II 

Calendar No. 258 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 944 

[Report No. 113–123] 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to require courses of education 

provided by public institutions of higher education that are approved 

for purposes of the All-Volunteer Force Educational Assistance Program 

and Post-9/11 Educational Assistance to charge veterans tuition and 

fees at the in-State tuition rate, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 14, 2013 

Mr. SANDERS (for himself and Mr. BURR) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

DECEMBER 9, 2013 

Reported by Mr. SANDERS, with an amendment and an amendment to the 

title 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to require courses 

of education provided by public institutions of higher 

education that are approved for purposes of the AllVolunteer Force Educational Assistance Program and 

Post-9/11 Educational Assistance to charge veterans tuiVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 944 RS

tion and fees at the in-State tuition rate, 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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Putting Our Veterans 

5 Back to Work Act of 2013’’. 

6 SEC. 2. APPROVAL OF COURSES OF EDUCATION PROVIDED 

7 BY PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDU8 CATION FOR PURPOSES OF ALL-VOLUNTEER 

9 FORCE EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE PRO10 GRAM AND POST-9/11 EDUCATIONAL ASSIST11 ANCE CONDITIONAL ON IN-STATE TUITION 

12 RATE FOR VETERANS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3679 of title 38, United 

14 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol15 lowing new subsection: 

16 ‘‘(c)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this 

17 chapter and subject to paragraphs (3) through (5), the 

18 Secretary shall disapprove a course of education provided 

19 by a public institution of higher education to a covered 

20 individual pursuing a course of education with educational 

21 assistance under chapter 30 or 33 of this title while living 

22 in the State in which the public institution of higher edu23 cation is located if the institution charges tuition and fees 

24 for that course for the covered individual at a rate that 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 944 RS

1 is higher than the rate the institution charges for tuition 

2 and fees for that course for residents of the State in which 

3 the institution is located, regardless of the covered individ4 ual’s State of residence. 

5 ‘‘(2) For purposes of this subsection, a covered indi6 vidual is any individual as follows: 

7 ‘‘(A) A veteran who was discharged or released 

8 from a period of not fewer than 180 days of service 

9 in the active military, naval, or air service less than 

10 two years before the date of enrollment in the course 

11 concerned. 

12 ‘‘(B) An individual who is entitled to assistance 

13 under section 3311(b)(9) or 3319 of this title by vir14 tue of such individual’s relationship to a veteran de15 scribed in subparagraph (A). 

16 ‘‘(3) It shall not be grounds to disapprove a course 

17 of education under paragraph (1) if a public institution 

18 of higher education requires a covered individual pursuing 

19 a course of education at the institution to demonstrate an 

20 intent to establish residency in the State in which the in21 stitution is located in order to be charged tuition and fees 

22 for that course at a rate that is equal to or less than the 

23 rate the institution charges for tuition and fees for that 

24 course for residents of the State. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(4) The Secretary may waive such requirements of 

2 paragraph (1) as the Secretary considers appropriate. 

3 ‘‘(5) Disapproval under paragraph (1) shall apply 

4 only with respect to educational assistance under chapters 

5 30 and 33 of this title.’’. 

6 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Subsection (c) of section 

7 3679 of title 38, United States Code (as added by sub8 section (a) of this section) shall apply with respect to edu9 cational assistance provided for pursuit of programs of 

10 education during academic terms that begin after July 1, 

11 2015. 

12 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

13 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Vet14 erans Health and Benefits Improvement Act of 2013’’. 

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

16 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

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

TITLE I—SURVIVOR AND DEPENDENT MATTERS 

Sec. 101. Extension of initial period for increased dependency and indemnity 

compensation for surviving spouses with children. 

Sec. 102. Eligibility for dependency and indemnity compensation, educational 

assistance, and housing loans for surviving spouses who remarry 

after age 55. 

Sec. 103. Extension of marriage delimiting date for surviving spouses of Persian 

Gulf War veterans to qualify for death pension. 

Sec. 104. Expansion of Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry Scholarship. 

Sec. 105. Expansion of Yellow Ribbon G.I. Education Enhancement Program. 

Sec. 106. Benefits for children of certain Thailand service veterans born with 

spina bifida. 

Sec. 107. Program on assisted living for children of Vietnam veterans and certain 

Korea service veterans born with spina bifida. 

Sec. 108. Program on grief counseling in retreat settings for surviving spouses of 

members of the Armed Forces who die while serving on active 

duty in the Armed Forces. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 944 RS

Sec. 109. Program evaluation on survivors’ and dependents’ educational assistance authorities. 

TITLE II—EDUCATION MATTERS 

Sec. 201. Approval of courses of education provided by public institutions of higher learning for purposes of All-Volunteer Force Educational Assistance Program and Post-9/11 Educational Assistance conditional on in-State tuition rate for veterans. 

Sec. 202. Extension and expansion of authority for certain qualifying work-study 

activities for purposes of the educational assistance programs of 

the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

Sec. 203. Report on debt management and collection. 

Sec. 204. Restoration of prior reporting fee multipliers. 

TITLE III—HEALTH CARE MATTERS 

Subtitle A—Expansion and Improvements of Benefits Generally 

Sec. 301. Expansion of provision of chiropractic care and services to veterans. 

Sec. 302. Modification of commencement date of period of service at Camp 

Lejeune, North Carolina, for eligibility for hospital care and 

medical services in connection with exposure to contaminated 

water. 

Sec. 303. Expansion of eligibility for sexual trauma counseling and treatment to 

veterans on inactive duty training. 

Sec. 304. Extension of sunset date regarding transportation of individuals to and 

from facilities of Department of Veterans Affairs and requirement of report. 

Sec. 305. Program on health promotion for overweight and obese veterans through 

support of fitness center memberships. 

Sec. 306. Program on health promotion for veterans through establishment of Department of Veterans Affairs fitness facilities. 

Subtitle B—Health Care Administration 

Sec. 311. Extension of Department of Veterans Affairs Health Professional Scholarship Program. 

Sec. 312. Expansion of availability of prosthetic and orthotic care for veterans. 

Sec. 313. Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Department of Veterans Affairs Medical 

Center. 

Subtitle C—Complementary and Alternative Medicine 

Sec. 321. Expansion of research and education on and delivery of complementary 

and alternative medicine to veterans. 

Sec. 322. Program on integration of complementary and alternative medicine 

within Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers. 

Sec. 323. Studies of barriers encountered by veterans in receiving, and administrators and clinicians in providing, complementary and alternative medicine services furnished by the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

Sec. 324. Program on use of wellness programs as complementary approach to 

mental health care for veterans and family members of veterans. 

TITLE IV—ACCOUNTABILITY AND ADMINISTRATIVE IMPROVEMENTS 

Sec. 401. Administration of Veterans Integrated Service Networks. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 944 RS

Sec. 402. Regional support centers for Veterans Integrated Service Networks. 

Sec. 403. Commission on Capital Planning for Department of Veterans Affairs 

Medical Facilities. 

Sec. 404. Public access to Department of Veterans Affairs research and data sharing between Departments. 

Sec. 405. Budget transparency for outreach activities of Department of Veterans 

Affairs. 

Sec. 406. Comptroller general report on advisory committees of the Department 

of Veterans Affairs. 

TITLE V—IMPROVEMENT OF PROCESSING OF CLAIMS FOR 

COMPENSATION 

Subtitle A—Claims Based on Military Sexual Trauma 

Sec. 501. Medical examination and opinion for disability compensation claims 

based on military sexual trauma. 

Sec. 502. Case representative officers for military sexual trauma support. 

Sec. 503. Report on standard of proof for service-connection of mental health conditions related to military sexual trauma. 

Sec. 504. Reports on claims for disabilities incurred or aggravated by military 

sexual trauma. 

Subtitle B—Agency of Original Jurisdiction 

Sec. 511. Working group to improve employee work credit and work management 

systems of Veterans Benefits Administration in an electronic environment. 

Sec. 512. Task force on retention and training of Department of Veterans Affairs 

claims processors and adjudicators. 

Sec. 513. Reports on requests by the Department of Veterans Affairs for records 

of other Federal agencies. 

Sec. 514. Recognition of representatives of Indian tribes in the preparation, presentation, and prosecution of claims under laws administered by 

the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. 

Sec. 515. Program on participation of local and tribal governments in improving 

quality of claims for disability compensation submitted to Department of Veterans Affairs. 

Sec. 516. Quarterly reports on progress of Department of Veterans Affairs in 

eliminating backlog of claims for compensation that have not 

been adjudicated. 

Sec. 517. Reports on use of existing authorities to expedite benefits decisions. 

Sec. 518. Reports on Department disability medical examinations and prevention 

of unnecessary medical examinations. 

Subtitle C—Board of Veterans’ Appeals and Court of Appeals for Veterans 

Claims 

Sec. 521. Treatment of certain misfiled documents as a notice of appeal to the 

Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. 

Sec. 522. Modification of filing period for notice of disagreement to initiate appellate review of decisions of Department of Veterans Affairs. 

Sec. 523. Determination of manner of appearance for hearings before Board of 

Veterans’ Appeals. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 944 RS

TITLE VI—OUTREACH MATTERS 

Sec. 601. Program to increase coordination of outreach efforts between the Department of Veterans Affairs and Federal, State, and local agencies and nonprofit organizations. 

Sec. 602. Cooperative agreements between Secretary of Veterans Affairs and 

States on outreach activities. 

Sec. 603. Advisory committee on outreach activities of Department of Veterans 

Affairs. 

Sec. 604. Advisory boards on outreach activities of Department of Veterans Affairs relating to health care. 

Sec. 605. Modification of requirement for periodic reports to Congress on outreach 

activities of Department of Veterans Affairs. 

TITLE VII—EMPLOYMENT AND RELATED MATTERS 

Subtitle A—Employment Matters 

Sec. 701. Employment of veterans with the Federal Government. 

Sec. 702. State recognition of military experience of veterans in issuing licenses 

and credentials to veterans. 

Sec. 703. Report on unified Government Internet portal for veterans on jobs 

available through the Federal Government. 

Sec. 704. Information on disability-related employment and education protections 

in Transition Assistance Program. 

Subtitle B—Small Business Matters 

Sec. 711. Expansion of contracting goals and preferences of Department of Veterans Affairs to include conditionally owned small business concerns 100 percent owned by veterans. 

Sec. 712. Modification of treatment under contracting goals and preferences of 

Department of Veterans Affairs for small businesses owned by 

veterans of small businesses after death of disabled veteran owners. 

Sec. 713. Treatment of businesses after deaths of servicemember-owners for purposes of Department of Veterans Affairs contracting goals and 

preferences. 

Sec. 714. Special rule for treatment under contracting goals and preferences of 

Department of Veterans Affairs of small business concerns licensed in community property States. 

TITLE VIII—OTHER MATTERS 

Sec. 801. Consideration by Secretary of Veterans Affairs of resources disposed of 

for less than fair market value by individuals applying for pension. 

Sec. 802. Office of National Veterans Sports Programs and Special Events. 

Sec. 803. Adaptive sports programs for disabled veterans and members of the 

Armed Forces through United States Olympic Committee. 

Sec. 804. Making effective date provision consistent with provision for benefits eligibility of a veteran’s child based upon termination of remarriage by annulment. 

Sec. 805. Extended period for scheduling of medical exams for veterans receiving 

temporary disability ratings for severe mental disorders. 

Sec. 806. Authority to issue Veterans ID Cards. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 944 RS

Sec. 807. Honoring as veterans certain persons who performed service in the reserve components of the Armed Forces. 

Sec. 808. Extension of authority for Secretary of Veterans Affairs to issue and 

guarantee certain loans. 

Sec. 809. Review of determination of certain service in Philippines during World 

War II. 

Sec. 810. Report on Laotian military support of Armed Forces of the United 

States during Vietnam War. 

Sec. 811. Report on assistance for veterans in obtaining training on purchasing 

and operating a franchise. 

Sec. 812. Limitation on aggregate amount of bonuses payable to personnel of the 

Department of Veterans Affairs during fiscal year 2014. 

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

2 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 

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

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

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

6 other provision of title 38, United States Code. 

7 TITLE I—SURVIVOR AND 

8 DEPENDENT MATTERS 

9 SEC. 101. EXTENSION OF INITIAL PERIOD FOR INCREASED 

10 DEPENDENCY AND INDEMNITY COMPENSA11 TION FOR SURVIVING SPOUSES WITH CHIL12 DREN. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1311(f)(2) is amended by 

14 striking ‘‘two-year’’ and inserting ‘‘three-year’’. 

15 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by sub16 section (a) shall take effect as of September 30, 2014, and 

17 shall apply to any surviving spouse who was eligible for 

18 or in receipt of benefits under section 1311(f) of title 38, 

19 United States Code, on or after the date of the enactment 

20 of this Act. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 102. ELIGIBILITY FOR DEPENDENCY AND INDEMNITY 

2 COMPENSATION, EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE, 

3 AND HOUSING LOANS FOR SURVIVING 

4 SPOUSES WHO REMARRY AFTER AGE 55. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (2)(B) of section 103(d) 

6 is amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘(B) The remarriage after age 55 of the surviving 

8 spouse of a veteran shall not bar the furnishing of benefits 

9 specified in paragraph (5) to such person as the surviving 

10 spouse of the veteran.’’. 

11 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Paragraph (5) of 

12 such section is amended by striking ‘‘Paragraphs (2)(A)’’ 

13 and inserting ‘‘Paragraphs (2)’’. 

14 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by this 

15 section shall take effect on the date that is one year after 

16 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

17 SEC. 103. EXTENSION OF MARRIAGE DELIMITING DATE FOR 

18 SURVIVING SPOUSES OF PERSIAN GULF WAR 

19 VETERANS TO QUALIFY FOR DEATH PENSION. 

20 Section 1541(f)(1)(E) is amended by striking ‘‘Janu21 ary 1, 2001’’ and inserting ‘‘the date that is 10 years and 

22 one day after the date on which the Persian Gulf War was 

23 terminated, as prescribed by Presidential proclamation or 

24 by law’’. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 104. EXPANSION OF MARINE GUNNERY SERGEANT 

2 JOHN DAVID FRY SCHOLARSHIP. 

3 (a) EXPANSION OF ENTITLEMENT.—Subsection (b)(9) 

4 of section 3311 is amended by inserting ‘‘or spouse’’ after 

5 ‘‘child’’. 

6 (b) LIMITATION AND ELECTION ON CERTAIN BENE7 FITS.—Subsection (f) of such section is amended— 

8 (1) by redesignating paragraph (2) as para9 graph (4); and 

10 (2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol11 lowing new paragraphs: 

12 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—The entitlement of an indi13 vidual to assistance under subsection (a) pursuant to 

14 paragraph (9) of subsection (b) because the individual 

15 was a spouse of a person described in such paragraph 

16 shall expire on the earlier of— 

17 ‘‘(A) the date that is 15 years after the date 

18 on which the person died; and 

19 ‘‘(B) the date on which the individual re20 marries. 

21 ‘‘(3) ELECTION ON RECEIPT OF CERTAIN BENE22 FITS.—A surviving spouse entitled to assistance under 

23 subsection (a) pursuant to paragraph (9) of sub24 section (b) who is also entitled to educational assist25 ance under chapter 35 of this title may not receive as26 sistance under both this section and such chapter, but 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 944 RS

1 shall make an irrevocable election (in such form and 

2 manner as the Secretary may prescribe) under which 

3 section or chapter to receive educational assistance.’’. 

4 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 3321(b)(4) is 

5 amended— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘an individual’’ and inserting ‘‘a 

7 child’’; and 

8 (2) by striking ‘‘such individual’s’’ each time it 

9 appears and inserting ‘‘such child’s’’. 

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

11 section shall take effect on the date that is two years after 

12 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

13 SEC. 105. EXPANSION OF YELLOW RIBBON G.I. EDUCATION 

14 ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3317(a) is amended by 

16 striking ‘‘in paragraphs (1) and (2)’’ and inserting ‘‘in 

17 paragraphs (1), (2), and (9)’’. 

18 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by sub19 section (a) shall apply with respect to academic terms be20 ginning after July 1, 2015. 

21 SEC. 106. BENEFITS FOR CHILDREN OF CERTAIN THAILAND 

22 SERVICE VETERANS BORN WITH SPINA 

23 BIFIDA. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter III of chapter 18 is 

25 amended by adding at the end the following new section: 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘§ 1822. Benefits for children of certain Thailand 

2 service veterans born with spina bifida 

3 ‘‘(a) BENEFITS AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary may 

4 provide to any child of a veteran of covered service in Thai5 land who is suffering from spina bifida the health care, vo6 cational training and rehabilitation, and monetary allow7 ance required to be paid to a child of a Vietnam veteran 

8 who is suffering from spina bifida under subchapter I of 

9 this chapter as if such child of a veteran of covered service 

10 in Thailand were a child of a Vietnam veteran who is suf11 fering from spina bifida under such subchapter. 

12 ‘‘(b) SPINA BIFIDA CONDITIONS COVERED.—This sec13 tion applies with respect to all forms and manifestations 

14 of spina bifida, except spina bifida occulta. 

15 ‘‘(c) VETERAN OF COVERED SERVICE IN THAILAND.— 

16 For purposes of this section, a veteran of covered service 

17 in Thailand is any individual, without regard to the char18 acterization of that individual’s service, who— 

19 ‘‘(1) served in the active military, naval, or air 

20 service in Thailand, as determined by the Secretary 

21 in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, during 

22 the period beginning on January 9, 1962, and ending 

23 on May 7, 1975; and 

24 ‘‘(2) is determined by the Secretary, in consulta25 tion with the Secretary of Defense, to have been exVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 944 RS

1 posed to a herbicide agent during such service in 

2 Thailand. 

3 ‘‘(d) HERBICIDE AGENT.—For purposes of this section, 

4 the term ‘herbicide agent’ means a chemical in a herbicide 

5 used in support of United States and allied military oper6 ations in Thailand, as determined by the Secretary in con7 sultation with the Secretary of Defense, during the period 

8 beginning on January 9, 1962, and ending on May 7, 

9 1975.’’. 

10 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT TO DEFINITION OF

11 ‘‘CHILD’’.—Section 1831(1) is amended— 

12 (1) in subparagraph (B)— 

13 (A) by striking ‘‘subchapter III of this 

14 chapter’’ and inserting ‘‘section 1821 of this 

15 title’’; and 

16 (B) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘section 1821 

17 of this title’’ and inserting ‘‘that section’’; and 

18 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub19 paragraph: 

20 ‘‘(C) For purposes of section 1822 of this title, 

21 an individual, regardless of age or marital status, 

22 who— 

23 ‘‘(i) is the natural child of a veteran of cov24 ered service in Thailand (as determined for pur25 poses of that section); and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(ii) was conceived after the date on which 

2 that veteran first entered service described in 

3 subsection (c) of that section.’’. 

4 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.— 

5 (1) SUBCHAPTER HEADING.—The heading for 

6 subchapter III of chapter 18 is amended by inserting 

7 ‘‘AND THAILAND’’ after ‘‘KOREA’’. 

8 (2) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections 

9 at the beginning of chapter 18 is amended— 

10 (A) by striking the item relating to sub11 chapter III and inserting the following new item: 

‘‘SUBCHAPTER III—CHILDREN OF CERTAIN KOREA AND THAILAND SERVICE

VETERANS BORN WITH SPINA BIFIDA’’; 

12 and 

13 (B) by inserting after the item relating to 

14 section 1821 the following new item: 

‘‘1822. Benefits for children of certain Thailand service veterans born with spina 

bifida.’’. 

