I

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 606

To amend titles 5, 10, and 38, United States Code, to make improvements

in benefits and services for members and veterans of the United States

Armed Forces recommended by the Congressional Commission on

Servicemembers and Veterans Transition Assistance, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

FEBRUARY 4, 1999

Mr. STUMP (for himself and Mr. EVANS) (both by request) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs,

and in addition to the Committees on Armed Services, and Government

Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in

each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

A BILL

To amend titles 5, 10, and 38, United States Code, to

make improvements in benefits and services for members

and veterans of the United States Armed Forces recommended by the Congressional Commission on

Servicemembers and Veterans Transition Assistance, and

for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

3 ‘‘Servicemembers and Veterans Transition Services Im4 provement Act of 1999’’.

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 the United States Code.

TITLE I—EDUCATION

Sec. 101. Montgomery GI Bill enhancements.

Sec. 102. Reengineering of approval process for VA-funded education programs.

TITLE II—EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING

Sec. 201. Updating and improvement of job counseling, training, and placement

services.

Sec. 202. Vocational rehabilitation for service-disabled veterans.

Sec. 203. Transition Assistance Program funding.

Sec. 204. Timing of preseparation counseling.

Sec. 205. Elimination of inequity in transitional benefits for involuntary

separatees.

Sec. 206. Department of Veterans Affairs support of transition assistance.

Sec. 207. Priorities for employment services.

Sec. 208. Marketing veterans to employers.

Sec. 209. Veterans and servicemembers electronic website.

Sec. 210. Elimination of retired pay reduction for federally employed regular

officers.

Sec. 211. Elimination of 180-day bar to Defense Department employment.

Sec. 212. Relief from maximum age limits on hiring of federal firefighters and

law enforcement officers.

Sec. 213. Leave accrual for federal employees who are Vietnam-era veterans.

Sec. 214. Employment of veterans by contractors and grantees of the Departments of Defense, Labor, and Veterans Affairs.

TITLE III—HEALTH CARE

Sec. 301. Transition health care for recently separated servicemembers.

Sec. 302. Procurement of medical items.

Sec. 303. Joint formulary.

Sec. 304. Uniform product numbers for medical and surgical supplies.

Sec. 305. Compatible computerized systems.

Sec. 306. Medical research.

Sec. 307. Pilot program for furnishing veterans fee-basis care under TRICARE

contracts.

Sec. 308. Reviews of graduate medical education programs.

Sec. 309. Services for homeless veterans.
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TITLE IV—ECONOMIC EQUITY

PART A—HOME-LOAN GUARANTY PROGRAM

Sec. 401. Limitation on basic entitlement.

Sec. 402. Loan guaranty eligibility for reservists.

Sec. 403. Prospective elimination of loan fee.

Sec. 404. Pilot program of revised procedures in default cases.

PART B—OTHER PROGRAMS

Sec. 411. Participation in federal employees’ Thrift Savings Plan.

Sec. 412. Enhancement of economic opportunity through entrepreneurship.

Sec. 413. Termination of the Persian Gulf War period for purposes of veterans’

benefits.

TITLE V—ORGANIZATIONAL RESTRUCTURING

Sec. 501. Joint health-care policy staff.

Sec. 502. Care for Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs

beneficiaries at the other system’s facilities.

Sec. 503. Study of infrastructure realignment.

Sec. 504. Congruent geographic administrative structures.

Sec. 505. Utilization of VA medical facilities as TRICARE providers.

1 SEC. 2. REFERENCES TO THE UNITED STATES CODE.

2 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in

3 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms

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

5 provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to

6 a section or other provision of the United States Code.

7 TITLE I—EDUCATION

8 SEC. 101. MONTGOMERY GI BILL ENHANCEMENTS.

9 (a) BASIC BENEFIT INCREASE.—Effective with re10 spect to educational assistance allowances for months be11 ginning after September 1999, section 3015 of title 38

12 is amended—

13 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by striking out ‘‘$528’’

14 and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘$600’’; and
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1 (2) in subsection (b)(1), by striking out ‘‘$429’’

2 and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘$488’’.

3 (b) REPEAL OF PAY REDUCTION AND ELECTION OF

4 BENEFITS.—

5 (1) Section 3011 of title 38 is amended—

6 (A) by amending subsection (b) to read as

7 follows:

8 ‘‘(b) Within 90 days after an individual initially en9 ters on active duty as a member of the Armed Forces,

10 the Secretary of Defense shall notify the individual of the

11 educational assistance benefits available under this chap12 ter and the eligibility requirements that must be met to

13 receive those benefits.’’; and

14 (B) in subsection (c), by striking out para15 graph (1) and redesignating paragraphs (2) and

16 (3) as paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively.

17 (2) Section 3012 of title 38 is amended—

18 (A) by amending subsection (c) to read as

19 follows:

20 ‘‘(c) Within 90 days after an individual initially en21 ters on active duty as a member of the Armed Forces,

22 the Secretary of Defense shall notify that individual of the

23 educational assistance benefits available under this chap24 ter and the eligibility requirements that must be met to

25 receive those benefits.’’; and
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1 (B) in subsection (d), by striking out para2 graph (1) and redesignating paragraphs (2) and

3 (3) as paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively.

4 (3) The amendments made by this subsection

5 shall take effect with respect to reductions of basic

6 pay for the month during which this Act is enacted

7 and subsequent months.

8 (c) ENROLLMENT OF CERTAIN VEAP PARTICI9 PANTS.—Section 3018C of title 38 is amended—

10 (1) in subsection (a)—

11 (A) by amending clause (1) to read as fol12 lows:

13 ‘‘(1)(A) is a participant on October 9, 1996, in

14 the educational benefits program provided in chapter

15 32, or (B) disenrolled from participation in that pro16 gram before October 9, 1996;’’;

17 (B) in clause (4), by striking out ‘‘after the

18 date on which the individual makes the election de19 scribed in paragraph (5)’’ and inserting in lieu

20 thereof ‘‘before the effective date of the election de21 scribed in clause (5)’’; and

22 (C) in clause (5), by inserting after ‘‘October 9,

23 1996,’’ the following ‘‘in the case of an individual

24 described in clause (1)(A), or on October 1, 1999,
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1 in the case of an individual described in clause

2 (1)(B)’’;

3 (2) by redesignating the text of subsection (d)

4 as paragraph (1) of that subsection and adding after

5 that paragraph a new paragraph (2) with the follow6 ing text: ‘‘The requirements of sections 3011(a)(3)

7 and 3012(a)(3) shall apply to an individual who

8 makes the election described in subsection (a)(5), ex9 cept that the completion of service referred to in

10 those sections shall mean the completion of the pe11 riod of active duty being served by the individual on

12 October 9, 1996.’’.

13 (d) ACCELERATED PAYMENTS.—(1) Section 3014 of

14 title 38 is amended by designating the existing text as sub15 section (a) and adding at the end the following new sub16 section:

17 ‘‘(b)(1) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this

18 chapter, the Secretary, pursuant to regulations which the

19 Secretary shall prescribe, may make accelerated payments

20 of the basic educational assistance allowance.

21 ‘‘(2) An accelerated payment may be made only to

22 an individual who has made a request for that type of pay23 ment.

24 ‘‘(3) In computing the amount of an accelerated pay25 ment that covers a period during which an increase under
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1 section 3015(g) takes effect, the Secretary shall include

2 that increase with respect to the months to which it ap3 plies.

4 ‘‘(4) For each accelerated payment made to an indi5 vidual, the individual’s entitlement under this subchapter

6 shall be charged at the same rate at which entitlement

7 would be charged if the individual had received a monthly

8 educational assistance allowance for the period of edu9 cational pursuit covered by the accelerated payment.

10 ‘‘(5) The regulations referred to in paragraph (1)

11 shall include the requirements, conditions, and methods

12 for the request, issuance, delivery, certification of receipt

13 and use, and recovery of overpayment of an accelerated

14 payment.

15 ‘‘(6) For the purposes of this subsection, the term

16 ‘accelerated payment’ means—

17 ‘‘(A) in the case of a course leading to a stand18 ard college degree, a payment made at the beginning

19 of a quarter, semester, or term in a lump-sum

20 amount equivalent to the aggregate monthly allow21 ance otherwise payable under this chapter for the

22 entire quarter, semester, or term; or

23 ‘‘(B) in the case of a course other than a course

24 leading to a standard college degree, a payment

25 made (i) at the latter of the beginning of the course
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1 or a reasonable time after the individual’s request,

2 and (ii) in the amount requested by the individual,

3 up to the aggregate monthly allowance otherwise

4 payable under this subchapter for the entire

5 course.’’.

6 (e) ENHANCED BENEFITS FOR FOUR YEARS OF AC7 TIVE-DUTY SERVICE.—Chapter 30 of title 38 is

8 amended—

9 (1) by redesignating subchapter IV as sub10 chapter V and sections 3031 through 3036 as 3041

11 through 3046, respectively; and

12 (2) by inserting the following new subchapter

13 IV after subchapter III:

14 ‘‘SUBCHAPTER IV—ENHANCED EDUCATIONAL

15 ASSISTANCE

16 ‘‘§ 3031. Enhanced educational assistance entitlement

17 ‘‘(a) Except as provided in subsection (b), each

18 individual—

19 ‘‘(1) who, after September 30, 1999, first en20 ters on active duty, reenlists or extends an enlist21 ment on active duty as a member of the Armed

22 Forces, or, in the case of an officer, continues to

23 serve on active duty after that date, and, from the

24 date of such entry, reenlistment, extension, or

25 continuation—
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1 ‘‘(A) serves a continuous period of active

2 duty of at least four years in the Armed Forces;

3 or

4 ‘‘(B) serves on active duty in the Armed

5 Forces and is discharged or released from ac6 tive duty (i) for a service-connected disability

7 for a medical condition which preexisted such

8 service on active duty and which the Secretary

9 determines is not service connected, for hard10 ship, or for a physical or mental condition that

11 was not characterized as a disability and did

12 not result from the individual’s own willful mis13 conduct but did interfere with the individual’s

14 performance of duty, as determined by the Sec15 retary concerned in accordance with regulations

16 prescribed by the Secretary of Defense; (ii) for

17 the convenience of the Government, after hav18 ing completed not less that 42 months of con19 tinuous active duty; or (iii) involuntarily for the

20 convenience of the Government as a result of a

21 reduction in force, as determined by the Sec22 retary concerned in accordance with regulations

23 prescribed by the Secretary of Defense;

24 ‘‘(2) who completed the requirements of a sec25 ondary school diploma (or equivalency certificate)
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1 not later than the original ending date of the indi2 vidual’s period of active duty described in clause (1)

3 regardless of whether the individual is discharged or

4 released from active duty on such date, except that

5 an individual may meet the requirement of this

6 clause by having been granted credit of the equiva7 lent of 12 semester hours in a program of education

8 leading to a standard college degree before the end

9 of the individual’s period of active duty described in

10 clause (1); and

11 ‘‘(3) who, after completion of the service de12 scribed in clause (1)—

13 ‘‘(A) continues on active duty;

14 ‘‘(B) is discharged from active duty with

15 an honorable discharge;

16 ‘‘(C) is released after service on active duty

17 characterized by the Secretary concerned as

18 honorable service and is placed on the retired

19 list, is transferred to the Fleet Reserve or Fleet

20 Marine Corps Reserve, or is placed on the tem21 porary disability retired list; or

22 ‘‘(D) is released from active duty for fur23 ther service in a reserve component of the

24 Armed Forces after service on active duty char-
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1 acterized by the Secretary concerned as honor2 able service;

3 is entitled to enhanced educational assistance under this

4 subchapter.

5 ‘‘(b) An individual is not eligible for education assist6 ance under this section if the individual at any time (1)

7 has received a commission as an officer in the Armed

8 Forces upon graduation from the United States Military

9 Academy, the United States Naval Academy, the United

10 States Air Force Academy, or the Coast Guard Academy;

11 or (2) has completed a program of education with assist12 ance under section 2107 of title 10.

13 ‘‘(c)(1) For the purposes of this section, any period

14 of service described in paragraph (2) shall not be consid15 ered a part of an individual’s period of active duty de16 scribed in subsection (a)(1).

