period of the operation of such center. 

13 ‘‘(D) The capability to conduct effectively eval14 uations of the activities of such center. 

15 ‘‘(E) The capability to coordinate (as part of an 

16 integrated national system) education, clinical, and 

17 research activities within all facilities with such cen18 ters. 

19 ‘‘(F) The capability to jointly develop a consor20 tium of providers with interest in treating 

21 neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson’s 

22 Disease and other movement disorders, at facilities 

23 without centers established under subsection (a) in 

24 order to ensure better access to state-of-the-art diag25 nosis, care, and education for neurodegenerative dis-
30

•S 3421 EAH 

1 orders throughout the health-care system of the De2 partment. 

3 ‘‘(G) The capability to develop a national reposi4 tory in the health-care system of the Department for 

5 the collection of data on health services delivered to 

6 veterans seeking care for neurodegenerative diseases, 

7 including Parkinson’s Disease, and other movement 

8 disorders. 

9 ‘‘(d) PEER REVIEW PANEL.—(1) The Under Secretary 

10 for Health shall establish a panel to assess the scientific and 

11 clinical merit of proposals that are submitted to the Sec12 retary for the establishment of centers under this section. 

13 ‘‘(2)(A) The membership of the panel shall consist of 

14 experts in neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkin15 son’s Disease and other movement disorders. 

16 ‘‘(B) Members of the panel shall serve for a period of 

17 no longer than two years, except as specified in subpara18 graph (C). 

19 ‘‘(C) Of the members first appointed to the panel, one 

20 half shall be appointed for a period of three years and one 

21 half shall be appointed for a period of two years, as des22 ignated by the Under Secretary at the time of appointment. 

23 ‘‘(3) The panel shall review each proposal submitted 

24 to the panel by the Under Secretary and shall submit its 
31

•S 3421 EAH 

1 views on the relative scientific and clinical merit of each 

2 such proposal to the Under Secretary. 

3 ‘‘(4) The panel shall not be subject to the Federal Advi4 sory Committee Act. 

5 ‘‘(e) PRIORITY OF FUNDING.—Before providing funds 

6 for the operation of a center designated under subsection 

7 (a) at a Department health-care facility other than at a 

8 facility designated pursuant to subsection (b)(2), the Sec9 retary shall ensure that each Parkinson’s Disease center at 

10 a facility designated pursuant to subsection (b)(2) is receiv11 ing adequate funding to enable that center to function effec12 tively in the areas of Parkinson’s Disease research, edu13 cation, and clinical activities. 

14 ‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are 

15 authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec16 essary for the support of the research and education activi17 ties of the centers established pursuant to subsection (a). 

18 The Under Secretary for Health shall allocate to such cen19 ters from other funds appropriated generally for the Depart20 ment medical services account and medical and prosthetics 

21 research account, as appropriate, such amounts as the 

22 Under Secretary for Health determines appropriate. 

23 ‘‘(g) AWARD COMPETITIONS.—Activities of clinical 

24 and scientific investigation at each center established under 

25 subsection (a) shall be eligible to compete for the award of 
32

•S 3421 EAH 

1 funding from funds appropriated for the Department med2 ical and prosthetics research account. Such activities shall 

3 receive priority in the award of funding from such account 

4 insofar as funds are awarded to projects for research in 

5 Parkinson’s Disease and other movement disorders. 

6 ‘‘§ 7330. Multiple sclerosis centers of excellence 

7 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF CENTERS.—(1) The Sec8 retary, upon the recommendation of the Under Secretary 

9 for Health, shall designate not less than two Department 

10 health-care facilities as the locations for multiple sclerosis 

11 centers of excellence. 

12 ‘‘(2) Subject to the availability of appropriations for 

13 such purpose, the Secretary shall establish and operate mul14 tiple sclerosis centers of excellence at the locations des15 ignated pursuant to paragraph (1). 

16 ‘‘(b) CRITERIA FOR DESIGNATION OF FACILITIES.—(1) 

17 In designating Department health-care facilities for centers 

18 under subsection (a), the Secretary, upon the recommenda19 tion of the Under Secretary for Health, shall assure appro20 priate geographic distribution of such facilities. 

21 ‘‘(2) Except as provided in paragraph (3), the Sec22 retary shall designate as the location for a center pursuant 

23 to subsection (a)(1) each Department health-care facility 

24 that as of January 1, 2005, was operating a multiple scle25 rosis center of excellence. 
33

•S 3421 EAH 

1 ‘‘(3) The Secretary may not under subsection (a) des2 ignate a facility described in paragraph (2) if (on the rec3 ommendation of the Under Secretary for Health) the Sec4 retary determines that such facility—

5 ‘‘(A) does not meet the requirements of subsection 

6 (c); or 

7 ‘‘(B) has not demonstrated—

8 ‘‘(i) effectiveness in carrying out the estab9 lished purposes of such center; or 

10 ‘‘(ii) the potential to carry out such pur11 poses effectively in the reasonably foreseeable fu12 ture. 

13 ‘‘(c) REQUIREMENTS FOR DESIGNATION.—(1) The Sec14 retary may not designate a Department health-care facility 

15 as a location for a center under subsection (a) unless the 

16 peer review panel established under subsection (d) has deter17 mined under that subsection that the proposal submitted 

18 by such facility as a location for a new center under sub19 section (a) is among those proposals that meet the highest 

20 competitive standards of scientific and clinical merit. 

21 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may not designate a Department 

22 health-care facility as a location for a center under sub23 section (a) unless the Secretary (upon the recommendation 

24 of the Under Secretary for Health) determines that the facil-
34

•S 3421 EAH 

1 ity has (or may reasonably be anticipated to develop) each 

2 of the following: 

3 ‘‘(A) An arrangement with an accredited med4 ical school that provides education and training in 

5 neurology and with which the Department health-care 

6 facility is affiliated under which residents receive 

7 education and training in innovative diagnosis and 

8 treatment of autoimmune diseases affecting the cen9 tral nervous system, including multiple sclerosis. 

10 ‘‘(B) The ability to attract the participation of 

11 scientists who are capable of ingenuity and creativity 

12 in health-care research efforts. 

13 ‘‘(C) An advisory committee composed of vet14 erans and appropriate health-care and research rep15 resentatives of the Department health-care facility 

16 and of the affiliated school or schools to advise the di17 rectors of such facility and such center on policy mat18 ters pertaining to the activities of the center during 

19 the period of the operation of such center. 

20 ‘‘(D) The capability to conduct effectively eval21 uations of the activities of such center. 

22 ‘‘(E) The capability to coordinate (as part of an 

23 integrated national system) education, clinical, and 

24 research activities within all facilities with such cen25 ters. 
35

•S 3421 EAH 

1 ‘‘(F) The capability to jointly develop a consor2 tium of providers with interest in treating multiple 

3 sclerosis at facilities without such centers in order to 

4 ensure better access to state-of-the-art diagnosis, care, 

5 and education for autoimmune disease affecting the 

6 central nervous system throughout the health-care sys7 tem of the Department. 

8 ‘‘(G) The capability to develop a national reposi9 tory in the health-care system of the Department for 

10 the collection of data on health services delivered to 

11 veterans seeking care for autoimmune disease affect12 ing the central nervous system. 

13 ‘‘(d) PEER REVIEW PANEL.—(1) The Under Secretary 

14 for Health shall establish a panel to assess the scientific and 

15 clinical merit of proposals that are submitted to the Sec16 retary for the establishment of centers under this section. 

17 ‘‘(2)(A) The membership of the panel shall consist of 

18 experts in autoimmune disease affecting the central nervous 

19 system. 

20 ‘‘(B) Members of the panel shall serve for a period of 

21 no longer than two years, except as specified in subpara22 graph (C). 

23 ‘‘(C) Of the members first appointed to the panel, one 

24 half shall be appointed for a period of three years and one 
36

•S 3421 EAH 

1 half shall be appointed for a period of two years, as des2 ignated by the Under Secretary at the time of appointment. 

3 ‘‘(3) The panel shall review each proposal submitted 

4 to the panel by the Under Secretary and shall submit its 

5 views on the relative scientific and clinical merit of each 

6 such proposal to the Under Secretary. 

7 ‘‘(4) The panel shall not be subject to the Federal Advi8 sory Committee Act. 

9 ‘‘(e) PRIORITY OF FUNDING.—Before providing funds 

10 for the operation of a center designated under subsection 

11 (a) at a Department health-care facility other than at a 

12 facility designated pursuant to subsection (b)(2), the Sec13 retary shall ensure that each multiple sclerosis center at a 

14 facility designated pursuant to subsection (b)(2) is receiving 

15 adequate funding to enable that center to function effec16 tively in the areas of multiple sclerosis research, education, 

17 and clinical activities. 

18 ‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are 

19 authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec20 essary for the support of the research and education activi21 ties of the centers established pursuant to subsection (a). 

22 The Under Secretary for Health shall allocate to such cen23 ters from other funds appropriated generally for the Depart24 ment medical services account and medical and prosthetics 
37

•S 3421 EAH 

1 research account, as appropriate, such amounts as the 

2 Under Secretary for Health determines appropriate. 

3 ‘‘(g) AWARD COMPETITIONS.—Activities of clinical 

4 and scientific investigation at each center established under 

5 subsection (a) shall be eligible to compete for the award of 

6 funding from funds appropriated for the Department med7 ical and prosthetics research account. Such activities shall 

8 receive priority in the award of funding from such account 

9 insofar as funds are awarded to projects for research in 

10 multiple sclerosis and other neurodegenerative disorders.’’. 

11 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec12 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended by 

13 inserting after the item relating to section 7328 the 

14 following new items:

‘‘7329. Parkinson’s Disease research, education, and clinical centers. 

‘‘7330. Multiple sclerosis centers of excellence.’’.

15 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Sections 7329 and 7330 of 

16 title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), 

17 shall take effect at the end of the 30-day period beginning 

18 on the date of the enactment of this Act. 

19 SEC. 210. REPEAL OF TERM OF OFFICE FOR THE UNDER 

20 SECRETARY FOR HEALTH AND THE UNDER 

21 SECRETARY FOR BENEFITS. 

22 (a) UNDER SECRETARY FOR HEALTH.—

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 305 is amended by 

24 striking subsection (c). 
38

•S 3421 EAH 

1 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Subsection (d) 

2 of such section is redesignated as subsection (c). 

3 (b) UNDER SECRETARY FOR BENEFITS.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 306 is amended by 

5 striking subsection (c). 

6 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Subsection (d) 

7 of such section is redesignated as subsection (c). 

8 SEC. 211. MODIFICATIONS TO STATE HOME AUTHORITIES. 

9 (a) NURSING HOME CARE AND PRESCRIPTION MEDI10 CATIONS IN STATE HOMES FOR VETERANS WITH SERVICE11 CONNECTED DISABILITIES.—

12 (1) NURSING HOME CARE.—Subchapter V of 

13 chapter 17 is amended by adding at the end the fol14 lowing new section: 

15 ‘‘§ 1745. Nursing home care and medications for vet16 erans with service-connected disabilities 

17 ‘‘(a)(1) The Secretary shall pay each State home for 

18 nursing home care at the rate determined under paragraph 

19 (2), in any case in which such care is provided to any vet20 eran as follows: 

21 ‘‘(A) Any veteran in need of such care for a serv22 ice-connected disability. 

23 ‘‘(B) Any veteran who—

24 ‘‘(i) has a service-connected disability rated 

25 at 70 percent or more; and 
39

•S 3421 EAH 

1 ‘‘(ii) is in need of such care. 

2 ‘‘(2) The rate determined under this paragraph with 

3 respect to a State home is the lesser of—

4 ‘‘(A) the applicable or prevailing rate payable in 

5 the geographic area in which the State home is lo6 cated, as determined by the Secretary, for nursing 

7 home care furnished in a non-Department nursing 

8 home (as that term is defined in section 1720(e)(2) of 

9 this title); or 

10 ‘‘(B) a rate not to exceed the daily cost of care, 

11 as determined by the Secretary, following a report to 

12 the Secretary by the director of the State home. 

13 ‘‘(3) Payment by the Secretary under paragraph (1) 

14 to a State home for nursing home care provided to a veteran 

15 described in that paragraph constitutes payment in full to 

16 the State home for such care furnished to that veteran.’’. 

17 (2) PROVISION OF PRESCRIPTION MEDICINES.—

18 Such section, as so added, is further amended by add19 ing at the end the following new subsection: 

20 ‘‘(b) The Secretary shall furnish such drugs and medi21 cines as may be ordered on prescription of a duly licensed 

22 physician as specific therapy in the treatment of illness or 

23 injury to any veteran as follows: 

24 ‘‘(1) Any veteran who—
40

•S 3421 EAH 

1 ‘‘(A) is not being provided nursing home 

2 care for which payment is payable under sub3 section (a); and 

4 ‘‘(B) is in need of such drugs and medicines 

5 for a service-connected disability. 

6 ‘‘(2) Any veteran who—

7 ‘‘(A) has a service-connected disability rated 

8 at 50 percent or more; 

9 ‘‘(B) is not being provided nursing home 

10 care for which payment is payable under sub11 section (a); and 

12 ‘‘(C) is in need of such drugs and medi13 cines.’’. 

14 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

15 (A) CRITERIA FOR PAYMENT.—Section 

16 1741(a)(1) is amended by striking ‘‘The’’ and in17 serting ‘‘Except as provided in section 1745 of 

18 this title, the’’. 

19 (B) ELIGIBILITY FOR NURSING HOME

20 CARE.—Section 1710(a)(4) is amended—

21 (i) by striking ‘‘and’’ before ‘‘the re22 quirement in section 1710B of this title’’; 

23 and 

24 (ii) by inserting ‘‘, and the require25 ment in section 1745 of this title to provide 
41

•S 3421 EAH 

1 nursing home care and prescription medi2 cines to veterans with service-connected dis3 abilities in State homes’’ after ‘‘a program 

4 of extended care services’’. 

5 (4) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec6 tions at the beginning of chapter 17 is amended by 

7 inserting after the item relating to section 1744 the 

8 following new item:

‘‘1745. Nursing home care and medications for veterans with service-connected 

disabilities.’’.

9 (5) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

10 by this subsection shall take effect 90 days after the 

11 date of the enactment of this Act. 

12 (b) IDENTIFICATION OF VETERANS IN STATE

13 HOMES.—Such chapter is further amended—

14 (1) in section 1745, as added by subsection 

15 (a)(1) of this section, by adding at the end the fol16 lowing new subsection: 

17 ‘‘(c) Any State home that requests payment or reim18 bursement for services provided to a veteran under this sec19 tion shall provide to the Secretary such information as the 

20 Secretary considers necessary to identify each individual 

21 veteran eligible for payment under such section.’’; and 

22 (2) in section 1741, by adding at the end the fol23 lowing new subsection: 
42

•S 3421 EAH 

1 ‘‘(f) Any State home that requests payment or reim2 bursement for services provided to a veteran under this sec3 tion shall provide to the Secretary such information as the 

4 Secretary considers necessary to identify each individual 

5 veteran eligible for payment under such section.’’. 

6 (c) AUTHORITY TO TREAT CERTAIN HEALTH FACILI7 TIES AS STATE HOMES.—

8 (1) AUTHORITY.—Subchapter III of chapter 81 

9 is amended by adding at the end the following new 

10 section: 

11 ‘‘§ 8138. Treatment of certain health facilities as State 

12 homes 

13 ‘‘(a) The Secretary may treat a health facility (or cer14 tain beds in a health facility) as a State home for purposes 

15 of subchapter V of chapter 17 of this title if the following 

16 requirements are met: 

17 ‘‘(1) The facility (or certain beds in such facil18 ity) meets the standards for the provision of nursing 

19 home care that are applicable to State homes, as pre20 scribed by the Secretary under section 8134(b) of this 

21 title, and such other standards relating to the facility 

22 (or certain beds in such facility) as the Secretary 

23 may require. 

24 ‘‘(2) The facility (or certain beds in such facil25 ity) is licensed or certified by the appropriate State 
43

•S 3421 EAH 

1 and local agencies charged with the responsibility of 

2 licensing or otherwise regulating or inspecting State 

3 home facilities. 

4 ‘‘(3) The State demonstrates in an application to 

5 the Secretary that, but for the treatment of a facility 

6 (or certain beds in such facility), as a State home 

7 under this subsection, a substantial number of vet8 erans residing in the geographic area in which the fa9 cility is located who require nursing home care will 

10 not have access to such care. 

11 ‘‘(4) The Secretary determines that the treatment 

12 of the facility (or certain beds in such facility) as a 

13 State home best meets the needs of veterans for nurs14 ing home care in the geographic area in which the fa15 cility is located. 

16 ‘‘(5) The Secretary approves the application sub17 mitted by the State with respect to the facility (or 

18 certain beds in such facility). 

19 ‘‘(b) The Secretary may not treat a health facility (or 

20 certain beds in a health facility) as a State home under 

21 subsection (a) if the Secretary determines that such treat22 ment would increase the number of beds allocated to the 

23 State in excess of the limit on the number of beds provided 

24 for by regulations prescribed under section 8134(a) of this 

25 title. 
44

•S 3421 EAH 

1 ‘‘(c) The number of beds occupied by veterans in a 

2 health facility for which payment may be made under sub3 chapter V of chapter 17 of this title by reason of subsection 

4 (a) shall not exceed—

5 ‘‘(1) 100 beds in the aggregate for all States; and 

6 ‘‘(2) in the case of any State, the difference be7 tween—

8 ‘‘(A) the number of veterans authorized to 

9 be in beds in State homes in such State under 

10 regulations prescribed under section 8134(a) of 

11 this title; and 

12 ‘‘(B) the number of veterans actually in 

13 beds in State homes (other than facilities or cer14 tain beds treated as State homes under sub15 section (a)) in such State under regulations pre16 scribed under such section. 

17 ‘‘(d) The number of beds in a health facility in a State 

18 that has been treated as a State home under subsection (a) 

19 shall be taken into account in determining the unmet need 

20 for beds for State homes for the State under section 

21 8134(d)(1) of this title. 

22 ‘‘(e) The Secretary may not treat any new health fa23 cilities (or any new certain beds in a health facility) as 

24 a State home under subsection (a) after September 30, 

25 2009.’’. 
45

•S 3421 EAH 

1 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec2 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended by 

3 inserting after the item relating to section 8137 the 

4 following new item:

‘‘8138. Treatment of certain health facilities as State homes.’’.

5 SEC. 212. OFFICE OF RURAL HEALTH. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—

7 (1) ESTABLISHMENT AND FUNCTIONS.—Chapter 

8 73 is amended by inserting after section 7307 the fol9 lowing new section: 

10 ‘‘§ 7308. Office of Rural Health 

11 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the De12 partment within the Office of the Under Secretary for 

13 Health an office to be known as the ‘Office of Rural Health’ 

14 (in this section referred to as the ‘Office’). 

15 ‘‘(b) HEAD.—The Director of the Office of Rural 

16 Health shall be the head of the Office. The Director of the 

17 Office of Rural Health shall be appointed by the Under Sec18 retary of Health from among individuals qualified to per19 form the duties of the position. 

20 ‘‘(c) FUNCTIONS.—The functions of the Office are as 

21 follows: 

22 ‘‘(1) In cooperation with the medical, rehabilita23 tion, health services, and cooperative studies research 

24 programs in the Office of Policy and the Office of Re25 search and Development of the Veterans Health Ad-
46

•S 3421 EAH 

1 ministration, to assist the Under Secretary for Health 

2 in conducting, coordinating, promoting, and dissemi3 nating research into issues affecting veterans living in 

4 rural areas. 