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

16 section shall take effect on the date that is one year after 

17 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

18 SEC. 107. PROGRAM ON ASSISTED LIVING FOR CHILDREN 

19 OF VIETNAM VETERANS AND CERTAIN KOREA 

20 SERVICE VETERANS BORN WITH SPINA 

21 BIFIDA. 

22 (a) PROGRAM.—Commencing not later than 180 days 

23 after the date on which this section takes effect, the SecVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
15 

•S 944 RS

1 retary of Veterans Affairs shall carry out a program to as2 sess the feasibility and advisability of providing assisted 

3 living, group home care, or similar services in lieu of nurs4 ing home care to covered individuals. 

5 (b) COVERED INDIVIDUALS.—For purposes of this sec6 tion, a covered individual is any individual who is entitled 

7 to health care under subchapter I or III of chapter 18 of 

8 title 38, United States Code. 

9 (c) DURATION.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided 

11 in this subsection, the program shall be carried out 

12 during the three-year period beginning on the date of 

13 the commencement of the program. 

14 (2) CONTINUATION.—Subject to paragraph (3), 

15 the Secretary may continue the program for an addi16 tional two-year period as the Secretary considers ap17 propriate. 

18 (3) TERMINATION.—The program may not oper19 ate after the date that is five years after the date of 

20 the commencement of the program. 

21 (d) SCOPE OF SERVICES AND PROGRAM.—Under the 

22 program, the Secretary shall provide covered individuals 

23 with integrated, comprehensive services, including the fol24 lowing: 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
16 

•S 944 RS

1 (1) Assisted living, group home care, or such 

2 other similar services as the Secretary considers ap3 propriate. 

4 (2) Transportation services. 

5 (3) Such other services as the Secretary considers 

6 appropriate for the care of covered individuals under 

7 the program. 

8 (e) PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out the 

9 program, the Secretary shall— 

10 (1) inform all covered individuals of the services 

11 available under the program; 

12 (2) enter into agreements with appropriate pro13 viders of assisted living, group home care, or other 

14 similar services for provision of services under the 

15 program; and 

16 (3) determine the appropriate number of covered 

17 individuals to be enrolled in the program and criteria 

18 for such enrollment. 

19 (f) REPORTS.— 

20 (1) PRELIMINARY REPORTS.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year 

22 after the date of the commencement of the pro23 gram and, if the program is continued under 

24 subsection (c)(2), not later than three years after 

25 the date of the commencement of the program, 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
17 

•S 944 RS

1 the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 

2 Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Com3 mittee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep4 resentatives a report on the program. 

5 (B) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted 

6 under subparagraph (A) shall include the fol7 lowing: 

8 (i) A description of the implementation 

9 and operation of the program. 

10 (ii) The number of covered individuals 

11 receiving benefits under the program. 

12 (iii) An analysis that compares the 

13 costs of furnishing assisted living, group 

14 home care, or similar service with the costs 

15 of furnishing nursing home care. 

16 (iv) An analysis of the costs and bene17 fits under the program. 

18 (v) The findings and conclusions of the 

19 Secretary with respect to the program. 

20 (vi) Such recommendations for the con21 tinuation or expansion of the program as 

22 the Secretary may have. 

23 (2) FINAL REPORT.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

25 after the completion of the program, the SecVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
18 

•S 944 RS

1 retary shall submit to the Committee on Vet2 erans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee 

3 on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representa4 tives a report on the program. 

5 (B) CONTENTS.—The report submitted 

6 under subparagraph (A) shall include the fol7 lowing: 

8 (i) The findings and conclusions of the 

9 Secretary with respect to the program. 

10 (ii) Such recommendations for the con11 tinuation or expansion of the program as 

12 the Secretary may have. 

13 (g) FUNDING.—Amounts to carry out the program 

14 shall be derived from amounts appropriated or otherwise 

15 made available for the furnishing of nursing home care 

16 under chapter 18 of title 38, United States Code. 

17 (h) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect 

18 on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

19 of this Act. 

20 SEC. 108. PROGRAM ON GRIEF COUNSELING IN RETREAT 

21 SETTINGS FOR SURVIVING SPOUSES OF MEM22 BERS OF THE ARMED FORCES WHO DIE 

23 WHILE SERVING ON ACTIVE DUTY IN THE 

24 ARMED FORCES. 

25 (a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
19 

•S 944 RS

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Commencing not later than 

2 180 days after the date on which this section takes ef3 fect, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall carry out, 

4 through the Readjustment Counseling Service of the 

5 Veterans Health Administration, a program to assess 

6 the feasibility and advisability of providing grief 

7 counseling services described in subsection (b) in 

8 group retreat settings to surviving spouses of members 

9 of the Armed Forces who die while serving on active 

10 duty in the Armed Forces who would, as determined 

11 by the Readjustment Counseling Service, benefit from 

12 the services provided under the program. 

13 (2) PARTICIPATION AT ELECTION OF SURVIVING

14 SPOUSE.—The participation of a surviving spouse in 

15 the program under this section shall be at the election 

16 of the surviving spouse. 

17 (b) COVERED SERVICES.—The services provided to a 

18 surviving spouse under the program shall include the fol19 lowing: 

20 (1) Information and counseling on coping with 

21 grief. 

22 (2) Information about benefits and services 

23 available to surviving spouses under laws adminis24 tered by the Secretary. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
20 

•S 944 RS

1 (3) Such other information and counseling as the 

2 Secretary considers appropriate to assist a surviving 

3 spouse under the program with adjusting to the death 

4 of a spouse. 

5 (c) EVENTS.—The Secretary shall carry out the pro6 gram at not fewer than six events as follows: 

7 (1) Three events at which surviving spouses with 

8 dependent children are encouraged to bring their chil9 dren. 

10 (2) Three events at which surviving spouses with 

11 dependent children are not encouraged to bring their 

12 children. 

13 (d) DURATION.—The program shall be carried out 

14 during the two-year period beginning on the date of the 

15 commencement of the program. 

16 (e) REPORTS.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

18 the completion of the first year of the program and 

19 not later than 180 days after the completion of the 

20 program, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a re21 port on the program. 

22 (2) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted under 

23 paragraph (1) shall contain the findings and conclu24 sions of the Secretary as a result of the program, and 

25 shall include such recommendations for the continuVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
21 

•S 944 RS

1 ation or expansion of the program as the Secretary 

2 considers appropriate. 

3 (f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘‘active 

4 duty’’, ‘‘Armed Forces’’, and ‘‘surviving spouse’’ have the 

5 meanings given such terms in section 101 of title 38, United 

6 States Code. 

7 (g) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect 

8 on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

9 of this Act. 

10 SEC. 109. PROGRAM EVALUATION ON SURVIVORS’ AND DE11 PENDENTS’ EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE AU12 THORITIES. 

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

14 shall enter into a contract with an appropriate private sec15 tor entity to conduct a program evaluation of the authori16 ties for survivors’ and dependents’ educational assistance 

17 under chapter 35 of title 38, United States Code. 

18 (b) REPORT.—Not later than six months after the 

19 entry into the contract required by subsection (a), the Sec20 retary shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

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

22 the House of Representatives a report setting forth the re23 sults of the program evaluation conducted pursuant to the 

24 contract, together with such comments on the results of the 

25 program evaluation as the Secretary considers appropriate. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
22 

•S 944 RS

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

2 one year after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

3 TITLE II—EDUCATION MATTERS 

4 SEC. 201. APPROVAL OF COURSES OF EDUCATION PRO5 VIDED BY PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER 

6 LEARNING FOR PURPOSES OF ALL-VOLUN7 TEER FORCE EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE 

8 PROGRAM AND POST-9/11 EDUCATIONAL AS9 SISTANCE CONDITIONAL ON IN-STATE TUI10 TION RATE FOR VETERANS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3679 is amended by adding 

12 at the end the following new subsection: 

13 ‘‘(c)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this 

14 chapter and subject to paragraphs (3) through (6), the Sec15 retary shall disapprove a course of education provided by 

16 a public institution of higher learning to a covered indi17 vidual pursuing a course of education with educational as18 sistance under chapter 30 or 33 of this title while living 

19 in the State in which the public institution of higher learn20 ing is located if the institution charges tuition and fees for 

21 that course for the covered individual at a rate that is high22 er than the rate the institution charges for tuition and fees 

23 for that course for residents of the State in which the insti24 tution is located, regardless of the covered individual’s State 

25 of residence. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
23 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(2) For purposes of this subsection, a covered indi2 vidual is any individual as follows: 

3 ‘‘(A) A veteran who was discharged or released 

4 from a period of not fewer than 90 days of service in 

5 the active military, naval, or air service less than 

6 three years before the date of enrollment in the course 

7 concerned. 

8 ‘‘(B) An individual who is entitled to assistance 

9 under section 3311(b)(9) or 3319 of this title by vir10 tue of such individual’s relationship to a veteran de11 scribed in subparagraph (A). 

12 ‘‘(3) If after enrollment in a course of education that 

13 is subject to disapproval under paragraph (1) by reason 

14 of paragraph (2)(A) or (2)(B) a covered individual pursues 

15 one or more courses of education at the same public institu16 tion of higher learning while remaining continuously en17 rolled (other than during regularly scheduled breaks between 

18 courses, semesters or terms) at that institution of higher 

19 learning, any course so pursued by the covered individual 

20 at that institution of higher learning while so continuously 

21 enrolled shall also be subject to disapproval under para22 graph (1). 

23 ‘‘(4) It shall not be grounds to disapprove a course of 

24 education under paragraph (1) if a public institution of 

25 higher learning requires a covered individual pursuing a 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
24 

•S 944 RS

1 course of education at the institution to demonstrate an in2 tent, by means other than satisfying a physical presence 

3 requirement, to establish residency in the State in which 

4 the institution is located, or to satisfy other requirements 

5 not relating to the establishment of residency, in order to 

6 be charged tuition and fees for that course at a rate that 

7 is equal to or less than the rate the institution charges for 

8 tuition and fees for that course for residents of the State. 

9 ‘‘(5) The Secretary may waive such requirements of 

10 paragraph (1) as the Secretary considers appropriate. 

11 ‘‘(6) Disapproval under paragraph (1) shall apply 

12 only with respect to educational assistance under chapters 

13 30 and 33 of this title.’’. 

14 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Subsection (c) of section 3679 

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

16 of this section), shall apply with respect to educational as17 sistance provided for pursuit of programs of education dur18 ing academic terms that begin after July 1, 2015, through 

19 courses of education that commence on or after that date. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
25 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 202. EXTENSION AND EXPANSION OF AUTHORITY FOR 

2 CERTAIN QUALIFYING WORK-STUDY ACTIVI3 TIES FOR PURPOSES OF THE EDUCATIONAL 

4 ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS OF THE DEPART5 MENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

6 (a) EXTENSION OF EXPIRING CURRENT AUTHORITY.— 

7 Section 3485(a)(4) is amended by striking ‘‘June 30, 2013’’ 

8 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘June 30, 2015’’. 

9 (b) EXPANSION TO OUTREACH SERVICES PROVIDED

10 THROUGH CONGRESSIONAL OFFICES.—Such section is fur11 ther amended by adding at the end the following new sub12 paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(K) During the period beginning on June 30, 

14 2013, and ending on June 30, 2015, the following ac15 tivities carried out at the offices of Members of Con16 gress for such Members: 

17 ‘‘(i) The distribution of information to 

18 members of the Armed Forces, veterans, and 

19 their dependents about the benefits and services 

20 under laws administered by the Secretary and 

21 other appropriate governmental and nongovern22 mental programs. 

23 ‘‘(ii) The preparation and processing of pa24 pers and other documents, including documents 

25 to assist in the preparation and presentation of 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
26 

•S 944 RS

1 claims for benefits under laws administered by 

2 the Secretary.’’. 

3 (c) ANNUAL REPORTS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than June 30 of 

5 2014 and 2015, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 

6 submit to Congress a report on the work-study allow7 ances paid under paragraph (1) of section 3485(a) of 

8 title 38, United States Code, during the most recent 

9 one-year period for qualifying work-study activities 

10 described in paragraph (4) of such section, as amend11 ed by subsections (a) and (b) of this section. 

12 (2) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted under 

13 paragraph (1) shall include, for the year covered by 

14 such report, the following: 

15 (A) A description of the recipients of such 

16 work-study allowances. 

17 (B) A list of the locations where qualifying 

18 work-study activities were carried out. 

19 (C) A description of the outreach conducted 

20 by the Secretary to increase awareness of the eli21 gibility of such work-study activities for such 

22 work-study allowances. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
27 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 203. REPORT ON DEBT MANAGEMENT AND COLLEC2 TION. 

3 (a) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the effec4 tive date specified in subsection (c), the Comptroller General 

5 of the United States shall submit to the Committee on Vet6 erans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ 

7 Affairs of the House of Representatives a report on processes 

8 used by the Department of Veterans Affairs to identify and 

9 resolve cases of incorrect payments associated with edu10 cational assistance under chapters 30 and 33 of title 38, 

11 United States Code. 

12 (b) ISSUES ADDRESSED.—The report required by sub13 section (a) shall, to the extent possible, address the fol14 lowing: 

15 (1) The effectiveness of the processes referred to 

16 in subsection (a) in identifying and resolving incor17 rect payments associated with educational assistance 

18 under chapters 30 and 33 of title 38, United States 

19 Code. 

20 (2) The accuracy of overpayment information 

21 provided to veterans by the Education Service and 

22 Debt Management Center of the Department. 

23 (3) How well the Debt Management Center of the 

24 Department communicates and works with veterans 

25 to resolve disputed debt amounts. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
28 

•S 944 RS

1 (4) How the payment and debt collection proc2 esses of the Department compare to comparable pro3 grams in other Federal agencies. 

4 (5) Any recommendations to improve the pay5 ment and debt collection processes of the Department 

6 that the Comptroller General considers appropriate. 

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

8 on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

9 of this Act. 

10 SEC. 204. RESTORATION OF PRIOR REPORTING FEE MULTI11 PLIERS. 

12 Section 3684(c) is amended— 

13 (1) by striking ‘‘$12’’ and inserting ‘‘$7’’; and 

14 (2) by striking ‘‘$15’’ and inserting ‘‘$11’’. 

15 TITLE III—HEALTH CARE 

16 MATTERS 

17 Subtitle A—Expansion and 

18 Improvements of Benefits Generally 

19 SEC. 301. EXPANSION OF PROVISION OF CHIROPRACTIC 

20 CARE AND SERVICES TO VETERANS. 

21 (a) PROGRAM FOR PROVISION OF CHIROPRACTIC CARE

22 AND SERVICES TO VETERANS.—Section 204(c) of the De23 partment of Veterans Affairs Health Care Programs En24 hancement Act of 2001 (Public Law 107–135; 115 Stat. 

25 2459; 38 U.S.C. 1710 note) is amended— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
29 

•S 944 RS

1 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘The program’’; 

2 and 

3 (2) by adding at the end the following new para4 graph: 

5 ‘‘(2) The program shall be carried out at not fewer 

6 than two medical centers or clinics in each Veterans Inte7 grated Service Network by not later than one year after the 

8 effective date specified in section 301(c) of the Veterans 

9 Health and Benefits Improvement Act of 2013, and at not 

10 fewer than 50 percent of all medical centers in each Vet11 erans Integrated Service Network by not later than two 

12 years after such effective date.’’. 

13 (b) EXPANDED CHIROPRACTOR SERVICES AVAILABLE

14 TO VETERANS.— 

15 (1) MEDICAL SERVICES.—Paragraph (6) of sec16 tion 1701 is amended by adding at the end the fol17 lowing new subparagraph: 

18 ‘‘(H) Chiropractic services.’’. 

19 (2) REHABILITATIVE SERVICES.—Paragraph (8) 

20 of such section is amended by inserting ‘‘chiro21 practic,’’ after ‘‘counseling,’’. 

22 (3) PREVENTIVE HEALTH SERVICES.—Paragraph 

23 (9) of such section is amended— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
30 

•S 944 RS

1 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (F) 

2 through (K) as subparagraphs (G) through (L), 

3 respectively; and 

4 (B) by inserting after subparagraph (E) the 

5 following new subparagraph (F): 

6 ‘‘(F) periodic and preventive chiropractic exami7 nations and services;’’. 

8 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section and the amend9 ments made by this section shall take effect on the date that 

10 is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

11 SEC. 302. MODIFICATION OF COMMENCEMENT DATE OF PE12 RIOD OF SERVICE AT CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH 

13 CAROLINA, FOR ELIGIBILITY FOR HOSPITAL 

14 CARE AND MEDICAL SERVICES IN CONNEC15 TION WITH EXPOSURE TO CONTAMINATED 

16 WATER. 

17 (a) MODIFICATION.—Section 1710(e)(1)(F) is amend18 ed by striking ‘‘January 1, 1957,’’ and inserting ‘‘August 

19 1, 1953 (or such earlier date for the commencement of expo20 sure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune as the Sec21 retary, in consultation with the Agency for Toxic Sub22 stances and Disease Registry, shall specify),’’. 

23 (b) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs 

24 shall publish in the Federal Register a notice of any earlier 

25 date for the commencement of exposure to contaminated 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
31 

•S 944 RS

1 water at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, for purposes of 

2 section 1710(e)(1)(F) of title 38, United States Code, as 

3 amended by subsection (a). 

4 SEC. 303. EXPANSION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR SEXUAL TRAUMA 

5 COUNSELING AND TREATMENT TO VETERANS 

6 ON INACTIVE DUTY TRAINING. 

7 Section 1720D(a)(1) is amended by striking ‘‘or active 

8 duty for training’’ and inserting ‘‘, active duty for training, 

9 or inactive duty training’’. 

10 SEC. 304. EXTENSION OF SUNSET DATE REGARDING TRANS11 PORTATION OF INDIVIDUALS TO AND FROM 

12 FACILITIES OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 

13 AFFAIRS AND REQUIREMENT OF REPORT. 

14 (a) EXTENSION OF SUNSET DATE.—Subsection (a)(2) 

15 of section 111A is amended by striking ‘‘the date that is 

16 one year after the date of the enactment of this section’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘September 30, 2015’’. 

18 (b) FUNDING AVAILABLE.—Such section is further 

19 amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: 

20 ‘‘(c) FUNDING.—There is hereby authorized to be ap21 propriated for each of fiscal years 2014 and 2015 for the 

22 Department, $4,000,000 to carry out this section.’’. 

23 (c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

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

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


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
32 

•S 944 RS

1 Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representa2 tives a report on— 

3 (1) the efforts of the Secretary to carry out the 

4 transportation services required by section 111A(a) of 

5 title 38, United States Code; 

6 (2) the utilization of those services by covered 

7 veterans; and 

8 (3) the feasibility and advisability of the con9 tinuation of the provision of such services after Sep10 tember 30, 2015. 

11 SEC. 305. PROGRAM ON HEALTH PROMOTION FOR OVER12 WEIGHT AND OBESE VETERANS THROUGH 

13 SUPPORT OF FITNESS CENTER MEMBER14 SHIPS. 

15 (a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—Commencing not later 

16 than 180 days after the date on which this section takes 

17 effect, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall, through the 

18 National Center for Preventive Health, carry out a program 

19 to assess the feasibility and advisability of promoting health 

20 in covered veterans, including achieving a healthy weight 

21 and reducing risks of chronic disease, through support for 

22 fitness center membership. 