17 ‘‘(2) A period of service referred to in paragraph (1)

18 is any period—

19 ‘‘(A) that is terminated because of a defective

20 enlistment and induction based on—

21 ‘‘(i) the individual’s being a minor for pur22 poses of service in the Armed Forces;

23 ‘‘(ii) an erroneous enlistment or induction;

24 or

25 ‘‘(iii) a defective enlistment agreement; or
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1 ‘‘(B) that an individual in the Selective Reserve

2 was ordered to perform under section 12301, 12302,

3 12304, 12306, or 12307 of title 10 for a period of

4 less than 2 years.

5 ‘‘(d)(1) For the purposes of this section, a member

6 referred to in paragraph (2) who serves the periods of ac7 tive duty referred in paragraph (2) shall be deemed to

8 have served a continuous period of active duty the length

9 of which is the aggregate length of the periods of active

10 duty referred to in paragraph (2).

11 ‘‘(2) This subsection applies to a member who—

12 ‘‘(A) after a period of continuous active duty of

13 not more than 12 months, is discharged or released

14 from active duty under subclause (i) or (iii) of sub15 section (a)(1)(B); and

16 ‘‘(B) after that discharge or release, reenlists or

17 re-enters on a period of active duty.

18 ‘‘(e) Notwithstanding section 3002(6)(A), a period

19 during which an individual is assigned full-time by the

20 Armed Forces to a civilian institution for a course of edu21 cation as described in section 3002(6)(A) shall not be con22 sidered a break in a continuous period of active duty of

23 that individual for the purposes of this section.

24 ‘‘(f)(1) Notwithstanding section 3002(6)(B), a mem25 ber referred to in paragraph (2) of this subsection who
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1 serves the periods of active duty referred to in subpara2 graphs (A) and (C) of that paragraph shall be deemed

3 to have served a continuous period of active duty the

4 length of which is the aggregate length of the periods of

5 active duty referred to in that paragraph.

6 ‘‘(2) This subsection applies to a member who—

7 ‘‘(A) during the period of active duty described

8 in subsection (a)(1), commences pursuit of a course

9 of education—

10 ‘‘(i) at an academy referred to in sub11 section (b)(1); or

12 ‘‘(ii) at a post-secondary school for the

13 purpose of preparation for enrollment at such

14 an academy;

15 ‘‘(B) fails to complete the course of education;

16 and

17 ‘‘(C) re-enters on a period of active duty.

18 ‘‘§ 3032. Duration of educational assistance

19 ‘‘(a) Subject to section 3695 and except as provided

20 in subsection (b), each individual entitled to educational

21 assistance under section 3031 is entitled to a monthly edu22 cational assistance allowance under this subchapter for a

23 period or periods not to exceed a total of 36 months (or

24 the equivalent thereof in part-time educational assistance).
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1 ‘‘(b) Subject to section 3695, in the case of an indi2 vidual described in section 3031(a)(1)(B) (i) or (iii) who

3 is not also described in section 3031(a)(1)(A), the individ4 ual is entitled to one month of educational assistance bene5 fits under this subchapter for each month of continuous

6 active duty served by the individual beginning with the

7 date on which the entry on active duty, reenlistment, en8 listment extension, or continuation applicable to that indi9 vidual under section 3031(a)(1) begins.

10 ‘‘§ 3033. Transfer of entitlement

11 ‘‘(a) Each Secretary concerned may, in that Sec12 retary’s discretion and in accordance with regulations that

13 the Secretary of Defense shall prescribe, authorize an indi14 vidual entitled to educational assistance under this sub15 chapter to transfer that entitlement to the individual’s

16 spouse or child, or any combination of the individual’s

17 spouse and children.

18 ‘‘(b) The regulations referred to in subsection (a)

19 shall include, among other provisions that the Secretary

20 of Defense may wish to include, the following:

21 ‘‘(1) The transferor must designate the person

22 or persons to whom that entitlement is transferred

23 and, if the transfer is to more than one person si24 multaneously, the percentage of the entitlement

25 being transferred to each.
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1 ‘‘(2) The transferor must designate the periods

2 for which the transferor’s entitlement are being

3 transferred to each transferee.

4 ‘‘(3) The transferor may at any time cancel or

5 modify the transfer by written notice to the Sec6 retary concerned.

7 ‘‘(4) Each transferee will be subject to the same

8 terms, conditions, and requirements as otherwise

9 would apply to the transferor except that, subject to

10 paragraph (2) and notwithstanding section 3031, a

11 child who is a transferee may use the transferred en12 titlement at any time before the child’s twenty-sixth

13 birthday.

14 ‘‘(5) Any educational assistance provided to a

15 transferee shall be charged against the remaining

16 entitlement of the transferor.

17 ‘‘(c) The transferor and any transferee shall be joint18 ly and severally liable in accordance with section 3685 for

19 repayment of any overpayment of benefits to the trans20 feree.

21 ‘‘§ 3034. Payment of educational expenses

22 ‘‘(a) The Secretary shall pay to each individual enti23 tled to educational assistance under this subchapter who

24 is pursuing an approved program of education—
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1 ‘‘(1) an educational assistance allowance as pro2 vided in section 3035; and

3 ‘‘(2) in accordance with regulations that the

4 Secretary shall prescribe, a sum equal to the reason5 able cost of books and supplies determined to be re6 quired by similarly circumstanced non-veterans for

7 the same course for which the individual is being

8 paid such allowance or a similar course in terms of

9 the cost of books and supplies.

10 ‘‘(b) The Secretary shall pay to the educational insti11 tution providing the course for which the individual is

12 being paid an educational assistance allowance under sec13 tion 3035 the actual cost of tuition and fees otherwise pay14 able by the individual for the pursuit of the course, not

15 to exceed the amount charged to similarly circumstanced

16 non-veterans.

17 ‘‘§ 3035. Amount of educational assistance

18 ‘‘(a) Except as provided in section 3042, the edu19 cational assistance allowance under this subchapter shall

20 be paid—

21 ‘‘(1) at the monthly rate of $400 (as that

22 amount may be increased pursuant to subsection

23 (b)) for an approved program of education pursued

24 on a full-time basis; or
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1 ‘‘(2) at an appropriately reduced rate, as deter2 mined under regulations that the Secretary shall

3 prescribe, for an approved program of education

4 pursued on less than a full-time basis.

5 ‘‘(b) With respect to any fiscal year beginning after

6 fiscal year 2000, the Secretary shall increase the rate paid

7 under subsection (a)(1) for the previous fiscal year by a

8 percentage equal to the percentage by which—

9 ‘‘(1) the Consumer Price Index (all items,

10 United States city average) for the 12-month period

11 ending on the June 30 preceding the beginning of

12 the fiscal year for which the increase is made, ex13 ceeds

14 ‘‘(2) such Consumer Price Index for the 12-

15 month period preceding the 12-month period de16 scribed in clause (1).

17 ‘‘(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the

18 educational assistance allowance payable under this sec19 tion shall not be countable as income for purposes of de20 termining eligibility for education grants or loans under

21 any other statute of the United States.

22 ‘‘§ 3036. Tutorial assistance

23 ‘‘(a) An individual entitled to an educational assist24 ance allowance under this subchapter shall also be entitled

25 to benefits provided an eligible veteran under section
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1 3492, subject to the conditions applicable to an eligible

2 veteran under that section.

3 ‘‘(b) The amount of benefits payable under this sec4 tion may not exceed $100 per month, for a maximum of

5 12 months, or until a maximum of $1,200 is used.

6 ‘‘(c)(1) An individual’s period of entitlement to the

7 educational assistance allowance under this chapter shall

8 be charged only with respect to the amount of tutorial as9 sistance paid to the individual in excess of $600.

10 ‘‘(2) An individual’s period of entitlement to edu11 cational assistance under this subchapter shall be charged

12 at the rate of one month for each amount of assistance

13 paid to the individual under this section in excess of $600

14 that is equal to the amount of the monthly educational

15 assistance allowance that the individual is otherwise eligi16 ble to receive under section 3035(a)(1).

17 (f) CLERICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—(1)

18 Section 3002 of title 38 is amended by inserting at the

19 end the following new paragraph:

20 ‘‘(9) The term ‘enhanced educational assistance’

21 means educational assistance provided under subchapter

22 IV.’’.

23 (2) Section 3011 is amended in subsection (f)(1) and

24 (g) by striking out ‘‘chapter’’ each place it appears and

25 inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘subchapter’’.
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1 (3) Section 3015(a) of title 38 is amended in the first

2 sentence by striking out ‘‘section 3032’’ and inserting in

3 lieu thereof ‘‘section 3042’’.

4 (4) Section 3017(c) of title 38 is amended by striking

5 out ‘‘section 3035(b)(1)’’ and inserting in lieu thereof

6 ‘‘section 3045(b)(1)’’.

7 (5) Section 3019 of title 38 is amended in subsections

8 (a) and (c)(2) by striking out ‘‘chapter’’ each place it ap9 pears and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘subchapter’’.

10 (6) Section 3022(a) of title 38 is amended by striking

11 out ‘‘section 3032’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘section

12 3042’’.

13 (7) Section 3041 of title 38 (as redesignated by sub14 section (e)(1)) is amended—

15 (A) in subsection (e), by inserting ‘‘or 3032’’

16 after ‘‘section 3013’’;

17 (B) in subsection (f), by inserting ‘‘or 3032’’

18 after ‘‘section 3013’’; and—

19 (C) in subsection (g), by inserting ‘‘or

20 3031(a)(1)(B)(iii)’’ after ‘‘section

21 3011(a)(1)(A)(ii)(III)’’.

22 (8) Section 3042 of title 38 (as redesignated by sub23 section (e)(1)) is amended—

24 (A) in subsection (d)(1), by inserting ‘‘or sec25 tion 3034’’ after ‘‘if applicable,’’;
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1 (B) in subsection (f)(3), by inserting ‘‘, or sub2 section (a)(1) of section 3035,’’.

3 (9) Section 3044 of title 38 (as redesignated by sub4 section (e)(1)) is amended in subsection (c) by striking

5 out ‘‘section 3032(b)’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘sec6 tion 3042(b)’’.

7 (10) Section 3680A(d)(2)(A) of title 38 is amended

8 by striking out ‘‘3034(a)(3)’’ and inserting in lieu thereof

9 ‘‘3044(a)(3)’’.

10 (11) Section 3688(a)(6) of title 38 is amended by

11 striking out ‘‘section 3034(a)(3),’’ and inserting in lieu

12 thereof ‘‘section 3044(a)(3),’’.

13 (12) Section 16133(b) of title 10 is amended—

14 (A) in paragraph (2), by striking out ‘‘section

15 3031(f)’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘section

16 3041(f)’’; and

17 (B) in paragraph (3), by striking out ‘‘section

18 3031(d)’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘section

19 3041(d)’’.

20 (13) The table of sections at the beginning of chapter

21 30 of title 38 is amended by striking out the items relating

22 to subchapter IV and inserting in lieu thereof the follow23 ing:

‘‘SUBCHAPTER IV—ENHANCED EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE

‘‘3031. Enhanced educational assistance entitlement.

‘‘3032. Duration of educational assistance.

‘‘3033. Transfer of entitlement.

‘‘3034. Payment of educational expenses.
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‘‘3035. Amount of educational assistance.

‘‘3036. Tutorial assistance.

SUBCHAPTER V—TIME LIMITATION FOR USE OF ELIGIBILITY AND

ENTITLEMENT; GENERAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS

‘‘3041. Time limitation for use of eligibility and entitlement.

‘‘3042. Limitations on educational assistance for certain individuals.

‘‘3043. Bar to duplication of educational assistance benefits.

‘‘3044. Program administration.

‘‘3045. Allocation of administration and of program costs.

‘‘3046. Reporting requirement.’’.

1 SEC. 102. REENGINEERING OF APPROVAL PROCESS FOR

2 VA-FUNDED EDUCATION PROGRAMS.

3 (a) RENAMING OF STATE APPROVING AGENCIES.—

4 Section 3671 of title 38 is amended—

5 (1) in subsection (a), by striking out ‘‘State ap6 proving agency’’ inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘State vet7 erans education development agency’’; and

8 (2) in subsection (b), by striking out ‘‘State ap9 proving agency’’ each place it appears and inserting

10 in lieu thereof ‘‘State veterans education develop11 ment agency’’.

12 (b) DEVELOPMENT OF ON-JOB AND APPRENTICE13 SHIP TRAINING PROGRAMS.—(1) Subsection (d) of section

14 3672 is amended to read as follows:

15 ‘‘(d) Each State veterans education development

16 agency shall—

17 ‘‘(1) actively promote the development of pro18 grams of on-job training (including programs of ap19 prenticeship) for the training of veterans under this

20 title; and
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1 ‘‘(2) in carrying out paragraph (1), give priority

2 to developing programs that can provide training to

3 veterans with disabilities.’’.