5 ‘‘(2) To work with all personnel and offices of the 

6 Department of Veterans Affairs to develop, refine, and 

7 promulgate policies, best practices, lessons learned, 

8 and innovative and successful programs to improve 

9 care and services for veterans who reside in rural 

10 areas of the United States. 

11 ‘‘(3) To designate in each Veterans Integrated 

12 Service Network (VISN) an individual who shall con13 sult on and coordinate the discharge in such Network 

14 of programs and activities of the Office for veterans 

15 who reside in rural areas of the United States. 

16 ‘‘(4) To perform such other functions and duties 

17 as the Secretary or the Under Secretary for Health 

18 considers appropriate.’’. 

19 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec20 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended by 

21 inserting after the item relating to section 7307 the 

22 following new item:

‘‘7308. Office of Rural Health.’’.

23 (b) ASSESSMENT OF FEE-BASIS HEALTH-CARE PRO24 GRAM.—The Director of the Office of Rural Health shall 

25 conduct an assessment of the effects of the implementation 
47

•S 3421 EAH 

1 of the fee-basis health-care program of the Veterans Health 

2 Administration on the delivery of health-care services to vet3 erans who reside in rural areas of the United States. The 

4 assessment shall be conducted in consultation with the indi5 viduals designated under subsection (c)(3) of section 7308 

6 of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a). 

7 In conducting the assessment, the Director shall—

8 (1) identify various mechanisms for expanding 

9 the program in order to enhance and improve health10 care services for such veterans and determine the fea11 sibility and advisability of implementing such mecha12 nisms; and 

13 (2) for each mechanism determined under para14 graph (1) to be feasible and advisable to implement, 

15 make recommendations to the Under Secretary for 

16 Health on the implementation of such mechanism. 

17 (c) PLAN TO IMPROVE ACCESS AND QUALITY OF

18 CARE.—Not later than September 30, 2007, the Director of 

19 the Office of Rural Health shall develop a plan to improve 

20 the access and quality of care for enrolled veterans in rural 

21 areas. The plan shall include—

22 (1) measures for meeting the long term care 

23 needs of rural veterans; and 

24 (2) measures for meeting the mental health needs 

25 of veterans residing in rural areas. 
48

•S 3421 EAH 

1 (d) REPORT ON COMMUNITY-BASED OUTPATIENT

2 CLINICS AND ACCESS POINTS IDENTIFIED IN CARES MAY

3 2004 DECISION DOCUMENT.— Not later than March 30, 

4 2007, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the 

5 Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Com6 mittee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives 

7 a report that—

8 (1) identifies each of the community based out9 patient clinics and access points identified in the 

10 May 2004 Decision Document of Capital Asset Re11 alignment for Enhanced Services (CARES) that have 

12 been opened; and 

13 (2) identifies each of the clinics and access points 

14 identified in such report that would be opened in fis15 cal year 2007 or 2008 if funding were available for 

16 such purpose. 

17 SEC. 213. OUTREACH PROGRAM TO VETERANS IN RURAL 

18 AREAS. 

19 (a) PROGRAM.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs 

20 shall conduct an extensive outreach program to identify and 

21 provide information to veterans who served in the theater 

22 of operations for Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation 

23 Enduring Freedom and who reside in rural communities 

24 in order to enroll those veterans in the health-care system 
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1 of the Department of Veterans Affairs during the period 

2 when they are eligible for such enrollment. 

3 (b) FEATURES OF PROGRAM.—In carrying out the 

4 program under subsection (a), the Secretary shall seek to 

5 work at the local level with employers, State agencies, com6 munity health centers located in rural areas, rural health 

7 clinics, and critical access hospitals located in rural areas, 

8 and units of the National Guard and other reserve compo9 nents based in rural areas, in order to increase the aware10 ness of veterans and their families of the availability of 

11 health care provided by the Secretary and the means by 

12 which those veterans can achieve access to the health-care 

13 services provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

14 SEC. 214. PILOT PROGRAM ON IMPROVEMENT OF CARE15 GIVER ASSISTANCE SERVICES. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Commencing not later than 120 

17 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec18 retary of Veterans Affairs shall carry out a pilot program 

19 to assess the feasibility and advisability of various mecha20 nisms to expand and improve caregiver assistance services. 

21 (b) DURATION OF PILOT PROGRAM.—The pilot pro22 gram required by subsection (a) shall be carried out during 

23 the two-year period beginning on the date of the commence24 ment of the pilot program. 
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1 (c) CAREGIVER ASSISTANCE SERVICES.—For purposes 

2 of this section, the term ‘‘caregiver assistance services’’ 

3 means services of the Department of Veterans Affairs that 

4 assist caregivers of veterans. Such services including the fol5 lowing: 

6 (1) Adult-day health care services. 

7 (2) Coordination of services needed by veterans, 

8 including services for readjustment and rehabilita9 tion. 

10 (3) Transportation services. 

11 (4) Caregiver support services, including edu12 cation, training, and certification of family members 

13 in caregiver activities. 

14 (5) Home care services. 

15 (6) Respite care. 

16 (7) Hospice services. 

17 (8) Any modalities of non-institutional long18 term care. 

19 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are 

20 authorized to be appropriated to the Department of Vet21 erans Affairs $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2007 and 

22 2008 to carry out the pilot program authorized by this sec23 tion. 

24 (e) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS TO FACILITIES.—The Sec25 retary shall allocate funds appropriated pursuant to the au-
51

•S 3421 EAH 

1 thorization of appropriations in subsection (d) to indi2 vidual medical facilities of the Department in such amounts 

3 as the Secretary determines appropriate, based upon pro4 posals submitted by such facilities for the use of such funds 

5 for improvements to the support of the provision of care6 giver assistance services. Special consideration should be 

7 given to rural facilities, including those without a long-term 

8 care facility of the Department. 

9 (f) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

10 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to 

11 the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the 

12 Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representa13 tives a report on the implementation of this section. The 

14 report shall include—

15 (1) a description and assessment of the activities 

16 carried out under the pilot program; 

17 (2) information on the allocation of funds to fa18 cilities of the Department under subsection (e); and 

19 (3) a description of the improvements made with 

20 funds so allocated to the support of the provision of 

21 caregiver assistance services. 

22 SEC. 215. EXPANSION OF OUTREACH ACTIVITIES OF VET 

23 CENTERS. 

24 (a) ADDITIONAL OUTREACH WORKERS.—The Sec25 retary of Veterans Affairs shall employ not fewer than 100 
52

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1 veterans for the purpose of providing outreach to veterans 

2 on the availability of readjustment counseling and related 

3 mental health services for veterans under section 1712A of 

4 title 38, United States Code. 

5 (b) CONSTRUCTION WITH CURRENT OUTREACH PRO6 GRAM.—The veterans employed under subsection (a) are in 

7 addition to any veterans employed by the Secretary for the 

8 purpose described in that subsection under the February 

9 2004 program of the Department of Veterans Affairs to pro10 vide outreach described in that subsection. 

11 (c) ASSIGNMENT TO VET CENTERS.—The Secretary 

12 may assign any veteran employed under subsection (a) to 

13 any center for the provision of readjustment counseling and 

14 related mental health services under section 1712A of title 

15 38, United States Code, that the Secretary considers appro16 priate in order to meet the purpose described in that sub17 section. 

18 (d) INAPPLICABILITY AND TERMINATION OF LIMITA19 TION ON DURATION OF EMPLOYMENT.—Any limitation on 

20 the duration of employment of veterans under the program 

21 described in subsection (b) is hereby terminated and shall 

22 not apply to veterans employed under such program or 

23 under this section. 

24 (e) EMPLOYMENT STATUS.—Veterans employed under 

25 subsection (a) shall be employed in career conditional sta-
53

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1 tus, which is the employment status in which veterans are 

2 employed under the program described in subsection (b). 

3 SEC. 216. CLARIFICATION AND ENHANCEMENT OF BE4 REAVEMENT COUNSELING. 

5 (a) CLARIFICATION OF MEMBERS OF IMMEDIATE FAM6 ILY ELIGIBLE FOR COUNSELING.—Subsection (b) of section 

7 1783 is amended—

8 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘The Secretary’’; 

9 and 

10 (2) by adding at the end the following new para11 graph: 

12 ‘‘(2) For purposes of this subsection, the members of 

13 the immediate family of a member of the Armed Forces de14 scribed in paragraph (1) include the parents of such mem15 ber.’’. 

16 (b) PROVISION OF COUNSELING THROUGH VET CEN17 TERS.—Such section is further amended—

18 (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection 

19 (d); and 

20 (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the following 

21 new subsection (c): 

22 ‘‘(c) PROVISION OF COUNSELING THROUGH VET CEN23 TERS.—Bereavement counseling may be provided under 

24 this section through the facilities and personnel of centers 
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1 for the provision of readjustment counseling and related 

2 mental health services under section 1712A of this title.’’. 

3 SEC. 217. FUNDING FOR VET CENTER PROGRAM. 

4 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Depart5 ment of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2007 $180,000,000 

6 for the provision of readjustment counseling and related 

7 mental health services through centers under section 1712A 

8 of title 38, United States Code. 

9 TITLE III—EDUCATION MATTERS 

10 SEC. 301. EXPANSION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR SURVIVORS’ AND 

11 DEPENDENTS’ EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE 

12 PROGRAM. 

13 (a) EXPANSION OF ELIGIBILITY.—Section 3501(a)(1) 

14 is amended—

15 (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), 

16 by striking ‘‘means—’’ and inserting ‘‘means any of 

17 the following:’’; 

18 (2) in each of subparagraphs (A) through (D), by 

19 capitalizing the first letter of the first word; 

20 (3) in subparagraph (A)—

21 (A) by inserting after ‘‘a person who’’ the 

22 following: ‘‘, as a result of qualifying service’’; 

23 (B) by striking the comma at the end of 

24 clause (i) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; 
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•S 3421 EAH 

1 (C) by striking ‘‘, or’’ at the end of clause 

2 (ii) and inserting a period; and 

3 (D) by striking clause (iii); 

4 (4) in subparagraph (B) by striking the comma 

5 at the end and inserting the following: ‘‘sustained 

6 during a period of qualifying service.’’; 

7 (5) in subparagraph (C)—

8 (A) by inserting ‘‘or child’’ after ‘‘the 

9 spouse’’; and 

10 (B) by striking ‘‘, or’’ at the end and insert11 ing a period; 

12 (6) in subparagraph (D)—

13 (A) in clause (i), by inserting before the 

14 comma the following: ‘‘sustained during a period 

15 of qualifying service’’; and 

16 (B) by striking the comma at the end and 

17 inserting a period; 

18 (7) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the fol19 lowing new subparagraph: 

20 ‘‘(E) The spouse or child of a person who—

21 ‘‘(i) at the time of the Secretary’s de22 termination under clause (ii), is a member 

23 of the Armed Forces who is hospitalized or 

24 receiving outpatient medical care, services, 

25 or treatment; 
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1 ‘‘(ii) the Secretary determines has a 

2 total disability permanent in nature in3 curred or aggravated in the line of duty in 

4 the active military, naval, or air service; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(iii) is likely to be discharged or re7 leased from such service for such dis8 ability.’’; and 

9 (8) by striking ‘‘arising out of’’ and all that fol10 lows through the end. 

11 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO CHAPTER 35.—

12 Chapter 35 is amended as follows: 

13 (1) Section 3501(a) is amended by adding at the 

14 end the following new paragraph: 

15 ‘‘(12) The term ‘qualifying service’ means service 

16 in the active military, naval, or air service after the 

17 beginning of the Spanish-American War that did not 

18 terminate under dishonorable conditions.’’. 

19 (2) Section 3511 is amended—

20 (A) in subsection (a)(1)—

21 (i) by striking ‘‘Each eligible person’’ 

22 and inserting the following: ‘‘Each eligible 

23 person, whether made eligible by one or 

24 more of the provisions of section 3501(a)(1) 

25 of this title,’’; 
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•S 3421 EAH 

1 (ii) by striking ‘‘a period’’ and insert2 ing ‘‘an aggregate period’’; and 

3 (iii) by striking the second sentence; 

4 (B) in subsection (b)—

5 (i) in paragraph (2)—

6 (I) by striking ‘‘the provisions of 

7 section 3501(a)(1)(A)(iii) or’’ and in8 serting ‘‘section’’; and 

9 (II) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end; 

10 (ii) in paragraph (3)—

11 (I) by striking ‘‘section 

12 3501(a)(1)(D)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub13 paragraph (D) or (E) of section 

14 3501(a)(1)’’; and 

15 (II) by inserting ‘‘or’’ after the 

16 comma at the end; and 

17 (iii) by inserting after paragraph (3) 

18 the following new paragraph: 

19 ‘‘(4) the parent or spouse from whom such eligi20 bility is derived based upon subparagraph (E) of sec21 tion 3501(a)(1) of this title no longer meets a require22 ment under clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of that subpara23 graph,’’; and 

24 (C) by striking subsection (c). 

25 (3) Section 3512 is amended—
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•S 3421 EAH 

1 (A) in subsection (a)—

2 (i) by striking ‘‘an eligible person 

3 (within the meaning of section 

4 3501(a)(1)(A) of this title)’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘an eligible person whose eligibility is based 

6 on the death or disability of a parent or on 

7 a parent being listed in one of the categories 

8 referred to in section 3501(a)(1)(C) of this 

9 title’’; and 

10 (ii) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘the 

11 provisions of section 3501(a)(1)(A)(iii)’’ 

12 and inserting ‘‘a parent being listed in one 

13 of the categories referred to in section 

14 3501(a)(1)(C)’’; 

15 (B) in subsection (b)—

16 (i) in paragraph (1)(A)—

17 (I) by inserting after ‘‘section 

18 3501(a)(1) of this title’’ the following: 

19 ‘‘or a person made eligible by the dis20 ability of a spouse under section 

21 3501(a)(1)(E) of this title’’; and 

22 (II) by striking ‘‘or 

23 3501(a)(1)(D)(ii) of this title’’ and in24 serting ‘‘3501(a)(1)(D)(ii), or 

25 3501(a)(1)(E) of this title’’; 
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1 (ii) in paragraph (1)(B), by adding at 

2 the end the following new clause: 

3 ‘‘(iii) The date on which the Secretary notifies 

4 the member of the Armed Forces from whom eligi5 bility is derived that the member has a total dis6 ability permanent in nature incurred or aggravated 

7 in the line of duty in the active military, naval, or 

8 air service.’’; and 

9 (iii) in paragraph (2)—

10 (I) by striking ‘‘or (D) of this 

11 title’’ and inserting ‘‘(D), or (E) of 

12 this title’’; and 

13 (II) by inserting ‘‘whose eligi14 bility is based on the death or dis15 ability of a spouse or on a spouse being 

16 listed in one of the categories referred 

17 to in section 3501(a)(1)(C) of this 

18 title’’ after ‘‘of this title)’’; 

19 (C) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘veteran’’ 

20 and inserting ‘‘person’’; and 

21 (D) in subsection (e)—

22 (i) by inserting ‘‘based on a spouse 

23 being listed in one of the categories referred 

24 to in section 3501(a)(1)(C) of this title’’ 

25 after ‘‘of this title’’; 
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1 (ii) by inserting ‘‘so’’ after ‘‘the spouse 

2 was’’; and 

3 (iii) by striking ‘‘by the Secretary’’ 

4 and all that follows through ‘‘occurs’’. 

5 (4) Section 3540 is amended by striking ‘‘(as de6 fined in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (D) of section 

7 3501(a)(1) of this title)’’ and inserting ‘‘(other than 

8 a person made eligible under subparagraph (C) of 

9 such section by reason of a spouse being listed in one 

10 of the categories referred to in that subparagraph)’’. 

11 (5) Section 3563 is amended by striking ‘‘each 

12 eligible person defined in section 3501(a)(1)(A) of this 

13 title’’ and inserting ‘‘each eligible person whose eligi14 bility is based on the death or disability of a parent 

15 or on a parent being listed in one of the categories 

16 referred to in section 3501(a)(1)(C) of this title’’. 

17 (c) OTHER CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Such title is 

18 further amended as follows: 

19 (1) Section 3686(a)(1) is amended by striking 

20 ‘‘or (D)’’ and inserting ‘‘(D), or (E)’’. 

21 (2) Section 5113(b)(3) is amended—

22 (A) in subparagraph (B) by striking ‘‘sec23 tion 3501(a)(1)’’ and all that follows through the 

24 end and inserting the following: ‘‘subparagraphs 
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•S 3421 EAH 

1 (A), (B), (D), and (E) of section 3501(a)(1) of 

2 this title.’’; and 

3 (B) in subparagraph (C)—

4 (i) by striking ‘‘such veteran’s death’’ 

5 and inserting ‘‘the death of the person from 

6 whom such eligibility is derived’’; and 

7 (ii) by striking ‘‘such veteran’s service8 connected total disability permanent in na9 ture’’ and inserting ‘‘the service-connected 

10 total disability permanent in nature (or, in 

11 the case of a person made eligible under sec12 tion 3501(a)(1)(E), the total disability per13 manent in nature incurred or aggravated in 

14 the line of duty in the active military, 

15 naval, or air service) of the person from 

16 whom such eligibility is derived’’. 

17 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by this 

18 section shall apply with respect to a payment of educational 

19 assistance for a course of education pursued after the date 

20 of the enactment of this Act. 
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1 SEC. 302. RESTORATION OF LOST ENTITLEMENT FOR INDI2 VIDUALS WHO DISCONTINUE A PROGRAM OF 

3 EDUCATION BECAUSE OF BEING ORDERED TO 

4 FULL-TIME NATIONAL GUARD DUTY. 

5 (a) RESTORATION OF ENTITLEMENT.—Section 

6 3511(a)(2)(B)(i) is amended by inserting after ‘‘title 10’’ 

7 the following: ‘‘or of being involuntarily ordered to full-time 

8 National Guard duty under section 502(f) of title 32’’. 

9 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by sub10 section (a) shall apply with respect to a payment of edu11 cational assistance allowance made after September 11, 

12 2001. 

13 SEC. 303. EXCEPTION FOR INSTITUTIONS OFFERING GOV14 ERNMENT-SPONSORED NONACCREDITED 

15 COURSES TO REQUIREMENT OF REFUNDING 

16 UNUSED TUITION. 

17 Section 3676(c)(13) is amended by striking ‘‘prior to 

18 completion’’ and all that follows and inserting the fol19 lowing: ‘‘before completion and—

20 ‘‘(A) in the case of an institution (other 

21 than (i) a Federal, State, or local Government 

22 institution or (ii) an institution described in 

23 subparagraph (B)), such policy provides that the 

24 amount charged to the eligible person for tuition, 

25 fees, and other charges for a portion of the course 

26 shall not exceed the approximate pro rata por-
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1 tion of the total charges for tuition, fees, and 

2 other charges that the length of the completed 

3 portion of the course bears to its total length; or 

4 ‘‘(B) in the case of an institution that is a 

5 nonaccredited public educational institution, the 

6 institution has and maintains a refund policy 

7 regarding the unused portion of tuition, fees, and 

8 other charges that is substantially the same as 

9 the refund policy followed by accredited public 

10 educational institutions located within the same 

11 State as such institution.’’. 

12 SEC. 304. EXTENSION OF WORK-STUDY ALLOWANCE. 

13 Section 3485(a)(4) is amended by striking ‘‘December 

14 27, 2006’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘June 30, 

15 2007’’. 