23 (b) COVERED VETERANS.—For purposes of this sec24 tion, a covered veteran is any veteran who— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
33 

•S 944 RS

1 (1) is enrolled in the system of annual patient 

2 enrollment established and operated by the Secretary 

3 under section 1705 of title 38, United States Code; 

4 (2) is determined by a clinician of the Depart5 ment of Veterans Affairs to be overweight or obese as 

6 of the date of the commencement of the program; and 

7 (3) resides in a location that is more than 15 

8 minutes driving distance from a fitness center at a 

9 facility of the Department that would otherwise be 

10 available to the veteran for at least eight hours per 

11 day during five or more days per week. 

12 (c) DURATION OF PROGRAM.—The program shall be 

13 carried out during the two-year period beginning on the 

14 date of the commencement of the program. 

15 (d) LOCATIONS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the program, 

17 the Secretary shall select— 

18 (A) not less than five medical centers of the 

19 Department at which the Secretary shall cover 

20 the full reasonable cost of a fitness center mem21 bership for covered veterans within the catchment 

22 area of such centers; and 

23 (B) not less than five medical centers of the 

24 Department at which the Secretary shall cover 

25 half the reasonable cost of a fitness center memVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00033 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
34 

•S 944 RS

1 bership for covered veterans within the catchment 

2 area of such centers. 

3 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In selecting locations for 

4 the program, the Secretary shall consider the feasi5 bility and advisability of selecting locations in the 

6 following areas: 

7 (A) Rural areas. 

8 (B) Areas that are not in close proximity to 

9 an active duty military installation. 

10 (C) Areas in different geographic locations. 

11 (e) PARTICIPATION.— 

12 (1) MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS.—The 

13 number of covered veterans who may participate in 

14 the program at each location selected under subsection 

15 (d) may not exceed 100. 

16 (2) VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION.—The participa17 tion of a covered veteran in the program shall be at 

18 the election of the covered veteran in consultation 

19 with a clinician of the Department. 

20 (f) MEMBERSHIP PAYMENT.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para22 graph (2), in carrying out the program, the Secretary 

23 shall pay the following: 

24 (A) The full reasonable cost of a fitness cen25 ter membership for covered veterans within the 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
35 

•S 944 RS

1 catchment area of centers selected under sub2 section (d)(1)(A) who are participating in the 

3 program. 

4 (B) Half the reasonable cost of a fitness cen5 ter membership for covered veterans within the 

6 catchment area of centers selected under sub7 section (d)(1)(B) who are participating in the 

8 program. 

9 (2) LIMITATION.—Payment for a fitness center 

10 membership of a covered veteran may not exceed $50 

11 per month of membership. 

12 (g) REPORTS.— 

13 (1) PERIODIC REPORTS.—Not later than 90 days 

14 after the date of the commencement of the program 

15 and not less frequently than once every 90 days there16 after, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 

17 Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 

18 Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives a re19 port on activities carried out to implement the pro20 gram, including outreach activities to veterans and 

21 community organizations. 

22 (2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 180 days 

23 after the date of the completion of the program, the 

24 Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ 

25 Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
36 

•S 944 RS

1 Affairs of the House of Representatives a report on 

2 the program detailing— 

3 (A) the findings and conclusions of the Sec4 retary as a result of the program; and 

5 (B) recommendations for the continuation 

6 or expansion of the program. 

7 (h) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect 

8 on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

9 of this Act. 

10 SEC. 306. PROGRAM ON HEALTH PROMOTION FOR VET11 ERANS THROUGH ESTABLISHMENT OF DE12 PARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS FITNESS 

13 FACILITIES. 

14 (a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—Commencing not later 

15 than 180 days after the date on which this section takes 

16 effect, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall carry out a 

17 program to assess the feasibility and advisability of pro18 moting health in covered veterans, including achieving a 

19 healthy weight, through establishment of Department of Vet20 erans Affairs fitness facilities. 

21 (b) COVERED VETERANS.—For purposes of this sec22 tion, a covered veteran is any veteran who is enrolled in 

23 the system of annual patient enrollment established and op24 erated by the Secretary under section 1705 of title 38, 

25 United States Code. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
37 

•S 944 RS

1 (c) DURATION OF PROGRAM.—The program shall be 

2 carried out during the three-year period beginning on the 

3 date of the commencement of the program. 

4 (d) LOCATIONS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry out 

6 the program by establishing fitness facilities in De7 partment facilities as follows: 

8 (A) In not fewer than five Department of 

9 Veterans Affairs medical centers selected by the 

10 Secretary for purposes of the program. 

11 (B) In not fewer than five outpatient clinics 

12 of the Department selected by the Secretary for 

13 purposes of the program. 

14 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In selecting locations for 

15 the program, the Secretary shall consider the feasi16 bility and advisability of selecting locations in the 

17 following areas: 

18 (A) Rural areas. 

19 (B) Areas that are not in close proximity to 

20 an active duty military installation. 

21 (C) Areas in different geographic locations. 

22 (e) LIMITATION ON EXPENSES.—In establishing and 

23 supporting a fitness facility in a facility of the Department 

24 under the program, the Secretary may expend amounts as 

25 follows: 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
38 

•S 944 RS

1 (1) For establishment and support of a fitness 

2 facility in a Department of Veterans Affairs medical 

3 center, not more than $60,000. 

4 (2) For establishment and support of a fitness 

5 facility in an outpatient clinic of the Department, not 

6 more than $40,000. 

7 (f) REPURPOSING OF PHYSICAL SPACE AND PUR8 CHASES OF EQUIPMENT.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (e), the 

10 Secretary may, in carrying out the program, repur11 pose existing physical space of the Department and 

12 purchase such fitness equipment and supplies as the 

13 Secretary considers appropriate for purposes of the 

14 program. 

15 (2) REPURPOSING EXCEPTION.—Existing phys16 ical space used for the direct delivery of health care 

17 to patients may not be repurposed under paragraph 

18 (1). 

19 (g) PROHIBITION ON ASSESSMENT OF USER FEES.— 

20 The Secretary may not assess a fee upon a covered veteran 

21 for use of a fitness facility established under the program. 

22 (h) VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION.—The participation of 

23 a covered veteran in the program shall be at the election 

24 of the covered veteran. 

25 (i) REPORTS.— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
39 

•S 944 RS

1 (1) PERIODIC REPORTS.—Not later than 90 days 

2 after the date of the commencement of the program 

3 and not less frequently than once every 90 days there4 after, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 

5 Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 

6 Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives a re7 port on activities carried out to implement the pro8 gram, including outreach activities to veterans and 

9 community organizations. 

10 (2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 180 days 

11 after the date of the completion of the program, the 

12 Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ 

13 Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ 

14 Affairs of the House of Representatives a report on 

15 the program detailing— 

16 (A) the findings and conclusions of the Sec17 retary as a result of the program; and 

18 (B) recommendations for the continuation 

19 or expansion of the program. 

20 (j) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect on 

21 the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

22 of this Act. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
40 

•S 944 RS

1 Subtitle B—Health Care 

2 Administration 

3 SEC. 311. EXTENSION OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AF4 FAIRS HEALTH PROFESSIONAL SCHOLARSHIP 

5 PROGRAM. 

6 Section 7619 is amended by striking ‘‘December 31, 

7 2014’’ and inserting ‘‘December 31, 2019’’. 

8 SEC. 312. EXPANSION OF AVAILABILITY OF PROSTHETIC 

9 AND ORTHOTIC CARE FOR VETERANS. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OR EXPANSION OF ADVANCED

11 DEGREE PROGRAMS TO EXPAND AVAILABILITY OF PROVI12 SION OF CARE.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 

13 work with institutions of higher education to develop part14 nerships for the establishment or expansion of programs of 

15 advanced degrees in prosthetics and orthotics in order to 

16 improve and enhance the availability of high quality pros17 thetic and orthotic care for veterans. 

18 (b) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

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

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

21 Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representa22 tives a report setting forth a plan for carrying out sub23 section (a). The Secretary shall develop the plan in con24 sultation with veterans service organizations, institutions 

25 of higher education with accredited degree programs in 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
41 

•S 944 RS

1 prosthetics and orthotics, and representatives of the pros2 thetics and orthotics field. 

3 (c) FUNDING.— 

4 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

5 There is hereby authorized to be appropriated for fis6 cal year 2015 for the Department of Veterans Affairs, 

7 $10,000,000 to carry out this section. 

8 (2) AVAILABILITY.—The amount authorized to be 

9 appropriated by paragraph (1) shall remain available 

10 for expenditure until September 30, 2017. 

11 SEC. 313. CORPORAL MICHAEL J. CRESCENZ DEPARTMENT 

12 OF VETERANS AFFAIRS MEDICAL CENTER. 

13 (a) DESIGNATION.—The medical center of the Depart14 ment of Veterans Affairs located at 3900 Woodland Avenue 

15 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, shall after the date of the 

16 enactment of this Act be known and designated as the ‘‘Cor17 poral Michael J. Crescenz Department of Veterans Affairs 

18 Medical Center’’. 

19 (b) REFERENCES.—Any reference in any law, regula20 tion, map, document, paper, or other record of the United 

21 States to the medical center referred to in subsection (a) 

22 shall be considered to be a reference to the Corporal Michael 

23 J. Crescenz Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
42 

•S 944 RS

1 Subtitle C—Complementary and 

2 Alternative Medicine 

3 SEC. 321. EXPANSION OF RESEARCH AND EDUCATION ON 

4 AND DELIVERY OF COMPLEMENTARY AND AL5 TERNATIVE MEDICINE TO VETERANS. 

6 (a) DEVELOPMENT OF PLAN TO EXPAND RESEARCH, 

7 EDUCATION, AND DELIVERY.—Not later than six months 

8 after the effective date specified in subsection (f), the Sec9 retary of Veterans Affairs shall develop a plan to expand 

10 materially and substantially the scope of research and edu11 cation on, and delivery and integration of, complementary 

12 and alternative medicine services into the health care serv13 ices provided to veterans. 

14 (b) ELEMENTS.—The plan required by subsection (a) 

15 shall provide for the following: 

16 (1) Research on the following: 

17 (A) The comparative effectiveness of various 

18 complementary and alternative medicine thera19 pies. 

20 (B) Approaches to integrating complemen21 tary and alternative medicine services into other 

22 health care services provided by the Department. 

23 (2) Education and training for health care pro24 fessionals of the Department on the following: 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
43 

•S 944 RS

1 (A) Complementary and alternative medi2 cine services selected by the Secretary for pur3 poses of the plan. 

4 (B) Appropriate uses of such services. 

5 (C) Integration of such services into the de6 livery of health care to veterans. 

7 (3) Research, education, and clinical activities 

8 on complementary and alternative medicine at cen9 ters of innovation at Department medical centers. 

10 (4) Identification or development of metrics and 

11 outcome measures to evaluate the provision and inte12 gration of complementary and alternative medicine 

13 services into the delivery of health care to veterans. 

14 (5) Integration and delivery of complementary 

15 and alternative medicine services with other health 

16 care services provided by the Department. 

17 (c) CONSULTATION.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out subsection 

19 (a), the Secretary shall consult with the following: 

20 (A) The Director of the National Center on 

21 Complementary and Alternative Medicine of the 

22 National Institutes of Health. 

23 (B) The Commissioner of Food and Drugs. 

24 (C) Institutions of higher education, private 

25 research institutes, and individual researchers 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
44 

•S 944 RS

1 with extensive experience in complementary and 

2 alternative medicine and the integration of com3 plementary and alternative medicine practices 

4 into the delivery of health care. 

5 (D) Nationally recognized providers of com6 plementary and alternative medicine. 

7 (E) Such other officials, entities, and indi8 viduals with expertise on complementary and al9 ternative medicine as the Secretary considers ap10 propriate. 

11 (2) SCOPE OF CONSULTATION.—The Secretary 

12 shall undertake consultation under paragraph (1) in 

13 carrying out subsection (a) with respect to the fol14 lowing: 

15 (A) To develop the plan. 

16 (B) To identify specific complementary and 

17 alternative medicine practices that, on the basis 

18 of research findings or promising clinical inter19 ventions, are appropriate to include as services 

20 to veterans. 

21 (C) To identify barriers to the effective pro22 vision and integration of complementary and al23 ternative medicine services into the delivery of 

24 health care to veterans, and to identify mecha25 nisms for overcoming such barriers. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
45 

•S 944 RS

1 (d) FUNDING.—There is authorized to be appropriated 

2 to the Secretary such sums as may be necessary to carry 

3 out this section. 

4 (e) COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE

5 DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘complementary and 

6 alternative medicine’’ shall have the meaning given that 

7 term in regulations the Secretary shall prescribe for pur8 poses of this section, which shall, to the degree practicable, 

9 be consistent with the meaning given such term by the Sec10 retary of Health and Human Services. 

11 (f) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect on 

12 the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

13 of this Act. 

14 SEC. 322. PROGRAM ON INTEGRATION OF COMPLEMENTARY 

15 AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE WITHIN DE16 PARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS MEDICAL 

17 CENTERS. 

18 (a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—The Secretary of Veterans 

19 Affairs shall— 

20 (1) carry out, through the Office of Patient Cen21 tered Care and Cultural Transformation of the De22 partment of Veterans Affairs, a program to assess the 

23 feasibility and advisability of integrating the delivery 

24 of complementary and alternative medicine services 

25 selected by the Secretary with other health care servVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00045 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
46 

•S 944 RS

1 ices provided by the Department for veterans with 

2 mental health conditions, chronic pain conditions, 

3 other chronic conditions, and such other conditions as 

4 the Secretary determines appropriate; and 

5 (2) in developing the program, identify and re6 solve barriers to the provision of complementary and 

7 alternative medicine services selected by the Secretary 

8 and the integration of those services with other health 

9 care services provided by the Department. 

10 (b) DURATION OF PROGRAM.—The program shall be 

11 carried out during the three-year period beginning on the 

12 effective date specified in subsection (j). 

13 (c) LOCATIONS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry out 

15 the program at not fewer than 15 separate Depart16 ment medical centers. 

17 (2) POLYTRAUMA CENTERS.—Not less than two 

18 of the medical centers designated under paragraph (1) 

19 shall be located at polytrauma rehabilitation centers 

20 of the Department. 

21 (3) SELECTION OF LOCATIONS.—In carrying out 

22 the program, the Secretary shall select locations that 

23 include the following areas: 

24 (A) Rural areas. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
47 

•S 944 RS

1 (B) Areas that are not in close proximity to 

2 an active duty military installation. 

3 (C) Areas representing different geographic 

4 locations, such as census tracts established by the 

5 Bureau of the Census. 

6 (d) PROVISION OF SERVICES.—Under the program, the 

7 Secretary shall provide covered services to covered veterans 

8 by integrating complementary and alternative medicine 

9 services with other services provided by the Department at 

10 the medical centers designated under subsection (c)(1). 

11 (e) COVERED VETERANS.—For purposes of the pro12 gram, a covered veteran is any veteran who— 

13 (1) has a mental health condition diagnosed by 

14 a clinician of the Department; 

15 (2) experiences chronic pain; or 

16 (3) has a chronic condition being treated by a 

17 clinician of the Department. 

18 (f) COVERED SERVICES.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of the program, 

20 covered services are services consisting of complemen21 tary and alternative medicine as selected by the Sec22 retary. 

23 (2) ADMINISTRATION OF SERVICES.—Covered 

24 services shall be administered under the program as 

25 follows: 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
48 

•S 944 RS

1 (A) Covered services shall be administered 

2 by clinicians employed by the Secretary for pur3 poses of this section who, to the extent prac4 ticable, shall provide services consisting of com5 plementary and alternative medicine, including 

6 those clinicians who solely provide such services. 

7 (B) Covered services shall be included as 

8 part of the Patient Aligned Care Teams initia9 tive of the Office of Patient Care Services, Pri10 mary Care Program Office, in coordination with 

11 the Office of Patient Centered Care and Cultural 

12 Transformation. 

13 (C) Covered services shall be made available 

14 to both— 

15 (i) covered veterans with mental health 

16 conditions, pain conditions, or chronic con17 ditions described in subsection (e) who have 

18 received conventional treatments from the 

19 Department for such conditions; and 

20 (ii) covered veterans with mental 

21 health conditions, pain conditions, or 

22 chronic conditions described in subsection 

23 (e) who have not received conventional 

24 treatments from the Department for such 

25 conditions. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
49 

•S 944 RS

1 (g) VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION.—The participation of 

2 a veteran in the program shall be at the election of the vet3 eran and in consultation with a clinician of the Depart4 ment. 

5 (h) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.— 

6 (1) QUARTERLY REPORTS.—Not later than 90 

7 days after the date of the commencement of the pro8 gram and not less frequently than once every 90 days 

9 thereafter for the duration of the program, the Sec10 retary shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Af11 fairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ 

12 Affairs of the House of Representatives a report on 

13 the efforts of the Secretary to carry out the program, 

14 including a description of the outreach conducted by 

15 the Secretary to veterans and community organiza16 tions to inform such organizations about the program. 

17 (2) FINAL REPORT.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

19 after the completion of the program, the Sec20 retary shall submit to the Committee on Vet21 erans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee 

22 on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representa23 tives a report on the program. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
50 

•S 944 RS

1 (B) CONTENTS.—The report submitted 

2 under subparagraph (A) shall include the fol3 lowing: 

4 (i) The findings and conclusions of the 

5 Secretary with respect to the program, in6 cluding with respect to— 

7 (I) the utilization and efficacy of 

8 the complementary and alternative 

9 medicine services established under the 

10 program; 

11 (II) an assessment of the benefit of 

12 the program to covered veterans in 

13 mental health diagnoses, pain manage14 ment, and treatment of chronic illness; 

15 and 

16 (III) the comparative effectiveness 

17 of various complementary and alter18 native medicine therapies. 

19 (ii) Barriers identified under sub20 section (a)(2) that were not resolved. 

21 (iii) Such recommendations for the 

22 continuation or expansion of the program 

23 as the Secretary considers appropriate. 

24 (i) COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE

25 DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘complementary and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
51 

•S 944 RS

1 alternative medicine’’ shall have the meaning given that 

2 term in section 321(e) of this Act. 

3 (j) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect on 

4 the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

5 of this Act. 

6 SEC. 323. STUDIES OF BARRIERS ENCOUNTERED BY VET7 ERANS IN RECEIVING, AND ADMINISTRATORS 

8 AND CLINICIANS IN PROVIDING, COM9 PLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE 

10 SERVICES FURNISHED BY THE DEPARTMENT 

11 OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

12 (a) STUDIES REQUIRED.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans Af14 fairs shall conduct comprehensive studies of the bar15 riers encountered by veterans in receiving, and ad16 ministrators and clinicians in providing, complemen17 tary and alternative medicine services furnished by 

18 the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

19 (2) STUDIES CONDUCTED.— 

20 (A) VETERANS.—In conducting the study of 

21 veterans, the Secretary shall— 

22 (i) survey veterans who seek or receive 

23 hospital care or medical services furnished 

24 by the Department, as well as veterans who 

25 do not seek or receive such care or services; 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
52 

•S 944 RS

1 (ii) administer the survey to a rep2 resentative sample of veterans from each 

3 Veterans Integrated Service Network; and 

4 (iii) ensure that the sample of veterans 

5 surveyed is of sufficient size for the study 

6 results to be statistically significant. 