4 (2) Section 3673(a) of title 38 is amended by striking

5 out ‘‘institutions, and particular attention should be

6 given’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘and training institu7 tions, and particular attention should be given to the de8 velopment of on-job training (including apprenticeship)

9 programs,’’.

10 (c) ENHANCED APPROVAL PROCESS FOR ACCRED11 ITED COURSES.—(1) Section 3675 of title 38 is

12 amended—

13 (A) in the material preceding subparagraph (A)

14 of paragraph (1) of subsection (a)—

15 (i) by striking out ‘‘may’’ and inserting in

16 lieu thereof ‘‘shall’’; and

17 (ii) by inserting ‘‘that meets all the re18 quirements of this section’’ after ‘‘institution’’;

19 and

20 (B) in paragraph (1)(A) of subsection (a), by

21 inserting ‘‘described in paragraph (2)(A)’’ before the

22 semicolon at the end;

23 (C) in paragraph (2) of subsection (a), by in24 serting at the end following new subparagraph:
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1 ‘‘(C) Notwithstanding any other provision of this sec2 tion, a State veterans education development agency may,

3 in the case of an educational institution that offers courses

4 approved under this section, review and approve or dis5 approve any course or courses newly offered by that edu6 cational institution.’’;

7 (D) in paragraph (2)(B) of subsection (a), by

8 striking out ‘‘may utilize’’ and inserting in lieu

9 thereof ‘‘shall use’’; and

10 (E) in subsection (b), by striking out paragraph

11 (3).

12 (e) EXPANSION OF WAIVER OF NON-ACCREDITED

13 COURSE REFUND REQUIREMENTS.—Section 3676 of title

14 38 is amended in subsection (d)(4) by striking out ‘‘re15 gional’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘regional, profes16 sional, or trade’’.

17 (f) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—(1) Chapter 36 of title

18 38 is amended by striking out ‘‘State approving agency’’

19 each place it appears after the other amendments in this

20 section are made and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘State vet21 erans educational development agency’’.

22 (2) Such chapter 36 is further amended in the table

23 of sections at the beginning of the chapter, by striking

24 out:

‘‘SUBCHAPTER I—STATE APPROVING AGENCIES’’

25 and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
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‘‘SUBCHAPTER I—STATE VETERANS EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT AGENCIES’’.

1 (3) Such chapter 36 is further amended by striking

2 out the heading relating to subchapter I after the table

3 of sections and inserting in lieu thereof the following:

4 ‘‘SUBCHAPTER I—STATE VETERANS

5 EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCIES’’.

6 TITLE II—EMPLOYMENT AND

7 TRAINING

8 SEC. 201. UPDATING AND IMPROVEMENT OF JOB COUNSEL9 ING, TRAINING, AND PLACEMENT SERVICES.

10 (a) PROGRAM REVISIONS.—(1) Paragraph (1) of sec11 tion 4100 of title 38 is amended to read as follows:

12 ‘‘(1) As long as unemployment and under13 employment continue as serious problems among dis14 abled veterans, veterans with existing employment

15 barriers, and veterans recently separated from active

16 duty, alleviating unemployment and underemploy17 ment among these veterans is a national responsibil18 ity.’’.

19 (2) Section 4101 of title 38 is amended—

20 (A) by amending paragraphs (1) through (3) to

21 read as follows:

22 ‘‘(1) The term ‘disabled veteran’ has the same

23 meaning provided in section 4211(3).
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1 ‘‘(2) The term ‘recently separated veteran’

2 means a veteran who has been discharged or re3 leased from active duty less than four years.

4 ‘‘(3) The term ‘veteran with existing employ5 ment barriers’ shall have the meaning provided in

6 regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Labor.’’.

7 (3) Section 4102 of title 38 is amended by striking

8 out ‘‘veterans and veterans of the Vietnam era’’ and in9 serting in lieu thereof ‘‘veterans, veterans with existing

10 employment barriers, and recently separated veterans’’.

11 (4) Section 4102A of title 38 is amended—

12 (A) in subsection (b)(1), by striking out ‘‘of the

13 Vietnam era’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘with ex14 isting employment barriers, recently separated veter15 ans’’;

16 (B) in subsection (b)(3)(b), by striking out

17 ‘‘Veterans’ Job Training Act (29 U.S.C. 1721

18 note)’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘Workforce In19 vestment Act of 1998‘‘;

20 (C) in subsection (b)(5)—

21 (i) in clause (A), by amending subclauses

22 (i) and (ii) to read as follows ‘‘(i) Veterans’

23 Case Managers under section 4104A, and (ii)

24 Veterans’ Employment Facilitators under sec25 tion 4104B,‘‘; and
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1 (ii) in clause (B), by striking out ‘‘such

2 specialists and representatives’’ and inserting in

3 lieu thereof ‘‘Veterans’ Case Managers and Vet4 erans’ Employment Facilitators’’.

5 (D) by striking out paragraphs (6) and (7) of

6 subsection (b) and inserting in lieu thereof the fol7 lowing:

8 ‘‘(6) ensure that all grants and contracts under

9 section 4104 are awarded on a competitive basis;

10 and

11 ‘‘(7) monitor and supervise on a continuing

12 basis the distribution and use of funds provided for

13 use in the States under section 4104.’’;

14 (E) in subsection(c)(1)—

15 (i) by striking out ‘‘of this section in order

16 to carry out sections 4103A and 4104(a) of this

17 title’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘in order to

18 carry out sections 4104, 4104A, and 4104B’’;

19 and

20 (ii) by striking out ‘‘4103A or 4104 of this

21 title’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘4104,

22 41104A, or 4104B’’;

23 (F) in subsection (c)(2)—
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1 (i) by striking out ‘‘4103A or 4104’’ and

2 inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘4104A or 4104B’’;

3 and

4 (ii) in clause (A), by striking out (I) the

5 comma after ‘‘evaluations’’, and (II) ‘‘of the

6 performance of local employment offices in the

7 state,’’; and

8 (G) in subsection (d), by striking out ‘‘Job

9 Training Partnership Act’’ and inserting in lieu

10 thereof ‘‘Workforce Investment Act of 1998.’’.

11 (5) Section 4103 of title 38 is amended—

12 (A) in subsection (b)(1)(A)(i), by striking out

13 all after ‘‘veteran’’ and inserting in lieu thereof a

14 comma;

15 (B) in subsection (b)(2), by striking out ‘‘at16 tached to the public employment service system of

17 the State to which they are assigned. They shall be’’;

18 and

19 (C) in subsection (c)—

20 (i) by striking out ‘‘functionally supervise’’

21 in clause (1)(A) and inserting in lieu thereof

22 ‘‘oversee’’;

23 (ii) in clause (1)(B)—
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1 (I) by striking out ‘‘be functionally re2 sponsible for the supervision of’’ and insert

3 in lieu thereof ‘‘oversee’’; and

4 (II) by striking out ‘‘Veterans’ Job

5 Training Act (Public Law 98–77; 29

6 U.S.C. 1721 note)’’ and inserting in lieu

7 thereof ‘‘Workforce Investment Act of

8 1998’’;

9 (iii) in clause (6), by striking out ‘‘veterans

10 of the Vietnam era, disabled veterans’’ and in11 serting in lieu thereof ‘‘disabled veterans, veter12 ans with existing employment barriers, and re13 cently separated veterans’’; and

14 (iv) by striking out ‘‘monitor,’’ and all that

15 follows through ‘‘representatives,’’ and inserting

16 in lieu thereof ‘‘monitor’’.

17 (6) Chapter 41 of title 38 is amended by striking out

18 sections 4103A, 4104, and 4104A and inserting in lieu

19 thereof the following:

20 ‘‘§ 4104. Grants and contracts

21 ‘‘(a) The Secretary is authorized to make grants to

22 or to contract with entities which agree to provide employ23 ment and training services for veterans under this chapter.

24 The Secretary is authorized to provide such grants or

25 enter into such contracts with eligible entities to pay all
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1 or part of the cost of programs which carry out all or some

2 of the purposes of this chapter. Each such grant or con3 tract shall be awarded on a competitive basis and shall

4 cover the furnishing of services within an entire State or,

5 as the Secretary determines appropriate under subsection

6 (c)(2), part of a State.

7 ‘‘(b)(1) In selecting among entities competing for the

8 award of a grant or contract for the furnishing of services

9 of Veterans’ Case Managers under section 4105, and in

10 assessing the performance of entities furnishing those

11 services, the Secretary shall take into account the proven

12 capabilities and records of the entities in achieving positive

13 employment outcomes. The outcome measurements for

14 this purpose shall be specified in regulations that the Sec15 retary shall prescribe and shall include, but not be limited

16 to—

17 ‘‘(A) the numbers of veterans entered into em18 ployment;

19 ‘‘(B) the numbers of veterans receiving various

20 case-management services beyond employment21 search assistance entered into employment; and

22 ‘‘(C) the numbers of veterans in each of the

23 foregoing categories of veterans entered into employ24 ment who remain employed in each of the three

25 years after becoming employed.
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1 ‘‘(2) In selecting among entities competing for the

2 award of a grant or contract for furnishing the services

3 of Veterans’ Employment Facilitators under section 4106,

4 and in assessing the performance of entities furnishing

5 those services, the Secretary shall take into account the

6 proven capabilities and records of the entities in achieving

7 positive employment outcomes. The outcome measure8 ments for this purpose shall be specified in regulations

9 that the Secretary shall prescribe and shall include, but

10 not be limited to—

11 ‘‘(A) employer contacts resulting in the hiring

12 of veterans; and

13 ‘‘(B) the satisfaction of participants in transi14 tion assistance program workshops under section

15 1144 of title 10.

16 ‘‘(c)(1) A grant or contract under this chapter shall

17 contain such terms and conditions as the Secretary may

18 require, including terms of payment, the manner of

19 record-keeping by the grantee or contractor, and any peri20 odic reports required by the Secretary.

21 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may—

22 ‘‘(A) limit a grant or contract under this chap23 ter to a specific geographic area within a State as

24 determined appropriate by the Secretary; and
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1 ‘‘(B) provide more than one grant or contract

2 for a State, or a specific geographic area in a State,

3 if the Secretary determines that doing so is nec4 essary for all services and assistance authorized by

5 this chapter to be provided in that area.

6 ‘‘(d) Applications for grants and contracts under this

7 chapter shall be submitted at such times, in such form,

8 and contain such information and assurances as the Sec9 retary may require, including information demonstrating

10 the capacity and expertise of the applying entity to provide

11 the services and assistance required by the grant or con12 tract.

13 ‘‘(e) Each grant or contract under this chapter shall

14 contain a provision requiring the grantee or contractor to

15 comply with the provisions of this chapter.

16 ‘‘§ 4104A. Veterans’ Case Managers

17 ‘‘(a) The Secretary shall make available through

18 grants and contracts such funds as may be necessary to

19 support Veterans’ Case Managers under this section.

20 ‘‘(b) In providing services to eligible veterans under

21 this section, Veterans’ Case Managers shall give priority,

22 in the following order, to:

23 ‘‘(1) Disabled veterans.

24 ‘‘(2) Veterans with existing employment bar25 riers.
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1 ‘‘(3) Recently separated veterans.

2 ‘‘(c)(1) Subject to subsection (b) and paragraph (2),

3 each Veterans’ Case Manager shall provide to eligible

4 veterans—

5 ‘‘(A) a personal assessment of employment

6 skills and needs, including but not limited to testing,

7 employment counseling, and individual employability

8 development plans;

9 ‘‘(B) job development services, including but

10 not limited to job accommodation for a disability

11 and marketing individual veterans to specific em12 ployees;

13 ‘‘(C) employment search assistance, including

14 but not limited to provision of labor market informa15 tion, employment interview techniques, resume prep16 aration, identification and use of job finding re17 sources, and referral to job openings;

18 ‘‘(D) referral to training services, including but

19 not limited to identification of sources of training

20 services and assistance with applying for those serv21 ices and being referred to those sources;

22 ‘‘(E) referral to supportive services, including

23 but not limited to (i) identification of sources of fi24 nancial, legal, counseling, medical, and other services

25 and assistance not directly related to employment,
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1 and (ii) assistance with applying for those services

2 and assistance and being referred to those sources;

3 ‘‘(F) monitoring the veteran’s adjustment to

4 and maintenance of employment, including but not

5 limited to regular, periodic contact with the veteran

6 and the employer and monitoring of the employer’s

7 training.