16 SEC. 305. DEADLINE AND EXTENSION OF REQUIREMENT 

17 FOR REPORT ON EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE 

18 PROGRAM. 

19 (a) DEADLINE.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

20 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense and 

21 the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall each submit to Con22 gress a report containing the information specified in sub23 sections (b) and (c) of section 3036 of title 38, United States 

24 Code. 
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1 (b) EXTENSION OF REQUIREMENT.—Subsection (d) of 

2 section 3036 of title 38, United States Code, is amended 

3 by striking ‘‘January 1, 2005’’ and inserting ‘‘January 1, 

4 2011’’. 

5 SEC. 306. REPORT ON IMPROVEMENT IN ADMINISTRATION 

6 OF EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE BENEFITS. 

7 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment 

8 of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit 

9 to Congress a report on the administration of education 

10 benefits, including benefits under chapters 30, 31, 32, 34, 

11 35, and 36 of title 38, United States Code, and chapters 

12 1606 and 1607 of title 10, United States Code. Such report 

13 shall propose methods to streamline the processes and proce14 dures of administering such benefits. 

15 SEC. 307. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS RELATING TO EDU16 CATION LAWS. 

17 Section 3485 is amended—

18 (1) in subsection (a)(4)(E), by inserting ‘‘or 

19 1607’’ after ‘‘chapter 1606’’; 

20 (2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘chapter 106’’ 

21 and inserting ‘‘chapter 1606 or 1607’’; and 

22 (3) in subsection (e)(1)—

23 (A) by striking ‘‘services of the kind de24 scribed in clauses (A) through (E) of subsection 

25 (a)(1) of this section’’ and inserting ‘‘a quali-
65

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1 fying work-study activity described in subsection 

2 (a)(4)’’; and 

3 (B) by striking ‘‘chapter 106’’ and inserting 

4 ‘‘chapter 1606 or 1607’’. 

5 TITLE IV—NATIONAL CEMETERY 

6 AND MEMORIAL AFFAIRS 

7 MATTERS 

8 SEC. 401. PROVISION OF GOVERNMENT MEMORIAL 

9 HEADSTONES OR MARKERS AND MEMORIAL 

10 INSCRIPTIONS FOR DECEASED DEPENDENT 

11 CHILDREN OF VETERANS WHOSE REMAINS 

12 ARE UNAVAILABLE FOR BURIAL. 

13 (a) PROVISION OF MEMORIAL HEADSTONES OR MARK14 ERS.—Subsection (b) of section 2306 is amended—

15 (1) in paragraph (2), by adding at the end the 

16 following new subparagraph: 

17 ‘‘(C) An eligible dependent child of a veteran.’’; 

18 and 

19 (2) by adding at the end the following new para20 graph: 

21 ‘‘(5) For purposes of this section, the term ‘eligible de22 pendent child’ means a child—

23 ‘‘(A) who is under 21 years of age, or under 23 

24 years of age if pursuing a course of instruction at an 

25 approved educational institution; or 
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1 ‘‘(B) who is unmarried and became permanently 

2 physically or mentally disabled and incapable of self3 support before reaching 21 years of age, or before 

4 reaching 23 years of age if pursuing a course of in5 struction at an approved educational institution.’’. 

6 (b) ADDITION OF MEMORIAL INSCRIPTION TO HEAD7 STONE OR MARKER OF VETERAN.—Subsection (f) of such 

8 section is amended by inserting ‘‘or eligible dependent 

9 child’’ after ‘‘surviving spouse’’ both places it appears. 

10 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by sub11 sections (a) and (b) shall apply with respect to individuals 

12 dying after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

13 SEC. 402. PROVISION OF GOVERNMENT MARKERS FOR 

14 MARKED GRAVES OF VETERANS AT PRIVATE 

15 CEMETERIES. 

16 (a) EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY.—Paragraph (3) of 

17 subsection (d) of section 2306 is amended by striking ‘‘De18 cember 31, 2006’’ and inserting ‘‘December 31, 2007’’. 

19 (b) PROVISION OF HEADSTONE OR MARKER.—

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Such subsection is further 

21 amended—

22 (A) in paragraph (1)—

23 (i) in the first sentence, by striking 

24 ‘‘Government marker’’ and inserting ‘‘Gov25 ernment headstone or marker’’; and 
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1 (ii) in the second sentence, by inserting 

2 ‘‘headstone or’’ before ‘‘marker’’ each place 

3 it appears; and 

4 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘head5 stone or’’ before ‘‘marker’’. 

6 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Subsection 

7 (g)(3) of such section is amended by inserting ‘‘head8 stone or’’ before ‘‘marker’’. 

9 (c) PLACEMENT OF HEADSTONE OR MARKER.—The 

10 second sentence of subsection (d)(1) of such section, as 

11 amended by subsection (b)(1)(A)(ii), is further amended by 

12 inserting before the period the following: ‘‘, or, if placement 

13 on the grave is impossible or impracticable, as close as pos14 sible to the grave within the grounds of the cemetery in 

15 which the grave is located’’. 

16 (d) DELIVERY OF HEADSTONE OR MARKER.—Sub17 section (d)(2) of such section, as amended by subsection 

18 (b)(1)(B), is further amended by inserting before the period 

19 the following: ‘‘or to a receiving agent for delivery to the 

20 cemetery’’. 

21 (e) REPEAL OF OBSOLETE REPORT REQUIREMENT.—

22 Subsection (d) of such section is further amended by strik23 ing paragraph (4). 

24 (f) SCOPE OF HEADSTONES AND MARKERS FUR25 NISHED.—Subsection (d) of such section is further amended 
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1 by inserting after paragraph (3) the following new para2 graph (4): 

3 ‘‘(4) The headstone or marker furnished under this 

4 subsection shall be the headstone or marker selected by the 

5 individual making the request from among all the 

6 headstones and markers made available by the Government 

7 for selection.’’. 

8 SEC. 403. ELIGIBILITY OF INDIAN TRIBAL ORGANIZATIONS 

9 FOR GRANTS FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF 

10 VETERANS CEMETERIES ON TRUST LANDS. 

11 Section 2408 is amended by adding at the end the fol12 lowing new subsection: 

13 ‘‘(f)(1) The Secretary may make grants under this sub14 section to any tribal organization to assist the tribal orga15 nization in establishing, expanding, or improving veterans’ 

16 cemeteries on trust land owned by, or held in trust for, the 

17 tribal organization. 

18 ‘‘(2) Grants under this subsection shall be made in the 

19 same manner, and under the same conditions, as grants 

20 to States are made under the preceding provisions of this 

21 section. 

22 ‘‘(3) For purposes of this subsection: 

23 ‘‘(A) The term ‘tribal organization’ has the 

24 meaning given that term in section 3765(4) of this 

25 title. 
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•S 3421 EAH 

1 ‘‘(B) The term ‘trust land’ has the meaning 

2 given that term in section 3765(1) of this title.’’. 

3 SEC. 404. REMOVAL OF REMAINS OF RUSSELL WAYNE WAG4 NER FROM ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEME5 TERY. 

6 (a) REMOVAL OF REMAINS.—The Secretary of the 

7 Army shall remove the remains of Russell Wayne Wagner 

8 from Arlington National Cemetery. 

9 (b) NOTIFICATION OF NEXT-OF-KIN.—The Secretary of 

10 the Army shall—

11 (1) notify the next-of-kin of record for Russell 

12 Wayne Wagner of the impending removal of his re13 mains; and 

14 (2) upon removal, relinquish the remains to the 

15 next-of-kin of record for Russell Wayne Wagner or, if 

16 the next-of-kin of record for Russell Wayne Wagner is 

17 unavailable, arrange for an appropriate disposition 

18 of the remains. 

19 TITLE V—HOUSING AND SMALL 

20 BUSINESS MATTERS 

21 SEC. 501. RESIDENTIAL COOPERATIVE HOUSING UNITS. 

22 (a) HOUSING BENEFITS FOR COOPERATIVE HOUSING

23 UNITS.—Subsection (a) of section 3710 is amended by in24 serting after paragraph (11) the following new paragraph: 
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1 ‘‘(12) With respect to a loan guaranteed after the 

2 date of the enactment of this paragraph and before the 

3 date that is five years after that date, to purchase 

4 stock or membership in a cooperative housing cor5 poration for the purpose of entitling the veteran to oc6 cupy for dwelling purposes a single family residential 

7 unit in a development, project, or structure owned or 

8 leased by such corporation, in accordance with sub9 section (h).’’. 

10 (b) CONDITIONS OF HOUSING BENEFITS FOR COOPER11 ATIVE HOUSING UNITS.—Such section is further amended 

12 by adding at the end the following new subsection: 

13 ‘‘(h)(1) A loan may not be guaranteed under sub14 section (a)(12) unless—

15 ‘‘(A) the development, project, or structure of the 

16 cooperative housing corporation complies with such 

17 criteria as the Secretary prescribes in regulations; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(B) the dwelling unit that the purchase of stock 

20 or membership in the development, project, or struc21 ture of the cooperative housing corporation entitles 

22 the purchaser to occupy is a single family residential 

23 unit. 
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•S 3421 EAH 

1 ‘‘(2) In this subsection, the term ‘cooperative housing 

2 corporation’ has the meaning given such term in section 

3 216(b)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

4 ‘‘(3) When applying the term ‘value of the property’ 

5 to a loan guaranteed under subsection (a)(12), such term 

6 means the appraised value of the stock or membership enti7 tling the purchaser to the permanent occupancy of the 

8 dwelling unit in the development, project, or structure of 

9 the cooperative housing corporation.’’. 

10 SEC. 502. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS GOALS FOR 

11 PARTICIPATION BY SMALL BUSINESSES 

12 OWNED AND CONTROLLED BY VETERANS IN 

13 PROCUREMENT CONTRACTS. 

14 (a) GOALS.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 81 is 

16 amended by adding at the end the following new sec17 tion: 

18 ‘‘§ 8127. Small business concerns owned and con19 trolled by veterans: contracting goals and 

20 preferences 

21 ‘‘(a) CONTRACTING GOALS.—(1) In order to increase 

22 contracting opportunities for small business concerns owned 

23 and controlled by veterans and small business concerns 

24 owned and controlled by veterans with service-connected 

25 disabilities, the Secretary shall—
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•S 3421 EAH 

1 ‘‘(A) establish a goal for each fiscal year for par2 ticipation in Department contracts (including sub3 contracts) by small business concerns owned and con4 trolled by veterans who are not veterans with service5 connected disabilities in accordance with paragraph 

6 (2); and 

7 ‘‘(B) establish a goal for each fiscal year for par8 ticipation in Department contracts (including sub9 contracts) by small business concerns owned and con10 trolled by veterans with service-connected disabilities 

11 in accordance with paragraph (3). 

12 ‘‘(2) The goal for a fiscal year for participation under 

13 paragraph (1)(A) shall be determined by the Secretary. 

14 ‘‘(3) The goal for a fiscal year for participation under 

15 paragraph (1)(B) shall be not less than the Government16 wide goal for that fiscal year for participation by small 

17 business concerns owned and controlled by veterans with 

18 service-connected disabilities under section 15(g)(1) of the 

19 Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 644(g)(1)). 

20 ‘‘(4) The Secretary shall establish a review mechanism 

21 to ensure that, in the case of a subcontract of a Department 

22 contract that is counted for purposes of meeting a goal es23 tablished pursuant to this section, the subcontract was actu24 ally awarded to a business concern that may be counted 

25 for purposes of meeting that goal. 
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1 ‘‘(b) USE OF NONCOMPETITIVE PROCEDURES FOR

2 CERTAIN SMALL CONTRACTS.—For purposes of meeting the 

3 goals under subsection (a), and in accordance with this sec4 tion, in entering into a contract with a small business con5 cern owned and controlled by veterans for an amount less 

6 than the simplified acquisition threshold (as defined in sec7 tion 4 of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 

8 U.S.C. 403)), a contracting officer of the Department may 

9 use procedures other than competitive procedures. 

10 ‘‘(c) SOLE SOURCE CONTRACTS FOR CONTRACTS

11 ABOVE SIMPLIFIED ACQUISITION THRESHOLD.—For pur12 poses of meeting the goals under subsection (a), and in ac13 cordance with this section, a contracting officer of the De14 partment may award a contract to a small business concern 

15 owned and controlled by veterans using procedures other 

16 than competitive procedures if—

17 ‘‘(1) such concern is determined to be a respon18 sible source with respect to performance of such con19 tract opportunity; 

20 ‘‘(2) the anticipated award price of the contract 

21 (including options) will exceed the simplified acquisi22 tion threshold (as defined in section 4 of the Office of 

23 Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 U.S.C. 403)) but 

24 will not exceed $5,000,000; and 
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1 ‘‘(3) in the estimation of the contracting officer, 

2 the contract award can be made at a fair and reason3 able price that offers best value to the United States. 

4 ‘‘(d) USE OF RESTRICTED COMPETITION.—Except as 

5 provided in subsections (b) and (c), for purposes of meeting 

6 the goals under subsection (a), and in accordance with this 

7 section, a contracting officer of the Department shall award 

8 contracts on the basis of competition restricted to small 

9 business concerns owned and controlled by veterans if the 

10 contracting officer has a reasonable expectation that two or 

11 more small business concerns owned and controlled by vet12 erans will submit offers and that the award can be made 

13 at a fair and reasonable price that offers best value to the 

14 United States. 

15 ‘‘(e) ELIGIBILITY OF SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS.—

16 A small business concern may be awarded a contract under 

17 this section only if the small business concern and the vet18 eran owner of the small business concern are listed in the 

19 database of veteran-owned businesses maintained by the 

20 Secretary under subsection (f). 

21 ‘‘(f) DATABASE OF VETERAN-OWNED BUSINESSES.—

22 (1) Subject to paragraphs (2) through (6), the Secretary 

23 shall maintain a database of small business concerns owned 

24 and controlled by veterans and the veteran owners of such 

25 business concerns. 
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1 ‘‘(2) To be eligible for inclusion in the database, such 

2 a veteran shall submit to the Secretary such information 

3 as the Secretary may require with respect to the small busi4 ness concern or the veteran. 

5 ‘‘(3) Information maintained in the database shall be 

6 submitted on a voluntary basis by such veterans. 

7 ‘‘(4) In maintaining the database, the Secretary shall 

8 carry out at least the following two verification functions: 

9 ‘‘(A) Verification that each small business con10 cern listed in the database is owned and controlled by 

11 veterans. 

12 ‘‘(B) In the case of a veteran who indicates a 

13 service-connected disability, verification of the service14 disabled status of such veteran. 

15 ‘‘(5) The Secretary shall make the database available 

16 to all Federal departments and agencies and shall notify 

17 each such department and agency of the availability of the 

18 database. 

19 ‘‘(6) If the Secretary determines that the public dis20 semination of certain types of information maintained in 

21 the database is inappropriate, the Secretary shall take such 

22 steps as are necessary to maintain such types of informa23 tion in a secure and confidential manner. 

24 ‘‘(g) ENFORCEMENT PENALTIES FOR MISREPRESENTA25 TION.—Any business concern that is determined by the Sec-
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1 retary to have misrepresented the status of that concern as 

2 a small business concern owned and controlled by veterans 

3 or as a small business concern owned and controlled by 

4 service-disabled veterans for purposes of this subsection shall 

5 be debarred from contracting with the Department for a 

6 reasonable period of time, as determined by the Secretary. 

7 ‘‘(h) TREATMENT OF BUSINESSES AFTER DEATH OF

8 VETERAN-OWNER.—(1) Subject to paragraph (3), if the 

9 death of a veteran causes a small business concern to be 

10 less than 51 percent owned by one or more veterans, the 

11 surviving spouse of such veteran who acquires ownership 

12 rights in such small business concern shall, for the period 

13 described in paragraph (2), be treated as if the surviving 

14 spouse were that veteran for the purpose of maintaining 

15 the status of the small business concern as a small business 

16 concern owned and controlled by veterans. 

17 ‘‘(2) The period referred to in paragraph (1) is the 

18 period beginning on the date on which the veteran dies and 

19 ending on the earliest of the following dates: 

20 ‘‘(A) The date on which the surviving spouse re21 marries. 

22 ‘‘(B) The date on which the surviving spouse re23 linquishes an ownership interest in the small business 

24 concern. 
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1 ‘‘(C) The date that is ten years after the date of 

2 the veteran’s death. 

3 ‘‘(3) Paragraph (1) only applies to a surviving spouse 

4 of a veteran with a service-connected disability rated as 100 

5 percent disabling or who dies as a result of a service-con6 nected disability. 

7 ‘‘(i) PRIORITY FOR CONTRACTING PREFERENCES.—

8 Preferences for awarding contracts to small business con9 cerns shall be applied in the following order of priority: 

10 ‘‘(1) Contracts awarded pursuant to subsection 

11 (b), (c), or (d) to small business concerns owned and 

12 controlled by veterans with service-connected disabil13 ities. 

14 ‘‘(2) Contracts awarded pursuant to subsection 

15 (b), (c), or (d) to small business concerns owned and 

16 controlled by veterans that are not covered by para17 graph (1). 

18 ‘‘(3) Contracts awarded pursuant to—

19 ‘‘(A) section 8(a) of the Small Business Act 

20 (15 U.S.C. 637(a)); or 

21 ‘‘(B) section 31 of such Act (15 U.S.C. 

22 657a). 

23 ‘‘(4) Contracts awarded pursuant to any other 

24 small business contracting preference. 
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1 ‘‘(j) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than December 31 

2 each year, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report 

3 on small business contracting during the fiscal year ending 

4 in such year. Each report shall include, for the fiscal year 

5 covered by such report, the following: 

6 ‘‘(1) The percentage of the total amount of all 

7 contracts awarded by the Department during that fis8 cal year that were awarded to small business concerns 

9 owned and controlled by veterans. 

10 ‘‘(2) The percentage of the total amount of all 

11 such contracts awarded to small business concerns 

12 owned and controlled by veterans with service-con13 nected disabilities. 

14 ‘‘(3) The percentage of the total amount of all 

15 contracts awarded by each Administration of the De16 partment during that fiscal year that were awarded 

17 to small business concerns owned and controlled by 

18 veterans. 

19 ‘‘(4) The percentage of the total amount of all 

20 contracts awarded by each such Administration dur21 ing that fiscal year that were awarded to small busi22 ness concerns owned and controlled by veterans with 

23 service-connected disabilities. 

24 ‘‘(k) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
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1 ‘‘(1) The term ‘small business concern’ has the 

2 meaning given that term under section 3 of the Small 

3 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632). 

4 ‘‘(2) The term ‘small business concern owned and 

5 controlled by veterans’ means a small business con6 cern—

7 ‘‘(A)(i) not less than 51 percent of which is 

8 owned by one or more veterans or, in the case of 

9 a publicly owned business, not less than 51 per10 cent of the stock of which is owned by one or 

11 more veterans; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) the management and daily business 

13 operations of which are controlled by one or 

14 more veterans; or 

15 ‘‘(B) not less than 51 percent of which is 

16 owned by one or more veterans with service-con17 nected disabilities that are permanent and total 

18 who are unable to manage the daily business op19 erations of such concern or, in the case of a pub20 licly owned business, not less than 51 percent of 

21 the stock of which is owned by one or more such 

22 veterans.’’. 