7 (B) ADMINISTRATORS AND CLINICIANS.—In 

8 conducting the study of clinicians and adminis9 trators, the Secretary shall— 

10 (i) survey administrators of the De11 partment who are involved in the provision 

12 of health care services; 

13 (ii) survey clinicians that have pro14 vided complementary and alternative medi15 cine services through the program estab16 lished under section 322 of this Act, after 

17 those clinicians have provided those services 

18 through such program for at least 90 days; 

19 and 

20 (iii) administer the survey to adminis21 trators under clause (i)— 

22 (I) before the introduction of com23 plementary and alternative medicine 

24 services through such program; and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
53 

•S 944 RS

1 (II) not earlier than 90 days after 

2 the introduction of complementary and 

3 alternative medicine services through 

4 such program. 

5 (b) ELEMENTS OF STUDIES.— 

6 (1) VETERANS.—In conducting the study of vet7 erans required by subsection (a), the Secretary shall 

8 study the following: 

9 (A) The perceived barriers associated with 

10 obtaining complementary and alternative medi11 cine services from the Department. 

12 (B) The satisfaction of veterans with com13 plementary and alternative medicine services in 

14 primary care. 

15 (C) The degree to which veterans are aware 

16 of eligibility requirements for, and the scope of 

17 services available under, complementary and al18 ternative medicine services furnished by the De19 partment. 

20 (D) The effectiveness of outreach to veterans 

21 on the availability of complementary and alter22 native medicine for veterans. 

23 (E) Such other barriers as the Secretary 

24 considers appropriate. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
54 

•S 944 RS

1 (2) ADMINISTRATORS AND CLINICIANS.—In con2 ducting the study of administrators and clinicians re3 quired by subsection (a), the Secretary shall study the 

4 following: 

5 (A) The extent of the integration of com6 plementary and alternative medicine services 

7 within the services provided by the Department. 

8 (B) The perception by administrators and 

9 clinicians of the structural and attitudinal bar10 riers to the delivery of high quality complemen11 tary and alternative medicine services by the De12 partment. 

13 (C) Strategies that have been used to reduce 

14 or eliminate such barriers and the results of such 

15 strategies. 

16 (D) The satisfaction of administrators and 

17 clinicians regarding the integration of com18 plementary and alternative medicine services 

19 within the services provided by the Department. 

20 (E) The perception by administrators and 

21 clinicians of the value of specific complementary 

22 and alternative medicine services for inpatient 

23 and outpatient veteran populations. 

24 (c) DISCHARGE BY CONTRACT.—The Secretary shall 

25 enter into a contract with a qualified independent entity 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
55 

•S 944 RS

1 or organization to carry out the studies required by this 

2 section. 

3 (d) MANDATORY REVIEW OF DATA BY THE NATIONAL

4 RESEARCH ADVISORY COUNCIL.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ensure 

6 that the head of the National Research Advisory 

7 Council reviews the results of the studies conducted 

8 under this section. 

9 (2) SUBMITTAL OF FINDINGS.—The head of the 

10 National Research Advisory Council shall submit 

11 findings with respect to the studies to the Under Sec12 retary for Health and to other pertinent program of13 fices within the Department with responsibilities re14 lating to health care services for veterans. 

15 (e) REPORTS.— 

16 (1) REPORT ON IMPLEMENTATION.—Not later 

17 than one year after the date of the enactment of this 

18 Act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report 

19 on the status of the implementation of this section. 

20 (2) REPORT ON STUDY.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 45 days 

22 after the date of the completion of the study, the 

23 Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on 

24 the study required by subsection (a). 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
56 

•S 944 RS

1 (B) CONTENTS.—The report required by 

2 subparagraph (A) shall include the following: 

3 (i) Recommendations for such admin4 istrative and legislative proposals and ac5 tions as the Secretary considers appro6 priate. 

7 (ii) The findings of the head of the Na8 tional Research Advisory Council and of the 

9 Under Secretary for Health. 

10 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

11 authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2015 for the 

12 Department of Veterans Affairs, $2,000,000 to carry out 

13 this section. 

14 (g) COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE

15 DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘complementary and 

16 alternative medicine’’ shall have the meaning given that 

17 term in section 321(e) of this Act. 

18 SEC. 324. PROGRAM ON USE OF WELLNESS PROGRAMS AS 

19 COMPLEMENTARY APPROACH TO MENTAL 

20 HEALTH CARE FOR VETERANS AND FAMILY 

21 MEMBERS OF VETERANS. 

22 (a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans Af24 fairs shall carry out a program through the award of 

25 grants to public or private nonprofit entities to assess 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
57 

•S 944 RS

1 the feasibility and advisability of using wellness pro2 grams to complement the provision of mental health 

3 care to veterans and family members eligible for coun4 seling under section 1712A(a)(1)(C) of title 38, 

5 United States Code. 

6 (2) MATTERS TO BE ADDRESSED.—The program 

7 shall be carried out so as to assess the following: 

8 (A) Means of improving coordination be9 tween Federal, State, local, and community pro10 viders of health care in the provision of mental 

11 health care to veterans and family members de12 scribed in paragraph (1). 

13 (B) Means of enhancing outreach, and co14 ordination of outreach, by and among providers 

15 of health care referred to in subparagraph (A) on 

16 the mental health care services available to vet17 erans and family members described in para18 graph (1). 

19 (C) Means of using wellness programs of 

20 providers of health care referred to in subpara21 graph (A) as complements to the provision by the 

22 Department of Veterans Affairs of mental health 

23 care to veterans and family members described 

24 in paragraph (1). 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
58 

•S 944 RS

1 (D) Whether wellness programs described in 

2 subparagraph (C) are effective in enhancing the 

3 quality of life and well-being of veterans and 

4 family members described in paragraph (1). 

5 (E) Whether wellness programs described in 

6 subparagraph (C) are effective in increasing the 

7 adherence of veterans described in paragraph (1) 

8 to the primary mental health services provided 

9 such veterans by the Department. 

10 (F) Whether wellness programs described in 

11 subparagraph (C) have an impact on the sense 

12 of wellbeing of veterans described in paragraph 

13 (1) who receive primary mental health services 

14 from the Department. 

15 (G) Whether wellness programs described in 

16 subparagraph (C) are effective in encouraging 

17 veterans receiving health care from the Depart18 ment to adopt a more healthy lifestyle. 

19 (b) DURATION.—The Secretary shall carry out the pro20 gram for a period of three years beginning on the date that 

21 is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

22 (c) LOCATIONS.—The Secretary shall carry out the 

23 program at facilities of the Department providing mental 

24 health care services to veterans and family members de25 scribed in subsection (a)(1). 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
59 

•S 944 RS

1 (d) GRANT PROPOSALS.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—A public or private nonprofit 

3 entity seeking the award of a grant under this section 

4 shall submit an application therefor to the Secretary 

5 in such form and in such manner as the Secretary 

6 may require. 

7 (2) APPLICATION CONTENTS.—Each application 

8 submitted under paragraph (1) shall include the fol9 lowing: 

10 (A) A plan to coordinate activities under 

11 the program, to the extent possible, with the Fed12 eral, State, and local providers of services for 

13 veterans to enhance the following: 

14 (i) Awareness by veterans of benefits 

15 and health care services provided by the De16 partment. 

17 (ii) Outreach efforts to increase the use 

18 by veterans of services provided by the De19 partment. 

20 (iii) Educational efforts to inform vet21 erans of the benefits of a healthy and active 

22 lifestyle. 

23 (B) A statement of understanding from the 

24 entity submitting the application that, if se25 lected, such entity will be required to report to 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
60 

•S 944 RS

1 the Secretary periodically on standardized data 

2 and other performance data necessary to evalu3 ate individual outcomes and to facilitate evalua4 tions among entities participating in the pro5 gram. 

6 (C) Other requirements that the Secretary 

7 may prescribe. 

8 (e) GRANT USES.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—A public or private nonprofit 

10 entity awarded a grant under this section shall use 

11 the award for purposes prescribed by the Secretary. 

12 (2) ELIGIBLE VETERANS AND FAMILY.—In car13 rying out the purposes prescribed by the Secretary in 

14 paragraph (1), a public or private nonprofit entity 

15 awarded a grant under this section shall use the 

16 award to furnish services only to individuals specified 

17 in section 1712A(a)(1)(C) of title 38, United States 

18 Code. 

19 (f) REPORTS.— 

20 (1) PERIODIC REPORTS.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

22 after the date of the commencement of the pro23 gram, and every 180 days thereafter, the Sec24 retary shall submit to Congress a report on the 

25 program. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
61 

•S 944 RS

1 (B) REPORT ELEMENTS.—Each report re2 quired by subparagraph (A) shall include the fol3 lowing: 

4 (i) The findings and conclusions of the 

5 Secretary with respect to the program dur6 ing the 180-day period preceding the report. 

7 (ii) An assessment of the benefits of the 

8 program to veterans and their family mem9 bers during the 180-day period preceding 

10 the report. 

11 (2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 180 days 

12 after the end of the program, the Secretary shall sub13 mit to Congress a report detailing the recommenda14 tions of the Secretary as to the advisability of con15 tinuing or expanding the program. 

16 (g) WELLNESS DEFINED.—In this section, the term 

17 ‘‘wellness’’ has the meaning given that term in regulations 

18 prescribed by the Secretary. 

19 TITLE IV—ACCOUNTABILITY AND 

20 ADMINISTRATIVE IMPROVE21 MENTS 

22 SEC. 401. ADMINISTRATION OF VETERANS INTEGRATED 

23 SERVICE NETWORKS. 

24 (a) VETERANS INTEGRATED SERVICE NETWORKS.— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
62 

•S 944 RS

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

2 amended by adding at the end the following new sec3 tion: 

4 ‘‘§ 7310. Veterans Integrated Service Networks 

5 ‘‘(a) ORGANIZATION.—(1) The Secretary shall organize 

6 the Veterans Health Administration in geographically de7 fined Veterans Integrated Service Networks. 

8 ‘‘(2) Each Veterans Integrated Service Network shall 

9 be organized in consideration of the following: 

10 ‘‘(A) The size of the veteran population of the re11 gion of the network. 

12 ‘‘(B) The complexity of the medical needs of the 

13 veterans in such region. 

14 ‘‘(C) Patient referral patterns. 

15 ‘‘(D) The availability of a full continuum of 

16 health care services. 

17 ‘‘(E) The ability of the Department to furnish 

18 health care efficiently. 

19 ‘‘(F) Partnerships with non-Department health 

20 care entities. 

21 ‘‘(b) STAFFING MODEL.—(1) The Secretary shall es22 tablish a staffing model for each Veterans Integrated Service 

23 Network that— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
63 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(A) is appropriate for the mission and respon2 sibilities of the Veterans Integrated Service Network; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(B) accounts for the specific health care needs 

5 of differing populations in the Veterans Integrated 

6 Service Network. 

7 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall ensure that each Veterans In8 tegrated Service Network complies with the staffing model 

9 established by the Secretary under paragraph (1) for such 

10 Veterans Integrated Service Network. 

11 ‘‘(c) INTEGRATED HEALTH CARE SYSTEM.—The Sec12 retary shall ensure that each Veterans Integrated Service 

13 Network maintains a regional integrated healthcare system 

14 by— 

15 ‘‘(1) implementing alliances with such other gov16 ernmental, public, and private health care organiza17 tions and practitioners as the Secretary considers ap18 propriate to meet the needs of veterans in the Net19 work; 

20 ‘‘(2) providing oversight and management of, 

21 and taking responsibility for, a regional budget for 

22 the activities of the Veterans Health Administration 

23 in the geographic area of the Network that is— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
64 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(A) aligned with the budget guidelines of 

2 the Department and the Veterans Health Admin3 istration; 

4 ‘‘(B) balanced at the end of each fiscal year; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(C) sufficient to provide high-quality 

7 health care to veterans within the region and to 

8 meet any unique needs of the veterans of the re9 gion; 

10 ‘‘(3) using national metrics to develop systems to 

11 provide effective, efficient, and safe delivery of health 

12 care; and 

13 ‘‘(4) ensuring high-quality clinical programs 

14 and services are rendered in and through— 

15 ‘‘(A) the medical centers and outpatient 

16 clinics of the Department that are located in the 

17 Network; and 

18 ‘‘(B) other non-Department clinical or 

19 health care delivery settings located in the Net20 work. 

21 ‘‘(d) REDUCTION IN DUPLICATE FUNCTIONS.—The 

22 Secretary shall ensure that the Veterans Integrated Service 

23 Networks identify and reduce, whenever practicable, the du24 plication of functions in clinical, administrative, and operVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00064 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
65 

•S 944 RS

1 ational processes and practices of the Veterans Health Ad2 ministration. 

3 ‘‘(e) COLLABORATION AND COOPERATION.—The Sec4 retary shall ensure that each Veterans Integrated Service 

5 Network— 

6 ‘‘(1) works to achieve maximum effectiveness in 

7 patient care and safety, graduate medical education, 

8 and research; and 

9 ‘‘(2) assesses the consolidation or realignment of 

10 institutional functions, including capital asset, safety, 

11 and operational support functions, in collaboration 

12 and cooperation with other Veterans Integrated Serv13 ice Networks and the following offices or entities with14 in the geographical area of the Network: 

15 ‘‘(A) The offices of the Veterans Benefits Ad16 ministration and the National Cemetery Admin17 istration. 

18 ‘‘(B) The offices, installations, and facilities 

19 of the Department of Defense, including the of20 fices, installations, and facilities of each branch 

21 of the Armed Forces and the reserve components 

22 of the Armed Forces. 

23 ‘‘(C) The offices, installations, and facilities 

24 of the Coast Guard. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
66 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(D) Offices of State and local agencies that 

2 have a mission to provide assistance to veterans. 

3 ‘‘(E) Medical schools and other affiliates. 

4 ‘‘(F) Offices of Congress, offices of State and 

5 local elected officials, and other government of6 fices. 

7 ‘‘(G) Federal, State, and local emergency 

8 preparedness organizations. 

9 ‘‘(H) Community and nonprofit organiza10 tions. 

11 ‘‘(I) Such other entities of the Federal Gov12 ernment as the Secretary considers appropriate. 

13 ‘‘(f) HEADQUARTERS.—(1) The Secretary shall ensure 

14 that each Veterans Integrated Service Network has only one 

15 headquarters office. 

16 ‘‘(2) The location of a headquarters office for a Vet17 erans Integrated Service Network shall be determined by the 

18 Secretary and co-located with a Department of Veterans Af19 fairs medical center. 

20 ‘‘(3)(A) The Secretary may employ or contract for the 

21 services of such full time equivalent employees and contrac22 tors at the headquarters of each Veterans Integrated Service 

23 Network as the Secretary considers appropriate in accord24 ance with the staffing models established under subsection 

25 (b). 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
67 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(B) Not later than December 31 each year, the Sec2 retary shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

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

4 the House of Representatives a report on employment at 

5 the headquarters of Veterans Integrated Service Networks 

6 during the most recently completed fiscal year. 

7 ‘‘(C) Each report submitted under subparagraph (B) 

8 shall include the following for the year covered by the report: 

9 ‘‘(i) The number of individuals employed at each 

10 headquarters of a Veterans Integrated Service Net11 work. 

12 ‘‘(ii) The number of individuals employed by the 

13 Veterans Health Administration in each Veterans In14 tegrated Service Network who are not employed at the 

15 same location as the headquarters of the Network. 

16 ‘‘(iii) The title for each position of employment 

17 at a headquarters of a Veterans Integrated Service 

18 Network. 

19 ‘‘(iv) The title for each position of employment 

20 with the Veterans Health Administration in each Vet21 erans Integrated Service Network that is not at the 

22 same location as the headquarters of the Network. 

23 ‘‘(v) An assessment of the impact on the budget 

24 of the Department by the employment of individuals 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
68 

•S 944 RS

1 at the headquarters of the Veterans Integrated Service 

2 Networks. 

3 ‘‘(g) TRIENNIAL STRUCTURE REVIEW, REASSESS4 MENT, AND REPORT.—(1) Beginning three years after the 

5 date of the enactment of this section and not less frequently 

6 than once every three years thereafter, the Secretary shall 

7 conduct a review and assessment of the structure and oper8 ations of the Veterans Integrated Service Networks in order 

9 to identify recommendations— 

10 ‘‘(A) for streamlining and reducing costs associ11 ated with the operation of each headquarters of a Vet12 erans Integrated Service Network; and 

13 ‘‘(B) for reducing costs of health care within the 

14 Veterans Health Administration. 

15 ‘‘(2) Not later than 180 days after conducting a review 

16 and assessment under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall 

17 submit to the Committee of Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate 

18 and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep19 resentatives a report on such review and assessment, which 

20 shall include such recommendations for legislative or ad21 ministrative action as the Secretary considers appropriate 

22 to improve the Veterans Integrated Service Networks.’’. 

23 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec24 tions at the beginning of chapter 73 is amended by 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
69 

•S 944 RS

1 inserting after the item relating to section 7309 the 

2 following new item: 

‘‘7310. Veterans Integrated Service Networks.’’. 

3 (b) RELOCATION OF HEADQUARTERS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a headquarters 

5 office of a Veterans Integrated Service Network that 

6 on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act 

7 was in a location that was not co-located with a De8 partment of Veterans Affairs medical center and the 

9 Secretary is engaged in a lease for such location, the 

10 Secretary may— 

11 (A) relocate such headquarters upon the ex12 piration of such lease so that such headquarters 

13 is co-located as required by section 7310(f)(2) of 

14 title 38, United States Code (as added by sub15 section (a)(1)); or 

16 (B) notwithstanding such section 7310(f)(2) 

17 (as so added), renew such lease or enter into a 

18 new lease to keep such headquarters in such loca19 tion. 

20 (2) REPORT.—If the Secretary renews a lease or 

21 engages in a new lease under paragraph (1)(B), the 

22 Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ 

23 Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ 

24 Affairs of the House of Representatives, before renew25 ing such lease or engaging in such lease, a report deVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00069 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
70 

•S 944 RS

1 scribing the reasons for such renewal or engagement. 

2 Such report shall include the following: 

3 (A) A list of Department of Veterans Affairs 

4 medical centers in the Veterans Integrated Serv5 ice Network of the headquarters with underuti6 lized buildings, the number of such buildings, 

7 and the total underutilized square footage for 

8 each such medical center. 

9 (B) The cost of the current lease (the annual 

10 amount of rent, the total cost over the life of the 

11 lease, and the total cost per square foot) and the 

12 current square footage being leased. 

13 (C) The cost of the new lease (the annual 

14 amount of rent, the total cost over the life of the 

15 lease, and the total cost per square foot) and the 

16 square footage to be leased. 