8 ‘‘(2) Except in the cases of disabled veterans and vet9 erans with existing employment barriers, Veterans’ Case

10 Managers ordinarily will provide eligible veterans with

11 only services described in clause (C) of paragraph (1).

12 ‘‘§ 4104B. Veterans’ Employment Facilitators

13 ‘‘(a) The Secretary shall make available through

14 grants and contracts such funds as may be necessary to

15 support Veterans’ Employment Facilitators under this

16 section.

17 ‘‘(b) The only duties of a Veterans’ Employment

18 Facilitator shall be to market veterans and

19 servicemembers who are about to become veterans to em20 ployers in the geographic area for which the Facilitator

21 has responsibility and to participate in the conduct of

22 transition assistance program workshops under section

23 1144 of title 10.’’.

24 (7) Section 4105(b) of title 38 is amended by striking

25 out ‘‘Veterans’ Job Training Act (Public Law 98–77, 29
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1 U.S.C. 1721 note)’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘Work2 force Investment Act of 1998’’.

3 (8) Section 4106(a) of title 38 is amended—

4 (A) by striking out the fourth sentence;

5 (B) in the fifth sentence, by striking out ‘‘in all

6 of the States’’; and

7 (C) in the sixth sentence, by striking out ‘‘dis8 abled veterans’’ and all that follows through ‘‘4104

9 of this title’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘Veterans’

10 Case Managers under section 4104A and Veterans’

11 Employment Facilitators under section 4104B’’.

12 (9) Section 4107 of title 38 is amended—

13 (A) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol14 lows:

15 ‘‘(a) The Secretary shall establish administrative con16 trols in order to insure that each eligible veteran, espe17 cially disabled veterans, veterans with existing employ18 ment barriers, and recently separated veterans, and each

19 eligible person who requests assistance under this chapter

20 shall promptly be placed in a satisfactory job or job train21 ing opportunity or receive some other specific form of as22 sistance designed to enhance the veteran’s or eligible per23 son’s employment prospects substantially, such as individ24 ual job development or employment counseling services.’’;
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1 (B) in the first sentence of subsection (b), by

2 striking out ‘‘by the State public employment service

3 agencies’’; and

4 (C) in subsection (c)—

5 (i) by amending clause (1) to read as fol6 lows:

7 ‘‘(1) information, by State, regarding (A) the

8 numbers of eligible veterans, disabled veterans, vet9 erans with existing employment barriers, recently

10 separated veterans, and eligible persons who reg11 istered for assistance with the public employment

12 service system or with grantees and contractors

13 under this chapter who are not part of that system,

14 and (B) for each of those categories, results as

15 measured by the outcome measurements prescribed

16 under section 4104(b), as applicable;’’;

17 (ii) by striking out clause (2) and redesig18 nating clauses (3), (4), and (5) as clauses (2),

19 (3), and (4), respectively;

20 (iii) in clause (5), as so redesignated, by

21 striking out ‘‘4103A and 4104’’ and inserting

22 in lieu thereof ‘‘4104, 4104A, and 4104B’’; and

23 (iv) in clause (5), as so redesignated—
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1 (I) by striking out ‘‘in meeting the re2 quirements of section 4102A(b) of this

3 title’’; and

4 (II) by striking out ‘‘(including’’ and

5 all that follows through ‘‘representatives)’’.

6 (10) Section 4108 of title 38 is amended—

7 (A) by striking out ‘‘(a)’’ at the beginning of

8 subsection (a); and

9 (B) by striking out subsection (b).

10 (11) Section 4109(a) of title 38 is amended by strik11 ing out ‘‘disabled veterans’ outreach program specialists,

12 local veterans employment representatives,’’ and inserting

13 in lieu thereof ‘‘Veterans’ Case Managers, Veterans’ Em14 ployment Facilitators,’’.

15 (12) Section 4110A(a)(1) of title 38 is amended—

16 (A) in clause (D), by inserting ‘‘in a campaign

17 or expedition for which a campaign or expedition for

18 which a campaign badge has been authorized’’ after

19 ‘‘Vietnam era’’; and

20 (B) by redesignating clause (E) as clause (F);

21 and

22 (C) by inserting after clause (D) a new clause

23 (E) as follows:

24 ‘‘(E) Veterans who served on active duty after

25 the Vietnam era who did not serve in a campaign or
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1 expedition for which a campaign badge has been au2 thorized.’’.

3 (b) DISCREPANCIES IN REPORTING OF VETERANS

4 USING STATE EMPLOYMENT SERVICES.—The Secretary

5 of Labor shall, within 90 days after the date of the enact6 ment of this Act—

7 (1) resolve the discrepancies that exist in the

8 Bureau Labor Statistics biennial report under sec9 tion 4110A of title 38, United States Code, and the

10 report of the Veterans Employment and Training

11 Service known as the ETA–9002 Report, regarding

12 the numbers of veterans who use State employment

13 services; and

14 (2) submit to the appropriate Committees of

15 the Congress a report describing the causes of those

16 discrepancies and how they were resolved.

17 (c) CLERICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

18 (1) The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 41

19 of title 38 is amended by striking out the items relating

20 to sections 4103A, 4104, and 4104A and inserting in lieu

21 thereof the following:

‘‘4104. Grants and contracts.

4104A. Veterans’ Case Managers.

4104B. Veterans’ Employment Facilitators.’’.

22 (2) Section 3117 of title 38 is amended by striking

23 out ‘‘disabled veterans outreach program specialists under
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1 section 4103A’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘Veterans’

2 Case Managers under section 4104A’’.

3 (3) Section 3672(d) of title 38 is amended by striking

4 out ‘‘disabled veterans’ outreach program specialists under

5 section 4103A’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘Veterans’

6 Case Managers under section 4104A’’.

7 (4) Section 1721(b)(2)(B) of title 29 is amended by

8 striking out ‘‘4103A’’ and inserting in lieu thereof

9 ‘‘4104A’’.

10 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE AND TRANSITION.—(1) Except

11 as provided in paragraph (2), the amendments made by

12 this section shall take effect on October 1, 2000.

13 (2) The Secretary of Labor may continue to excercise

14 the authorities in chapter 41 as in effect on September

15 30, 2000 (and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs may con16 tinue to exercise authorities in other provisions of title 38

17 amended by this section as in effect on that date), to the

18 extent that the Secretary of Labor (or the Secretary of

19 Veterans Affairs, as appropriate) determines necessary to

20 ensure the continuity of services and assistance to veter21 ans and eligible persons.

22 SEC. 202. VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION FOR SERVICE-DIS23 ABLED VETERANS.

24 (a) PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENTS.—The Secretary

25 of Veterans Affairs shall require that performance meas-
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1 urements for the program of vocational rehabilitation

2 under chapter 31 of title 38, United States Code, focus

3 on outcome measures, including—

4 (1) the numbers of program participants who

5 enter employment;

6 (2) the numbers of participants with serious

7 employment handicaps who enter employment;

8 (3) the numbers of participants (with break9 downs between those who do and those who do not

10 have serious employment handicaps) who remain

11 employed in each of the three years following their

12 entering employment; and

13 (4) such other outcome measures as the Sec14 retary determines would contribute to achieving the

15 goal of enabling eligible disabled veterans to become

16 employable and to obtain and maintain suitable em17 ployment.

18 (b) PROVISION OF CASE-MANAGEMENT AND EM19 PLOYMENT SERVICES.—(1) Section 3115 of title 38 is

20 amended—

21 (A) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘except sub22 section (c)’’ after ‘‘provision of law’’;

23 (B) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub24 section (d); and
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1 (C) by inserting after subsection (b) the follow2 ing new subsection:

3 ‘‘(c) All case-management services and employment

4 services (including but not limited to placement services

5 and the other services authorized by section 3117) under

6 this chapter shall be provided exclusively by Department

7 of Veterans Affairs personnel or by a Veterans’ Case Man8 ager under section 4104A. The Secretary may not con9 tract with any other person or entity to provide the serv10 ices described in the preceding sentence.’’.

11 (2)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the

12 amendments made by this section shall take effect October

13 1, 2000.

14 (B) After that date, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs

15 may continue to provide the services described in sub16 section (c) of section 3115 of title 38, United States Code,

17 as added by paragraph (1), through contractual arrange18 ments only in areas in which a delay in the implementation

19 of the Veterans’ Case Manager program under chapter 42

20 of title 38 makes it advisable to do so.

21 SEC. 203. TRANSITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM FUNDING.

22 Section 1144 of title 10 is amended by adding at the

23 end the following new subsection:

24 ‘‘(e) FUNDING.—(1) There is authorized to be appro25 priated to the Department of Defense for each fiscal year
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1 to carry out this section and sections 1142 (a) and (b)

2 and 1143a an amount equal to $390 (as increased pursu3 ant to paragraph (C)) multiplied by the number of mem4 bers that the Secretary of Defense, after consultation with

5 the Secretary of Transportation, estimates (pursuant to

6 paragraph (2)) will be discharged or released during that

7 fiscal year.

8 ‘‘(2) The Secretary of Defense shall include in docu9 ments submitted by the Secretary in support of the Presi10 dent’s budget for each fiscal year, the Secretary’s estimate

11 of the number of members who will be discharged or re12 leased in that fiscal year. The Secretary may revise that

13 estimate as warranted by the facts.

14 ‘‘(3) For the purposes of fiscal year 2000 and each

15 succeeding fiscal year, the amount specified in paragraph

16 (A) shall be increased by the percentage by which—

17 ‘‘(A) the Consumer Price Index (all items,

18 United States city average) for the 12-month period

19 ending on the June 30 preceding the beginning of

20 the fiscal year for which the increase is made, ex21 ceeds

22 ‘‘(B) that Consumer Price Index for the 12-

23 month period preceding the 12-month period de24 scribed in clause (i).
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1 ‘‘(4) Of the funds appropriated each fiscal year pur2 suant to the authorization provided in this subsection, the

3 Secretary of Defense shall allocate to the Department of

4 Transportation an amount proportionate to the number

5 of members of the Coast Guard being discharged or sepa6 rated that fiscal year.’’.

7 SEC. 204. TIMING OF PRESEPARATION COUNSELING.

8 (a) Section 1142(a)(1) of title 10 is amended—

9 (1) by amending the first sentence to read as

10 follows: ‘‘Within the time periods specified in para11 graph (3), the Secretary concerned shall (except as

12 provided in paragraph (4)) provide for individual

13 preseparation counseling of each member of the

14 armed forces whose discharge or release from active

15 duty is anticipated.’’; and

16 (2) by inserting at the end the following new

17 paragraphs:

18 ‘‘(3)(A) Preseparation counseling shall commence as

19 soon as possible during the two-year period preceding an

20 anticipated retirement and as soon as possible during the

21 one-year period preceding other separations, but, except

22 as provided in subparagraph (B), in no event later than

23 90 days before the date of discharge or release.

24 ‘‘(B) In the event that a retirement or other separa25 tion is unanticipated until there are 90 or fewer days re-
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1 maining in the member’s service, preseparation counseling

2 shall begin as soon as possible within the remaining period

3 of service.

4 ‘‘(4) Except in the case of a member who is being

5 retired or separated for disability, the Secretary concerned

6 shall give to each member who is being discharged or re7 leased before the completion of that member’s first 180

8 days of active duty the option of not receiving

9 preseparation counseling. A notation reflecting the fact

10 that a member has exercised that option shall be placed

11 in the service record of each member who has.’’.

12 SEC. 205. ELIMINATION OF INEQUITY IN TRANSITION BENE13 FITS FOR INVOLUNTARY SEPARATEES.

14 (a) LIMITATION ON SPECIAL TRANSITION BENE15 FITS.—Section 1141 of title 10 is amended—

16 (1) by striking out ‘‘A’’ at the beginning and

17 inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘(a) BASIC DEFINITION.—

18 Except as provided in subsection (b), a’’; and

19 (2) by inserting at the end the following new

20 subsection:

21 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—A member shall be considered to

22 be involuntarily separated for purposes of this subchapter

23 only if, under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of

24 Defense, the member is being discharged or released as

25 the result of a force-management reduction.’’.
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1 SEC. 206. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS SUPPORT

2 OF TRANSITION ASSISTANCE.

3 (a) OUTREACH SERVICES.—Section 7722(d) of title

4 38 is amended by inserting at the end the following new

5 sentence: ‘‘The Secretary shall provide such aid and assist6 ance to members of the Armed Forces as part of their

7 transition assistance programs under section 1144 of title

8 10.’’.