23 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec24 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended by 
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1 inserting after the item relating to section 8126 the 

2 following new item:

‘‘8127. Small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans: contracting 

goals and preferences.’’.

3 (b) TRANSITION RULE.—A small business concern that 

4 is listed in any small business database maintained by the 

5 Secretary of Veterans Affairs on the date of the enactment 

6 of this Act shall be presumed to be eligible for inclusion 

7 in the database under subsection (f) of section 8127 of title 

8 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), during 

9 the period beginning on the effective date of that section 

10 and ending one year after such effective date. Such a small 

11 business concern may be removed from the database during 

12 that period if it is found not to be a small business concern 

13 owned and controlled by veterans (as defined in subsection 

14 (k) of such section). 

15 (c) COMPTROLLER GENERAL STUDY AND REPORT.—

16 (1) STUDY REQUIRED.—During the first three 

17 fiscal years for which this section is in effect, the 

18 Comptroller General shall conduct a study on the ef19 forts made by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to 

20 meet the contracting goals established pursuant to sec21 tion 8127 of title 38, United States Code, as added 

22 by subsection (a). 

23 (2) INFORMATION TO CONGRESS ON STUDY.—On 

24 or before January 31 of each year during which the 
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1 Comptroller General conducts the study under para2 graph (1), the Comptroller General shall brief Con3 gress on such study, placing special emphasis on any 

4 structural or organizational issues within the Depart5 ment of Veterans Affairs that might act as an impedi6 ment to reaching such contracting goals. 

7 (3) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the 

8 end of the three-year period during which the Comp9 troller General conducts the study under paragraph 

10 (1), the Comptroller General shall submit to Congress 

11 a report on the findings of such study. 

12 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section and the amend13 ments made by this section shall take effect on the date that 

14 is 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

15 SEC. 503. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS CON16 TRACTING PRIORITY FOR VETERAN-OWNED 

17 SMALL BUSINESSES. 

18 (a) PRIORITY FOR VETERAN-OWNED SMALL BUSI19 NESSES.—

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 81, 

21 as amended by section 502 of this Act, is further 

22 amended by adding at the end the following new sec23 tion: 
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1 ‘‘§ 8128. Small business concerns owned and con2 trolled by veterans: contracting priority 

3 ‘‘(a) CONTRACTING PRIORITY.—In procuring goods 

4 and services pursuant to a contracting preference under this 

5 title or any other provision of law, the Secretary shall give 

6 priority to a small business concern owned and controlled 

7 by veterans, if such business concern also meets the require8 ments of that contracting preference. 

9 ‘‘(b) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 

10 term ‘small business concern owned and controlled by vet11 erans’ means a small business concern that is included in 

12 the small business database maintained by the Secretary 

13 under section 8127(f) of this title.’’. 

14 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec15 tions at the beginning of such chapter, as so amended, 

16 is further amended by inserting after the item relat17 ing to section 8127 the following new item:

‘‘8128. Small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans: contracting priority.’’.

18 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section and the amend19 ments made by this section shall take effect on the date that 

20 is 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
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1 TITLE VI—EMPLOYMENT AND 

2 TRAINING MATTERS 

3 SEC. 601. TRAINING OF NEW DISABLED VETERANS’ OUT4 REACH PROGRAM SPECIALISTS AND LOCAL 

5 VETERANS’ EMPLOYMENT REPRESENTATIVES 

6 BY NVTI REQUIRED. 

7 (a) TRAINING REQUIRED.—Section 4102A(c) is 

8 amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

9 ‘‘(8)(A) As a condition of a grant or contract under 

10 which funds are made available to a State in order to carry 

11 out section 4103A or 4104 of this title, the Secretary shall 

12 require the State to require each employee hired by the State 

13 who is assigned to perform the duties of a disabled veterans’ 

14 outreach program specialist or a local veterans’ employment 

15 representative under this chapter to satisfactorily complete 

16 training provided by the National Veterans’ Employment 

17 and Training Services Institute during the three-year pe18 riod that begins on the date on which the employee is so 

19 assigned. 

20 ‘‘(B) For any employee described in subparagraph (A) 

21 who does not complete such training during such period, 

22 the Secretary may reduce by an appropriate amount the 

23 amount made available to the State employing that em24 ployee. 
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1 ‘‘(C) The Secretary may establish such reasonable ex2 ceptions to the completion of training otherwise required 

3 under subparagraph (A) as the Secretary considers appro4 priate.’’. 

5 (b) SUBMISSION OF EMPLOYEE TRAINING INFORMA6 TION REQUIRED.—Section 4102A(c)(2)(A) is amended—

7 (1) by redesignating clause (iii) as clause (iv); 

8 and 

9 (2) by inserting after clause (ii) the following 

10 new clause (iii): 

11 ‘‘(iii) For each employee of the State who is as12 signed to perform the duties of a disabled veterans’ 

13 outreach program specialist or a local veterans’ em14 ployment representative under this chapter—

15 ‘‘(I) the date on which the employee is so 

16 assigned; and 

17 ‘‘(II) whether the employee has satisfac18 torily completed such training by the National 

19 Veterans’ Employment and Training Services 

20 Institute as the Secretary requires for purposes 

21 of paragraph (8).’’. 

22 (c) APPLICABILITY.—Paragraph (8) of section 

23 4102A(c) of title 38, United States Code, as added by sub24 section (a), and clause (iii) of section 4102A(c)(2)(A) of 

25 such title, as added by subsection (b), shall apply with re-
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1 spect to a State employee assigned to perform the duties 

2 of a disabled veterans’ outreach program specialist or a 

3 local veterans’ employment representative under chapter 41 

4 of such title who is so assigned on or after January 1, 2006. 

5 SEC. 602. RULES FOR PART-TIME EMPLOYMENT FOR DIS6 ABLED VETERANS’ OUTREACH PROGRAM SPE7 CIALISTS AND LOCAL VETERANS’ EMPLOY8 MENT REPRESENTATIVES. 

9 (a) DISABLED VETERANS’ OUTREACH PROGRAM SPE10 CIALISTS.—Section 4103A is amended by adding at the end 

11 the following new subsection: 

12 ‘‘(c) PART-TIME EMPLOYEES.—A part-time disabled 

13 veterans’ outreach program specialist shall perform the 

14 functions of a disabled veterans’ outreach program spe15 cialist under this section on a half-time basis.’’. 

16 (b) LOCAL VETERANS’ EMPLOYMENT REPRESENTA17 TIVES.—Section 4104 is amended—

18 (1) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection 

19 (e); and 

20 (2) by inserting after subsection (c) the following 

21 new subsection (d): 

22 ‘‘(d) PART-TIME EMPLOYEES.—A part-time local vet23 erans’ employment representative shall perform the func24 tions of a local veterans’ employment representative under 

25 this section on a half-time basis.’’. 
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1 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Section 4103A(c) of title 38, 

2 United States Code, as added by subsection (a), and section 

3 4104(d) of such title, as amended by subsection (b), shall 

4 apply with respect to pay periods beginning after the date 

5 that is 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

6 SEC. 603. PERFORMANCE INCENTIVE AWARDS FOR EMPLOY7 MENT SERVICE OFFICES. 

8 (a) PROVISION OF INCENTIVES TO EMPLOYMENT SERV9 ICE OFFICES.—Section 4112 is amended—

10 (1) in subsection (a)(1)(B), by inserting ‘‘and 

11 employment service offices’’ after ‘‘recognize eligible 

12 employees’’; and 

13 (2) in subsection (c)—

14 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

15 the end; 

16 (B) in paragraph (2)—

17 (i) by striking ‘‘is’’ and inserting ‘‘in 

18 the case of such an award made to an eligi19 ble employee, shall be’’; and 

20 (ii) by striking the period at the end 

21 and inserting the following: ‘‘; and’’; and 

22 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

23 paragraph: 
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1 ‘‘(3) in the case of such an award made to an 

2 employment service office, may be used by that em3 ployment service office for any purpose.’’. 

4 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The heading for sub5 section (c) of such section is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘ADMINISTRATION AND USE OF AWARDS.—’’. 

7 SEC. 604. DEMONSTRATION PROJECT ON CREDENTIALING 

8 AND LICENSURE OF VETERANS. 

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.—

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 41 is amended by 

11 adding at the end the following new section: 

12 ‘‘§ 4114. Credentialing and licensure of veterans: dem13 onstration project 

14 ‘‘(a) DEMONSTRATION PROJECT AUTHORIZED.—The 

15 Assistant Secretary for Veterans’ Employment and Train16 ing may carry out a demonstration project on credentialing 

17 in accordance with this section for the purpose of facili18 tating the seamless transition of members of the Armed 

19 Forces from service on active duty to civilian employment. 

20 ‘‘(b) IDENTIFICATION OF MILITARY OCCUPATIONAL

21 SPECIALTIES AND ASSOCIATED CREDENTIALS AND LI22 CENSES.—(1) The Assistant Secretary shall select not less 

23 than 10 military occupational specialties for purposes of 

24 the demonstration project. Each specialty so selected by the 

25 Assistant Secretary shall require a skill or set of skills that 
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1 is required for civilian employment in an industry with 

2 high growth or high worker demand. 

3 ‘‘(2) The Assistant Secretary shall consult with appro4 priate Federal, State, and industry officials to identify re5 quirements for credentials, certifications, and licenses that 

6 require a skill or set of skills required by a military occupa7 tional specialty selected under paragraph (1). 

8 ‘‘(3) The Assistant Secretary shall analyze the require9 ments identified under paragraph (2) to determine which 

10 requirements may be satisfied by the skills, training, or ex11 perience acquired by members of the Armed Forces with the 

12 military occupational specialties selected under paragraph 

13 (1). 

14 ‘‘(c) ELIMINATION OF BARRIERS TO CREDENTIALING

15 AND LICENSURE.—The Assistant Secretary shall cooperate 

16 with appropriate Federal, State, and industry officials to 

17 reduce or eliminate any barriers to providing a credential, 

18 certification, or license to a veteran who acquired any skill, 

19 training, or experience while serving as a member of the 

20 Armed Forces with a military occupational specialty se21 lected under subsection (b)(1) that satisfies the Federal and 

22 State requirements for the credential, certification, or li23 cense. 

24 ‘‘(d) TASK FORCE.—The Assistant Secretary may es25 tablish a task force of individuals with appropriate exper-
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1 tise to provide assistance to the Assistant Secretary in car2 rying out this section. 

3 ‘‘(e) CONSULTATION.—In carrying out this section, the 

4 Assistant Secretary shall consult with the Secretary of De5 fense, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, appropriate Federal 

6 and State officials, private-sector employers, labor organi7 zations, and industry trade associations. 

8 ‘‘(f) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.—For purposes of car9 rying out any part of the demonstration project under this 

10 section, the Assistant Secretary may enter into a contract 

11 with a public or private entity with appropriate expertise. 

12 ‘‘(g) PERIOD OF PROJECT.—The period during which 

13 the Assistant Secretary may carry out the demonstration 

14 project under this section shall be the period beginning on 

15 the date that is 60 days after the date of the enactment 

16 of the Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information 

17 Technology Act of 2006 and ending on September 30, 2009. 

18 ‘‘(h) FUNDING.—The Assistant Secretary may carry 

19 out the demonstration project under this section utilizing 

20 unobligated funds that are appropriated in accordance with 

21 the authorization set forth in section 4106 of this title.’’. 

22 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec23 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended by 

24 adding at the end the following new item:

‘‘4114. Credentialing and licensure of veterans: demonstration project.’’.
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1 (b) MEMBERSHIP OF ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON VET2 ERANS EMPLOYMENT, TRAINING, AND EMPLOYER OUT3 REACH.—Section 4110(c)(1)(A) is amended—

4 (1) by striking ‘‘Six’’ and inserting ‘‘Seven’’; 

5 and 

6 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

7 clause: 

8 ‘‘(vii) The National Governors Associa9 tion.’’. 

10 SEC. 605. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR IMPLEMENTATION OF 

11 REGULATIONS FOR PRIORITY OF SERVICE. 

12 Not later than two years after the date of the enact13 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor shall prescribe regu14 lations to implement section 4215 of title 38, United States 

15 Code. 

16 TITLE VII—HOMELESS 

17 VETERANS ASSISTANCE 

18 SEC. 701. REAFFIRMATION OF NATIONAL GOAL TO END 

19 HOMELESSNESS AMONG VETERANS. 

20 (a) REAFFIRMATION.—Congress reaffirms the national 

21 goal to end chronic homelessness among veterans within a 

22 decade of the enactment of the Homeless Veterans Com23 prehensive Assistance Act of 2001 (Public Law 107–95; 115 

24 Stat. 903). 
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1 (b) REAFFIRMATION OF ENCOURAGEMENT OF COOPER2 ATIVE EFFORTS.—Congress reaffirms its encouragement, as 

3 specified in the Homeless Veterans Comprehensive Assist4 ance Act of 2001 (Public Law 107–95; 115 Stat. 903), that 

5 all departments and agencies of the Federal, State, and 

6 local governments, quasi-governmental organizations, pri7 vate and public sector entities, including community-based 

8 organizations, faith-based organizations, and individuals, 

9 work cooperatively to end chronic homelessness among vet10 erans. 

11 SEC. 702. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON THE RESPONSE OF THE 

12 FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO THE NEEDS OF 

13 HOMELESS VETERANS. 

14 It is the sense of Congress that—

15 (1) homelessness is a significant problem in the 

16 veterans community and veterans are disproportion17 ately represented among the homeless population; 

18 (2) while many effective programs assist home19 less veterans to become, once again, productive and 

20 self-sufficient members of their communities and soci21 ety, all the essential services, assistance, and support 

22 that homeless veterans require are not currently pro23 vided; 
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1 (3) federally funded programs for homeless vet2 erans should be held accountable for achieving clearly 

3 defined results; 

4 (4) Federal efforts to assist homeless veterans 

5 should include prevention of homelessness; 

6 (5) Federal efforts regarding homeless veterans 

7 should be particularly vigorous where women veterans 

8 have minor children in their care; 

9 (6) Federal agencies, particularly the Depart10 ment of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Labor, 

11 and the Department of Housing and Urban Develop12 ment, should cooperate more fully to address the prob13 lem of homelessness among veterans; and 

14 (7) the programs reauthorized by this title pro15 vide important housing and services to homeless vet16 erans. 

17 SEC. 703. AUTHORITY TO MAKE GRANTS FOR COMPREHEN18 SIVE SERVICE PROGRAMS FOR HOMELESS 

19 VETERANS. 

20 (a) PERMANENT AUTHORITY.—Section 2011(a) is 

21 amended—

22 (1) by striking paragraph (2); and 

23 (2) in paragraph (1)—

24 (A) by striking ‘‘(1)’’; and 
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•S 3421 EAH 

1 (B) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) 

2 through (D) as paragraphs (1) through (4), re3 spectively. 

4 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—The text of 

5 section 2013 is amended to read as follows: ‘‘There is au6 thorized to be appropriated to carry out this subchapter 

7 $130,000,000 for fiscal year 2007 and each fiscal year there8 after.’’. 

9 SEC. 704. EXTENSION OF TREATMENT AND REHABILITA10 TION FOR SERIOUSLY MENTALLY ILL AND 

11 HOMELESS VETERANS. 

12 (a) EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY FOR GENERAL TREAT13 MENT.—Section 2031(b) is amended by striking ‘‘December 

14 31, 2006’’ and inserting ‘‘December 31, 2011’’. 

15 (b) EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY FOR ADDITIONAL

16 SERVICES.—Section 2033(d) is amended by striking ‘‘De17 cember 31, 2006’’ and inserting ‘‘December 31, 2011’’. 

18 SEC. 705. EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY FOR TRANSFER OF 

19 PROPERTIES OBTAINED THROUGH FORE20 CLOSURE OF HOME MORTGAGES. 

21 Section 2041(c) is amended by striking ‘‘December 31, 

22 2008’’ and inserting ‘‘December 31, 2011’’. 
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1 SEC. 706. EXTENSION OF FUNDING FOR GRANT PROGRAM 

2 FOR HOMELESS VETERANS WITH SPECIAL 

3 NEEDS. 

4 Section 2061(c)(1) is amended—

5 (1) by striking ‘‘Medical Care’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘Medical Services’’; and 

7 (2) by striking ‘‘fiscal years 2003, 2004, and 

8 2005’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 2007 through 

9 2011’’. 

10 SEC. 707. EXTENSION OF FUNDING FOR HOMELESS VET11 ERAN SERVICE PROVIDER TECHNICAL AS12 SISTANCE PROGRAM. 

13 Subsection (b) of section 2064 is amended to read as 

14 follows: 

15 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

16 are authorized to be appropriated $1,000,000 for each of 

17 fiscal years 2007 through 2012 to carry out the program 

18 under this section.’’. 

19 SEC. 708. ADDITIONAL ELEMENT IN ANNUAL REPORT ON 

20 ASSISTANCE TO HOMELESS VETERANS. 

21 Section 2065(b) is amended—

22 (1) by redesignating paragraph (5) as para23 graph (6); and 

24 (2) by inserting after paragraph (4) the fol25 lowing new paragraph (5): 
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1 ‘‘(5) Information on the efforts of the Secretary 

2 to coordinate the delivery of housing and services to 

3 homeless veterans with other Federal departments and 

4 agencies, including—

5 ‘‘(A) the Department of Defense; 

6 ‘‘(B) the Department of Health and Human 

7 Services; 

8 ‘‘(C) the Department of Housing and Urban 

9 Development; 

10 ‘‘(D) the Department of Justice; 

11 ‘‘(E) the Department of Labor; 

12 ‘‘(F) the Interagency Council on Homeless13 ness; 

14 ‘‘(G) the Social Security Administration; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(H) any other Federal department or 

17 agency with which the Secretary coordinates the 

18 delivery of housing and services to homeless vet19 erans.’’. 

20 SEC. 709. ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON HOMELESS VETERANS. 

21 (a) ADDITIONAL EX OFFICIO MEMBERS.—Subsection 

22 (a)(3) of section 2066 is amended by adding at the end the 

23 following new subparagraphs: 
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1 ‘‘(E) The Executive Director of the Interagency 

2 Council on Homelessness (or a representative of the 

3 Executive Director). 

4 ‘‘(F) The Under Secretary for Health (or a rep5 resentative of the Under Secretary after consultation 

6 with the Director of the Office of Homeless Veterans 

7 Programs). 

8 ‘‘(G) The Under Secretary for Benefits (or a rep9 resentative of the Under Secretary after consultation 

10 with the Director of the Office of Homeless Veterans 

11 Programs).’’. 

12 (b) EXTENSION.—Subsection (d) of such section is 

13 amended by striking ‘‘December 31, 2006’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘December 30, 2011’’. 

15 SEC. 710. RENTAL ASSISTANCE VOUCHERS FOR VETERANS 

16 AFFAIRS SUPPORTED HOUSING PROGRAM. 

17 Section (8)(o)(19)(B) of the United States Housing Act 

18 of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)(19)(B)) is amended to read as 

19 follows: 

20 ‘‘(B) AMOUNT.—The amount specified in 

21 this subparagraph is—

22 ‘‘(i) for fiscal year 2007, the amount 

23 necessary to provide 500 vouchers for rental 

24 assistance under this subsection; 
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1 ‘‘(ii) for fiscal year 2008, the amount 

2 necessary to provide 1,000 vouchers for 

3 rental assistance under this subsection; 

4 ‘‘(iii) for fiscal year 2009, the amount 

5 necessary to provide 1,500 vouchers for 

6 rental assistance under this subsection; 

7 ‘‘(iv) for fiscal year 2010, the amount 

8 necessary to provide 2,000 vouchers for 

9 rental assistance under this subsection; and 

10 ‘‘(v) for fiscal year 2011, the amount 

11 necessary to provide 2,500 vouchers for 

12 rental assistance under this subsection.’’. 