17 (c) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section shall be 

18 construed to require any change in the location or type of 

19 medical care or service provided by a Department of Vet20 erans Affairs medical center, a Department community 

21 based outpatient clinic, a center for readjustment coun22 seling and related mental health services for veterans under 

23 section 1712A of title 38, United States Code (known as 

24 a ‘‘vet center’’), or other facility that provides direct care 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
71 

•S 944 RS

1 or services under a law administered by the Secretary of 

2 Veterans Affairs. 

3 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section, and the amend4 ments made by this section, shall take effect on the date 

5 that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

6 SEC. 402. REGIONAL SUPPORT CENTERS FOR VETERANS IN7 TEGRATED SERVICE NETWORKS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter I of chapter 73, as 

9 amended by section 401(a)(1) of this Act, is further amend10 ed by adding at the end the following new section: 

11 ‘‘§ 7310A. Regional support centers for Veterans Inte12 grated Service Networks 

13 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish 

14 not more than four regional support centers within the Vet15 erans Health Administration to assess the effectiveness and 

16 efficiency of the Veterans Integrated Service Networks. The 

17 head of each regional support center shall report to the 

18 Under Secretary of Health. 

19 ‘‘(b) FUNCTIONS.—The functions of the regional sup20 port centers established under subsection (a) are as follows: 

21 ‘‘(1) To assess the quality of work performed 

22 within finance operations and other compliance re23 lated activities of the Veterans Integrated Service Net24 works. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
72 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(2) To assess how effectively and efficiently each 

2 Veterans Integrated Service Network conducts out3 reach to veterans who served in Operation Enduring 

4 Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation New 

5 Dawn, or any other contingency operation (as that 

6 term is defined in section 101 of title 10). 

7 ‘‘(3) To assess how effectively and efficiently each 

8 Veterans Integrated Service Network conducts pro9 grams for the benefit of women veterans. 

10 ‘‘(4) To assess how effectively and efficiently each 

11 Veterans Integrated Service Network conducts pro12 grams that address homelessness among veterans. 

13 ‘‘(5) To assess how effectively and efficiently each 

14 Veterans Integrated Service Network consumes energy. 

15 ‘‘(6) To assess such other matters concerning the 

16 operations and activities of the Veterans Integrated 

17 Service Networks as the Secretary considers appro18 priate. 

19 ‘‘(c) STAFF.—The Secretary may hire such employees 

20 and contractors as the Secretary considers appropriate to 

21 carry out the functions of the regional support centers. 

22 ‘‘(d) LOCATION OF REGIONAL SUPPORT CENTERS.— 

23 (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the location of 

24 each regional support center established under subsection 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
73 

•S 944 RS

1 (a) shall be determined by the Secretary and co-located with 

2 a medical center of the Department. 

3 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may choose a location for a re4 gional support center established under subsection (a) that 

5 is not co-located with a medical center of the Department 

6 if the Secretary submits to the Committee on Veterans’ Af7 fairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

8 of the House of Representatives, before entering into a con9 tract for a location that is not co-located with a medical 

10 center, a report describing the reasons for choosing a loca11 tion for the regional support center that is not co-located 

12 with a medical center of the Department. Such report shall 

13 include the following: 

14 ‘‘(A) A list of medical centers of the Department 

15 in the Veterans Integrated Service Network of the re16 gional support center with underutilized buildings, 

17 the number of all Veterans Health Administration 

18 buildings in such Network, and the total underutilized 

19 square footage for each medical center of the Depart20 ment in such Network. 

21 ‘‘(B) The estimated cost of such lease (the annual 

22 amount of rent, the total cost over the life of the lease, 

23 and the total cost per square foot) and the square foot24 age to be leased.’’. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
74 

•S 944 RS

1 (b) INITIAL STAFFING.—In providing for the initial 

2 staff of each regional support center established under sec3 tion 7310A(a) of title 38, United States Code, as added by 

4 subsection (a), the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall, to 

5 the degree practicable, transfer employees from headquarters 

6 of Veterans Integrated Service Networks to regional support 

7 centers who were employed in positions at such head8 quarters that covered functions similar to those described 

9 in section 7310A(b) of such title, as so added. 

10 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections at 

11 the beginning of chapter 73, as amended by section 

12 401(a)(2) of this Act, is further amended by inserting after 

13 the item relating to section 7310 the following new item: 

‘‘7310A. Regional support centers for Veterans Integrated Service Networks.’’. 

14 (d) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section shall be 

15 construed to require any change in the location or type of 

16 medical care or service provided by a Department of Vet17 erans Affairs medical center, a Department community 

18 based outpatient clinic, a center for readjustment coun19 seling and related mental health services for veterans under 

20 section 1712A of title 38, United States Code (known as 

21 a ‘‘vet center’’), or other facility that provides direct care 

22 or services under a law administered by the Secretary of 

23 Veterans Affairs. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
75 

•S 944 RS

1 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section, and the amend2 ments made by this section, shall take effect on the date 

3 that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

4 SEC. 403. COMMISSION ON CAPITAL PLANNING FOR DE5 PARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS MEDICAL 

6 FACILITIES. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION.— 

8 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the 

9 Commission on Capital Planning for Department of 

10 Veterans Affairs Medical Facilities (in this section re11 ferred to as the ‘‘Commission’’). 

12 (2) MEMBERSHIP.— 

13 (A) VOTING MEMBERS.—The Commission 

14 shall, subject to subparagraph (B), be composed 

15 of 10 voting members as follows: 

16 (i) 1 shall be appointed by the Presi17 dent. 

18 (ii) 1 shall be appointed by the Admin19 istrator of General Services. 

20 (iii) 3 shall be appointed by the Sec21 retary of Veterans Affairs, of whom— 

22 (I) 1 shall be an employee of the 

23 Veterans Health Administration; 

24 (II) 1 shall be an employee of the 

25 Office of Asset Enterprise Management 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
76 

•S 944 RS

1 of the Department of Veterans Affairs; 

2 and 

3 (III) 1 shall be an employee of the 

4 Office of Construction and Facilities 

5 Management of the Department of Vet6 erans Affairs. 

7 (iv) 1 shall be appointed by the Sec8 retary of Defense from among employees of 

9 the Army Corps of Engineers. 

10 (v) 1 shall be appointed by the major11 ity leader of the Senate. 

12 (vi) 1 shall be appointed by the minor13 ity leader of the Senate. 

14 (vii) 1 shall be appointed by the 

15 Speaker of the House of Representatives. 

16 (viii) 1 shall be appointed by the mi17 nority leader of the House of Representa18 tives. 

19 (B) REQUIREMENT RELATING TO CERTAIN

20 APPOINTMENTS OF VOTING MEMBERS.—Of the 

21 members appointed pursuant to clause (i), (ii), 

22 and (iv) through (viii) of subparagraph (A), all 

23 shall have expertise in capital leasing, construc24 tion, or health facility management planning. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
77 

•S 944 RS

1 (C) NON-VOTING MEMBERS.—The Commis2 sion shall be assisted by 10 non-voting members, 

3 appointed by the vote of a majority of members 

4 of the Commission under subparagraph (A), of 

5 whom— 

6 (i) 6 shall be representatives of vet7 erans service organizations recognized by 

8 the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; and 

9 (ii) 4 shall be individuals from outside 

10 the Department of Veterans Affairs with ex11 perience and expertise in matters relating 

12 to management, construction, and leasing of 

13 capital assets. 

14 (D) DATE OF APPOINTMENT OF VOTING

15 MEMBERS.—The appointments of the members of 

16 the Commission under subparagraph (A) shall be 

17 made not later than 60 days after the date of the 

18 enactment of this Act. 

19 (3) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT; VACANCIES.— 

20 Members shall be appointed for the life of the Com21 mission. Any vacancy in the Commission shall not af22 fect its powers, but shall be filled in the same manner 

23 as the original appointment. 

24 (4) INITIAL MEETING.—Not later than 15 days 

25 after the date on which 7 members of the Commission 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
78 

•S 944 RS

1 have been appointed, the Commission shall hold its 

2 first meeting. 

3 (5) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet at 

4 the call of the Chair. 

5 (6) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of the 

6 Commission shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser 

7 number of members may hold hearings. 

8 (7) CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR.—The Commission 

9 shall select a Chair and Vice Chair from among its 

10 members. 

11 (b) DUTIES OF COMMISSION.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall under13 take a comprehensive evaluation and assessment of 

14 various options for capital planning for Department 

15 of Veterans Affairs medical facilities, including an 

16 evaluation and assessment of the mechanisms by 

17 which the Department currently selects means for the 

18 delivery of health care, whether by major construction, 

19 major medical facility leases, sharing agreements with 

20 the Department of Defense, the Indian Health Service, 

21 and Federally Qualified Health Clinics under section 

22 330 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 

23 254b), contract care, multisite care, telemedicine, ex24 tended hours for care, or other means. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
79 

•S 944 RS

1 (2) CONTEXT OF EVALUATION AND ASSESS2 MENT.—In undertaking the evaluation and assess3 ment, the Commission shall consider— 

4 (A) the importance of access to health care 

5 through the Department, including associated 

6 guidelines of the Department on access to, and 

7 drive time for, health care; 

8 (B) limitations and requirements applicable 

9 to the construction and leasing of medical facili10 ties for the Department, including applicable 

11 laws, regulations, and costs as determined by 

12 both the Congressional Budget Office and the Of13 fice of Management and Budget; 

14 (C) the nature of capital planning for De15 partment medical facilities in an era of fiscal 

16 uncertainty; 

17 (D) projected future fluctuations in the pop18 ulation of veterans; and 

19 (E) the extent to which the Department was 

20 able to meet the mandates of the Capital Asset 

21 Realignment for Enhanced Services Commission. 

22 (3) PARTICULAR CONSIDERATIONS.—In under23 taking the evaluation and assessment, the Commission 

24 shall address, in particular, the following: 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
80 

•S 944 RS

1 (A) The Major Medical Facility Lease Pro2 gram of the Department, including an identi3 fication of potential improvements to the lease 

4 authorization processes under that Program. 

5 (B) The management processes of the De6 partment for its Major Medical Facility Con7 struction Program, including processes relating 

8 to contract award and management, project 

9 management, and processing of change orders. 

10 (C) The overall capital planning program 

11 of the Department for medical facilities, includ12 ing an evaluation and assessment of— 

13 (i) the manner in which the Depart14 ment determines whether to use capital or 

15 non-capital means to expand access to 

16 health care; 

17 (ii) the manner in which the Depart18 ment determines the disposition of under19 utilized and un-utilized buildings on cam20 puses of Department medical centers, and 

21 any barriers to disposition; 

22 (iii) the effectiveness of the facility 

23 master planning initiative of the Depart24 ment; and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
81 

•S 944 RS

1 (iv) the extent to which sustainable at2 tributes are planned for to decrease oper3 ating costs for Department medical facili4 ties. 

5 (D) The current backlog of construction 

6 projects for Department medical facilities, in7 cluding an identification of the most effective 

8 means to quickly secure the most critical repairs 

9 required, including repairs relating to facility 

10 condition deficiencies, structural safety, and 

11 compliance with the Americans With Disabilities 

12 Act of 1990. 

13 (4) REPORTS.—Subject to paragraph (5), the 

14 Commission shall submit to the Secretary of Veterans 

15 Affairs, and to the Committee Veterans’ Affairs of the 

16 Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the 

17 House of Representatives, reports as follows: 

18 (A) Not later than six months after its ini19 tial meeting under subsection (a)(4), a report on 

20 the Major Medical Facility Lease Program and 

21 the Congressional lease authorization process. 

22 (B) Not later than one year after its initial 

23 meeting, a report— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
82 

•S 944 RS

1 (i) on the management processes of the 

2 Department for the construction of Depart3 ment medical facilities; and 

4 (ii) setting forth an update of any 

5 matters covered in the report under sub6 paragraph (A). 

7 (C) Not later than 18 months after its ini8 tial meeting, a report— 

9 (i) on the overall capital planning pro10 gram of the Department for medical facili11 ties; and 

12 (ii) setting forth an update of any 

13 matters covered in earlier reports under this 

14 paragraph. 

15 (D) Not later than two years after its ini16 tial meeting, a report— 

17 (i) on the current backlog of construc18 tion projects for Department medical facili19 ties; 

20 (ii) setting forth an update of any 

21 matters covered in earlier reports under this 

22 paragraph; and 

23 (iii) including such other matters re24 lating to the duties of the Commission that 

25 the Commission considers appropriate. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
83 

•S 944 RS

1 (E) Not later than 27 months after its ini2 tial meeting, a report on the implementation by 

3 the Secretary of Veterans Affairs pursuant to 

4 subsection (g) of the recommendations included 

5 pursuant to paragraph (5) in the reports under 

6 this paragraph. 

7 (5) RECOMMENDATIONS.—Each report under 

8 paragraph (4) shall include, for the aspect of the cap9 ital asset planning process of the Department covered 

10 by such report, such recommendations as the Commis11 sion considers appropriate for the improvement and 

12 enhancement of such aspect of the capital asset plan13 ning process. 

14 (c) POWERS OF COMMISSION.— 

15 (1) HEARINGS.—The Commission may hold such 

16 hearings, sit and act at such times and places, take 

17 such testimony, and receive such evidence as the Com18 mission considers advisable to carry out this section. 

19 (2) INFORMATION FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 

20 The Commission may secure directly from any Fed21 eral department or agency such information as the 

22 Commission considers necessary to carry out this sec23 tion. Upon request of the Chair of the Commission, 

24 the head of such department or agency shall furnish 

25 such information to the Commission. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
84 

•S 944 RS

1 (d) COMMISSION PERSONNEL MATTERS.— 

2 (1) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.—Each mem3 ber of the Commission who is not an officer or em4 ployee of the Federal Government shall be com5 pensated at a rate equal to the daily equivalent of the 

6 annual rate of basic pay prescribed for level IV of the 

7 Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5, 

8 United States Code, for each day (including travel 

9 time) during which such member is engaged in the 

10 performance of the duties of the Commission. All 

11 members of the Commission who are officers or em12 ployees of the United States shall serve without com13 pensation in addition to that received for their serv14 ices as officers or employees of the United States. 

15 (2) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—The members of the 

16 Commission shall be allowed travel expenses, includ17 ing per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates author18 ized for employees of agencies under subchapter I of 

19 chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while away 

20 from their homes or regular places of business in the 

21 performance of services for the Commission. 

22 (3) STAFF.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Chair of the Com24 mission may, without regard to the civil service 

25 laws and regulations, appoint and terminate an 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
85 

•S 944 RS

1 executive director and such other additional per2 sonnel as may be necessary to enable the Com3 mission to perform its duties. The employment of 

4 an executive director shall be subject to confirma5 tion by the Commission. 

6 (B) COMPENSATION.—The Chair of the 

7 Commission may fix the compensation of the ex8 ecutive director and other personnel without re9 gard to chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 

10 53 of title 5, United States Code, relating to clas11 sification of positions and General Schedule pay 

12 rates, except that the rate of pay for the executive 

13 director and other personnel may not exceed the 

14 rate payable for level V of the Executive Schedule 

15 under section 5316 of such title. 

16 (4) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES.—Any 

17 Federal Government employee may be detailed to the 

18 Commission without reimbursement, and such detail 

19 shall be without interruption or loss of civil service 

20 status or privilege. 

21 (5) PROCUREMENT OF TEMPORARY AND INTER22 MITTENT SERVICES.—The Chair of the Commission 

23 may procure temporary and intermittent services 

24 under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, 

25 at rates for individuals which do not exceed the daily 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
86 

•S 944 RS

1 equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay prescribed 

2 for level V of the Executive Schedule under section 

3 5316 of such title. 

4 (e) TERMINATION OF COMMISSION.—The Commission 

5 shall terminate 60 days after the date on which the Com6 mission submits its report under subsection (b)(4)(E). 

7 (f) FUNDING.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 

8 make available to the Commission such amounts as the Sec9 retary and the Chair of the Commission jointly consider 

10 appropriate for the Commission to perform its duties under 

11 this section. 

12 (g) ACTION ON RECOMMENDATIONS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans Af14 fairs shall implement each recommendation included 

15 in a report under subsection (b)(4) that the Secretary 

16 considers feasible and advisable and can be imple17 mented without further legislative action. 

18 (2) REPORTS.—Not later than 120 days after re19 ceipt of a report under subparagraphs (A) through 

20 (D) of subsection (b)(4), the Secretary shall submit to 

21 the Committee Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the 

22 Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep23 resentatives a report setting forth the following: 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
87 

•S 944 RS

1 (A) An assessment of the feasibility and ad2 visability of each recommendation contained in 

3 such report. 

4 (B) For each recommendation assessed as 

5 feasible and advisable— 

6 (i) if such recommendation does not re7 quire further legislative action for imple8 mentation, a description of the actions 

9 taken, and to be taken, by the Secretary to 

10 implement such recommendation; and 

11 (ii) if such recommendation requires 

12 further legislative action for implementa13 tion, recommendations for such legislative 

14 action. 

15 SEC. 404. PUBLIC ACCESS TO DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 

16 AFFAIRS RESEARCH AND DATA SHARING BE17 TWEEN DEPARTMENTS. 

18 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF INTERNET WEBSITE.—The 

19 Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall make available on an 

20 Internet website of the Department of Veterans Affairs 

21 available to the public the following: 

22 (1) Data files that contain information on re23 search of the Department. 

24 (2) A data dictionary on each data file. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
88 

•S 944 RS

1 (3) Instructions for how to obtain access to each 

2 data file for use in research. 

3 (b) PUBLIC ACCESS TO MANUSCRIPTS ON DEPART4 MENT FUNDED RESEARCH.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning not later than 540 

6 days after the effective date specified in subsection (e), 

7 the Secretary shall require, as a condition on the use 

8 of any data gathered or formulated from research 

9 funded by the Department, that any final, peer-re10 viewed manuscript prepared for publication that uses 

11 such data be submitted to the Secretary for deposit in 

12 the digital archive under paragraph (2) and publica13 tion under paragraph (3). 

14 (2) DIGITAL ARCHIVE.—Not later than 540 days 

15 after the effective date specified in subsection (e), the 

16 Secretary shall— 

17 (A) establish a digital archive consisting of 

18 manuscripts described in paragraph (1); or 

19 (B) partner with another executive agency 

20 to compile such manuscripts in a digital archive. 

21 (3) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.— 

22 (A) AVAILABILITY OF ARCHIVE.—The Sec23 retary shall ensure that the digital archive under 

24 paragraph (2) and the contents of such archive 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
89 

•S 944 RS

1 are available to the public via a publicly acces2 sible Internet website at no cost to the public. 

3 (B) AVAILABILITY OF MANUSCRIPTS.—The 

4 Secretary shall ensure that each manuscript sub5 mitted to the Secretary under paragraph (1) is 

6 available to the public under subparagraph (A) 

7 not later than one year after the official date on 

8 which the manuscript is otherwise published. 

9 (4) CONSISTENT WITH COPYRIGHT LAW.—The 

10 Secretary shall carry out this subsection in a manner 

11 consistent with applicable copyright law. 

12 (5) ANNUAL REPORT.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year 

14 after the date the Secretary begins making 

15 manuscripts available to the public under this 

16 subsection and not less frequently than once each 

17 year thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the 

18 Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate 

19 and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the 

20 House of Representatives a report on the imple21 mentation of this subsection during the most re22 cent one-year period. 

23 (B) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted 

24 under subparagraph (A) shall include for the pe25 riod of the report: 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
90 

•S 944 RS

1 (i) The number of manuscripts sub2 mitted under paragraph (1). 

3 (ii) The titles of such manuscripts. 

4 (iii) The authors of such manuscripts. 

5 (iv) For each such manuscript, the 

6 name and issue number or volume number, 

7 as the case may be, of the journal or other 

8 publication in which such manuscript was 

9 published. 