9 (b) OVERSEAS VETERANS ASSISTANCE OFFICES.—

10 Section 7723(a) is amended by striking out in the second

11 sentence ‘‘In establishing and maintaining such’’ and in12 serting in lieu thereof ‘‘The Secretary shall also maintain

13 such offices on such Armed Forces installations located

14 elsewhere as the Secretary, after consultation with the

15 Secretary of Defense, determines to be necessary to carry

16 out such purposes. In establishing and maintaining veter17 ans assistance’’.

18 (c) OUTSTATIONING OF COUNSELING AND OUT19 REACH PERSONNEL.—Section 7724 of title 38 is amended

20 by inserting ‘‘and military installations’’ after ‘‘including

21 educational institutions’’.

22 SEC. 207. PRIORITIES FOR EMPLOYMENT SERVICES.

23 (a) PRIORITY FOR FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT SERV24 ICES.—Chapter 41 of title 38 is amended by inserting

25 after section 4108 the following new section:
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1 ‘‘§ 4108A. Priority for Employment Services and As2 sistance

3 ‘‘Notwithstanding any other provision of law, veter4 ans who are eligible for employment services or assistance

5 under any employment or training program funded in

6 whole or in part by the United States who are also dis7 abled veterans, veterans with employment barriers, or vet8 erans separated from active duty less than four years shall

9 be entitled to first priority to any such employment serv10 ices or assistance for which they are otherwise eligible.’’.

11 (b) EMPHASIS UNDER FEDERAL CONTRACTS.—Sec12 tion 4212 of title 38 is amended—

13 (1) in subsection (a), by striking out ‘‘special

14 disabled veterans and veterans of the Vietnam era’’

15 and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘disabled veterans, vet16 erans who have employment barriers (as defined in

17 regulations that the Secretary shall prescribe), and

18 veterans who have been separated from active duty

19 less than four years’’;

20 (2) in subsection (b), by striking out ‘‘special

21 disabled veteran or veteran of the Vietnam era’’ and

22 inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘veteran described in sub23 section (a)’’; and

24 (3) in subsection (c), by striking out ‘‘of

25 Labor’’ and by striking out ‘‘4107(c)’’ and inserting

26 in lieu thereof ‘‘4110(c)’’.
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1 (c) CONFORMING AND CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—

2 (1) Section 4211 is amended—

3 (A) by amending paragraph (1) to read as fol4 lows:

5 ‘‘(1) The term ‘veterans with employment barriers’

6 shall be defined in regulations that the Secretary shall pre7 scribe.’’; and

8 (B) by striking out paragraph (2) and redesig9 nating paragraphs (3), (4), and (5) as paragraphs

10 (2), (3), and (4), respectively.

11 (2) The table of sections at the beginning of chapter

12 41 is amended by inserting after the item relating to sec13 tion 4108 the following:

‘‘4108A. Priority for employment services and assistance.’’.

14 SEC. 208. MARKETING VETERANS TO EMPLOYERS.

15 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF THE VETERANS’ EMPLOY16 MENT NETWORK.—Chapter 42 of title 38 is amended by

17 adding at the end the following new section:

18 ‘‘§ 4215. Veterans’ Employment Network

19 ‘‘(a) There is established within the Executive

20 Branch an entity to be known as the Veterans’ Employ21 ment Network.

22 ‘‘(b) The purposes of the Veterans’ Employment Net23 work (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Network’) are to—

24 ‘‘(1) raise the awareness of employers of the ad25 vantages of hiring servicemembers who are separat-
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1 ing from active duty and recently separated veter2 ans;

3 ‘‘(2) facilitate the employment of such

4 servicemembers and veterans through national elec5 tronic labor exchanges; and

6 ‘‘(3) foster, and facilitate the coordination of,

7 federal, state and local governmental programs

8 aimed at marketing the employment of such

9 servicemembers and veterans.

10 ‘‘(c)(1) The Network shall be governed by a board

11 of directors consisting of at least twelve but not more than

12 eighteen persons appointed by the President for terms of

13 two years. In selecting members, the President shall be

14 guided by the goal of having on the board high-ranking

15 individuals who represent constituencies that are integral

16 to ensuring the successful employment of increasing num17 bers of servicemembers and veterans. In order to achieve

18 that goal, the President should ensure that the board in19 cludes representatives from the military services, the joint

20 chiefs of staff, major national corporations, national busi21 ness associations, national unions, state public labor ex22 change administrators, and national veterans service orga23 nizations and military associations.
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1 ‘‘(2) The President shall designate a chairperson and

2 vice-chairperson of the board who shall serve in their re3 spective capacities for terms of two years.

4 ‘‘(3) The term of a member of the board who is an

5 officer or employee of the United States shall be deemed

6 to expire, unless the President otherwise directs, when

7 that member ceases to occupy the position that was the

8 basis of the member’s appointment to the board.

9 ‘‘(4) Upon the occurrence of a vacancy on the board,

10 an individual appointed to fill the vacancy shall serve for

11 a term of two years.

12 ‘‘(5) Members of the board may be reappointed for

13 a maximum of two terms beyond their initial term.

14 ‘‘(6) Members of the board shall be allowed reason15 able and necessary travel expenses, including per diem in

16 lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for persons serving

17 intermittently in the Government service in accordance

18 with the provisions of subchapter I of chapter 57 of title

19 5 while away from their homes or regular places of busi20 ness in the performance of the responsibilities of the

21 board.

22 ‘‘(c)(1) The President shall appoint an executive di23 rector of the Network.

24 ‘‘(2) The executive director shall have the authority

25 to provide for the support and staffing of the Network,
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1 including the authority to employ such professional and

2 clerical staff as are necessary for the effective operations

3 of the Network.

4 ‘‘(3) The Network shall have the authority to enter

5 into contracts to obtain services for the design, production,

6 and distribution of marketing materials.

7 ‘‘(d) The Department of Labor shall provide adminis8 trative support services to the Network on a reimbursable

9 basis.

10 ‘‘(e) There is authorized to be appropriated for the

11 purposes of this section, $10 million for fiscal year 2000

12 and such sums as are necessary for each fiscal year there13 after.’’.

14 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections

15 at the beginning of chapter 42 or title 38 is amended by

16 inserting below the item relating to section 4214 the fol17 lowing:

‘‘4215. Veterans’ Employment Network.’’.

18 SEC. 209. VETERANS AND SERVICEMEMBERS ELECTRONIC

19 WEBSITE.

20 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF ELECTRONIC WEBSITE.—

21 (1) Section 1144 of title 10 is amended—

22 (A) by redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as

23 subsections (e) and (f), respectively; and

24 (B) by inserting after subsection (c), the follow25 ing new subsection (d):
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1 ‘‘(d) VETERANS AND SERVICEMEMBERS INTERNET

2 SITE.—(1)(A) The Secretary of Labor shall design, estab3 lish, and maintain on the internet an electronic site, to

4 be known as the Veterans and Servicemembers Internet

5 Site. The Secretary shall carry out the provisions of this

6 subsection in conjunction with, and with the assistance of,

7 the Secretaries of Defense, Transportation, and Veterans

8 Affairs.

9 ‘‘(B) The purpose of the site shall be to provide a

10 convenient and efficient mechanism designed specifically

11 for matching veterans and separating servicemembers with

12 prospective employers.

13 ‘‘(C) In establishing and operating the site, the Sec14 retary of Labor shall (i) make use of the electronic plat15 form of the Department of Labor Internet Personnel Re16 sources site, known as ‘America’s Career Kit’; (ii) take

17 into account the special circumstances of separating

18 servicemembers stationed overseas; (iii) incorporate and

19 update data generated and maintained by the Department

20 of Defense under sections 1143(c) and 1143a(b), (c), and

21 (d); and (iv) carry out the responsibilities of the Secretar22 ies of Defense and Transportation under those sections

23 as in effect on the day before the enactment of the

24 Servicemember and Veterans Transitions Services Im25 provement Act of 1999.
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1 ‘‘(2)(A) The Secretary of Labor shall publicize the

2 site established under this section to employers, associa3 tions of employers, veterans, veteran service organizations,

4 and military associations in order to encourage the use

5 of the site as a means of matching veterans and prospec6 tive employers.

7 ‘‘(B) The Secretary shall provide and coordinate

8 training in the use of the site for employment services pro9 viders and persons serving on active duty.’’.

10 (2) The Secretary of Labor shall establish the site

11 required under the amendment made by paragraph (1)(B)

12 no later than 180 days after the date of the enactment

13 of this Act.

14 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—(1) Section 1143

15 of title 10 is amended by striking out subsection (c) and

16 redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (c).

17 (2) Section 1143a of title 10 is amended by striking

18 out subsections (b) through (f) and redesignating sub19 sections (g) and (h) as subsections (b) and (c), respec20 tively.

21 (3) Section 1148 of title 10 is repealed.

22 SEC. 210. ELIMINATION OF RETIRED PAY REDUCTION FOR

23 FEDERALLY EMPLOYED REGULAR OFFICERS.

24 Section 5532(b) of title 5 is amended—
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1 (1) by striking out ‘‘(b) A’’ and inserting in lieu

2 thereof ‘‘(b)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2),

3 a’’; and

4 (2) by inserting at the end the following new

5 paragraph:

6 ‘‘(2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to an officer who

7 first becomes eligible to begin receiving retired or retainer

8 pay after December 31, 1999.’’.

9 SEC. 211. ELIMINATION OF 180-DAY BAR TO DEFENSE DE10 PARTMENT EMPLOYMENT.

11 Section 3326 of title 5 is repealed.

12 SEC. 212. RELIEF FROM MAXIMUM AGE LIMITS ON HIRING

13 OF FEDERAL FIREFIGHTERS AND LAW EN14 FORCEMENT OFFICERS.

15 Section 3307 of title 5 is amended by adding at the

16 end the following new subsection:

17 ‘‘(f) In the computation of the age of a veteran (as

18 defined in section 101(2) of title 38) under subsection (d)

19 and (e) of this section, the veteran’s date of birth shall

20 be deemed to have occurred later than was actually the

21 case by an amount of time equal to the period that the

22 veteran served on active duty (as defined in section

23 101(21) of title 38).’’.
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1 SEC. 213. LEAVE ACCRUAL FOR FEDERAL EMPLOYEES WHO

2 ARE VIETNAM-ERA VETERANS.

3 Section 6303(a)(3)(B) of title 5 is amended by insert4 ing after ‘‘war’’ the following ‘‘(including the Vietnam era,

5 as defined in section 101(29) of title 38)’’.

6 SEC. 214. EMPLOYMENT OF VETERANS BY CONTRACTORS

7 AND GRANTEES OF THE DEPARTMENTS OF

8 DEFENSE, LABOR, AND VETERANS AFFAIRS.

9 (a) SOLICITATIONS.—Any solicitation issued by the

10 Department of Defense, Labor, or Veterans Affairs for the

11 procurement, by contract or grant, of real or personal

12 property or nonpersonal services (including construction)

13 shall require each offeror—

14 (1) to include, for purposes of the evaluation of

15 past performance, a description of the offeror’s pro16 gram for hiring and promoting qualified eligible vet17 erans; and

18 (2) to include as part of any required sub19 contracting plan an affirmative commitment to hire

20 eligible veterans as a specific percentage of the

21 workforce.

22 (b) SUBCONTRACTING PLANS.—(1) An offeror re23 sponding to a solicitation covered by subsection (a) will

24 earn additional evaluation credit based on the likelihood

25 of meeting the subcontracting goal set forth in the plan

26 referred to in subsection (a)(2).
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1 (2) Proposals that are found not to include an accept2 able subcontracting plan will be rejected.