13 TITLE VIII—CONSTRUCTION 

14 MATTERS 

15 Subtitle A—Construction and Lease 

16 Authorities 

17 SEC. 801. AUTHORIZATION OF FISCAL YEAR 2006 MAJOR 

18 MEDICAL FACILITY PROJECTS. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs 

20 may carry out the following major medical facility projects 

21 in fiscal year 2006, with each project to be carried out in 

22 the amount specified for that project: 

23 (1) Restoration, new construction or replacement 

24 of the medical center facility for the Department of 

25 Veterans Affairs Medical Center, New Orleans, Lou-
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1 isiana, due to damage from Hurricane Katrina in an 

2 amount not to exceed $300,000,000. The Secretary is 

3 authorized to carry out the project in or near New 

4 Orleans as a collaborative effort consistent with the 

5 New Orleans Collaborative Opportunities Study 

6 Group Report dated June 12, 2006. 

7 (2) Restoration of the Department of Veterans 

8 Affairs Medical Center, Biloxi, Mississippi, and con9 solidation of services performed at the Department of 

10 Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Gulfport, Mis11 sissippi, in an amount not to exceed $310,000,000. 

12 (3) Replacement of the Department of Veterans 

13 Affairs Medical Center, Denver, Colorado, in an 

14 amount not to exceed $98,000,000. 

15 (b) REPORT ON REPLACEMENT OF DEPARTMENT OF

16 VETERANS AFFAIRS MEDICAL CENTER, DENVER, COLO17 RADO.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact18 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall sub19 mit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and 

20 the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep21 resentatives a report identifying and outlining the various 

22 options available to the Department of Veterans Affairs for 

23 replacing the current Department of Veterans Affairs Med24 ical Center, Denver, Colorado. The report shall include the 

25 following: 
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1 (1) The feasibility of entering into a partnership 

2 with a Federal, State, or local governmental agency, 

3 or a suitable non-profit organization, for the con4 struction and operation of a new facility. 

5 (2) The medical, legal, and financial implica6 tions of each of the options identified, including rec7 ommendations regarding any statutory changes nec8 essary for the Department of Veterans Affairs to carry 

9 out any of the options identified. 

10 (3) A detailed cost-benefit analysis of each of the 

11 options identified. 

12 (4) Estimates regarding the length of time and 

13 associated costs needed to complete such a facility 

14 under each of the options identified. 

15 SEC. 802. EXTENSION OF AUTHORIZATION FOR CERTAIN 

16 MAJOR MEDICAL FACILITY CONSTRUCTION 

17 PROJECTS PREVIOUSLY AUTHORIZED IN 

18 CONNECTION WITH CAPITAL ASSET REALIGN19 MENT INITIATIVE. 

20 The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may carry out the 

21 following major medical facility projects, with each such 

22 project to be carried out in the amount specified for that 

23 project: 

24 (1) Construction of an outpatient clinic and re25 gional office at the Department of Veterans Affairs 
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1 Medical Center, Anchorage, Alaska, in an amount not 

2 to exceed $75,270,000. 

3 (2) Consolidation of clinical and administrative 

4 functions of the Department of Veterans Affairs Med5 ical Center, Cleveland, Ohio, and the Department of 

6 Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Brecksville, Ohio, 

7 in an amount not to exceed $102,300,000. 

8 (3) Construction of the Extended Care Building 

9 at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 

10 Des Moines, Iowa, in an amount not to exceed 

11 $25,000,000. 

12 (4) Renovation of patient wards at the Depart13 ment of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Durham, 

14 North Carolina, in an amount not to exceed 

15 $9,100,000. 

16 (5) Correction of patient privacy deficiencies at 

17 the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 

18 Gainesville, Florida, in an amount not to exceed 

19 $85,200,000. 

20 (6) 7th and 8th floor wards modernization addi21 tion at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical 

22 Center, Indianapolis, Indiana, in an amount not to 

23 exceed $27,400,000. 

24 (7) Construction of a new Medical Center Facil25 ity at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical 
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1 Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, in an amount not to ex2 ceed $406,000,000. 

3 (8) Construction of an ambulatory surgery/out4 patient diagnostic support center in the Gulf South 

5 Submarket of Veterans Integrated Service Network 

6 (VISN) 8 and completion of Phase I land purchase, 

7 Lee County, Florida, in an amount not to exceed 

8 $65,100,000. 

9 (9) Seismic corrections, Buildings 7 and 126 at 

10 the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 

11 Long Beach, California, in an amount not to exceed 

12 $107,845,000. 

13 (10) Seismic Corrections, Buildings 500 and 501 

14 at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 

15 Los Angeles, California, in an amount not to exceed 

16 $79,900,000. 

17 (11) Construction of a new medical center facil18 ity in the Orlando, Florida, area in an amount not 

19 to exceed $377,700,000. 

20 (12) Consolidation of campuses at the University 

21 Drive and H. John Heinz III divisions, Pittsburgh, 

22 Pennsylvania, in an amount not to exceed 

23 $189,205,000. 
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1 (13) Ward upgrades and expansion at the De2 partment of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, San An3 tonio, Texas, in an amount not to exceed $19,100,000. 

4 (14) Construction of a spinal cord injury center 

5 at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 

6 Syracuse, New York, in an amount not to exceed 

7 $77,700,000. 

8 (15) Upgrade essential electrical distribution sys9 tems at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical 

10 Center, Tampa, Florida, in an amount not to exceed 

11 $49,000,000. 

12 (16) Expansion of the spinal cord injury center 

13 addition at the Department of Veterans Affairs Med14 ical Center, Tampa, Florida, in an amount not to ex15 ceed $7,100,000. 

16 (17) Blind Rehabilitation and Psychiatric Bed 

17 renovation and new construction project at the De18 partment of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Temple, 

19 Texas, in an amount not to exceed $56,000,000. 

20 SEC. 803. AUTHORIZATION OF FISCAL YEAR 2007 MAJOR 

21 MEDICAL FACILITY PROJECTS. 

22 The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may carry out the 

23 following major medical facility projects in fiscal year 2007 

24 in the amount specified for each project: 
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1 (1) Seismic Corrections, Nursing Home Care 

2 Unit and Dietetics at the Department of Veterans Af3 fairs Medical Center, American Lake, Washington, in 

4 an amount not to exceed $38,220,000. 

5 (2) Replacement of Operating Suite at the De6 partment of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Colum7 bia, Missouri, in an amount not to exceed 

8 $25,830,000. 

9 (3) Construction of a new clinical addition at 

10 the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 

11 Fayetteville, Arkansas, in an amount not to exceed 

12 $56,163,000. 

13 (4) Construction of Spinal Cord Injury Center 

14 at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 

15 Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in an amount not to exceed 

16 $32,500,000. 

17 (5) Medical facility improvements and cemetery 

18 expansion of Jefferson Barracks at the Department of 

19 Veterans Affairs Medical Center, St. Louis, Missouri, 

20 in an amount not to exceed $69,053,000. 

21 SEC. 804. AUTHORIZATION OF ADVANCE PLANNING AND DE22 SIGN FOR A MAJOR MEDICAL FACILITY, 

23 CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA. 

24 (a) AGREEMENT AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary of Vet25 erans Affairs may enter into an agreement with the Medical 
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1 University of South Carolina to design, and plan for the 

2 operation of, a co-located joint-use medical facility in 

3 Charleston, South Carolina, to replace the Ralph H. John4 son Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 

5 Charleston, South Carolina. 

6 (b) COST LIMITATION.—Advance planning and design 

7 for a co-located, joint-use medical facility in Charleston, 

8 South Carolina, under subsection (a) shall be carried out 

9 in an amount not to exceed $36,800,000. 

10 (c) LIMITATION ON NAMING.—A joint-use medical fa11 cility referred to in subsection (a) may not be named by 

12 the Secretary of Veterans Affairs or any other entity after 

13 any living Member or former Member of the Senate or 

14 House of Representatives. 

15 SEC. 805. AUTHORIZATION OF FISCAL YEAR 2006 MAJOR 

16 MEDICAL FACILITY LEASES. 

17 The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may carry out the 

18 following major medical facility leases in fiscal year 2006 

19 at the locations specified, and in an amount for each lease 

20 not to exceed the amount shown for such location: 

21 (1) For an outpatient clinic, Baltimore, Mary22 land, $10,908,000. 

23 (2) For an outpatient clinic, Evansville, Indi24 ana, $8,989,000. 
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1 (3) For an outpatient clinic, Smith County, 

2 Texas, $5,093,000. 

3 SEC. 806. AUTHORIZATION OF FISCAL YEAR 2007 MAJOR 

4 MEDICAL FACILITY LEASES. 

5 The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may carry out the 

6 following major medical facility leases in fiscal year 2007 

7 at the locations specified, and in an amount for each lease 

8 not to exceed the amount shown for such location: 

9 (1) For an outpatient and specialty care clinic, 

10 Austin, Texas, $6,163,000. 

11 (2) For an outpatient clinic, Lowell, Massachu12 setts, $2,520,000. 

13 (3) For an outpatient clinic, Grand Rapids, 

14 Michigan, $4,409,000. 

15 (4) For up to four outpatient clinics, Las Vegas, 

16 Nevada, $8,518,000. 

17 (5) For an outpatient clinic, Parma, Ohio, 

18 $5,032,000. 

19 SEC. 807. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

20 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL

21 YEAR 2006 MAJOR MEDICAL FACILITY PROJECTS.—There 

22 is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Vet23 erans Affairs for fiscal year 2006 for the Construction, 

24 Major Projects, account, $708,000,000 for the projects au25 thorized in section 801(a). 
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1 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR MAJOR

2 MEDICAL FACILITY PROJECTS UNDER CAPITAL ASSET RE3 ALIGNMENT INITIATIVE.—

4 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

5 There is authorized to be appropriated for the Sec6 retary of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2007 for the 

7 Construction, Major Projects, account, $1,758,920,000 

8 for the projects whose authorization is extended by 

9 section 802. 

10 (2) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts appropriated pur11 suant to the authorization of appropriations in para12 graph (1) shall remain available until September 30, 

13 2009. 

14 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL

15 YEAR 2007 MAJOR MEDICAL FACILITY PROJECTS.—There 

16 is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Vet17 erans Affairs for fiscal year 2007 for the Construction, 

18 Major Projects, account, $221,766,000 for the projects au19 thorized in section 803. 

20 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR AD21 VANCE PLANNING AND DESIGN FOR MAJOR MEDICAL FA22 CILITY, CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA.—There is author23 ized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 

24 for the Construction, Major Projects, account, $36,800,000 
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1 for the advance planning and design authorized in section 

2 804. 

3 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR MAJOR

4 MEDICAL FACILITY LEASES.—

5 (1) FISCAL YEAR 2006 LEASES.—There is author6 ized to be appropriated for the Secretary of Veterans 

7 Affairs for fiscal year 2006 for the Medical Care ac8 count, $24,990,000 for the leases authorized in section 

9 805. 

10 (2) FISCAL YEAR 2007 LEASES.—There is author11 ized to be appropriated for the Secretary of Veterans 

12 Affairs for fiscal year 2007 for the Medical Care ac13 count, $26,642,000 for the leases authorized in section 

14 806. 

15 (f) LIMITATION.—The projects authorized in sections 

16 801(a) and 802 may only be carried out using—

17 (1) funds appropriated for fiscal year 2006 or 

18 2007 pursuant to the authorization of appropriations 

19 in subsections (a), (b), and (c) of this section; 

20 (2) funds available for Construction, Major 

21 Projects, for a fiscal year before fiscal year 2006 that 

22 remain available for obligation; 

23 (3) funds available for Construction, Major 

24 Projects, for a fiscal year after fiscal year 2006 or 

25 2007 that are available for obligation; and 
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1 (4) funds appropriated for Construction, Major 

2 Projects, for fiscal year 2006 or 2007 for a category 

3 of activity not specific to a project. 

4 Subtitle B—Facilities 

5 Administration 

6 SEC. 811. DIRECTOR OF CONSTRUCTION AND FACILITIES 

7 MANAGEMENT. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF POSITION.—Chapter 3 is 

9 amended by inserting after section 312 the following new 

10 section: 

11 ‘‘§ 312A. Director of Construction and Facilities Man12 agement 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—(1) There is in the Department 

14 a Director of Construction and Facilities Management, who 

15 shall be appointed by the Secretary. 

16 ‘‘(2) The position of Director of Construction and Fa17 cilities Management is a career reserved position, as such 

18 term is defined in section 3132(a)(8) of title 5. 

19 ‘‘(3) The Director shall provide direct support to the 

20 Secretary in matters covered by the responsibilities of the 

21 Director under subsection (c). 

22 ‘‘(4) The Director shall report to the Deputy Secretary 

23 in the discharge of the responsibilities of the Director under 

24 subsection (c). 
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1 ‘‘(b) QUALIFICATIONS.—Each individual appointed as 

2 Director of Construction and Facilities Management shall 

3 be an individual who—

4 ‘‘(1) holds an undergraduate or master’s degree 

5 in architectural design or engineering; and 

6 ‘‘(2) has substantive professional experience in 

7 the area of construction project management. 

8 ‘‘(c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—(1) The Director of Con9 struction and Facilities Management shall—

10 ‘‘(A) be responsible for overseeing and managing 

11 the planning, design, construction, and operation of 

12 facilities and infrastructure of the Department, in13 cluding major and minor construction projects; and 

14 ‘‘(B) perform such other functions as the Sec15 retary shall prescribe. 

16 ‘‘(2) In carrying out the oversight and management 

17 of construction and operation of facilities and infrastruc18 ture under this section, the Director shall be responsible for 

19 the following: 

20 ‘‘(A) Development and updating of short-range 

21 and long-range strategic capital investment strategies 

22 and plans of the Department. 

23 ‘‘(B) Planning, design, and construction of fa24 cilities for the Department, including determining ar25 chitectural and engineering requirements and ensur-
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1 ing compliance of the Department with applicable 

2 laws relating to the construction program of the De3 partment. 

4 ‘‘(C) Management of the short-term and long5 term leasing of real property by the Department. 

6 ‘‘(D) Repair and maintenance of facilities of the 

7 Department, including custodial services, building 

8 management and administration, and maintenance of 

9 roads, grounds, and infrastructure. 

10 ‘‘(E) Management of procurement and acquisi11 tion processes relating to the construction and oper12 ation of facilities of the Department, including the 

13 award of contracts related to design, construction, 

14 furnishing, and supplies and equipment.’’. 

15 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections at 

16 the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after 

17 the item relating to section 312 the following new item:

‘‘312A. Director of Construction and Facilities Management.’’.

18 SEC. 812. INCREASE IN THRESHOLD FOR MAJOR MEDICAL 

19 FACILITY PROJECTS. 

20 Section 8104(a)(3)(A) is amended by striking 

21 ‘‘$7,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$10,000,000’’. 

22 SEC. 813. LAND CONVEYANCE, CITY OF FORT THOMAS, KEN23 TUCKY. 

24 (a) CONVEYANCE AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary of Vet25 erans Affairs may convey to the city of Fort Thomas, Ken-
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1 tucky (in this section referred to as the ‘‘City’’), all right, 

2 title, and interest of the United States in and to a parcel 

3 of real property, including the 15 structures located thereon, 

4 consisting of approximately 11.75 acres that is managed 

5 by the Department of Veterans Affairs and located in the 

6 northeastern portion of Tower Park in Fort Thomas, Ken7 tucky. Any such conveyance shall be subject to valid existing 

8 rights, easements, and rights-of-way. 

9 (b) CONSIDERATION.—As consideration for the convey10 ance under subsection (a), the City shall pay to the United 

11 States an amount equal to the fair market value of the con12 veyed real property, as determined by the Secretary. 

13 (c) TREATMENT OF CONSIDERATION.—The consider14 ation received under subsection (b) shall be deposited, at 

15 the discretion of the Secretary, in the ‘‘Medical Facilities’’ 

16 account or the ‘‘Construction, Minor Projects’’ account (or 

17 a combination of those accounts) and shall be available to 

18 the Secretary, without limitation and until expended—

19 (1) to cover costs incurred by the Secretary asso20 ciated with the environmental remediation of the real 

21 property before conveyance under subsection (a); and 

22 (2) with any funds remaining after the Sec23 retary has covered costs as required under paragraph 

24 (1), for acquisition of a site for use as a parking fa25 cility, or contract (by lease or otherwise) for the oper-
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1 ation of a parking facility, to be used in connection 

2 with the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Fa3 cility, Cincinnati, Ohio. 

4 (d) RELEASE FROM LIABILITY.—Effective on the date 

5 of the conveyance under subsection (a), the United States 

6 shall not be liable for damages arising out of any act, omis7 sion, or occurrence relating to the conveyed real property, 

8 but shall continue to be liable for damages caused by acts 

9 of negligence committed by the United States or by any em10 ployee or agent of the United States before the date of con11 veyance, consistent with chapter 171 of title 28, United 

12 States Code. 

13 (e) PAYMENT OF COSTS OF CONVEYANCE.—

14 (1) PAYMENT REQUIRED.—The Secretary shall 

15 require the City to cover costs to be incurred by the 

16 Secretary, or to reimburse the Secretary for costs in17 curred by the Secretary, to carry out the conveyance 

18 under subsection (a), including survey costs, costs re19 lated to environmental documentation, and other ad20 ministrative costs related to the conveyance. If 

21 amounts are collected from the City in advance of the 

22 Secretary incurring the actual costs, and the amount 

23 collected exceeds the costs actually incurred by the 

24 Secretary to carry out the conveyance, the Secretary 

25 shall refund the excess amount to the City. 
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1 (2) TREATMENT OF AMOUNTS RECEIVED.—

2 Amounts received as reimbursement under paragraph 

3 (1) shall be credited to the fund or account that was 

4 used to cover the costs incurred by the Secretary in 

5 carrying out the conveyance. Amounts so credited 

6 shall be merged with amounts in such fund or account 

7 and shall be available for the same purposes, and sub8 ject to the same conditions and limitations, as 

9 amounts in such fund or account. 

10 (f) DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY.—The exact acreage 

11 and legal description of the real property to be conveyed 

12 under subsection (a) shall be determined by a survey satis13 factory to the Secretary. 

14 (g) ADDITIONAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—The Sec15 retary may require such additional terms and conditions 

16 in connection with the conveyance under subsection (a) as 

17 the Secretary considers necessary to protect the interests of 

18 the United States. 

19 Subtitle C—Reports on Medical 

20 Facility Improvements 

21 SEC. 821. REPORT ON OPTION FOR MEDICAL FACILITY IM22 PROVEMENTS IN SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO. 

23 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment 

24 of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit 

25 to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and 
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1 the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep2 resentatives a report identifying and outlining the various 

3 options available to the Department of Veterans Affairs for 

4 replacing the current Department of Veterans Affairs Med5 ical Center, San Juan, Puerto Rico. The report shall not 

6 affect current contracts at the current site, and the report 

7 shall include the following: 

8 (1) The feasibility of entering into a partnership 

9 with a Federal, Commonwealth, or local governmental 

10 agency, or a suitable non-profit organization, for the 

11 construction and operation of a new facility. 