10 (c) RECOMMENDATIONS FOR DATA SHARING BETWEEN

11 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS AND DEPARTMENT OF

12 DEFENSE.—Not later than one year after the effective date 

13 specified in subsection (e), the Department of Veterans Af14 fairs-Department of Defense Joint Executive Committee es15 tablished by section 320(a) of title 38, United States Code, 

16 shall submit to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the 

17 Secretary of Defense options and recommendations for the 

18 establishment of a program for long-term cooperation and 

19 data sharing between and within the Department of Vet20 erans Affairs and the Department of Defense to facilitate 

21 research on outcomes of military service, readjustment after 

22 combat deployment, and other topics of importance to the 

23 following: 

24 (1) Veterans. 

25 (2) Members of the Armed Forces. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
91 

•S 944 RS

1 (3) Family members of veterans. 

2 (4) Family members of members of the Armed 

3 Forces. 

4 (5) Members of communities that have a signifi5 cant population of veterans or members of the Armed 

6 Forces. 

7 (d) EXECUTIVE AGENCY DEFINED.—In this section, 

8 the term ‘‘executive agency’’ has the meaning given that 

9 term in section 133 of title 41, United States Code. 

10 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect on 

11 the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

12 of this Act. 

13 SEC. 405. BUDGET TRANSPARENCY FOR OUTREACH ACTIVI14 TIES OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AF15 FAIRS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 63 is amended by insert17 ing after section 6308 the following new section: 

18 ‘‘§ 6309. Budget transparency 

19 ‘‘(a) BUDGET REQUIREMENTS.—In the budget jus20 tification materials submitted to Congress in support of the 

21 Department budget for a fiscal year (as submitted with the 

22 budget of the President under section 1105(a) of title 31), 

23 the Secretary shall include a separate statement of the 

24 amount requested for such fiscal year for activities of the 

25 Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs as follows: 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
92 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(1) For outreach activities of the Department in 

2 aggregate. 

3 ‘‘(2) For outreach activities of each element of 

4 the Department specified in subsection (b)(1). 

5 ‘‘(b) PROCEDURES FOR EFFECTIVE COORDINATION

6 AND COLLABORATION.—(1) Not later than 180 days after 

7 the date of the enactment of the Veterans Health and Bene8 fits Improvement Act of 2013, the Secretary shall establish 

9 and maintain procedures for the Office of Public and Inter10 governmental Affairs to ensure the effective coordination 

11 and collaboration of outreach activities of the Department 

12 between and among the following: 

13 ‘‘(A) Office of the Secretary. 

14 ‘‘(B) Veterans Health Administration. 

15 ‘‘(C) Veterans Benefits Administration. 

16 ‘‘(D) National Cemetery Administration. 

17 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall— 

18 ‘‘(A) beginning after the date on which the Sec19 retary establishes procedures under paragraph (1), 

20 not less frequently than once every two years conduct 

21 a review of the procedures established and maintained 

22 under paragraph (1) to ensure that such procedures 

23 meet the requirements of such paragraph; 

24 ‘‘(B) make such modifications to such procedures 

25 as the Secretary considers appropriate based upon reVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00092 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
93 

•S 944 RS

1 views conducted under subparagraph (A) in order to 

2 better meet such requirements; and 

3 ‘‘(C) not later than 45 days after completing a 

4 review under subparagraph (A), submit to Congress a 

5 report on the findings of such review.’’. 

6 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections at 

7 the beginning of chapter 63 is amended by inserting after 

8 the item relating to section 6308 the following new item: 

‘‘6309. Budget transparency.’’. 

9 SEC. 406. COMPTROLLER GENERAL REPORT ON ADVISORY 

10 COMMITTEES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VET11 ERANS AFFAIRS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year after the 

13 effective date specified in subsection (c), the Comptroller 

14 General shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

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

16 the House of Representatives a report on the advisory com17 mittees of the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

18 (b) CONTENTS.—The report required by subsection 

19 (a)— 

20 (1) shall include— 

21 (A) recommendations or proposals for con22 tinuing, modifying, or terminating certain advi23 sory committees, including noting areas of over24 lap and duplication among the advisory commit25 tees; and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
94 

•S 944 RS

1 (B) such other information as the Comp2 troller General considers appropriate; and 

3 (2) may include— 

4 (A) a description of each advisory com5 mittee, including with respect to each com6 mittee— 

7 (i) the purpose of the committee; 

8 (ii) the commencement date of the com9 mittee; and 

10 (iii) the anticipated termination date 

11 of the committee; 

12 (B) a summary of the anticipated expenses 

13 and the actual expenses incurred for each advi14 sory committee during the most recent three fis15 cal years ending before the date of the enactment 

16 of this Act; and 

17 (C) with respect to meetings held by each 

18 advisory committee— 

19 (i) the frequency with which each com20 mittee has met during the shorter of— 

21 (I) the most recent three fiscal 

22 years ending before the date of the en23 actment of this Act; and 

24 (II) the life of the committee; 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
95 

•S 944 RS

1 (ii) the date of the most recent meeting 

2 held by the committee before such date of en3 actment; and 

4 (iii) the date of the most recent report 

5 or other written product developed by the 

6 committee before such date of enactment. 

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

8 on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

9 of this Act. 

10 TITLE V—IMPROVEMENT OF 

11 PROCESSING OF CLAIMS FOR 

12 COMPENSATION 

13 Subtitle A—Claims Based on 

14 Military Sexual Trauma 

15 SEC. 501. MEDICAL EXAMINATION AND OPINION FOR DIS16 ABILITY COMPENSATION CLAIMS BASED ON 

17 MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5103A(d) is amended by 

19 adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

20 ‘‘(3)(A) In the case of a claim for disability compensa21 tion based on a mental health condition related to military 

22 sexual trauma, the Secretary shall treat an examination or 

23 opinion as being necessary to make a decision on a claim 

24 for purposes of paragraph (1) if the evidence of record before 

25 the Secretary, taking into consideration all information 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
96 

•S 944 RS

1 and lay or medical evidence (including statements of the 

2 claimant)— 

3 ‘‘(i)(I) contains competent evidence that the 

4 claimant has a current disability, or persistent or re5 current symptoms of disability; and 

6 ‘‘(II) indicates that the disability or symptoms 

7 may be associated with the claimant’s active military, 

8 naval, or air service; but 

9 ‘‘(ii) does not contain a diagnosis or opinion by 

10 a mental health professional that may assist in cor11 roborating the occurrence of a military sexual trauma 

12 stressor related to a diagnosable mental health condi13 tion. 

14 ‘‘(B) In this paragraph, the term ‘military sexual 

15 trauma’ shall have the meaning specified by the Secretary 

16 for purposes of this paragraph, and shall include ‘sexual 

17 harassment’ (as so specified).’’. 

18 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the date 

19 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Af20 fairs shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

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

22 House of Representatives a report on the number of exami23 nations and opinions conducted by the Secretary pursuant 

24 to paragraph (3) of section 5103A(d) of title 38, United 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
97 

•S 944 RS

1 States Code (as added by subsection (a)), including the fol2 lowing: 

3 (1) The number of examinations conducted using 

4 a standardized disability assessment. 

5 (2) The number of examinations conducted using 

6 a non-standardized clinical interview. 

7 SEC. 502. CASE REPRESENTATIVE OFFICERS FOR MILITARY 

8 SEXUAL TRAUMA SUPPORT. 

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

10 shall assign to each individual seeking compensation under 

11 the laws administered by the Secretary based on military 

12 sexual trauma a case representative officer who shall pro13 vide advice and general information to such individual on 

14 the claims process for such compensation. Each case rep15 resentative officer so assigned shall be assigned from among 

16 current personnel of the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

17 (b) LIAISON.—A case representative officer assigned to 

18 an individual under subsection (a) shall be responsible for 

19 serving as a liaison between the individual, an authorized 

20 agent or attorney of the individual under section 5904 of 

21 title 38, United States Code, or an otherwise accredited rep22 resentative of the individual, and the Department of Vet23 erans Affairs on matters relating to the claim of the indi24 vidual for compensation under the laws administered by 

25 the Secretary. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
98 

•S 944 RS

1 (c) CASE REPRESENTATIVE OFFICER REQUIRE2 MENTS.— 

3 (1) COMPETENCE AND KNOWLEDGE.—Each case 

4 representative officer assigned under subsection (a) 

5 shall be competent and knowledgeable about the fol6 lowing: 

7 (A) The claims adjudication process and 

8 applicable laws, regulations, and other authority 

9 applicable to the adjudication of disability 

10 claims based on military sexual trauma. 

11 (B) Such other services to victims of sexual 

12 trauma as the Secretary considers appropriate. 

13 (2) LIMITATION ON NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS TO

14 WHICH ASSIGNED.—A case representative officer may 

15 not be assigned to more individuals described in sub16 section (a) than, as determined by the Secretary, is 

17 appropriate for the provision of individual case man18 agement assistance by such officer. 

19 (d) INFORMATION ON BENEFITS AND PROGRAMS RE20 LATING TO MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make 

22 available to the public information on the availability 

23 of case representative officers under subsection (a) to 

24 assist in the application for benefits based on mili25 tary sexual trauma. The Secretary shall revise and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
99 

•S 944 RS

1 update the information so made available in order to 

2 ensure that the information is as current as possible. 

3 (2) INDIVIDUALS SEPARATING FROM MILITARY

4 SERVICE.—The Secretary shall, in consultation with 

5 the Secretary of Defense, ensure that individuals who 

6 are being separated from the active military, naval, 

7 or air service are provided appropriate information 

8 about programs, requirements, and procedures for ap9 plying for benefits based on military sexual trauma 

10 and the availability of case representative officers 

11 under subsection (a). 

12 (e) INFORMATION ON TRAINING FOR AGENTS AND REP13 RESENTATIVES OF INDIVIDUALS ASSIGNED CASE REP14 RESENTATIVE OFFICER.—The Secretary shall make avail15 able to the authorized agent or attorney of an individual 

16 assigned a case representative under subsection (a), or to 

17 the otherwise accredited representative of the individual, 

18 any relevant materials used to train such case representa19 tive officer for the duties of such position. 

20 (f) ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON WOMEN VETERANS CON21 SIDERATION OF MECHANISMS TO ENHANCE COORDINATION

22 BETWEEN VBA AND VHA ON BENEFITS FOR MILITARY

23 SEXUAL TRAUMA.—The Advisory Committee on Women 

24 Veterans established under section 542 of title 38, United 

25 States Code, shall undertake actions to identify mechanisms 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
100 

•S 944 RS

1 to enhance coordination between the Veterans Benefits Ad2 ministration and the Veterans Health Administration in 

3 the provision of benefits based on military sexual trauma, 

4 including the identification of barriers to the appropriate 

5 provision of benefits for military sexual trauma by such 

6 Administrations and of means of eliminating or reducing 

7 such barriers. 

8 (g) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not less frequently than an9 nually, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the 

10 Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Com11 mittee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives 

12 a report setting forth the following: 

13 (1) A certification whether or not the case rep14 resentative officers assigned under subsection (a) dur15 ing the preceding year met the requirements specified 

16 in subsection (c). 

17 (2) A description of the current training the Sec18 retary provides to employees of the Veterans Benefits 

19 Administration on claims for benefits based on mili20 tary sexual trauma, including the frequency, length, 

21 and content of such training. 

22 (3) A description of current policies and proce23 dures on the training the Secretary provides to case 

24 representative officers, including the current position 

25 descriptions for case representative officers. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
101 

•S 944 RS

1 (4) A description of current efforts to coordinate 

2 activities and assistance provided to individuals who 

3 seek care or benefits for military sexual trauma be4 tween the Veterans Health Administration and Vet5 erans Benefits Administration, including the efforts of 

6 the Advisory Committee on Women Veterans under 

7 subsection (f). 

8 (h) SUNSET.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—No case representative officer 

10 may be assigned under subsection (a) after December 

11 31, 2018. 

12 (2) CONTINUATION OF DUTIES AFTER SUNSET

13 DATE.—Paragraph (1) shall not be construed to pro14 hibit any case representative officer assigned to an in15 dividual before the date specified in that paragraph 

16 from performing duties pursuant to this section after 

17 that date with respect to a claim for which that case 

18 representative officer was assigned to such individual 

19 before that date. 

20 (i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

21 (1) ACTIVE MILITARY, NAVAL, OR AIR SERVICE.— 

22 The term ‘‘active military, naval, or air service’’ has 

23 the meaning given that term in section 101 of title 

24 38, United States Code. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
102 

•S 944 RS

1 (2) MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA.—The term 

2 ‘‘military sexual trauma’’ shall have the meaning 

3 specified by the Secretary for purposes of this section, 

4 and shall include ‘‘sexual harassment’’ (as so speci5 fied). 

6 SEC. 503. REPORT ON STANDARD OF PROOF FOR SERVICE7 CONNECTION OF MENTAL HEALTH CONDI8 TIONS RELATED TO MILITARY SEXUAL TRAU9 MA. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

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

12 Affairs shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

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

14 the House of Representatives a report on the current stand15 ard of proof for service-connection under chapter 11 of title 

16 38, United States Code, for covered mental health conditions 

17 based on military sexual trauma. 

18 (b) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Secretary shall include 

19 in the report under subsection (a) any recommendations the 

20 Secretary considers appropriate to improve the adjudica21 tion of claims for compensation based on military sexual 

22 trauma, including— 

23 (1) recommendations for an appropriate stand24 ard of proof for such claims if the Secretary considers 

25 such recommendations advisable; and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
103 

•S 944 RS

1 (2) recommendations for legislative action, if 

2 necessary, to carry out such improvement. 

3 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

4 (1) ACTIVE MILITARY, NAVAL, OR AIR SERVICE.— 

5 The term ‘‘active military, naval, or air service’’ has 

6 the meaning given that term in section 101 of title 

7 38, United States Code. 

8 (2) COVERED MENTAL HEALTH CONDITION.—The 

9 term ‘‘covered mental health condition’’ means post10 traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, or 

11 other mental health diagnosis that the Secretary de12 termines to be related to military sexual trauma. 

13 (3) MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA.—The term 

14 ‘‘military sexual trauma’’ shall have the meaning 

15 specified by the Secretary for purposes of this section, 

16 and shall include ‘‘sexual harassment’’ (as so speci17 fied). 

18 SEC. 504. REPORTS ON CLAIMS FOR DISABILITIES IN19 CURRED OR AGGRAVATED BY MILITARY SEX20 UAL TRAUMA. 

21 (a) REPORTS.—Not later than December 1, 2014, and 

22 each year thereafter through 2018, the Secretary of Veterans 

23 Affairs shall submit to Congress a report on the covered 

24 claims submitted to the Secretary during the previous fiscal 

25 year. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
104 

•S 944 RS

1 (b) ELEMENTS.—Each report under subsection (a) 

2 shall include the following: 

3 (1) The number of covered claims submitted to or 

4 considered by the Secretary during the fiscal year cov5 ered by the report. 

6 (2) Of the covered claims under paragraph (1), 

7 the number and percentage of such claims— 

8 (A) submitted by each gender; 

9 (B) that were approved, including the num10 ber and percentage of such approved claims sub11 mitted by each gender; and 

12 (C) that were denied, including the number 

13 and percentage of such denied claims submitted 

14 by each gender. 

15 (3) Of the covered claims under paragraph (1) 

16 that were approved, the number and percentage, listed 

17 by each gender, of claims assigned to each rating per18 centage of disability. 

19 (4) Of the covered claims under paragraph (1) 

20 that were denied— 

21 (A) the three most common reasons given by 

22 the Secretary under section 5104(b)(1) of title 

23 38, United States Code, for such denials; and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
105 

•S 944 RS

1 (B) the number of denials that were based 

2 on the failure of a veteran to report for a med3 ical examination. 

4 (5) Of the covered claims under paragraph (1) 

5 that were resubmitted to the Secretary after denial in 

6 a previous adjudication— 

7 (A) the number of such claims submitted to 

8 or considered by the Secretary during the fiscal 

9 year covered by the report; 

10 (B) the number and percentage of such 

11 claims— 

12 (i) submitted by each gender; 

13 (ii) that were approved, including the 

14 number and percentage of such approved 

15 claims submitted by each gender; and 

16 (iii) that were denied, including the 

17 number and percentage of such denied 

18 claims submitted by each gender; 

19 (C) the number and percentage, listed by 

20 each gender, of claims assigned to each rating 

21 percentage of disability; and 

22 (D) of such claims that were again de23 nied— 

24 (i) the three most common reasons 

25 given by the Secretary under section 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
106 

•S 944 RS

1 5104(b)(1) of such title for such denials; 

2 and 

3 (ii) the number of denials that were 

4 based on the failure of a veteran to report 

5 for a medical examination. 

6 (6) The number of covered claims that, as of the 

7 end of the fiscal year covered by the report, are pend8 ing and, separately, the number of such claims on ap9 peal. 

10 (7) For the fiscal year covered by the report, the 

11 average number of days that covered claims take to 

12 complete beginning on the date on which the claim is 

13 submitted. 

14 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

15 (1) ACTIVE MILITARY, NAVAL, OR AIR SERVICE.— 

16 The term ‘‘active military, naval, or air service’’ has 

17 the meaning given that term in section 101 of title 

18 38, United States Code. 

19 (2) COVERED CLAIMS.—The term ‘‘covered 

20 claims’’ means claims for disability compensation 

21 submitted to the Secretary based on post traumatic 

22 stress disorder alleged to have been incurred or aggra23 vated by military sexual trauma. 

24 (3) MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA.—The term 

25 ‘‘military sexual trauma’’ shall have the meaning 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
107 

•S 944 RS

1 specified by the Secretary for purposes of this section, 

2 and shall include ‘‘sexual harassment’’ (as so speci3 fied). 

4 Subtitle B—Agency of Original 

5 Jurisdiction 

6 SEC. 511. WORKING GROUP TO IMPROVE EMPLOYEE WORK 

7 CREDIT AND WORK MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS 

8 OF VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION IN 

9 AN ELECTRONIC ENVIRONMENT. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 90 days after 

11 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Vet12 erans Affairs shall establish a working group to assess and 

13 develop recommendations for the improvement of the em14 ployee work credit and work management systems of the 

15 Veterans Benefits Administration in an electronic environ16 ment. 

17 (b) COMPOSITION.—The working group shall be com18 posed of the following: 

19 (1) The Secretary or the Secretary’s designee. 

20 (2) Individuals selected by the Secretary from 

21 among employees of the Department of Veterans Af22 fairs who handle claims for compensation and pen23 sion benefits and are recommended to the Secretary 

24 by a labor organization for purposes of this section, 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
108 

•S 944 RS

1 including at least one of each of the following individ2 uals: 

3 (A) A veterans service representative. 

4 (B) A rating veterans service representative. 

5 (C) A decision review officer. 

6 (3) Not fewer than three individuals selected by 

7 the Secretary to represent different organizations rec8 ognized by the Secretary for the representation of vet9 erans under section 5902 of title 38, United States 

10 Code. 

11 (4) Individuals selected by the Secretary— 

12 (A) that are not employees of the Depart13 ment; and 

14 (B) that are experts in work credit and 

15 work management systems. 

16 (c) DUTIES.—The duties of the working group are to 

17 assess and develop recommendations for the following: 

18 (1) The improvement of the employee work credit 

19 and work management systems of the Veterans Bene20 fits Administration in an electronic environment. 

21 (2) A scientific, data based methodology to be 

22 used in revising the employee work credit system of 

23 the Department to improve the quality and quantity 

24 of work produced by employees of the Department. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
109 

•S 944 RS

1 (3) The improvement of the resource allocation 

2 model of the Veterans Benefits Administration, with 

3 a focus on the processing of claims in an electronic 

4 environment. 