3 TITLE III—HEALTH CARE

4 SEC. 301. IMPROVED TRANSITION HEALTH CARE FOR RE5 CENTLY SEPARATED SERVICEMEMBERS.

6 (a) IMPROVEMENTS IN COVERAGE AND FEES.—Sec7 tion 1078a of title 10 is amended—

8 (1) in subsection (a), by striking out ‘‘for

9 former’’ and all that follows and inserting in lieu

10 thereof ‘‘for dependents of active-duty members of

11 the armed forces.’’;

12 (2) in subsection (f)(1)—

13 (A) by striking out ‘‘the sum of’’; and

14 (B) by amending clauses (A) and (B) to

15 read as follows:

16 ‘‘(A) for the first 120 days of coverage, an

17 amount equal to 10 percent (for coverage of an

18 individual), or 20 percent (for coverage of self

19 and one or more dependents), of the average

20 total cost to a covered person and the Depart21 ment of Defense for health-care benefits pro22 vided for beneficiaries eligible for continued cov23 erage under subsection (b)(1) and for medical

24 care under section 1079(a) of this title; and
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1 ‘‘(B) for coverage beyond the first 120

2 days, an amount equal to that average total

3 cost plus 2 percent.’’; and

4 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub5 section:

6 ‘‘(h) SECONDARY COVERAGE.—Coverage under this

7 section shall be secondary to any other entitlement or eligi8 bility that the covered individual may have under a private

9 health-care plan or private insurance for the care other10 wise covered under this section.’’.

11 (b) CONVERSION TO IMPROVED POLICIES.—(1) On

12 or after the effective date of the amendments made by this

13 section, a person covered by a continued health-care policy

14 under section 1078a of title 10, United States Code, may

15 cancel that policy and enroll in a plan under that section

16 as amended by this section.

17 (2) The Secretary of Defense shall take action to pro18 vide timely notification to all persons who are eligible for

19 improved benefits under the amendments made by this

20 section.

21 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by

22 this section shall take effect 6 months after the date of

23 the enactment of this Act.
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1 SEC. 302. PROCUREMENT OF MEDICAL ITEMS.

2 (a) UNIFIED PROCUREMENT.—(1) The Secretaries of

3 Defense and Veterans Affairs shall—

4 (A) jointly establish policies for the unified pro5 curement of pharmaceuticals, medical and surgical

6 supplies, and medical equipment for the Depart7 ments of Veterans Affairs and Defense; and

8 (B) enter into a memorandum of understanding

9 for (i) implementing those policies, (ii) establishing

10 in either department an office for such unified pro11 curement, and (iii) providing for the continuing sup12 port, staffing, and administration of that office.

13 (2) Funding for the making of procurements by the

14 office and for the personnel and administrative expenses

15 of the office shall be derived, as provided in the agreement,

16 from (A) the revolving supply fund referred to in section

17 8121(a) of title 38, United States Code, and (B) funds

18 available to the Department of Defense for the procure19 ment of the types of items described in paragraph (1) and

20 the costs of making such procurements.

21 (b) The Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs

22 shall complete the actions required by this section no later

23 than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act.

24 SEC. 303. JOINT FORMULARY.

25 (a) REQUIREMENT FOR JOINT FORMULARY.—The

26 Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs shall develop
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1 and maintain a clinically-based formulary for use by both

2 of their respective departments.

3 (b) PROCESS FOR SELECTING ITEMS.—The decisions

4 as to which medications to include in the formulary shall

5 be made after recommendations are made by a committee

6 of physicians, pharmacists, and other appropriate health7 care professionals selected by the Under Secretary for

8 Health of the Department of Veterans Affairs and the As9 sistant Secretary for Health Affairs of the Department of

10 Defense. Decisions regarding the inclusion of items in the

11 formulary shall not be subject to review in any court.

12 (c) EXCEPTION FROM REQUIREMENT FOR COMPETI13 TION.—The Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs

14 may, at their sole discretion, procure items listed on the

15 formulary without seeking competition.

16 (d) DEFINITION.—For the purposes of this section,

17 the term ‘‘formulary’’ means a list of prescription medica18 tions that is periodically updated and reflects the clinical

19 judgment of health-care providers and experts in the diag20 nosis and treatment of disease as to which medications

21 are necessary and appropriate to have available in a

22 health-care system.

23 (e) DEADLINE.—The Secretaries shall establish the

24 formulary required by this section no later than one year

25 after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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1 SEC. 304. UNIFORM PRODUCT NUMBERS FOR MEDICAL AND

2 SURGICAL SUPPLIES.

3 (a) REQUIREMENT FOR UNIVERSAL PRODUCT NUM4 BERS.—Beginning one year after the date of the enact5 ment of this Act, no medical or surgical product may be

6 procured for the use of the Department of Defense or Vet7 erans Affairs in either department’s health-care system

8 unless the product bears a universal product number or

9 an exception for the procurement has been made pursuant

10 to the regulations prescribed under subsection (b).

11 (b) REGULATIONS.—As soon as possible after the en12 actment of this Act, the Secretaries of Defense and Veter13 ans Affairs shall jointly prescribe regulations for the im14 plementation of this section. The regulations may allow

15 for the procurement of a medical or surgical product not

16 bearing a universal product number only where an excep17 tion is required by considerations of health and safety.

18 (c) DEFINITION.—For the purposes of this section,

19 the term ‘‘universal product number’’ means a number

20 that—

21 (1) is affixed by the manufacturer to each indi22 vidual item;

23 (2) uniquely identifies that item at each pack24 aging level, including packaging for individual use;

25 and
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1 (3) is based on commercially acceptable identi2 fication standards established by the Uniform Code

3 Council—International Article Numbering system

4 and by the Health Industry Business Communica5 tion Council.

6 SEC. 305. COMPATIBLE COMPUTER SYSTEMS.

7 (a) HEALTH INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYS8 TEMS.—(1) The Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Af9 fairs shall jointly—

10 (A) offer a single solicitation for the replace11 ment of the existing legacy medical information

12 management systems (known as the ‘‘Composition

13 Health Care System’’ in the Department of Defense

14 and ‘‘VistA’’ in the Department of Veterans Affairs)

15 with integrated and interoperable systems able to

16 meet the needs of the health-care systems of both

17 departments; and

18 (B) develop policies to ensure that—

19 (i) all procurements of items that enhance

20 or replace part or all of the health information

21 management system of either the Department

22 of Defense or the Department of Veterans Af23 fairs are jointly planned and carried out and

24 make use of commercially available technology;

25 and
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1 (ii) the departments jointly develop and

2 implement a common set of technical and data

3 standards that will make possible the direct, ef4 ficient, and reliable exchange of data between

5 the health information management systems of

6 the departments.

7 (2) For the purposes of this subsection, the term

8 ‘‘health information management system’’ means an auto9 mated information technology system, including both

10 hardware and software, that stores data and produces in11 formation for use in, or relevant to, health-care services

12 and patient records, health-care quality assurance, health13 care costing, pricing, and billing systems, and health-care

14 management decisions.

15 (b) COST-ACCOUNTING SYSTEMS.—The Secretaries

16 of Defense and Veterans Affairs shall—

17 (1) take immediate action to ensure that data

18 from their departments’ health-care cost accounting

19 systems are comparable and compatible; and

20 (2) ensure that future cost-accounting data of

21 the two departments are always comparable and

22 compatible.

23 SEC. 306. MEDICAL RESEARCH.

24 (a) PUBLIC AWARENESS.—The Secretaries of De25 fense and Veterans Affairs shall undertake a program of
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1 public education designed to ensure public awareness of

2 the benefits of the health-care research that their depart3 ments conduct. In carrying out the program, the Secretar4 ies may use paid advertising.

5 (b) FINANCIAL RETURN.—The Secretaries of De6 fense and Veterans Affairs shall establish policies designed

7 to ensure that their departments receive a financial return

8 on the department’s health-care research programs. These

9 policies shall include, but not be limited to, appropriate

10 use of the authorities to share medical resources, enter

11 into cooperative research and development agreements

12 under the Federal Technology Transfer Act, and the au13 thority to obtain and benefit from patents and copyrights.

14 SEC. 307. PILOT PROGRAM FOR FURNISHING VETERANS

15 FEE-BASIS CARE UNDER TRICARE CON16 TRACTS.

17 (a) REQUIREMENT FOR PILOT PROGRAM.—The Sec18 retaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs shall enter into

19 an agreement for the conduct of a pilot program under

20 which hospital care and medical services authorized to be

21 furnished by contract under section 1703 of title 38,

22 United States Code, is furnished by contractors under con23 tracts entered into under section 1097 of title 10, United

24 States Code. The Department of Veterans Affairs shall re25 imburse the Department of Defense for care furnished
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1 under the pilot program at rates provided for in the agree2 ment.

3 (b) SCOPE.—The pilot program shall be conducted

4 during fiscal years 2000 and 2001 and shall be of such

5 scope and duration as will provide a basis for determining

6 whether the method of furnishing care under the program

7 can improve veterans’ access to care and reduce the costs

8 of care to the Department of Veterans Affairs without di9 minishing quality of care.

10 (c) REPORT.—Not later than December 31, 2000, the

11 Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs shall submit

12 to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and

13 the House of Representatives, the Committee on Armed

14 Services of the Senate, and the Committee on National

15 Security of the House of Representatives a report on the

16 experience under the pilot program. The Secretaries shall

17 include in the report their findings and any recommenda18 tions they may have for legislation based on the experience

19 under the pilot program.

20 SEC. 308. REVIEWS OF GRADUATE MEDICAL EDUCATION

21 PROGRAMS.

22 (a) REVIEW OF GRADUATE MEDICAL EDUCATION

23 PROGRAMS; REPORT.—(1) The Secretary of Defense, the

24 Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Sec25 retary of Veterans Affairs shall jointly conduct a review
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1 of the various forms of federal support provided to teach2 ing hospitals and medical schools, including the following:

3 (A) Payments under section 1886(h) of the So4 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(h)) (direct

5 graduate medical education payments).

6 (B) Adjustments to Medicare payments under

7 section 1886(d)(5)(B) of that Act (42 U.S.C.

8 1395ww(d)(5)(B)) (indirect medical education ad9 justments).

10 (C) The graduate medical education programs

11 of the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs.

12 (2) Not later than August 31, 2000, the Secretaries

13 shall submit to the appropriate Committees of the Con14 gress a report on that review, including—

15 (A) the Secretaries’ views on whether, based on

16 the review, there are opportunities for greater co17 ordination and efficiency in the provision of federal

18 support of teaching hospitals and medical schools;

19 (B) any plans that the Secretaries have for

20 achieving the benefits of such opportunities; and

21 (C) any recommendations that the Secretaries

22 have for legislation.

23 (b) REVIEW OF DOD/VA COLLABORATION; RE24 PORT.—(1) The Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Af25 fairs shall jointly conduct a review of the extent and na-
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1 ture of the collaboration between the graduate medical

2 education programs of their departments and take any ac3 tions necessary to achieve the benefits of opportunities

4 that they find for greater collaboration.

5 (2) Not later than August 31, 2000, the Secretaries

6 shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of

7 the Senate and the House of Representatives, the Commit8 tee on Armed Services of the Senate, and the Committee

9 on National Security of the House of Representatives, a

10 report on that review, including—

11 (A) the Secretaries views on whether, based on

12 the review, there are greater opportunities for col13 laboration between the departments’ programs;

14 (B) the Secretaries plans for achieving the ben15 efits of those opportunities; and

16 (C) any recommendations that the Secretaries

17 have for legislation.

18 SEC. 309. SERVICES FOR HOMELESS VETERANS.

19 (a) VA’S GRANT AND PER DIEM PROGRAM.—The

20 Homeless Veterans Comprehensive Service Programs Act

21 of 1992 (Public Law 102–590) is amended—

22 (1) in section 3(a), by striking out ‘‘to furnish’’

23 and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘and expanding existing

24 programs for furnishing’’;
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1 (2) in subsection (b) of section 4, by adding at

2 the end the following new sentence: ‘‘The value of

3 in-kind goods and services provided by the grant re4 cipient shall nevertheless be included in the measure5 ment of that cost even where they entail no cost to

6 the grant recipient.’’; and

7 (3) by amending the first sentence in section 12

8 to read as follows: ‘‘There is authorized to be appro9 priated to carry out sections 3 and 4 of this Act $50

10 million for fiscal year 2000.’’.

11 (b) FUNDING FOR COMMUNITY-BASED RESIDENTIAL

12 TREATMENT.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall di13 rect that a significant portion of the savings achieved by

14 the Veterans Health Administration through the closure

15 of acute care beds is redirected to the furnishing of com16 munity-based residential treatment of homeless veterans.

17 (c) UTILIZATION OF ENHANCED-USE LEASES.—The

18 Secretary of Veterans Affairs is urged to utilize the au19 thority under subchapter V of chapter 81 of title 38,

20 United States Code, to enter into enhanced-use leases in

21 order to provide support for community-based residential

22 care for homeless veterans.