12 (2) The medical, legal, and financial implica13 tions of each of the options identified, including rec14 ommendations regarding any statutory changes nec15 essary for the Department to carry out any of the op16 tions identified. 

17 (3) A detailed cost-benefit analysis of each of the 

18 options identified. 

19 (4) Estimates regarding the length of time and 

20 associated costs needed to complete such a facility 

21 under each of the options identified. 
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1 SEC. 822. BUSINESS PLANS FOR ENHANCED ACCESS TO 

2 OUTPATIENT CARE IN CERTAIN RURAL 

3 AREAS. 

4 (a) REQUIREMENT.—Not later than 180 days after the 

5 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans 

6 Affairs shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

7 of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

8 the House of Representatives a business plan for enhanced 

9 access to outpatient care (as described in subsection (b)) for 

10 primary care, mental health care, and specialty care in 

11 each of the following areas: 

12 (1) The Lewiston-Auburn area of Maine. 

13 (2) The area of Houlton, Maine. 

14 (3) The area of Dover-Foxcroft, Maine. 

15 (4) Whiteside County, Illinois. 

16 (b) MEANS OF ENHANCED ACCESS.—The means of en17 hanced access to outpatient care to be covered by the busi18 ness plans under subsection (a) are, with respect to each 

19 area specified in that subsection, one or more of the fol20 lowing: 

21 (1) New sites of care. 

22 (2) Expansions at existing sites of care. 

23 (3) Use of existing authority and policies to con24 tract for care where necessary. 

25 (4) Increased use of telemedicine. 
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1 SEC. 823. REPORT ON OPTION FOR CONSTRUCTION OF DE2 PARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS MEDICAL 

3 CENTER IN OKALOOSA COUNTY, FLORIDA. 

4 (a) FEASIBILITY STUDY.—Not later than 180 days 

5 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

6 of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the Committee on Vet7 erans’ Affairs and the Committee on Armed Services of the 

8 Senate of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Af9 fairs and the Committee on Armed Services of the House 

10 of Representatives of the House of Representatives a report 

11 identifying and outlining the various options available to 

12 the Department of Veterans Affairs for the placement of a 

13 Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Okaloosa 

14 County, Florida. The report shall be prepared in conjunc15 tion with the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of the 

16 Air Force. 

17 (b) MATTERS TO BE INCLUDED.—The report under 

18 subsection (a) shall include the following: 

19 (1) The feasibility of entering into a partnership 

20 with Eglin Air Force Base for the construction and 

21 operation of a new, joint Department of Veterans Af22 fairs-Department of Defense facility. 

23 (2) The medical, legal, and financial implica24 tions of each of the options identified, including rec25 ommendations regarding any statutory changes nec-
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1 essary for the Department of Veterans Affairs to carry 

2 out any of the options identified. 

3 (3) A detailed cost-benefit analysis of each of the 

4 options identified. 

5 (4) Estimates regarding the length of time and 

6 associated costs needed to complete such a facility 

7 under each of the options identified. 

8 TITLE IX—INFORMATION 

9 SECURITY MATTERS 

10 SEC. 901. SHORT TITLE. 

11 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Department of Veterans 

12 Affairs Information Security Enhancement Act of 2006’’. 

13 SEC. 902. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS INFORMA14 TION SECURITY PROGRAMS AND REQUIRE15 MENTS. 

16 (a) INFORMATION SECURITY PROGRAMS AND RE17 QUIREMENTS.—Chapter 57 is amended by adding at the 

18 end the following new subchapter: 

19 ‘‘SUBCHAPTER III—INFORMATION SECURITY 

20 ‘‘§ 5721. Purpose 

21 ‘‘The purpose of the Information Security Program is 

22 to establish a program to provide security for Department 

23 information and information systems commensurate to the 

24 risk of harm, and to communicate the responsibilities of the 

25 Secretary, Under Secretaries, Assistant Secretaries, other 
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1 key officials, Assistant Secretary for Information and Tech2 nology, Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary for Cyber and 

3 Information Security, and Inspector General of the Depart4 ment of Veterans Affairs as outlined in the provisions of 

5 subchapter III of chapter 35 of title 44 (also known as the 

6 ‘Federal Information Security Management Act of 2002’, 

7 which was enacted as part of the E-Government Act of 2002 

8 (Public Law 107–347)). 

9 ‘‘§ 5722. Policy 

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The security of Department infor11 mation and information systems is vital to the success of 

12 the mission of the Department. To that end, the Secretary 

13 shall establish and maintain a comprehensive Department14 wide information security program to provide for the devel15 opment and maintenance of cost-effective security controls 

16 needed to protect Department information, in any media 

17 or format, and Department information systems. 

18 ‘‘(b) ELEMENTS.—The Secretary shall ensure that the 

19 Department information security program includes the fol20 lowing elements: 

21 ‘‘(1) Periodic assessments of the risk and mag22 nitude of harm that could result from the unauthor23 ized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, 

24 or destruction of information and information sys-
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1 tems that support the operations and assets of the De2 partment. 

3 ‘‘(2) Policies and procedures that—

4 ‘‘(A) are based on risk assessments; 

5 ‘‘(B) cost-effectively reduce security risks to 

6 an acceptable level; and 

7 ‘‘(C) ensure that information security is ad8 dressed throughout the life cycle of each Depart9 ment information system. 

10 ‘‘(3) Selection and effective implementation of 

11 minimum, mandatory technical, operational, and 

12 management security controls, or other compensating 

13 countermeasures, to protect the confidentiality, integ14 rity, and availability of each Department system and 

15 its information. 

16 ‘‘(4) Subordinate plans for providing adequate 

17 security for networks, facilities, systems, or groups of 

18 information systems, as appropriate. 

19 ‘‘(5) Annual security awareness training for all 

20 Department employees, contractors, and all other 

21 users of VA sensitive data and Department informa22 tion systems that identifies the information security 

23 risks associated with the activities of such employees, 

24 contractors, and users and the responsibilities of such 

25 employees, contractors, and users to comply with De-
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1 partment policies and procedures designed to reduce 

2 such risks. 

3 ‘‘(6) Periodic testing and evaluation of the effec4 tiveness of security controls based on risk, including 

5 triennial certification testing of all management, 

6 operational, and technical controls, and annual test7 ing of a subset of those controls for each Department 

8 system. 

9 ‘‘(7) A process for planning, developing, imple10 menting, evaluating, and documenting remedial ac11 tions to address deficiencies in information security 

12 policies, procedures, and practices. 

13 ‘‘(8) Procedures for detecting, immediately re14 porting, and responding to security incidents, includ15 ing mitigating risks before substantial damage is 

16 done as well as notifying and consulting with the US17 Computer Emergency Readiness Team of the Depart18 ment of Homeland Security, law enforcement agen19 cies, the Inspector General of the Department, and 

20 other offices as appropriate. 

21 ‘‘(9) Plans and procedures to ensure continuity 

22 of operations for Department systems. 

23 ‘‘(c) COMPLIANCE WITH CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS.—

24 The Secretary shall comply with the provisions of sub25 chapter III of chapter 35 of title 44 and other related infor-
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1 mation security requirements promulgated by the National 

2 Institute of Standards and Technology and the Office of 

3 Management and Budget that define Department informa4 tion system mandates. 

5 ‘‘§ 5723. Responsibilities 

6 ‘‘(a) SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.—In accord7 ance with the provisions of subchapter III of chapter 35 

8 of title 44, the Secretary is responsible for the following: 

9 ‘‘(1) Ensuring that the Department adopts a De10 partment-wide information security program and 

11 otherwise complies with the provisions of subchapter 

12 III of chapter 35 of title 44 and other related infor13 mation security requirements. 

14 ‘‘(2) Ensuring that information security protec15 tions are commensurate with the risk and magnitude 

16 of the potential harm to Department information and 

17 information systems resulting from unauthorized ac18 cess, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, or de19 struction. 

20 ‘‘(3) Ensuring that information security man21 agement processes are integrated with Department 

22 strategic and operational planning processes. 

23 ‘‘(4) Ensuring that the Under Secretaries, Assist24 ant Secretaries, and other key officials of the Depart-
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1 ment provide adequate security for the information 

2 and information systems under their control. 

3 ‘‘(5) Ensuring enforcement and compliance with 

4 the requirements imposed on the Department under 

5 the provisions of subchapter III of chapter 35 of title 

6 44. 

7 ‘‘(6) Ensuring that the Department has trained 

8 program and staff office personnel sufficient to assist 

9 in complying with all the provisions of subchapter III 

10 of chapter 35 of title 44 and other related information 

11 security requirements. 

12 ‘‘(7) Ensuring that the Assistant Secretary for 

13 Information and Technology, in coordination with the 

14 Under Secretaries, Assistant Secretaries, and other 

15 key officials of the Department report to Congress, the 

16 Office of Management and Budget, and other entities 

17 as required by law and Executive Branch direction 

18 on the effectiveness of the Department information se19 curity program, including remedial actions. 

20 ‘‘(8) Notifying officials other than officials of the 

21 Department of data breaches when required under 

22 this subchapter. 

23 ‘‘(9) Ensuring that the Assistant Secretary for 

24 Information and Technology has the authority and 

25 control necessary to develop, approve, implement, in-
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1 tegrate, and oversee the policies, procedures, processes, 

2 activities, and systems of the Department relating to 

3 subchapter III of chapter 35 of title 44, including the 

4 management of all related mission applications, in5 formation resources, personnel, and infrastructure. 

6 ‘‘(10) Submitting to the Committees on Veterans’ 

7 Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives, 

8 the Committee on Government Reform of the House of 

9 Representatives, and the Committee on Homeland Se10 curity and Governmental Affairs of the Senate, not 

11 later than March 1 each year, a report on the compli12 ance of the Department with subchapter III of chap13 ter 35 of title 44, with the information in such report 

14 displayed in the aggregate and separately for each 

15 Administration, office, and facility of the Depart16 ment. 

17 ‘‘(11) Taking appropriate action to ensure that 

18 the budget for any fiscal year, as submitted by the 

19 President to Congress under section 1105 of title 31, 

20 sets forth separately the amounts required in the 

21 budget for such fiscal year for compliance by the De22 partment with Federal law and regulations governing 

23 information security, including this subchapter and 

24 subchapter III of chapter 35 of title 44. 
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1 ‘‘(12) Providing notice to the Director of the Of2 fice of Management and Budget, the Inspector Gen3 eral of the Department, and such other Federal agen4 cies as the Secretary considers appropriate of a pre5 sumptive data breach of which notice is provided the 

6 Secretary under subsection (b)(16) if, in the opinion 

7 of the Assistant Secretary for Information and Tech8 nology, the breach involves the information of twenty 

9 or more individuals. 

10 ‘‘(b) ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR INFORMATION AND

11 TECHNOLOGY.—The Assistant Secretary for Information 

12 and Technology, as the Chief Information Officer of the De13 partment, is responsible for the following: 

14 ‘‘(1) Establishing, maintaining, and monitoring 

15 Department-wide information security policies, proce16 dures, control techniques, training, and inspection re17 quirements as elements of the Department informa18 tion security program. 

19 ‘‘(2) Issuing policies and handbooks to provide 

20 direction for implementing the elements of the infor21 mation security program to all Department organiza22 tions. 

23 ‘‘(3) Approving all policies and procedures that 

24 are related to information security for those areas of 

25 responsibility that are currently under the manage-
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1 ment and the oversight of other Department organiza2 tions. 

3 ‘‘(4) Ordering and enforcing Department-wide 

4 compliance with and execution of any information se5 curity policy. 

6 ‘‘(5) Establishing minimum mandatory tech7 nical, operational, and management information se8 curity control requirements for each Department sys9 tem, consistent with risk, the processes identified in 

10 standards of the National Institute of Standards and 

11 Technology, and the responsibilities of the Assistant 

12 Secretary to operate and maintain all Department 

13 systems currently creating, processing, collecting, or 

14 disseminating data on behalf of Department informa15 tion owners. 

16 ‘‘(6) Establishing standards for access to Depart17 ment information systems by organizations and indi18 vidual employees, and to deny access as appropriate. 

19 ‘‘(7) Directing that any incidents of failure to 

20 comply with established information security policies 

21 be immediately reported to the Assistant Secretary. 

22 ‘‘(8) Reporting any compliance failure or policy 

23 violation directly to the appropriate Under Secretary, 

24 Assistant Secretary, or other key official of the De-
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1 partment for appropriate administrative or discipli2 nary action. 

3 ‘‘(9) Reporting any compliance failure or policy 

4 violation directly to the appropriate Under Secretary, 

5 Assistant Secretary, or other key official of the De6 partment along with taking action to correct the fail7 ure or violation. 

8 ‘‘(10) Requiring any key official of the Depart9 ment who is so notified to report to the Assistant Sec10 retary with respect to an action to be taken in re11 sponse to any compliance failure or policy violation 

12 reported by the Assistant Secretary. 

13 ‘‘(11) Ensuring that the Chief Information Offi14 cers and Information Security Officers of the Depart15 ment comply with all cyber security directives and 

16 mandates, and ensuring that these staff members have 

17 all necessary authority and means to direct full com18 pliance with such directives and mandates relating to 

19 the acquisition, operation, maintenance, or use of in20 formation technology resources from all facility staff. 

21 ‘‘(12) Establishing the VA National Rules of Be22 havior for appropriate use and protection of the in23 formation which is used to support Department mis24 sions and functions. 
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1 ‘‘(13) Establishing and providing supervision 

2 over an effective incident reporting system. 

3 ‘‘(14) Submitting to the Secretary, at least once 

4 every quarter, a report on any deficiency in the com5 pliance with subchapter III of chapter 35 of title 44 

6 of the Department or any Administration, office, or 

7 facility of the Department. 

8 ‘‘(15) Reporting immediately to the Secretary on 

9 any significant deficiency in the compliance described 

10 by paragraph (14). 

11 ‘‘(16) Providing immediate notice to the Sec12 retary of any presumptive data breach. 

13 ‘‘(c) ASSOCIATE DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR

14 CYBER AND INFORMATION SECURITY.—In accordance with 

15 the provisions of subchapter III of chapter 35 of title 44, 

16 the Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary for Cyber and In17 formation Security, as the Senior Information Security Of18 ficer of the Department, is responsible for carrying out the 

19 responsibilities of the Assistant Secretary for Information 

20 and Technology under the provisions of subchapter III of 

21 chapter 35 of title 44, as set forth in subsection (b). 

22 ‘‘(d) DEPARTMENT INFORMATION OWNERS.—In ac23 cordance with the criteria of the Centralized IT Manage24 ment System, Department information owners are respon25 sible for the following: 
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1 ‘‘(1) Providing assistance to the Assistant Sec2 retary for Information and Technology regarding the 

3 security requirements and appropriate level of secu4 rity controls for the information system or systems 

5 where sensitive personal information is currently cre6 ated, collected, processed, disseminated, or subject to 

7 disposal. 

8 ‘‘(2) Determining who has access to the system or 

9 systems containing sensitive personal information, in10 cluding types of privileges and access rights. 

11 ‘‘(3) Ensuring the VA National Rules of Behav12 ior is signed on an annual basis and enforced by all 

13 system users to ensure appropriate use and protection 

14 of the information which is used to support Depart15 ment missions and functions. 

16 ‘‘(4) Assisting the Assistant Secretary for Infor17 mation and Technology in the identification and as18 sessment of the common security controls for systems 

19 where their information resides. 

20 ‘‘(5) Providing assistance to Administration and 

21 staff office personnel involved in the development of 

22 new systems regarding the appropriate level of secu23 rity controls for their information. 

24 ‘‘(e) OTHER KEY OFFICIALS.—In accordance with the 

25 provisions of subchapter III of chapter 35 of title 44, the 
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1 Under Secretaries, Assistant Secretaries, and other key offi2 cials of the Department are responsible for the following: 

3 ‘‘(1) Implementing the policies, procedures, prac4 tices, and other countermeasures identified in the De5 partment information security program that comprise 

6 activities that are under their day-to-day operational 

7 control or supervision. 

8 ‘‘(2) Periodically testing and evaluating infor9 mation security controls that comprise activities that 

10 are under their day-to-day operational control or su11 pervision to ensure effective implementation. 

12 ‘‘(3) Providing a plan of action and milestones 

13 to the Assistant Secretary for Information and Tech14 nology on at least a quarterly basis detailing the sta15 tus of actions being taken to correct any security com16 pliance failure or policy violation. 

17 ‘‘(4) Complying with the provisions of sub18 chapter III of chapter 35 of title 44 and other related 

19 information security laws and requirements in ac20 cordance with orders of the Assistant Secretary for 

21 Information and Technology to execute the appro22 priate security controls commensurate to responding 

23 to a security bulletin of the Security Operations Cen24 ter of the Department, with such orders to supersede 
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1 and take priority over all operational tasks and as2 signments and be complied with immediately. 

3 ‘‘(5) Ensuring that—

4 ‘‘(A) all employees within their organiza5 tions take immediate action to comply with or6 ders from the Assistant Secretary for Informa7 tion and Technology to—

8 ‘‘(i) mitigate the impact of any poten9 tial security vulnerability; 

10 ‘‘(ii) respond to a security incident; or 

11 ‘‘(iii) implement the provisions of a 

12 bulletin or alert of the Security Operations 

13 Center; and 

14 ‘‘(B) organizational managers have all nec15 essary authority and means to direct full compli16 ance with such orders from the Assistant Sec17 retary. 

18 ‘‘(6) Ensuring the VA National Rules of Behav19 ior is signed and enforced by all system users to en20 sure appropriate use and protection of the informa21 tion which is used to support Department missions 

22 and functions on an annual basis. 

23 ‘‘(f) USERS OF DEPARTMENT INFORMATION AND IN24 FORMATION SYSTEMS.—Users of Department information 

25 and information systems are responsible for the following: 
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1 ‘‘(1) Complying with all Department informa2 tion security program policies, procedures, and prac3 tices. 

4 ‘‘(2) Attending security awareness training on at 

5 least an annual basis. 

6 ‘‘(3) Reporting all security incidents imme7 diately to the Information Security Officer of the sys8 tem or facility and to their immediate supervisor. 

9 ‘‘(4) Complying with orders from the Assistant 

10 Secretary for Information and Technology directing 

11 specific activities when a security incident occurs. 

12 ‘‘(5) Signing an acknowledgment that they have 

13 read, understand, and agree to abide by the VA Na14 tional Rules of Behavior on an annual basis. 

15 ‘‘(g) INSPECTOR GENERAL OF DEPARTMENT OF VET16 ERANS AFFAIRS.—In accordance with the provisions of sub17 chapter III of chapter 35 of title 44, the Inspector General 

18 of the Department is responsible for the following: 

19 ‘‘(1) Conducting an annual audit of the Depart20 ment information security program. 

21 ‘‘(2) Submitting an independent annual report 

22 to the Office of Management and Budget on the status 

23 of Department information security program, based 

24 on the results of the annual audit. 
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1 ‘‘(3) Conducting investigations of complaints 

2 and referrals of violations as considered appropriate 

3 by the Inspector General. 