5 (4) A schedule by which the revisions referred to 

6 in paragraph (2) will be implemented by the Depart7 ment. 

8 (d) REVIEW AND INCORPORATION OF FINDINGS FROM

9 PRIOR STUDY.—In carrying out its duties under subsection 

10 (c), the working group shall review the findings and conclu11 sions of previous studies of the employee work credit and 

12 work management systems of the Veterans Benefits Admin13 istration. 

14 (e) ROLE OF THE SECRETARY.—The Secretary shall 

15 consider the recommendations of the working group and im16 plement such recommendations as the Secretary determines 

17 appropriate. 

18 (f) REPORTS.— 

19 (1) INTERIM REPORT.—Not later than 180 days 

20 after the date of the establishment of the working 

21 group, the working group shall submit to Congress a 

22 report on the progress of the working group. 

23 (2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than one year 

24 after the date of the establishment of the working 

25 group, the Secretary shall submit to Congress the 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
110 

•S 944 RS

1 methodology described in subsection (c)(2) and the 

2 schedule described in subsection (c)(4) that the Sec3 retary has decided to implement pursuant to sub4 section (e). 

5 (g) IMPLEMENTATION OF METHODOLOGY AND SCHED6 ULE.—After submitting the report under subsection (f), the 

7 Secretary shall take such actions as may be necessary to 

8 apply the methodology described in subsection (c)(2) and 

9 the schedule described in subsection (c)(4) that the Secretary 

10 has decided to implement pursuant to subsection (e). 

11 SEC. 512. TASK FORCE ON RETENTION AND TRAINING OF 

12 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS CLAIMS 

13 PROCESSORS AND ADJUDICATORS. 

14 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Veterans Af15 fairs shall establish a task force to assess retention and 

16 training of claims processors and adjudicators that are em17 ployed by the Department of Veterans Affairs and other de18 partments and agencies of the Federal Government. 

19 (b) COMPOSITION.—The task force shall be composed 

20 of the following: 

21 (1) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs or designee. 

22 (2) The Director of the Office of Personnel Man23 agement or designee. 

24 (3) The Commissioner of Social Security or des25 ignee. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
111 

•S 944 RS

1 (4) An individual selected by the Secretary of 

2 Veterans Affairs who represents an organization rec3 ognized by the Secretary for the representation of vet4 erans under section 5902 of title 38, United States 

5 Code. 

6 (5) Such other individuals selected by the Sec7 retary who represent such other organizations and in8 stitutions as the Secretary considers appropriate. 

9 (c) DURATION.—The task force established under sub10 section (a) shall terminate not later than two years after 

11 the date on which the task force is established under such 

12 subsection. 

13 (d) DUTIES.—The duties of the task force are as fol14 lows: 

15 (1) To identify key skills required by claims 

16 processors and adjudicators to perform the duties of 

17 claims processors and adjudicators in the various 

18 claims processing and adjudication positions through19 out the Federal Government. 

20 (2) To identify reasons for employee attrition 

21 from claims processing positions. 

22 (3) To coordinate with educational institutions 

23 to develop training and programs of education for 

24 members of the Armed Forces to prepare such memVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00111 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
112 

•S 944 RS

1 bers for employment in claims processing and adju2 dication positions in the Federal Government. 

3 (4) To identify and coordinate offices of the De4 partment of Defense and the Department of Veterans 

5 Affairs located throughout the United States to pro6 vide information about, and promotion of, available 

7 claims processing positions to members of the Armed 

8 Forces transitioning to civilian life and to veterans 

9 with disabilities. 

10 (5) To establish performance measures to evalu11 ate the effectiveness of the task force. 

12 (6) Not later than one year after the date of the 

13 establishment of the task force, to develop a Govern14 ment-wide strategic and operational plan for pro15 moting employment of veterans in claims processing 

16 positions in the Federal Government. 

17 (7) To establish performance measures to assess 

18 the plan developed under paragraph (6), to assess the 

19 implementation of such plan, and to revise such plan 

20 as the task force considers appropriate. 

21 (e) REPORTS.— 

22 (1) SUBMITTAL OF PLAN.—Not later than one 

23 year after the date of the establishment of the task 

24 force, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
113 

•S 944 RS

1 Congress a report on the plan developed by the task 

2 force under subsection (d)(6). 

3 (2) ASSESSMENT OF IMPLEMENTATION.—Not 

4 later than 120 days after the termination of the task 

5 force, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report 

6 that assesses the implementation of the plan developed 

7 by the task force under subsection (d)(6). 

8 SEC. 513. REPORTS ON REQUESTS BY THE DEPARTMENT OF 

9 VETERANS AFFAIRS FOR RECORDS OF OTHER 

10 FEDERAL AGENCIES. 

11 (a) REPORTS REQUIRED.—Not later than 180 days 

12 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 180 

13 days thereafter through the date that is 910 days after the 

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

15 Affairs shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

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

17 the House of Representatives a report on the attempts of 

18 the Department of Veterans Affairs to obtain records nec19 essary to adjudicate claims for benefits from another de20 partment or agency of the Federal Government during the 

21 180-day period ending on the date of such report. 

22 (b) ELEMENTS.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each report shall set forth the 

24 following: 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
114 

•S 944 RS

1 (A) For the period covered by such report, 

2 the following: 

3 (i) The total number of requests made 

4 by the Department. 

5 (ii) The types of records requested. 

6 (iii) The number of requests made be7 fore the receipt of each record. 

8 (iv) The amount of time between the 

9 initial request for each record and the re10 ceipt of each record. 

11 (v) The number of occurrences of the 

12 receipt of a record after the adjudication of 

13 the claim for which the record was sought. 

14 (vi) A description of the efforts of the 

15 Secretary to expedite the delivery of records 

16 to the Department from other departments 

17 and agencies of the Federal Government. 

18 (B) Such recommendations for legislative or 

19 administrative action as the Secretary considers 

20 appropriate in light of such report. 

21 (2) PRESENTATION.—The information in a re22 port under clause (i) through (v) of paragraph (1)(A) 

23 shall be set forth separately for each department and 

24 agency of the Federal Government covered by such re25 port. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
115 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 514. RECOGNITION OF REPRESENTATIVES OF INDIAN 

2 TRIBES IN THE PREPARATION, PRESEN3 TATION, AND PROSECUTION OF CLAIMS 

4 UNDER LAWS ADMINISTERED BY THE SEC5 RETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

6 Section 5902(a)(1) is amended by inserting ‘‘, includ7 ing Indian tribes (as defined in section 4 of the Indian Self8 Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 

9 450b))’’ after ‘‘as the Secretary may approve’’. 

10 SEC. 515. PROGRAM ON PARTICIPATION OF LOCAL AND 

11 TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS IN IMPROVING QUAL12 ITY OF CLAIMS FOR DISABILITY COMPENSA13 TION SUBMITTED TO DEPARTMENT OF VET14 ERANS AFFAIRS. 

15 (a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—The Secretary of Veterans 

16 Affairs shall carry out a program to assess the feasibility 

17 and advisability of entering into memoranda of under18 standing with local governments and tribal organizations— 

19 (1) to improve the quality of claims submitted to 

20 the Secretary for compensation under chapter 11 of 

21 title 38, United States Code, and pension under chap22 ter 15 of such title; and 

23 (2) to provide assistance to veterans who may be 

24 eligible for such compensation or pension in submit25 ting such claims. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
116 

•S 944 RS

1 (b) MINIMUM NUMBER OF PARTICIPATING TRIBAL OR2 GANIZATIONS.—In carrying out the program required by 

3 subsection (a), the Secretary shall enter into, or maintain 

4 existing, memoranda of understanding with at least— 

5 (1) two tribal organizations; and 

6 (2) 10 State or local governments. 

7 (c) DURATION.—The program shall be carried out dur8 ing the two-year period beginning on the date of the com9 mencement of the program. 

10 (d) REPORT.— 

11 (1) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than one year 

12 after the date of the commencement of the program, 

13 the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Vet14 erans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 

15 Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives a re16 port that includes the following: 

17 (A) A description of the implementation 

18 and operation of the program, including a de19 scription of outreach conducted by the Secretary 

20 to tribal organizations and State and local gov21 ernments. 

22 (B) An evaluation of the program, includ23 ing the total number of memoranda of under24 standing entered into or maintained by the Sec25 retary. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
117 

•S 944 RS

1 (2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 180 days 

2 after the termination of the program, the Secretary 

3 shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

4 the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

5 the House of Representatives a report that includes 

6 the following: 

7 (A) A description of the implementation 

8 and operation of the program, including a de9 scription of outreach conducted by the Secretary 

10 to tribal organizations and State and local gov11 ernments. 

12 (B) An evaluation of the program, includ13 ing the total number of memoranda of under14 standing entered into or maintained by the Sec15 retary. 

16 (C) The findings and conclusions of the Sec17 retary with respect to the program. 

18 (D) Such recommendations for continuation 

19 or expansion of the program as the Secretary 

20 considers appropriate. 

21 (e) TRIBAL ORGANIZATION DEFINED.—In this section, 

22 the term ‘‘tribal organization’’ has the meaning given that 

23 term in section 3765 of title 38, United States Code. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
118 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 516. QUARTERLY REPORTS ON PROGRESS OF DEPART2 MENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS IN ELIMI3 NATING BACKLOG OF CLAIMS FOR COM4 PENSATION THAT HAVE NOT BEEN ADJU5 DICATED. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

7 date of the enactment of this Act and not less frequently 

8 than quarterly thereafter through calendar year 2015, the 

9 Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the Committee 

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

11 Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives a report 

12 on the backlog of claims filed with the Department of Vet13 erans Affairs for compensation that have not been adju14 dicated by the Department. 

15 (b) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted under sub16 section (a) shall include the following: 

17 (1) For each month through calendar year 2015, 

18 a projection of the following: 

19 (A) The number of claims completed. 

20 (B) The number of claims received. 

21 (C) The number of claims on backlog at the 

22 end of the month. 

23 (D) The number of claims pending at the 

24 end of the month. 

25 (E) The number of appeals pending at the 

26 end of the month. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
119 

•S 944 RS

1 (F) A description of the status of the imple2 mentation of initiatives carried out by the Sec3 retary to address the backlog, including the ex4 pected impact of those initiatives on accuracy 

5 and timeliness of adjudication of claims. 

6 (2) For each quarter through calendar year 

7 2015, a projection of the average accuracy of dis8 ability determinations for compensation claims that 

9 require a disability rating (or disability decision). 

10 (3) For each month during the most recently 

11 completed quarter, the following: 

12 (A) The number of claims completed. 

13 (B) The number of claims received. 

14 (C) The number of claims on backlog at the 

15 end of the month. 

16 (D) The number of claims pending at the 

17 end of the month. 

18 (E) The number of appeals pending at the 

19 end of the month. 

20 (F) A description of the status of the imple21 mentation of initiatives carried out by the Sec22 retary to address the backlog, including the im23 pact of those initiatives on accuracy and timeli24 ness of adjudication of claims. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
120 

•S 944 RS

1 (G) An assessment of the accuracy of dis2 ability determinations for compensation claims 

3 that require a disability rating (or disability de4 cision). 

5 (4) For the most recently completed quarter— 

6 (A) the number of cases physically received 

7 at the Board of Veterans’ Appeals and docketed; 

8 (B) the number of cases pending at the 

9 Board of Veterans’ Appeals at the end of the 

10 quarter; 

11 (C) the number of cases physically at the 

12 Board of Veterans’ Appeals at the end of the 

13 quarter; 

14 (D) the number of notices of disagreement 

15 and appeals filed to the agency of original juris16 diction referred to in section 7105(b)(1) of title 

17 38, United States Code; and 

18 (E) the number of decisions made by the 

19 Board of Veterans’ Appeals and the percentage of 

20 such decisions that were allowed, remanded, de21 nied, or otherwise disposed of. 

22 (c) AVAILABILITY TO PUBLIC.—The Secretary shall 

23 make each report submitted under subsection (a) available 

24 to the public. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
121 

•S 944 RS

1 (d) ON BACKLOG AND PENDING DEFINED.—In this 

2 section, the terms ‘‘on backlog’’ and ‘‘pending’’, with respect 

3 to a claim for compensation received by the Secretary, shall 

4 have the meaning specified by the Secretary for purposes 

5 of this section. 

6 SEC. 517. REPORTS ON USE OF EXISTING AUTHORITIES TO 

7 EXPEDITE BENEFITS DECISIONS. 

8 (a) REPORT ON CURRENT USE OF TEMPORARY, IN9 TERMEDIATE, AND PROVISIONAL RATING DECISIONS.— 

10 (1) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than 180 

11 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

12 Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the Com13 mittee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the 

14 Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep15 resentatives a report on the use of temporary, inter16 mediate, and provisional rating decisions to expedite 

17 the benefits decisions of the Department of Veterans 

18 Affairs. 

19 (2) REPORT ELEMENTS.—The report required by 

20 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

21 (A) With respect to temporary and inter22 mediate rating decisions, the following: 

23 (i) The number of temporary and in24 termediate rating decisions issued by the 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
122 

•S 944 RS

1 Department during each of fiscal years 

2 2011, 2012, and 2013. 

3 (ii) A description of any reasons or ob4 stacles that prevent use of existing authori5 ties to issue temporary or intermediate rat6 ing decisions. 

7 (iii) A description of the Quick Pay 

8 Disability initiative, including the ration9 ale for not expanding the initiative beyond 

10 pilot program status. 

11 (B) With respect to provisional rating deci12 sions, the following: 

13 (i) The number of provisional rating 

14 decisions issued by the Department during 

15 the oldest claims first initiative. 

16 (ii) Of the provisional rating decisions 

17 issued during the oldest claims first initia18 tive— 

19 (I) the number of such decisions 

20 that involved a claim granted; 

21 (II) the number of such decisions 

22 that involved a claim denied; and 

23 (III) the number of such decisions 

24 that involved a claim granted in part 

25 or a claim denied in part. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
123 

•S 944 RS

1 (iii) A statement of the most common 

2 reasons claims were not granted earlier 

3 under the oldest claims first initiative when 

4 there was sufficient evidence to render an 

5 award of benefits in the provisional rating 

6 decision. 

7 (iv) The average number of days to 

8 issue a provisional rating decision under 

9 the oldest claims first initiative. 

10 (v) Of the total number of decisions 

11 that were completed under the oldest claims 

12 first initiative— 

13 (I) the number that were Category 

14 1 claims and received a final rating 

15 decision; and 

16 (II) the number that were Cat17 egory 2 claims and received a provi18 sional rating decision. 

19 (vi) The number of rating decisions 

20 issued during the oldest claims first imita21 tive that involved a brokered claim, set forth 

22 by number of such claims by Regional Of23 fice of the Department, including— 

24 (I) the number of brokered claims 

25 received by each Regional Office; and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
124 

•S 944 RS

1 (II) the number of brokered claims 

2 issued by each Regional Office. 

3 (vii) The number of provisional rating 

4 decisions issued during the oldest claims 

5 first initiative with respect to which the vet6 eran requested that the provisional decision 

7 become final in order to appeal. 

8 (viii) The number of provisional rating 

9 decisions issued during the oldest claims 

10 first initiative with respect to which the vet11 eran requested an appeal after the expira12 tion of the 1-year period beginning on the 

13 date of notification of the provisional rating 

14 decision. 

15 (ix) An assessment of the accuracy of 

16 provisional rating decisions issued during 

17 the oldest claims first initiative, set forth by 

18 Category 1 claims and Category 2 claims. 

19 (C) Such other matters as the Secretary 

20 considers appropriate for purposes of the report. 

21 (3) SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION.—If the Sec22 retary continues to obtain information on rating de23 cisions under clauses (vii) and (viii) of paragraph 

24 (2)(B) after the date of the submittal of the report re25 quired by paragraph (1), the Secretary shall submit 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
125 

•S 944 RS

1 to the committees of Congress referred to in para2 graph (1) a report on such information that supple3 ments the information on such clauses in the report 

4 under paragraph (1) when the Secretary completes 

5 accumulation of such information. 

6 (b) PLAN FOR INCREASE IN USE OF TEMPORARY OR

7 INTERMEDIATE RATING DECISIONS.— 

8 (1) REPORT ON PLAN REQUIRED.—Not later 

9 than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this 

10 Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 

11 Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 

12 Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives a re13 port setting forth a plan to increase the use of tem14 porary or intermediate rating decisions to expedite 

15 benefit decisions of the Department when the record 

16 contains sufficient evidence to grant any claim at 

17 issue, including service connection. 

18 (2) PLAN ELEMENTS.—The plan required under 

19 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

20 (A) Mechanisms to overcome obstacles to the 

21 use of temporary or intermediate rating deci22 sions, including mechanisms (such as upgrades) 

23 to assure the ability of the Veterans Benefits 

24 Management System to facilitate the issuance of 

25 temporary or intermediate rating decisions. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
126 

•S 944 RS

1 (B) Mechanisms to ensure that appropriate 

2 claimant populations, such as claimants who file 

3 complex or multi-issue disability compensation 

4 claims, benefit from the availability of tem5 porary or intermediate rating decisions. 

6 (C) Mechanisms to provide for the use of 

7 temporary or intermediate rating decisions, in8 cluding mechanisms to resolve whether a request 

9 by a claimant or claimant representative should 

10 trigger use of a temporary or intermediate rat11 ing decision depending on the circumstances of 

12 the claimant. 

13 (D) Mechanisms to prevent the use of tem14 porary or intermediate rating decisions in lieu 

15 of a final rating decision when a final rating de16 cision could be made with little or no additional 

17 claim development. 

18 (E) Such recommendations for legislative or 

19 administrative action as the Secretary considers 

20 appropriate to increase the use of temporary or 

21 intermediate rating decisions to expedite benefit 

22 decisions of the Department. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
127 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 518. REPORTS ON DEPARTMENT DISABILITY MEDICAL 

2 EXAMINATIONS AND PREVENTION OF UNNEC3 ESSARY MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS. 

4 (a) REPORT ON DISABILITY MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS

5 FURNISHED BY DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

7 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

8 Veterans Affairs shall submit to the Committee on 

9 Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 

10 Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives a re11 port on the furnishing of general medical and spe12 cialty medical examinations by the Department of 

13 Veterans Affairs for purposes of adjudicating claims 

14 for benefits under laws administered by the Secretary. 

15 (2) CONTENTS.—The report submitted under 

16 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

17 (A) The number of general medical exami18 nations furnished by the Department during the 

19 period of fiscal years 2009 through 2012 for pur20 poses of adjudicating claims for benefits under 

21 laws administered by the Secretary. 

22 (B) The number of general medical exami23 nations furnished by the Department during the 

24 period of fiscal years 2009 through 2012 for pur25 poses of adjudicating a claim in which a com26 prehensive joint examination was conducted, but 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
128 

•S 944 RS

1 for which no disability relating to a joint, bone, 

2 or muscle had been asserted as an issue in the 

3 claim. 

4 (C) The number of specialty medical exami5 nations furnished by the Department during the 

6 period of fiscal years 2009 through 2012 for pur7 poses of adjudicating a claim. 

8 (D) The number of specialty medical exami9 nations furnished by the Department during the 

10 period of fiscal years 2009 through 2012 for pur11 poses of adjudicating a claim in which one or 

12 more joint examinations were conducted. 

13 (E) A summary with citations to any med14 ical and scientific studies that provide a basis 

15 for determining that three repetitions is adequate 

16 to determine the effect of repetitive use on func17 tional impairments. 