23 (d) HOMELESS VETERANS REINTEGRATION

24 PROJECT.—The Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assist25 ance Act is amended—
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1 (1) in section 738(e)(1) (42 U.S.C.

2 11448(e)(1)), by adding at the end the following

3 new subparagraphs:

4 ‘‘(H) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2000.

5 ‘‘(I) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2001.’’;

6 and

7 (2) in section 741 (42 U.S.C. 11450), by strik8 ing out ‘‘December 31, 1999’’ and inserting in lieu

9 thereof ‘‘December 31, 2001’’.

10 TITLE IV—ECONOMIC EQUITY

11 PART A—HOME LOAN GUARANTY PROGRAM

12 SEC. 401. LIMITATION ON BASIC ENTITLEMENT.

13 (a) PROSPECTIVE LIMITATION TO ONE-TIME USE.—

14 Section 3703(a)(1) of title 38 is amended by striking out

15 subparagraph (B) and inserting in lieu thereof:

16 ‘‘(B) The maximum amount of guaranty entitlement

17 available to a veteran for purposes specified in section

18 3710 shall be $36,000 or, in the case of a loan described

19 in subparagraph (A)(i)(IV) of this paragraph, $50,750.

20 ‘‘(C)(i) With respect to a veteran who first entered

21 active duty on or before the date of the enactment of the

22 Servicemembers and Veterans Transition Services Im23 provement Act of 1999, or, in the case of a veteran de24 scribed in section 3701(b)(5)(A), first entered the Selected

25 Reserve on or before that date, the amount of guaranty
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1 entitlement specified in subparagraph (B) shall be reduced

2 by the amount of entitlement previously used by the vet3 eran under this chapter and not restored as a result of

4 the exclusion in section 3702(b).

5 ‘‘(ii) Except as provided in clause (iii), a veteran who

6 first entered active duty after the date specified in clause

7 (i) and a veteran described in section 3701(b)(5)(A) who

8 first entered the Selected Reserve after that date, shall

9 be entitled to have only one loan guaranteed, insured, or

10 made under this chapter.

11 ‘‘(iii) Nothing in clause (ii) shall preclude a veteran

12 who has obtained a loan guaranteed, insured, or made

13 under this chapter from refinancing that loan with a loan

14 guaranteed under section 3710(a)(8).’’.

15 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 3702(b) of

16 title 38 is amended by striking out in the matter preceding

17 paragraph (1) ‘‘to a veteran under this chapter’’ and in18 serting in lieu thereof ‘‘under this chapter to a veteran

19 described in section 3703(a)(1)(C)(i)’’.

20 SEC. 402. LOAN GUARANTY ELIGIBILITY FOR RESERVISTS.

21 (a) PERMANENT PROGRAM.—Section 3702(a)(2)(E)

22 of title 38 is amended by striking out ‘‘For the period be23 ginning on October 28, 1992, and ending on October 7,

24 1999, each’’ and inserting in lieu thereof, ‘‘Each’’.
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1 (b) CERTIFICATES OF ELIGIBILITY.—Section

2 3701(b)(5) is amended by inserting after subparagraph

3 (B) the following new subparagraph:

4 ‘‘(C)(i) The Secretary of Defense, in consulta5 tion with the Secretary, shall develop a uniform cer6 tificate for use by all reserve components to certify

7 that a member or former member of the Selected

8 Reserve has fulfilled the service requirements de9 scribed in subparagraph (A).

10 ‘‘(ii) The Secretary of Defense shall implement,

11 not later than one year after the date of the enact12 ment of the Servicemembers and Veterans Transi13 tion Assistance Improvement Act of 1999, a system

14 designed to ensure that the certificate is issued to

15 each eligible person who serves in the Selected Re16 serve on or after the system is implemented. The

17 certificate shall be issued as soon as possible after

18 the eligible person has fulfilled the service require19 ments described in subparagraph (A).

20 ‘‘(iii) The Secretary of Defense shall, upon re21 quest, issue the certificate to any other eligible mem22 ber or former member of the Selected Reserve.’’.
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1 SEC. 403. PROSPECTIVE ELIMINATION OF LOAN FEE.

2 (a) EXEMPTION FOR NEW SERVICEMEMBERS.—

3 Paragraph (1) of section 3729(c) is amended to read as

4 follows:

5 ‘‘(c)(1) A fee may not be collected under this sub6 section from—

7 ‘(A) a veteran who is receiving compensation

8 (or who but for the receipt of retirement pay would

9 be entitled to receive compensation);

10 ‘‘(B) a surviving spouse of any veteran (includ11 ing a person who died in the active military, naval,

12 or air service) who died from a service-connected dis13 ability;

14 ‘‘(C) a veteran who first entered active duty

15 after the date of the enactment of the

16 Servicemembers and Veterans Transition Services

17 Improvement Act of 1999; or

18 ‘‘(D) a veteran described in section

19 3701(b)(5)(A) who first entered the Selected Re20 serve after that date.’’.

21 SEC. 404. PILOT PROGRAM OF REVISED PROCEDURES IN

22 DEFAULT CASES.

23 (a) PAYMENT OF GUARANTY.—Section 3732 of title

24 38 is amended by inserting at the end the following new

25 subsection—
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1 ‘‘(d)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this

2 section, the Secretary shall conduct in selected test sites

3 a pilot program of revised procedures in cases of defaults.

4 Under the pilot program, loan holders are not permitted

5 to convey to the United States, and the Secretary may

6 not accept conveyance of, the property that secured a loan

7 guaranteed under this chapter.

8 ‘‘(2)(A) For the purposes of this subsection, the term

9 ‘test site’ shall mean a geographic area known as a Service

10 Delivery Network of the Veterans Benefits Administration

11 that the Secretary designates for the conduct of the pilot

12 program.

13 ‘‘(B) Not later than 90 days after the date of the

14 enactment of the Servicemembers and Veterans Transition

15 Services Improvement Act of 1999, the Secretary shall

16 publish in the Federal Register, without any requirement

17 for prior notice and comment, a notice designating one

18 or more test sites and describing the geographic areas cov19 ered by the Service Delivery Networks involved.

20 ‘‘(3) Either simultaneously with the publication of the

21 notice described in paragraph (2)(B) or thereafter, the

22 Secretary shall publish proposed rules for notice and com23 ment regarding the procedures for liquidating loans and

24 paying guaranty claims under the pilot program. The reg25 ulations may include a modified definition of ‘net value’
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1 that recognizes that the holder will have the responsibility

2 for disposing of the property.

3 ‘‘(4) The pilot program will apply to all loans closed

4 in the test site or sites beginning on the first day of the

5 first month that begins more than 60 days after the date

6 of the publication of the final version of the regulations

7 described in paragraph (3).

8 ‘‘(5) The pilot program shall run for 5 years from

9 the first day of the month described in paragraph (4).

10 ‘‘(6) Not later than the end of the fourth year of the

11 pilot program, the Secretary shall submit to the Commit12 tees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the House of

13 Representative a report on the experience under the pro14 gram. The report shall include—

15 ‘‘(A) information regarding—

16 ‘‘(i) the impact of the program on the

17 availability of home-loan financing to veterans;

18 ‘‘(ii) the extent to which following the pro19 cedures of the program may reduce the person20 nel requirements of the loan guaranty program

21 under this chapter; and

22 ‘‘(iii) the extent to which following the pro23 cedures of the program may increase or de24 crease the costs to the United States of the

25 loan guaranty program; and
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1 ‘‘(B) any recommendations that the Secretary

2 has for legislative action.’’.

3 PART B—OTHER PROGRAMS

4 SEC. 411. PARTICIPATION IN FEDERAL EMPLOYEES’

5 THRIFT SAVINGS PLAN.

6 (a) GENERAL.—Subchapter III of chapter 84 of title

7 5 is amended by adding at the end the following new sec8 tion:

9 ‘‘§ 8440e. Members of the Armed Forces

10 ‘‘(a)(1) A member of the armed forces serving on ac11 tive duty may elect to contribute to the Thrift Savings

12 Plan.

13 ‘‘(2) An election may be made under paragraph (1)

14 only during a period provided under section 8432(b) for

15 individuals subject to chapter 84.

16 ‘‘(b)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this sub17 section, the provisions of this subchapter and subchapter

18 VII shall apply with respect to a member of the armed

19 forces making contributions to the Thrift Savings Fund.

20 ‘‘(2) A member of the Armed Forces may not contrib21 ute more than 5 percent of the member’s basic pay but

22 may contribute any part or all the member’s reenlistment

23 bonus.

24 ‘‘(3) No contributions may be made for the benefit

25 of the member under section 8432.
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1 ‘‘(4) The transfer of a member from one branch of

2 the armed forces to another, without a break in service

3 of more than 30 days, shall not be considered to be a sepa4 ration from service that entitles the member to a with5 drawal of the member’s account under the Thrift Savings

6 Plan.

7 ‘‘(c) The Executive Director, after consultation with

8 the Secretary of Defense, may prescribe regulations to

9 carry out this section.

10 ‘‘(d) For the purposes of this section, the terms ‘ac11 tive duty’ and ‘armed forces’ have the meanings provided

12 in subsections (d)(1) and (a)(4) of section 101 of title

13 10.’’.

14 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections

15 at the beginning of chapter 84 of title 5 is amended by

16 inserting after the reference to section 8440d the follow17 ing:

‘‘8440e. Members of the Armed Forces.’’.

18 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect

19 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.

20 SEC. 412. ENHANCEMENT OF ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY

21 THROUGH ENTREPRENEURSHIP.

22 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE OF VETERANS

23 BUSINESS ASSISTANCE.—Part V of title 38 is amended

24 by adding at the end the following new chapter:
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1 ‘‘CHAPTER 79—OFFICE OF VETERANS

2 BUSINESS ASSISTANCE

‘‘Sec.

‘‘7901. Organization of the Office.

‘‘7902. Functions of the Office.

3 ‘‘§ 7901. Organization of the Office

4 ‘‘(a) There shall be established in the Office of the

5 Secretary an Office of Veterans Business Assistance. The

6 primary function of the Office of Veterans Business As7 sistance shall be to carry out a program of comprehensive

8 business assistance to veterans.

9 ‘‘(b) The Secretary shall—

10 ‘‘(1) appoint a Director of the Office of Veter11 ans Business Assistance; and

12 ‘‘(2) shall assign to that office such personnel,

13 and allocate to that office such resources, as are

14 necessary for the office to carry out its responsibil15 ities under this chapter.

16 ‘‘§ 7902. Functions of the Office

17 ‘‘(a) The Office of Veterans Business Assistance shall

18 administer a program that makes available to veterans:

19 ‘‘(1) access to information regarding (A) the

20 services and assistance available to veterans who

21 wish to operate small businesses, and (B) other sub22 jects of use to such veterans;

23 ‘‘(2) assistance in gaining access to capital;

24 ‘‘(3) management assistance; and
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1 ‘‘(4) assistance in gaining access to markets for

2 their products or services.

3 ‘‘(b) In carrying out the programs under subsection

4 (a), the Office of Veterans Business Assistance shall:

5 ‘‘(1) create and maintain an information clear6 inghouse through an electronic site on the internet

7 that displays information regarding Federal, State,

8 local, and private sector programs of assistance to

9 veterans and others, the offices where detailed such

10 information can be obtained, and a description of

11 those programs;

12 ‘‘(2) in cooperation with the Department of De13 fense, provide servicemembers and veterans, through

14 a site on the internet or correspondence study, self15 directed business education programs whereby

16 servicemembers and veterans can earn college credit

17 in the fields of business fundamentals, accounting,

18 marketing, and other subjects appropriate for opera19 tors of new small businesses;

20 ‘‘(3) consult with the Small Business Adminis21 tration in order to assist the Administration to ex22 pand and adapt its internet-based database contain23 ing information on small businesses wishing to do

24 business with the Federal government (known as

25 ‘‘PRO-NET’’) so as to enable veterans to have infor-
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1 mation regarding their businesses, along with their

2 veteran and disability status, included in the data3 base.’’.