4 ‘‘§ 5724. Provision of credit protection and other serv5 ices 

6 ‘‘(a) INDEPENDENT RISK ANALYSIS.—(1) In the event 

7 of a data breach with respect to sensitive personal informa8 tion that is processed or maintained by the Secretary, the 

9 Secretary shall ensure that, as soon as possible after the 

10 data breach, a non-Department entity or the Office of In11 spector General of the Department conducts an independent 

12 risk analysis of the data breach to determine the level of 

13 risk associated with the data breach for the potential misuse 

14 of any sensitive personal information involved in the data 

15 breach. 

16 ‘‘(2) If the Secretary determines, based on the findings 

17 of a risk analysis conducted under paragraph (1), that a 

18 reasonable risk exists for the potential misuse of sensitive 

19 personal information involved in a data breach, the Sec20 retary shall provide credit protection services in accordance 

21 with the regulations prescribed by the Secretary under this 

22 section. 

23 ‘‘(b) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days after the 

24 date of the enactment of the Veterans Benefits, Health Care, 

25 and Information Technology Act of 2006, the Secretary 
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1 shall prescribe interim regulations for the provision of the 

2 following in accordance with subsection (a)(2): 

3 ‘‘(1) Notification. 

4 ‘‘(2) Data mining. 

5 ‘‘(3) Fraud alerts. 

6 ‘‘(4) Data breach analysis. 

7 ‘‘(5) Credit monitoring. 

8 ‘‘(6) Identity theft insurance. 

9 ‘‘(7) Credit protection services. 

10 ‘‘(c) REPORT.—(1) For each data breach with respect 

11 to sensitive personal information processed or maintained 

12 by the Secretary, the Secretary shall promptly submit to 

13 the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and 

14 House of Representatives a report containing the findings 

15 of any independent risk analysis conducted under sub16 section (a)(1), any determination of the Secretary under 

17 subsection (a)(2), and a description of any services provided 

18 pursuant to subsection (b). 

19 ‘‘(2) In the event of a data breach with respect to sen20 sitive personal information processed or maintained by the 

21 Secretary that is the sensitive personal information of a 

22 member of the Army, Navy, Air Force, or Marine Corps 

23 or a civilian officer or employee of the Department of De24 fense, the Secretary shall submit the report required under 

25 paragraph (1) to the Committee on Armed Services of the 
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1 Senate and the Committee on Armed Services of the House 

2 of Representatives in addition to the Committees on Vet3 erans’ Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives. 

4 ‘‘§ 5725. Contracts for data processing or maintenance 

5 ‘‘(a) CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS.—If the Secretary en6 ters into a contract for the performance of any Department 

7 function that requires access to sensitive personal informa8 tion, the Secretary shall require as a condition of the con9 tract that—

10 ‘‘(1) the contractor shall not, directly or through 

11 an affiliate of the contractor, disclose such informa12 tion to any other person unless the disclosure is law13 ful and is expressly permitted under the contract; 

14 ‘‘(2) the contractor, or any subcontractor for a 

15 subcontract of the contract, shall promptly notify the 

16 Secretary of any data breach that occurs with respect 

17 to such information. 

18 ‘‘(b) LIQUIDATED DAMAGES.—Each contract subject to 

19 the requirements of subsection (a) shall provide for liq20 uidated damages to be paid by the contractor to the Sec21 retary in the event of a data breach with respect to any 

22 sensitive personal information processed or maintained by 

23 the contractor or any subcontractor under that contract. 

24 ‘‘(c) PROVISION OF CREDIT PROTECTION SERVICES.—

25 Any amount collected by the Secretary under subsection (b) 
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1 shall be deposited in or credited to the Department account 

2 from which the contractor was paid and shall remain avail3 able for obligation without fiscal year limitation exclusively 

4 for the purpose of providing credit protection services pur5 suant to section 5724(b) of this title. 

6 ‘‘§ 5726. Reports and notice to Congress on data 

7 breaches 

8 ‘‘(a) QUARTERLY REPORTS.—(1) Not later than 30 

9 days after the last day of a fiscal quarter, the Secretary 

10 shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the 

11 Senate and House of Representatives a report on any data 

12 breach with respect to sensitive personal information proc13 essed or maintained by the Department that occurred dur14 ing that quarter. 

15 ‘‘(2) Each report submitted under paragraph (1) shall 

16 identify, for each data breach covered by the report—

17 ‘‘(A) the Administration and facility of the De18 partment responsible for processing or maintaining 

19 the sensitive personal information involved in the 

20 data breach; and 

21 ‘‘(B) the status of any remedial or corrective ac22 tion with respect to the data breach. 

23 ‘‘(b) NOTIFICATION OF SIGNIFICANT DATA

24 BREACHES.—(1) In the event of a data breach with respect 

25 to sensitive personal information processed or maintained 
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1 by the Secretary that the Secretary determines is signifi2 cant, the Secretary shall provide notice of such breach to 

3 the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and 

4 House of Representatives. 

5 ‘‘(2) In the event of a data breach with respect to sen6 sitive personal information processed or maintained by the 

7 Secretary that is the sensitive personal information of a 

8 member of the Army, Navy, Air Force, or Marine Corps 

9 or a civilian officer or employee of the Department of De10 fense that the Secretary determines is significant under 

11 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall provide the notice re12 quired under paragraph (1) to the Committee on Armed 

13 Services of the Senate and the Committee on Armed Serv14 ices of the House of Representatives in addition to the Com15 mittees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and House of 

16 Representatives. 

17 ‘‘(3) Notice under paragraphs (1) and (2) shall be pro18 vided promptly following the discovery of such a data 

19 breach and the implementation of any measures necessary 

20 to determine the scope of the breach, prevent any further 

21 breach or unauthorized disclosures, and reasonably restore 

22 the integrity of the data system. 

23 ‘‘§ 5727. Definitions 

24 ‘‘In this subchapter: 
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1 ‘‘(1) AVAILABILITY.—The term ‘availability’ 

2 means ensuring timely and reliable access to and use 

3 of information. 

4 ‘‘(2) CONFIDENTIALITY.—The term ‘confiden5 tiality’ means preserving authorized restrictions on 

6 access and disclosure, including means for protecting 

7 personal privacy and proprietary information. 

8 ‘‘(3) CONTROL TECHNIQUES.—The term ‘control 

9 techniques’ means methods for guiding and control10 ling the operations of information systems to ensure 

11 adherence to the provisions of subchapter III of chap12 ter 35 of title 44 and other related information secu13 rity requirements. 

14 ‘‘(4) DATA BREACH.—The term ‘data breach’ 

15 means the loss, theft, or other unauthorized access, 

16 other than those incidental to the scope of employ17 ment, to data containing sensitive personal informa18 tion, in electronic or printed form, that results in the 

19 potential compromise of the confidentiality or integ20 rity of the data. 

21 ‘‘(5) DATA BREACH ANALYSIS.—The term ‘data 

22 breach analysis’ means the process used to determine 

23 if a data breach has resulted in the misuse of sensitive 

24 personal information. 
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1 ‘‘(6) FRAUD RESOLUTION SYSTEMS.—The term 

2 ‘fraud resolution services’ means services to assist an 

3 individual in the process of recovering and rehabili4 tating the credit of the individual after the individual 

5 experiences identity theft. 

6 ‘‘(7) IDENTITY THEFT.—The term ‘identity theft’ 

7 has the meaning given such term under section 603 

8 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681a). 

9 ‘‘(8) IDENTITY THEFT INSURANCE.—The term 

10 ‘identity theft insurance’ means any insurance policy 

11 that pays benefits for costs, including travel costs, no12 tary fees, and postage costs, lost wages, and legal fees 

13 and expenses associated with efforts to correct and 

14 ameliorate the effects and results of identity theft of 

15 the insured individual. 

16 ‘‘(9) INFORMATION OWNER.—The term ‘informa17 tion owner’ means an agency official with statutory 

18 or operational authority for specified information 

19 and responsibility for establishing the criteria for its 

20 creation, collection, processing, dissemination, or dis21 posal, which responsibilities may extend to inter22 connected systems or groups of interconnected systems. 

23 ‘‘(10) INFORMATION RESOURCES.—The term ‘in24 formation resources’ means information in any me-
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1 dium or form and its related resources, such as per2 sonnel, equipment, funds, and information technology. 

3 ‘‘(11) INFORMATION SECURITY.—The term ‘infor4 mation security’ means protecting information and 

5 information systems from unauthorized access, use, 

6 disclosure, disruption, modification, or destruction in 

7 order to provide integrity, confidentiality, and avail8 ability. 

9 ‘‘(12) INFORMATION SECURITY REQUIRE10 MENTS.—The term ‘information security require11 ments’ means information security requirements pro12 mulgated in accordance with law, or directed by the 

13 Secretary of Commerce, the National Institute of 

14 Standards and Technology, and the Office of Manage15 ment and Budget, and, as to national security sys16 tems, the President. 

17 ‘‘(13) INFORMATION SYSTEM.—The term ‘infor18 mation system’ means a discrete set of information 

19 resources organized for the collection, processing, 

20 maintenance, use, sharing, dissemination, or disposi21 tion of information, whether automated or manual. 

22 ‘‘(14) INTEGRITY.—The term ‘integrity’ means 

23 guarding against improper information modification 

24 or destruction, and includes ensuring information 

25 non-repudiation and authenticity. 
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1 ‘‘(15) NATIONAL SECURITY SYSTEM.—The term 

2 ‘national security system’ means an information sys3 tem that is protected at all times by policies and pro4 cedures established for the processing, maintenance, 

5 use, sharing, dissemination or disposition of informa6 tion that has been specifically authorized under cri7 teria established by statute or Executive Order to be 

8 kept classified in the interest of national defense or 

9 foreign policy. 

10 ‘‘(16) PLAN OF ACTION AND MILESTONES.—The 

11 term ‘plan of action and milestones’, means a plan 

12 used as a basis for the quarterly reporting require13 ments of the Office of Management and Budget that 

14 includes the following information: 

15 ‘‘(A) A description of the security weakness. 

16 ‘‘(B) The identity of the office or organiza17 tion responsible for resolving the weakness. 

18 ‘‘(C) An estimate of resources required to re19 solve the weakness by fiscal year. 

20 ‘‘(D) The scheduled completion date. 

21 ‘‘(E) Key milestones with estimated comple22 tion dates. 

23 ‘‘(F) Any changes to the original key mile24 stone date. 
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1 ‘‘(G) The source that identified the weak2 ness. 

3 ‘‘(H) The status of efforts to correct the 

4 weakness. 

5 ‘‘(17) PRINCIPAL CREDIT REPORTING AGENCY.—

6 The term ‘principal credit reporting agency’ means a 

7 consumer reporting agency as described in section 

8 603(p) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 

9 1681a(p)). 

10 ‘‘(18) SECURITY INCIDENT.—The term ‘security 

11 incident’ means an event that has, or could have, re12 sulted in loss or damage to Department assets, or sen13 sitive information, or an action that breaches Depart14 ment security procedures. 

15 ‘‘(19) SENSITIVE PERSONAL INFORMATION.—The 

16 term ‘sensitive personal information’, with respect to 

17 an individual, means any information about the in18 dividual maintained by an agency, including the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(A) Education, financial transactions, 

21 medical history, and criminal or employment 

22 history. 

23 ‘‘(B) Information that can be used to dis24 tinguish or trace the individual’s identity, in25 cluding name, social security number, date and 
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1 place of birth, mother’s maiden name, or biomet2 ric records. 

3 ‘‘(20) SUBORDINATE PLAN.—The term ‘subordi4 nate plan’, also referred to as a ‘system security 

5 plan’, means a subordinate plan defines the security 

6 controls that are either planned or implemented for 

7 networks, facilities, systems, or groups of systems, as 

8 appropriate, within a specific accreditation bound9 ary. 

10 ‘‘(21) TRAINING.—The term ‘training’ means a 

11 learning experience in which an individual is taught 

12 to execute a specific information security procedure or 

13 understand the information security common body of 

14 knowledge. 

15 ‘‘(22) VA NATIONAL RULES OF BEHAVIOR.—The 

16 term ‘VA National Rules of Behavior’ means a set of 

17 Department rules that describes the responsibilities 

18 and expected behavior of personnel with regard to in19 formation system usage. 

20 ‘‘(23) VA SENSITIVE DATA.—The term ‘VA sen21 sitive data’ means all Department data, on any stor22 age media or in any form or format, which requires 

23 protection due to the risk of harm that could result 

24 from inadvertent or deliberate disclosure, alteration, 

25 or destruction of the information and includes infor-
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1 mation whose improper use or disclosure could ad2 versely affect the ability of an agency to accomplish 

3 its mission, proprietary information, and records 

4 about individuals requiring protection under applica5 ble confidentiality provisions. 

6 ‘‘§ 5728. Authorization of appropriations 

7 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

8 this subchapter such sums as may be necessary for each fis9 cal year.’’. 

10 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections at 

11 the beginning of chapter 57 is amended by adding at the 

12 end the following:

‘‘SUBCHAPTER III—INFORMATION SECURITY

‘‘5721. Purpose. 

‘‘5722. Policy. 

‘‘5723. Responsibilities. 

‘‘5724. Provision of credit protection and other services. 

‘‘5725. Contracts for data processing or maintenance. 

‘‘5726. Reports and notice to Congress on data breaches. 

‘‘5727. Definitions. 

‘‘5728. Authorization of appropriations.’’.

13 (c) DEADLINE FOR REGULATIONS.—Not later than one 

14 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec15 retary of Veterans Affairs shall prescribe regulations to 

16 carry out subchapter III of chapter 57 of title 38, United 

17 States Code, as added by subsection (a). 

18 SEC. 903. INFORMATION SECURITY EDUCATION ASSIST19 ANCE PROGRAMS. 

20 (a) PROGRAMS AUTHORIZED.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Title 38 is amended by insert2 ing after chapter 78 the following new chapter: 

3 ‘‘CHAPTER 79—INFORMATION SECURITY 

4 EDUCATION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

‘‘Sec. 

‘‘7901. Programs; purpose. 

‘‘7902. Scholarship program. 

‘‘7903. Education debt reduction program. 

‘‘7904. Preferences in awarding financial assistance. 

‘‘7905. Requirement of honorable discharge for veterans receiving assistance. 

‘‘7906. Regulations. 

‘‘7907. Termination.

5 ‘‘§ 7901. Programs; purpose 

6 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—To encourage the recruitment and 

7 retention of Department personnel who have the informa8 tion security skills necessary to meet Department require9 ments, the Secretary may carry out programs in accordance 

10 with this chapter to provide financial support for education 

11 in computer science and electrical and computer engineer12 ing at accredited institutions of higher education. 

13 ‘‘(b) TYPES OF PROGRAMS.—The programs authorized 

14 under this chapter are as follows: 

15 ‘‘(1) Scholarships for pursuit of doctoral degrees 

16 in computer science and electrical and computer engi17 neering at accredited institutions of higher education. 

18 ‘‘(2) Education debt reduction for Department 

19 personnel who hold doctoral degrees in computer 

20 science and electrical and computer engineering at ac21 credited institutions of higher education. 
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1 ‘‘§ 7902. Scholarship program 

2 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.—(1) Subject to the availability of 

3 appropriations, the Secretary may establish a scholarship 

4 program under which the Secretary shall, subject to sub5 section (d), provide financial assistance in accordance with 

6 this section to a qualified person—

7 ‘‘(A) who is pursuing a doctoral degree in com8 puter science or electrical or computer engineering at 

9 an accredited institution of higher education; and 

10 ‘‘(B) who enters into an agreement with the Sec11 retary as described in subsection (b). 

12 ‘‘(2)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the 

13 Secretary may provide financial assistance under this sec14 tion to an individual for up to five years. 

15 ‘‘(B) The Secretary may waive the limitation under 

16 subparagraph (A) if the Secretary determines that such a 

17 waiver is appropriate. 

18 ‘‘(b) SERVICE AGREEMENT FOR SCHOLARSHIP RECIPI19 ENTS.—(1) To receive financial assistance under this sec20 tion an individual shall enter into an agreement to accept 

21 and continue employment in the Department for the period 

22 of obligated service determined under paragraph (2). 

23 ‘‘(2) For the purposes of this subsection, the period of 

24 obligated service for a recipient of financial assistance 

25 under this section shall be the period determined by the Sec26 retary as being appropriate to obtain adequate service in 
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1 exchange for the financial assistance and otherwise to 

2 achieve the goals set forth in section 7901(a) of this title. 

3 In no event may the period of service required of a recipient 

4 be less than the period equal to the total period of pursuit 

5 of a degree for which the Secretary agrees to provide the 

6 recipient with financial assistance under this section. The 

7 period of obligated service is in addition to any other period 

8 for which the recipient is obligated to serve on active duty 

9 or in the civil service, as the case may be. 

10 ‘‘(3) An agreement entered into under this section by 

11 a person pursuing an doctoral degree shall include terms 

12 that provide the following: 

13 ‘‘(A) That the period of obligated service begins 

14 on a date after the award of the degree that is deter15 mined under the regulations prescribed under section 

16 7906 of this title. 

17 ‘‘(B) That the individual will maintain satisfac18 tory academic progress, as determined in accordance 

19 with those regulations, and that failure to maintain 

20 such progress constitutes grounds for termination of 

21 the financial assistance for the individual under this 

22 section. 

23 ‘‘(C) Any other terms and conditions that the 

24 Secretary determines appropriate for carrying out 

25 this section. 
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1 ‘‘(c) AMOUNT OF ASSISTANCE.—(1) The amount of the 

2 financial assistance provided for an individual under this 

3 section shall be the amount determined by the Secretary as 

4 being necessary to pay—

5 ‘‘(A) the tuition and fees of the individual; and 

6 ‘‘(B) $1,500 to the individual each month (in7 cluding a month between academic semesters or terms 

8 leading to the degree for which such assistance is pro9 vided or during which the individual is not enrolled 

10 in a course of education but is pursuing independent 

11 research leading to such degree) for books, laboratory 

12 expenses, and expenses of room and board. 

13 ‘‘(2) In no case may the amount of assistance provided 

14 for an individual under this section for an academic year 

15 exceed $50,000. 

16 ‘‘(3) In no case may the total amount of assistance 

17 provided for an individual under this section exceed 

18 $200,000. 

19 ‘‘(4) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, fi20 nancial assistance paid an individual under this section 

21 shall not be considered as income or resources in deter22 mining eligibility for, or the amount of benefits under, any 

23 Federal or federally assisted program. 

24 ‘‘(d) REPAYMENT FOR PERIOD OF UNSERVED OBLI25 GATED SERVICE.—(1) An individual who receives financial 
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1 assistance under this section shall repay to the Secretary 

2 an amount equal to the unearned portion of the financial 

3 assistance if the individual fails to satisfy the requirements 

4 of the service agreement entered into under subsection (b), 

5 except in circumstances authorized by the Secretary. 

6 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may establish, by regulations, pro7 cedures for determining the amount of the repayment re8 quired under this subsection and the circumstances under 

9 which an exception to the required repayment may be 

10 granted. 

11 ‘‘(3) An obligation to repay the Secretary under this 

12 subsection is, for all purposes, a debt owed the United 

13 States. A discharge in bankruptcy under title 11 does not 

14 discharge a person from such debt if the discharge order 

15 is entered less than five years after the date of the termi16 nation of the agreement or contract on which the debt is 

17 based. 

18 ‘‘(e) WAIVER OR SUSPENSION OF COMPLIANCE.—The 

19 Secretary shall prescribe regulations providing for the 

20 waiver or suspension of any obligation of an individual for 

21 service or payment under this section (or an agreement 

22 under this section) whenever noncompliance by the indi23 vidual is due to circumstances beyond the control of the in24 dividual or whenever the Secretary determines that the 
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1 waiver or suspension of compliance is in the best interest 

2 of the United States. 

3 ‘‘(f) INTERNSHIPS.—(1) The Secretary may offer a 

4 compensated internship to an individual for whom finan5 cial assistance is provided under this section during a pe6 riod between academic semesters or terms leading to the de7 gree for which such assistance is provided. Compensation 

8 provided for such an internship shall be in addition to the 

9 financial assistance provided under this section. 

10 ‘‘(2) An internship under this subsection shall not be 

11 counted toward satisfying a period of obligated service 

12 under this section. 

13 ‘‘(g) INELIGIBILITY OF INDIVIDUALS RECEIVING

14 MONTGOMERY GI BILL EDUCATION ASSISTANCE PAY15 MENTS.—An individual who receives a payment of edu16 cational assistance under chapter 30, 31, 32, 34, or 35 of 

17 this title or chapter 1606 or 1607 of title 10 for a month 

18 in which the individual is enrolled in a course of education 

19 leading to a doctoral degree in information security is not 

20 eligible to receive financial assistance under this section for 

21 that month. 

22 ‘‘§ 7903. Education debt reduction program 

23 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.—Subject to the availability of ap24 propriations, the Secretary may establish an education debt 

25 reduction program under which the Secretary shall make 
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1 education debt reduction payments under this section to 

2 qualified individuals eligible under subsection (b) for the 

3 purpose of reimbursing such individuals for payments by 

4 such individuals of principal and interest on loans de5 scribed in paragraph (2) of that subsection. 

6 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBILITY.—An individual is eligible to par7 ticipate in the program under this section if the indi8 vidual—

9 ‘‘(1) has completed a doctoral degree in computer 

10 science or electrical or computer engineering at an ac11 credited institution of higher education during the 

12 five-year period preceding the date on which the indi13 vidual is hired; 

14 ‘‘(2) is an employee of the Department who 

15 serves in a position related to information security 

16 (as determined by the Secretary); and 

17 ‘‘(3) owes any amount of principal or interest 

18 under a loan, the proceeds of which were used by or 

19 on behalf of that individual to pay costs relating to 

20 a doctoral degree in computer science or electrical or 

21 computer engineering at an accredited institution of 

22 higher education. 

23 ‘‘(c) AMOUNT OF ASSISTANCE.—(1) Subject to para24 graph (2), the amount of education debt reduction pay25 ments made to an individual under this section may not 
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1 exceed $82,500 over a total of five years, of which not more 

2 than $16,500 of such payments may be made in each year. 

3 ‘‘(2) The total amount payable to an individual under 

4 this section for any year may not exceed the amount of the 

5 principal and interest on loans referred to in subsection 

6 (b)(3) that is paid by the individual during such year. 

7 ‘‘(d) PAYMENTS.—(1) The Secretary shall make edu8 cation debt reduction payments under this section on an 

9 annual basis. 

10 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall make such a payment—

11 ‘‘(A) on the last day of the one-year period be12 ginning on the date on which the individual is ac13 cepted into the program established under subsection 

14 (a); or 

15 ‘‘(B) in the case of an individual who received 

16 a payment under this section for the preceding fiscal 

17 year, on the last day of the one-year period beginning 

18 on the date on which the individual last received such 

19 a payment. 

20 ‘‘(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, edu21 cation debt reduction payments under this section shall not 

22 be considered as income or resources in determining eligi23 bility for, or the amount of benefits under, any Federal or 

24 federally assisted program. 
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1 ‘‘(e) PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary 

2 may make education debt reduction payments to an indi3 vidual under this section for a year only if the Secretary 

4 determines that the individual maintained an acceptable 

5 level of performance in the position or positions served by 

6 the individual during the year. 

7 ‘‘(f) NOTIFICATION OF TERMS OF PROVISION OF PAY8 MENTS.—The Secretary shall provide to an individual who 

9 receives a payment under this section notice in writing of 

10 the terms and conditions that apply to such a payment. 

11 ‘‘(g) COVERED COSTS.—For purposes of subsection 

12 (b)(3), costs relating to a course of education or training 

13 include—

14 ‘‘(1) tuition expenses; and 

15 ‘‘(2) all other reasonable educational expenses, 

16 including fees, books, and laboratory expenses. 

17 ‘‘§ 7904. Preferences in awarding financial assistance 

18 ‘‘In awarding financial assistance under this chapter, 

19 the Secretary shall give a preference to qualified individuals 

20 who are otherwise eligible to receive the financial assistance 

21 in the following order of priority: 

22 ‘‘(1) Veterans with service-connected disabilities. 

23 ‘‘(2) Veterans. 

24 ‘‘(3) Persons described in section 4215(a)(1)(B) 

25 of this title. 
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1 ‘‘(4) Individuals who received or are pursuing 

2 degrees at institutions designated by the National Se3 curity Agency as Centers of Academic Excellence in 

4 Information Assurance Education. 

5 ‘‘(5) Citizens of the United States. 

6 ‘‘§ 7905. Requirement of honorable discharge for vet7 erans receiving assistance 

8 ‘‘No veteran shall receive financial assistance under 

9 this chapter unless the veteran was discharged from the 

10 Armed Forces under honorable conditions. 

11 ‘‘§ 7906. Regulations 

12 ‘‘The Secretary shall prescribe regulations for the ad13 ministration of this chapter. 

14 ‘‘§ 7907. Termination 

15 ‘‘The authority of the Secretary to make a payment 

16 under this chapter shall terminate on July 31, 2017.’’. 

17 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The tables of 

18 chapters at the beginning of title 38, and of part V 

19 of title 38, are each amended by inserting after the 

20 item relating to chapter 78 the following new item:

‘‘79. Information Security Education Assistance Program 7901’’.

21 (b) GAO REPORT.—Not later than three years after 

22 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller Gen23 eral shall submit to Congress a report on the scholarship 

24 and education debt reduction programs under chapter 79 

25 of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a). 
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1 (c) APPLICABILITY OF SCHOLARSHIPS.—Section 7902 

2 of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), 

3 may only apply with respect to financial assistance pro4 vided for an academic semester or term that begins on or 

5 after August 1, 2007. 

6 TITLE X—OTHER MATTERS 

7 SEC. 1001. NOTICE TO CONGRESSIONAL VETERANS COM8 MITTEES OF CERTAIN TRANSFERS OF FUNDS. 

9 To the extent that the Secretary of Veterans Affairs is 

10 required or directed, under any provision of law, to provide 

11 written notice to any committee of Congress other than the 

12 Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Com13 mittee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives 

14 on the transfer of appropriations from one account to any 

15 other account, the Secretary shall also transmit such notice 

16 to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and 

17 the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep18 resentatives. 

19 SEC. 1002. CLARIFICATION OF CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES 

20 COVERED BY CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF LAW. 

21 (a) PAYMENT OF PENSION DURING CONFINEMENT IN

22 PENAL INSTITUTIONS.—Section 1505(a) is amended by 

23 striking ‘‘or local penal institution’’ and inserting ‘‘local, 

24 or other penal institution or correctional facility’’. 
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1 (b) ALLOWANCES FOR TRAINING AND REHABILITATION

2 FOR VETERANS WITH SERVICE-CONNECTED DISABIL3 ITIES.—Section 3108(g)(1) is amended by striking ‘‘or local 

4 penal institution’’ and inserting ‘‘local, or other penal in5 stitution or correctional facility’’. 

6 (c) EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE BENEFITS FOR POST7 VIETNAM ERA VETERANS.—Section 3231(d)(1) is amended 

8 by striking ‘‘or local penal institution’’ and inserting 

9 ‘‘local, or other penal institution or correctional facility’’. 

10 (d) COMPUTATION OF EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE AL11 LOWANCES FOR VETERANS GENERALLY.—Section 

12 3482(g)(1) is amended by striking ‘‘or local penal institu13 tion’’ and inserting ‘‘local, or other penal institution or cor14 rectional facility’’. 

15 (e) COMPUTATION OF EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE AL16 LOWANCE FOR SURVIVORS AND DEPENDENTS.—Section 

17 3532(e) is amended by striking ‘‘or local penal institution’’ 

18 and inserting ‘‘local, or other penal institution or correc19 tional facility’’. 

20 (f) LIMITATION ON PAYMENT OF COMPENSATION AND

21 DEPENDENCY AND INDEMNITY COMPENSATION.—Section 

22 5313 is amended by striking ‘‘or local penal institution’’ 

23 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘local, or other penal 

24 institution or correctional facility’’. 
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1 (g) LIMITATION ON PAYMENT OF CLOTHING ALLOW2 ANCE.—Section 5313A is amended by striking ‘‘or local 

3 penal institution’’ and inserting ‘‘local, or other penal in4 stitution or correctional facility’’. 

5 SEC. 1003. EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY FOR HEALTH CARE 

6 FOR PARTICIPATION IN DOD CHEMICAL AND 

7 BIOLOGICAL WARFARE TESTING. 

8 Section 1710(e)(3)(D) is amended by striking ‘‘Decem9 ber 31, 2005’’ and inserting ‘‘December 31, 2007’’. 

10 SEC. 1004. TECHNICAL AND CLERICAL AMENDMENTS. 

11 (a) TITLE 38, UNITED STATES CODE.—

12 (1) CITATION CORRECTION.—Section 1718(c)(2) 

13 is amended by inserting ‘‘of 1938’’ after ‘‘Act’’. 

14 (2) CITATION CORRECTION.—Section 1785(b)(1) 

15 is amended by striking ‘‘Robert B.’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘Robert T.’’. 

17 (3) PUNCTUATION CORRECTION.—Section 

18 2002(1) is amended by inserting a closing parenthesis 

19 before the period at the end. 

20 (4) PUNCTUATION CORRECTION.—Section 

21 2011(a)(1)(C) is amended by inserting a period at the 

22 end. 

23 (5) CROSS REFERENCE CORRECTION.—Section 

24 2041(a)(3)(A)(i) is amended by striking ‘‘under this 
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1 chapter’’ and inserting ‘‘established under section 

2 3722 of this title’’. 

3 (6) CITATION CORRECTION.—Section 8111(b)(1) 

4 is amended by striking ‘‘into the strategic’’ and all 

5 that follows through ‘‘and Results Act of 1993’’ and 

6 inserting ‘‘into the strategic plan of each Department 

7 under section 306 of title 5 and the performance plan 

8 of each Department under section 1115 of title 31’’. 

9 (7) REPEAL OF OBSOLETE TEXT.—Section 8111 

10 is further amended—

11 (A) in subsection (d)(2), by striking ‘‘effec12 tive October 1, 2003,’’; and 

13 (B) in subsection (e)(2)—

14 (i) in the second sentence, by striking 

15 ‘‘shall be implemented no later than October 

16 1, 2003, and’’; and 

17 (ii) in the third sentence, by striking ‘‘, 

18 following implementation of the schedule,’’. 

19 (8) CITATION CORRECTION.—Section 

20 8111A(a)(2)(B)(i) is amended by striking ‘‘Robert 

21 B.’’ and inserting ‘‘Robert T.’’. 

22 (b) PUBLIC LAW 107–296.—Effective as of November 

23 25, 2002, section 1704(d) of the Homeland Security Act of 

24 2002 (Public Law 107–296; 116 Stat. 2315) is amended—
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1 (1) by striking ‘‘101(25)(d)’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘101(25)(D)’’; and 

3 (2) by striking ‘‘3011(a)(1)(A)(ii)(II)’’ and in4 serting ‘‘3011(a)(1)(A)(ii)(III)’’. 

5 SEC. 1005. CODIFICATION OF COST-OF-LIVING ADJUSTMENT 

6 PROVIDED IN PUBLIC LAW 109–361. 

7 (a) VETERANS’ DISABILITY COMPENSATION.—Section 

8 1114 is amended—

9 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘$112’’ and in10 serting ‘‘$115’’; 

11 (2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘$218’’ and in12 serting ‘‘$225’’; 

13 (3) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘$337’’ and in14 serting ‘‘$348’’; 

15 (4) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘$485’’ and in16 serting ‘‘$501’’; 

17 (5) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘$690’’ and in18 serting ‘‘$712’’; 

19 (6) in subsection (f), by striking ‘‘$873’’ and in20 serting ‘‘$901’’; 

21 (7) in subsection (g), by striking ‘‘$1,099’’ and 

22 inserting ‘‘$1,135’’; 

23 (8) in subsection (h), by striking ‘‘$1,277’’ and 

24 inserting ‘‘$1,319’’; 
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1 (9) in subsection (i), by striking ‘‘$1,436’’ and 

2 inserting ‘‘$1,483’’; 

3 (10) in subsection (j), by striking ‘‘$2,393’’ and 

4 inserting ‘‘$2,471’’; 

5 (11) in subsection (k)—

6 (A) by striking ‘‘$87’’ both places it appears 

7 and inserting ‘‘$89’’; and 

8 (B) by striking ‘‘$2,977’’ and ‘‘$4,176’’ and 

9 inserting ‘‘$3,075’’ and ‘‘$4,313’’, respectively; 

10 (12) in subsection (l), by striking ‘‘$2,977’’ and 

11 inserting ‘‘$3,075’’; 

12 (13) in subsection (m), by striking ‘‘$3,284’’ and 

13 inserting ‘‘$3,392’’; 

14 (14) in subsection (n), by striking ‘‘$3,737’’ and 

15 inserting ‘‘$3,860’’; 

16 (15) in subsections (o) and (p), by striking 

17 ‘‘$4,176’’ each place it appears and inserting 

18 ‘‘$4,313’’; 

19 (16) in subsection (r)—

20 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘$1,792’’ 

21 and inserting ‘‘$1,851’’; and 

22 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘2,669’’ 

23 and inserting ‘‘$2,757’’; and 

24 (17) in subsection (s), by striking ‘‘$2,678’’ and 

25 inserting ‘‘$2,766’’. 
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1 (b) ADDITIONAL COMPENSATION FOR DEPENDENTS.—

2 Section 1115(1) is amended—

3 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘$135’’ and 

4 inserting ‘‘$139’’; 

5 (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘$233’’ and 

6 ‘‘$68’’ and inserting ‘‘$240’’ and ‘‘$70’’, respectively; 

7 (3) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘$91’’ and 

8 ‘‘$68’’ and inserting ‘‘$94’’ and ‘‘$70’’, respectively; 

9 (4) in subparagraph (D), by striking ‘‘$109’’ 

10 and inserting ‘‘$112’’; 

11 (5) in subparagraph (E), by striking ‘‘$257’’ 

12 and inserting ‘‘$265’’; and 

13 (6) in subparagraph (F), by striking ‘‘$215’’ and 

14 inserting ‘‘$222’’. 

15 (c) CLOTHING ALLOWANCE FOR CERTAIN DISABLED

16 VETERANS.—Section 1162 is amended by striking ‘‘$641’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘$662’’. 

18 (d) DEPENDENCY AND INDEMNITY COMPENSATION FOR

19 SURVIVING SPOUSES.—

20 (1) NEW LAW DIC.—Subsection (a) of section 

21 1311 is amended—

22 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘$1,033’’ 

23 and inserting ‘‘$1,067’’; and 

24 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘$221’’ 

25 and inserting ‘‘$228’’. 
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1 (2) OLD LAW DIC.—The table in paragraph (3) 

2 of such subsection is amended to read as follows:

Pay grade Monthly rate Pay grade Monthly rate 

E–1 ............................... $1,067 W–4 ............................. $1,276

E–2 ............................... $1,067 O–1 .............................. $1,128

E–3 ............................... $1,067 O–2 .............................. $1,165

E–4 ............................... $1,067 O–3 .............................. $1,246

E–5 ............................... $1,067 O–4 .............................. $1,319

E–6 ............................... $1,067 O–5 .............................. $1,452

E–7 ............................... $1,104 O–6 .............................. $1,637

E–8 ............................... $1,165 O–7 .............................. $1,768

E–9 ............................... $1,2151 O–8 .............................. $1,941

W–1 ............................... $1,128 O–9 .............................. $2,076

W–2 ............................... $1,172 O–10 ............................ $2,2762

W–3 ............................... $1,207 ...................................... ........................

1 If the veteran served as Sergeant Major of the Army, Senior Enlisted Advisor of the Navy, Chief 

Master Sergeant of the Air Force, Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, or Master Chief Petty Officer 

of the Coast Guard, at the applicable time designated by section 1302 of this title, the surviving 

spouse’s rate shall be $1,312. 2 If the veteran served as Chairman or Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Chief of Staff of 

the Army, Chief of Naval Operations, Chief of Staff of the Air Force, Commandant of the Marine 

Corps, or Commandant of the Coast Guard, at the applicable time designated by section 1302 of this 

title, the surviving spouse’s rate shall be $2,443. 

3 (3) ADDITIONAL DIC FOR CHILDREN OR DIS4 ABILITY.—Such section is further amended—

5 (A) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘$257’’ 

6 and inserting ‘‘$265’’; 

7 (B) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘$257’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘$265’’; and 

9 (C) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘$122’’ 

10 and inserting ‘‘$126’’. 

11 (e) DEPENDENCY AND INDEMNITY COMPENSATION FOR

12 CHILDREN.—

13 (1) DIC WHEN NO SURVIVING SPOUSE.—Section 

14 1313(a) is amended—

15 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘$438’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘$452’’; 
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1 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘$629’’ 

2 and inserting ‘‘$649’’; 

3 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘$819’’ 

4 and inserting ‘‘$846’’; and 

5 (D) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘$819’’ 

6 and ‘‘$157’’ and inserting ‘‘$846’’ and ‘‘$162’’, 

7 respectively. 

8 (2) SUPPLEMENTAL DIC FOR CERTAIN CHIL9 DREN.—Section 1314 is amended—

10 (A) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘$257’’ 

11 and inserting ‘‘$265’’; 

12 (B) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘$438’’ 

13 and inserting ‘‘$452’’; and 

14 (C) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘$218’’ 

15 and inserting ‘‘$225’’. 

16 SEC. 1006. COORDINATION OF PROVISIONS WITH VETERANS 

17 PROGRAMS EXTENSION ACT OF 2006. 

18 (a) EARLIER ENACTMENT OF THIS ACT.—If this Act 

19 is enacted before the Veterans Programs Extension Act of 

20 2006 is enacted into law, the Veterans Programs Extension 

21 Act of 2006, and the amendments made by that Act, shall 

22 not take effect. 

23 (b) EARLIER ENACTMENT OF VETERANS PROGRAMS

24 EXTENSION ACT OF 2006.—If this Act is enacted after the 

25 enactment of the Veterans Programs Extension Act of 2006, 
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1 then as of the date of the enactment of this Act, the Veterans 

2 Programs Extension Act of 2006 and the amendments made 

3 by that Act shall be deemed for all purposes not to have 

4 taken effect and the Veterans Programs Extension Act of 

5 2006 and the amendments made by that Act shall cease to 

6 be in effect.

Amend the title so as to read ‘‘An Act to amend title 

38, United States Code, to repeal certain limitations on 

attorney representation of claimants for benefits under 

laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, 

to expand eligibility for the Survivors’ and Dependents’ 

Educational Assistance Program, to otherwise improve 

veterans’ benefits, memorial affairs, and health-care programs, to enhance information security programs of the 

Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.’’.

Attest:

Clerk. 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3421

AMENDMENTS