4 (b) LOANS FOR VETERANS’ SMALL BUSINESSES.—

5 (1) Section 631 of title 15 is amended by adding at the

6 end the following new subsections:

7 ‘‘(o) ‘Veterans’ small business concern’ defined—

8 ‘‘(1) For the purposes of this chapter, the term

9 ‘veterans’ small business concern’ means a small

10 business concern—

11 ‘‘(A) of which at least 51 percent is owned

12 by one or more veterans, or in the case of a

13 publicly-owned business, at least 51 percent of

14 the stock of which is owned by one or more vet15 erans; and

16 ‘‘(B) whose management and daily busi17 ness operation are controlled by veterans.

18 ‘‘(2) For the purposes of this subsection, the

19 term ‘veteran’ has the meaning provided in section

20 101(2) of title 38.

21 ‘‘(p) Disabled veterans’ small business concern

22 defined—

23 ‘‘(1) For the purposes of this chapter, the term

24 ‘disabled veterans’ small business concern’ means a

25 small business concern—
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1 ‘‘(A) of which at least 51 percent is owned

2 by one or more veterans who have service-con3 nected disabilities rated as 50 percent or more

4 disabling for purposes of chapter 11 of title 38,

5 or in the case of a publicly-owned business, at

6 least 51 percent of the stock of which is owned

7 by one or more such veterans; and

8 ‘‘(B) the management and daily business

9 operations of which are controlled by such vet10 erans.

11 ‘‘(2) For the purposes of this subsection—

12 ‘‘(A) the term ‘veteran’ has the meaning

13 provided in section 101(2) of title 38; and

14 ‘‘(B) the term ‘service-connected’ has the

15 meaning provided in section 101(16) of title

16 38.’’.

17 (2) Section 636(a) of title 15 is amended—

18 (A) in the first sentence by inserting ‘‘veterans’

19 small business concerns and disabled veterans’ small

20 business concerns’’ after ‘‘tribes,’’; and

21 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting at the end

22 the following new subparagraph:

23 ‘‘(D) Loans to veterans’ small business concerns.—

24 The target for the total amount of loans to veterans’ small

25 business concerns under this subsection shall be $10 mil-
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1 lion per fiscal year. The making of such loans shall be

2 given weight by Federal financial supervisory agencies in

3 determining whether the lender is meeting the credit needs

4 of its entire community for purposes of the Community

5 Reinvestment Act of 1977 (chapter 30 of title 12, United

6 States Code).’’.

7 (c) FEDERAL SUBCONTRACTS.—Section 637(a)(4) of

8 title 15 is amended—

9 (1) in clause (i) of subparagraph (A), by strik10 ing out ‘‘or’’ after ‘‘tribe),’’ and by inserting ‘‘or

11 (IV) a disabled veterans’ small business concern,’’

12 after ‘‘organization,’’;

13 (2) in clause (ii) of subparagraph (A), by strik14 ing out ‘‘or’’ after ‘‘tribe),’’ and by inserting a

15 comma and ‘‘or (IV) a disabled veterans’ small busi16 ness concern’’ before the period at the end; and

17 (3) in subparagraph (B), by striking out ‘‘or’’

18 after ‘‘subparagraph (A)(ii)(II),’’ and by inserting a

19 comma and ‘‘or (iv) a disabled veterans’ small busi20 ness concern’’ before the period at the end.

21 (d) GOALS FOR VETERANS’ BUSINESSES IN FED22 ERAL PROCUREMENTS.—Section 644(g)(1) of title 15 is

23 amended—

24 (1) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘veterans’

25 small business concerns and disabled veterans’ small
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1 business concerns’’ after ‘‘disadvantaged individ2 uals’’; and

3 (2) by adding at the end the following new sen4 tences: ‘‘The goals for the Departments of Defense,

5 Labor, and Veterans Affairs for participation by vet6 erans’ small business concerns shall be established

7 at not less than X percent of the total value of all

8 prime contract and subcontract awards for each de9 partment for each year and, for participation by dis10 abled veterans’ small business concerns, not less

11 than Y percent of all prime contract and subcontract

12 awards for each fiscal year.’’.

13 (e) OUTREACH ON FEDERAL PROCUREMENT OPPOR14 TUNITIES.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the Sec15 retary of Labor, and the Administrator of the Small Busi16 ness Administration shall jointly develop and submit to the

17 President a program of comprehensive outreach to assist

18 veteran entrepreneurs. The program shall include informa19 tion on procurement opportunities within Federal depart20 ments and agencies. Following receipt of the proposed pro21 gram, the President shall direct that such a program be

22 conducted through the Offices of Small and Disadvan23 taged Business Utilization in the departments and agen24 cies.
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1 SEC. 413. TERMINATION OF THE PERSIAN GULF WAR PE2 RIOD FOR PURPOSES OF VETERANS’ BENE3 FITS.

4 (a) TERMINATION DATE.—Paragraph (33) of section

5 101 of title 38 is amended by striking out ‘‘the date’’ and

6 all that follows and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘February 28,

7 1993.’’.

8 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by

9 subsection (a) shall take effect on the date of the enact10 ment of this Act and shall not apply only to benefits and

11 services for which an application was submitted before

12 that date.

13 TITLE V—ORGANIZATIONAL

14 STRUCTURE

15 SEC. 501. JOINT HEALTH-CARE POLICY STAFF.

16 (a) JOINT STAFF.—The Under Secretary for Health

17 of the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Assistant

18 Secretary for Health Affairs of the Department of Defense

19 shall establish a unified, joint policy staff that will have

20 responsibility for (1) identifying opportunities to increase

21 joint, cooperative, and coordinated operations in the

22 health-care systems of the departments and the sharing

23 of health-care resources by the two departments, and (2)

24 initiating, facilitating, and monitoring efforts to take ad25 vantage of those opportunities.
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1 (b) PRINCIPLES.—The joint staff shall be guided by

2 the following principles:

3 (1) The departments should promote the en4 hancement of military medical readiness.

5 (2) The departments should provide access to

6 high quality health care in the most cost-effective

7 manner possible.

8 (3) the departments must focus on the needs of

9 their beneficiaries rather than their systems and tra10 ditional political concerns.

11 (4) The departments should seek to maximize

12 the number of beneficiaries served within available

13 resources.

14 (5) The departments should provide their bene15 ficiaries with choices of health-care options and pro16 viders.

17 (6) The departments should incorporate infor18 mation technology and managerial cost accounting

19 systems as major enablers of a greater partnership

20 between the departments.

21 SEC. 502. CARE FOR DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE AND DE22 PARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS BENE23 FICIARIES AT OTHER SYSTEM’S FACILITIES.

24 (a) BENEFICIARIES’ ELIGIBILITY.—Any person who

25 is an eligible health-care beneficiary of either the Depart-
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1 ment of Veterans Affairs or the Department of Defense

2 shall, in accordance with policies and procedures adopted

3 under subsection (b), be eligible to receive from the other

4 department the same kinds of health-care services that the

5 beneficiary is eligible to receive from the department of

6 which that person is a primary beneficiary.

7 (b) JOINT POLICIES.—The Secretaries of Defense

8 and Veterans Affairs shall jointly establish policies and

9 procedures for their respective departments to furnish

10 health care to the eligible health-care beneficiaries of the

11 other department. Those policies and procedures shall—

12 (1) provide for protections against the denial or

13 delay of services from a department to its primary

14 beneficiaries as the result of furnishing care to the

15 beneficiaries of the other department;

16 (2) include such limitations on the furnishing of

17 care by a department to persons who are not the

18 primary beneficiaries of that department as are nec19 essary to protect against overcrowding at the depart20 ment’s facilities;

21 (3) provide for rates of reimbursement for the

22 care provided by a department to persons who are

23 the primary beneficiaries of the other department;

24 and
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1 (4) establish such other conditions for the fur2 nishing of health-care by a department to persons

3 who are not that department’s primary beneficiaries

4 as are necessary to provide for the orderly and effi5 cient furnishing of care by that department.

6 (c) SPECIAL AUTHORITIES.—The Secretaries of De7 fense and Veterans Affairs shall, in the interest of effi8 ciency in the administration of health-care services, have

9 the authority to include in the policies and procedures

10 adopted under subsection (b) authorities—

11 (1) to waive copayments and deductibles and

12 limitations on the kinds of services for which a bene13 ficiary may be eligible; and

14 (2) to leave in place or jointly modify or revoke

15 sharing agreements under section 1104 of title 10

16 and section 8111 of title 38, United States Code.

17 (d) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this

18 section—

19 (1) the term ‘‘eligible health-care beneficiary’’

20 means a person who has eligibility to receive health21 care from the Department of Veterans Affairs under

22 title 38, United States Code (other than under sec23 tion 1711(b)) of that title) or from the Department

24 of Defense under chapter 55 of title 10, United

25 States Code; and
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1 (2) the term ‘‘primary beneficiary’’ means, in

2 the case of the Department of Veterans Affairs, an

3 eligible health-care beneficiary who has eligibility

4 under such title 38 and, in the case of the Depart5 ment of Defense, an eligible health-care beneficiary

6 who has eligibility under such chapter 55.

7 SEC. 503. STUDY OF INFRASTRUCTURE REALIGNMENT.

8 (a) REQUIREMENT FOR STUDY.—The Secretaries of

9 Defense and Veterans Affairs shall jointly enter into an

10 agreement with an independent entity for the study of the

11 physical infrastructure, the organizational structures, and

12 the operations of the health-care systems of the Depart13 ments of Defense and Veterans Affairs.

14 (b) PURPOSES OF STUDY.—(1) The purposes of the

15 study required by subsection (a) shall be—

16 (A) to examine the opportunities for joint oper17 ations, including the joint operation of medical facili18 ties, of the health-care systems of the Departments

19 of Defense and Veterans Affairs; and

20 (B) determine the most effective process by

21 which joint operations that would contribute to the

22 most cost-effective furnishing of quality health-care

23 services in response to demands of the beneficiaries

24 of the two system could be achieved.
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1 (2) In making the determination required by para2 graph (1)(B), the entity conducting the study shall con3 sider, among other options, the advisability of

4 legislation—

5 (A) establishing a commission that would (i)

6 obtain recommendations from the two departments,

7 (ii) take into account the medical needs that would

8 result from a worst-case wartime scenario, and (iii)

9 formulate its own recommendations for best con10 forming the operations and physical infrastructure

11 of the departments to the demand for care from the

12 eligible beneficiaries of the two departments; and

13 (B) providing for the President either to reject

14 the commission’s recommendations or to forward

15 them without amendment to Congress for consider16 ation under a process whereby Congress, under pro17 cedures for expedited consideration, could either re18 ject the recommendations or enact them into law

19 without amendment.

20 (c) REPORT.—(1) The agreement under subsection

21 (a) shall require the entity conducting the study to submit

22 to the Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs, not

23 later than one year after the date of the enactment of this

24 Act, a report containing the entity’s findings and rec25 ommendations
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1 (2) Not later than 90 days after receiving the report,

2 the Secretaries shall jointly submit to the Committees on

3 Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the House of Rep4 resentatives, the Committee on Armed Services of the Sen5 ate and the Committee on National Security of the House

6 of Representatives copies of the report, together with the

7 comments and recommendations of the Secretaries.

8 (d) FUNDING.—The Secretaries of Defense and Vet9 erans Affairs shall share the costs of the study evenly, uti10 lizing funds appropriated to their respective departments

11 for the furnishing of health care.

12 SEC. 504. CONGRUENT GEOGRAPHIC ADMINISTRATIVE

13 STRUCTURES.

14 The Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs

15 shall—

16 (1) conduct a review of the geographic bound17 aries of the administrative structures of the field op18 erations of the Departments of Defense and Veter19 ans Affairs health-care systems (known as Regions

20 in the Department of Defense and Veterans Inte21 grated Service Networks in the Department of Vet22 erans); and

23 (2) take action to make those boundaries con24 gruent except where doing so would interfere with
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1 the efficient furnishing of quality health-care serv2 ices.

3 SEC. 505. UTILIZATION OF VA MEDICAL FACILITIES AS

4 TRICARE PROVIDERS.

5 The Secretary of Defense, at the time of the award

6 or extension of contracts under section 1097 of title 10,

7 United States Code (known as TRICARE contracts), shall

8 recognize as military treatment facility equivalents in the

9 geographic areas covered by those contracts Department

10 of Veterans Affairs health-care facilities that (1) agree to

11 furnish health-care services to Department of Defense

12 beneficiaries in those areas at or below the prices that non13 government facilities would charge; (2) are capable of fur14 nishing care of acceptable quality; and (3) certify that they

15 are able to furnish those services without detriment to the

16 furnishing of care to veterans.

Æ