18 (F) The names of all examination reports, 

19 including general medical examinations and 

20 Disability Benefits Questionnaires, used for eval21 uation of compensation and pension disability 

22 claims which require measurement of repeated 

23 ranges of motion testing and the number of ex24 aminations requiring such measurements which 

25 were conducted in fiscal year 2012. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
129 

•S 944 RS

1 (G) The average amount of time taken by 

2 an individual conducting a medical examination 

3 to perform the three repetitions of movement of 

4 each joint. 

5 (H) A discussion of whether there are more 

6 efficient and effective scientifically reliable meth7 ods of testing for functional loss on repetitive use 

8 of an extremity other than the three time repeti9 tion currently used by the Department. 

10 (I) Recommendations as to the continuation 

11 of the practice of measuring functional impair12 ment by using three repetitions of movement of 

13 each joint during the examination as a criteria 

14 for evaluating the effect of repetitive motion on 

15 functional impairment with supporting ration16 ale. 

17 (b) REPORT AND PLAN TO PREVENT THE ORDERING

18 OF UNNECESSARY MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

20 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

21 shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

22 the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

23 the House of Representatives a report on the efforts of 

24 the Secretary in reducing the necessity for in-person 

25 disability examinations and other efforts to comply 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
130 

•S 944 RS

1 with the provisions of section 5125 of title 38, United 

2 States Code. 

3 (2) CONTENTS.—The report required by para4 graph (1) shall include the following: 

5 (A) Criteria used by the Secretary to deter6 mine if a claim is eligible for the Acceptable 

7 Clinical Evidence initiative. 

8 (B) The number of claims determined to be 

9 eligible for the Acceptable Clinical Evidence ini10 tiative during the period beginning on the date 

11 of the initiation of the initiative and ending on 

12 the date of the enactment of this Act, 

13 disaggregated— 

14 (i) by fiscal year; and 

15 (ii) by claims determined eligible based 

16 in whole or in part on medical evidence 

17 provided by a private health care provider. 

18 (C) The total number of claims determined 

19 to be eligible for the Acceptable Clinical Evidence 

20 initiative that required an employee of the De21 partment to supplement the evidence with infor22 mation obtained during a telephone interview 

23 with a claimant or health care provider. 

24 (D) Information on any other initiatives or 

25 efforts, including disability benefits questionVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00130 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
131 

•S 944 RS

1 naires, of the Department to further encourage 

2 the use of medical evidence provided by a private 

3 health care provider and reliance upon reports of 

4 a medical examination administered by a pri5 vate physician if the report is sufficiently com6 plete to be adequate for the purposes of adjudi7 cating a claim. 

8 (E) A plan— 

9 (i) to measure, track, and prevent the 

10 ordering of unnecessary medical examina11 tions when the provision by a claimant of 

12 a medical examination administered by a 

13 private physician in support of a claim for 

14 benefits under chapter 11 or 15 of title 38, 

15 United States Code, is adequate for the pur16 pose of making a decision on that claim; 

17 and 

18 (ii) that includes the actions the Sec19 retary will take to eliminate any request by 

20 the Department for a medical examination 

21 in the case of a claim for benefits under 

22 chapter 11 or 15 of such title in support of 

23 which a claimant submits medical evidence 

24 or a medical opinion provided by a private 

25 health care provider that is competent, credVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00131 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
132 

•S 944 RS

1 ible, probative, and otherwise adequate for 

2 purposes of making a decision on that 

3 claim. 

4 Subtitle C—Board of Veterans’ Ap5 peals and Court of Appeals for 

6 Veterans Claims 

7 SEC. 521. TREATMENT OF CERTAIN MISFILED DOCUMENTS 

8 AS A NOTICE OF APPEAL TO THE COURT OF 

9 APPEALS FOR VETERANS CLAIMS. 

10 Section 7266 is amended by adding at the end the fol11 lowing new subsection: 

12 ‘‘(e)(1) If a person adversely affected by a final deci13 sion of the Board, who has not filed a notice of appeal with 

14 the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims 

15 under subsection (a), misfiles a document with the Board 

16 or the agency of original jurisdiction referred to in section 

17 7105(b)(1) of this title that expresses disagreement with 

18 such decision and a clear intent to seek review of such deci19 sion by the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans 

20 Claims, not later than 120 days after the date of such deci21 sion, such document shall be treated as timely filed under 

22 subsection (a). 

23 ‘‘(2) The treatment of misfiled documents under para24 graph (1) does not limit equitable relief that may be other25 wise available to a person described in that paragraph.’’. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
133 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 522. MODIFICATION OF FILING PERIOD FOR NOTICE 

2 OF DISAGREEMENT TO INITIATE APPELLATE 

3 REVIEW OF DECISIONS OF DEPARTMENT OF 

4 VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

5 (a) FILING OF NOTICE OF DISAGREEMENT BY CLAIM6 ANTS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) of section 

8 7105(b) is amended— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘one year’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘180 days’’ in the first sentence; and 

11 (B) by striking ‘‘one-year’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘180-day’’ in the third sentence. 

13 (2) ELECTRONIC FILING.—Such paragraph is 

14 further amended by inserting ‘‘or transmitted by elec15 tronic means’’ after ‘‘postmarked’’. 

16 (3) GOOD CAUSE EXCEPTION FOR UNTIMELY FIL17 ING OF NOTICES OF DISAGREEMENT.—Such section 

18 7105(b) is amended by adding at the end the fol19 lowing new paragraph: 

20 ‘‘(3) A notice of disagreement not filed within the time 

21 prescribed by paragraph (1) shall be treated by the Sec22 retary as timely filed if— 

23 ‘‘(A) the Secretary determines that the claimant, 

24 legal guardian, or other accredited representative, at25 torney, or authorized agent filing the notice had good 

26 cause for the lack of filing within such time; and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
134 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(B) the notice of disagreement is filed not later 

2 than 186 days after the expiration of the period pre3 scribed by paragraph (1).’’. 

4 (b) APPLICATION BY DEPARTMENT FOR REVIEW ON

5 APPEAL.—Section 7106 is amended in the first sentence by 

6 striking ‘‘one-year period described in section 7105’’ and 

7 inserting ‘‘period described in section 7105(b)(1)’’. 

8 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by this 

9 section shall apply with respect to claims for benefits under 

10 laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs filed 

11 with the Secretary after the date of the enactment of this 

12 Act. 

13 SEC. 523. DETERMINATION OF MANNER OF APPEARANCE 

14 FOR HEARINGS BEFORE BOARD OF VET15 ERANS’ APPEALS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7107 is amended— 

17 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by striking ‘‘in sub18 section (f)’’ and inserting ‘‘in subsection (g)’’; 

19 (2) by redesignating subsection (f) as subsection 

20 (g); and 

21 (3) by striking subsections (d) and (e) and in22 serting the following new subsections: 

23 ‘‘(d)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), a hear24 ing before the Board shall be conducted through picture and 

25 voice transmission, by electronic or other means, in such 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
135 

•S 944 RS

1 a manner that the appellant is not present in the same loca2 tion as the members of the Board during the hearing. 

3 ‘‘(2)(A) A hearing before the Board shall be conducted 

4 in person upon the request of an appellant. 

5 ‘‘(B) In the absence of a request under subparagraph 

6 (A), a hearing before the Board may also be conducted in 

7 person as the Board considers appropriate. 

8 ‘‘(e)(1) In a case in which a hearing before the Board 

9 is to be held as described in subsection (d)(1), the Secretary 

10 shall provide suitable facilities and equipment to the Board 

11 or other components of the Department to enable an appel12 lant located at an appropriate facility within the area 

13 served by a regional office to participate as so described. 

14 ‘‘(2) Any hearing conducted as described in subsection 

15 (d)(1) shall be conducted in the same manner as, and shall 

16 be considered the equivalent of, a personal hearing. 

17 ‘‘(f)(1) In a case in which a hearing before the Board 

18 is to be held as described in subsection (d)(2), the appellant 

19 may request that the hearing be held at the principal loca20 tion of the Board or at a facility of the Department located 

21 within the area served by a regional office of the Depart22 ment. 

23 ‘‘(2) A hearing to be held within an area served by 

24 a regional office of the Department shall (except as provided 

25 in paragraph (3)) be scheduled to be held in accordance 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
136 

•S 944 RS

1 with the place of the case on the docket under subsection 

2 (a) relative to other cases on the docket for which hearings 

3 are scheduled to be held within that area. 

4 ‘‘(3) A hearing to be held within an area served by 

5 a regional office of the Department may, for cause shown, 

6 be advanced on motion for an earlier hearing. Any such 

7 motion shall set forth succinctly the grounds upon which 

8 the motion is based. Such a motion may be granted only— 

9 ‘‘(A) if the case involves interpretation of law of 

10 general application affecting other claims; 

11 ‘‘(B) if the appellant is seriously ill or is under 

12 severe financial hardship; or 

13 ‘‘(C) for other sufficient cause shown.’’. 

14 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by sub15 section (a) shall apply with respect to cases received by the 

16 Board of Veterans’ Appeals pursuant to notices of disagree17 ment submitted on or after the date of the enactment of this 

18 Act. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
137 

•S 944 RS

1 TITLE VI—OUTREACH MATTERS 

2 SEC. 601. PROGRAM TO INCREASE COORDINATION OF OUT3 REACH EFFORTS BETWEEN THE DEPART4 MENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS AND FEDERAL, 

5 STATE, AND LOCAL AGENCIES AND NON6 PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS. 

7 (a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—The Secretary of Veterans 

8 Affairs shall carry out a program to assess the feasibility 

9 and advisability of using State and local government agen10 cies and nonprofit organizations— 

11 (1) to increase awareness of veterans regarding 

12 benefits and services for veterans; and 

13 (2) to improve coordination of outreach activities 

14 regarding such benefits and services between the Sec15 retary and Federal, State, and local government and 

16 nonprofit providers of health care and benefit services 

17 for veterans. 

18 (b) DURATION.—The Secretary shall carry out the pro19 gram for a two-year period. 

20 (c) GRANTS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry out 

22 the program through the competitive award of grants 

23 to State and local government agencies and nonprofit 

24 organizations— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
138 

•S 944 RS

1 (A) to increase the awareness of veterans re2 garding benefits and services for veterans; and 

3 (B) to improve coordination of outreach ac4 tivities regarding such benefits and services be5 tween the Secretary and Federal, State, and 

6 local government and nonprofit providers of 

7 health care and benefit services for veterans. 

8 (2) APPLICATION.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—A State or local govern10 ment agency or nonprofit organization seeking a 

11 grant under the program shall submit to the Sec12 retary an application therefor in such form and 

13 in such manner as the Secretary considers ap14 propriate. 

15 (B) ELEMENTS.—Each application sub16 mitted under subparagraph (A) shall include the 

17 following: 

18 (i) A description of the consultations, 

19 if any, with the Department of Veterans Af20 fairs in the development of any proposal 

21 under the application. 

22 (ii) A description of the project for 

23 which the applicant is seeking a grant 

24 under the program, including a plan to co25 ordinate under the program, to the greatest 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
139 

•S 944 RS

1 extent possible, the outreach activities of 

2 Federal, State, and local government agen3 cies that provide health care, benefits, and 

4 services for veterans and nonprofit organi5 zations that provide such care, benefits, and 

6 services to enhance the awareness and avail7 ability of such care, benefits, and services. 

8 (iii) An agreement to report to the Sec9 retary standardized data and other per10 formance measures necessary for the Sec11 retary to evaluate the program and to fa12 cilitate evaluation of projects for which 

13 grants are awarded under the program. 

14 (iv) Such other information as the Sec15 retary may require. 

16 (3) CONSIDERATIONS.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—In awarding grants 

18 under the program to carry out projects, the Sec19 retary shall consider— 

20 (i) where the projects will be carried 

21 out and which populations are targeted; 

22 and 

23 (ii) the likelihood that each potential 

24 grantee will successfully carry out the grant 

25 proposal. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
140 

•S 944 RS

1 (B) CONSIDERATIONS REGARDING LOCATION

2 AND TARGET POPULATION.—In taking the mat3 ters specified in subparagraph (A)(ii) into con4 sideration, the Secretary shall consider in par5 ticular the advisability of awarding grants for 

6 projects— 

7 (i) carried out in areas with popu8 lations that have a high proportion of vet9 eran representation; 

10 (ii) carried out in a variety of geo11 graphic areas, including urban, rural, and 

12 highly rural areas; and 

13 (iii) that target a variety of veteran 

14 populations, including racial and ethnic 

15 minorities, low-income populations, and 

16 older populations. 

17 (4) USE OF FUNDS.—The Secretary shall estab18 lish appropriate uses of grant amounts received under 

19 the program. 

20 (5) OVERSIGHT OF USE OF FUNDS.—The Sec21 retary shall establish appropriate mechanisms for 

22 oversight of the use of grant amounts received under 

23 the program, including the evidence grantees must 

24 submit to demonstrate use of grant amounts and proVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00140 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
141 

•S 944 RS

1 cedures for the recovery of grant amounts that were 

2 improperly used. 

3 (6) LIMITATION.—In a fiscal year, not more 

4 than 20 percent of all grant amounts awarded in that 

5 fiscal year may be awarded to a single State entity. 

6 (d) STATE MATCHING REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary 

7 may not make a grant to a State under subsection (c) unless 

8 that State agrees that, with respect to the costs to be in9 curred by the State in carrying out the program or projects 

10 for which the grant was awarded, the State will make avail11 able (directly or through donations from public or private 

12 entities) non-Federal contributions in an amount equal to 

13 50 percent of Federal funds provided under the grant. 

14 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

15 hereby authorized to be appropriated to carry out this sec16 tion the following: 

17 (1) $2,500,000 for fiscal year 2015. 

18 (2) $2,500,000 for fiscal year 2016. 

19 (f) ANNUAL REPORT.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days after 

21 the completion of the first calendar year beginning 

22 after the date of the commencement of the program, 

23 and not less frequently than once every year thereafter 

24 for the duration of the program, the Secretary shall 

25 submit to Congress a report evaluating the program 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
142 

•S 944 RS

1 and the projects supported by grants awarded under 

2 the program. 

3 (2) ELEMENTS.—The report required by para4 graph (1) shall include the following: 

5 (A) The findings and conclusions of the Sec6 retary with respect to the program. 

7 (B) An assessment of the benefit to veterans 

8 of the program. 

9 (C) The performance measures used by the 

10 Secretary for purposes of the program and data 

11 showing the performance of grantees under the 

12 program under such measures. 

13 (D) The recommendations of the Secretary 

14 as to the feasibility and advisability of con15 tinuing or expanding or modifying the program. 

16 (g) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect 

17 on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

18 of this Act. 

19 SEC. 602. COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS BETWEEN SEC20 RETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS AND STATES 

21 ON OUTREACH ACTIVITIES. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 63 is amended by insert23 ing after section 6306 the following new section: 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
143 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘§ 6306A. Cooperative agreements with States 

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may enter into co3 operative agreements and arrangements with various State 

4 agencies and State departments to carry out this chapter 

5 and to otherwise carry out, coordinate, improve, or enhance 

6 outreach activities of the Department and the States. 

7 ‘‘(b) REPORT.—The Secretary shall include in each re8 port submitted under section 6308 of this title a description 

9 of the agreements and arrangements entered into by the Sec10 retary under subsection (a).’’. 

11 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections at 

12 the beginning of chapter 63 is amended by inserting after 

13 the item relating to section 6306 the following new item: 

‘‘6306A. Cooperative agreements with States.’’. 

14 SEC. 603. ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON OUTREACH ACTIVITIES 

15 OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

16 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days after 

17 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Vet18 erans Affairs shall establish an advisory committee on out19 reach activities of the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

20 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The advisory committee shall be 

21 composed of individuals selected by the Secretary from 

22 among the following: 

23 (1) To the maximum extent practicable, individ24 uals who are eminent in their respective fields of pub25 lic relations. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
144 

•S 944 RS

1 (2) Representatives of organizations with offices 

2 that focus on communications and distribute messages 

3 through major media news outlets and social media. 

4 (3) To the maximum extent practicable, individ5 uals with experience communicating financial results 

6 and business strategy for purposes of shaping a con7 fident brand image. 

8 (4) To the maximum extent practicable, individ9 uals with experience with consumer and lifestyle im10 aging and creating publicity for a particular product 

11 or service. 

12 (5) To the maximum extent practicable, veterans 

13 who have experience in press and public relations. 

14 (c) DUTIES.—The advisory committee shall advise the 

15 Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Af16 fairs— 

17 (1) to ensure that the Department of Veterans 

18 Affairs is strategically and effectively— 

19 (A) engaging the public and Department 

20 stakeholders to increase awareness nationally re21 garding all benefits and services furnished by the 

22 Department; 

23 (B) explaining new or changing policies of 

24 the Department; 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
145 

•S 944 RS

1 (C) improving the image and reputation of 

2 the Department; and 

3 (D) coordinating and collaborating with 

4 national community-based organizations, non5 profits, and State and local government agencies; 

6 (2) to assist the Secretary in conducting such 

7 other press or public relations activities relating to 

8 outreach activities of the Department as the Secretary 

9 and the Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergov10 ernmental Affairs consider appropriate; and 

11 (3) to ensure coordination and collaboration on 

12 efforts within the Department for the development, 

13 implementation, and review of local outreach with re14 spect to benefits that include the following: 

15 (A) Compensation and pension benefits. 

16 (B) Insurance benefits. 

17 (C) Burial and memorial benefits. 

18 (D) Education benefits. 

19 (E) Vocational rehabilitation and employ20 ment benefits. 

21 (F) Readjustment counseling benefits. 

22 (G) Loan guarantee benefits. 

23 (H) Such other benefits as the Secretary 

24 considers appropriate. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
146 

•S 944 RS

1 (d) LOCATION OF MEETINGS.—Each meeting of the ad2 visory committee shall take place at a location that is prop3 erty of the Department and shall, to the maximum extent 

4 practicable, use teleconference technology. 

5 (e) CONSULTATION.—The Secretary shall consult with 

6 and seek the advice of the advisory committee not less fre7 quently than quarterly on matters relating to the duties of 

8 the advisory committee under subsection (c). 

9 (f) REPORTS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not less frequently than once 

11 every 90 days for the first year and semiannually 

12 thereafter, the advisory committee shall submit to 

13 Congress and to the Secretary a report on outreach 

14 activities of the Department. 

15 (2) RECOMMENDATIONS.—Each report submitted 

16 under paragraph (1) shall include such recommenda17 tions for legislative and administrative action as the 

18 advisory committee considers appropriate to improve 

19 the press and public relations of the Department re20 lating to outreach. 

21 (g) TERMINATION.—The advisory committee shall ter22 minate on October 1, 2015, and the requirements and au23 thorities under this section shall terminate on such date. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
147 

•S 944 RS

1 (h) OUTREACH DEFINED.—In this section, the term 

2 ‘‘outreach’’ has the meaning given the term in section 6301 

3 of title 38, United States Code. 

4 SEC. 604. ADVISORY BOARDS ON OUTREACH ACTIVITIES OF 

5 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS RELAT6 ING TO HEALTH CARE. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—For each entity described in 

9 paragraph (2), the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall, 

10 acting through the director of that entity, establish 

11 not later than 180 days after the effective date speci12 fied in subsection (h) an advisory board at that entity 

13 on matters relating to outreach activities of the De14 partment of Veterans Affairs at that entity. 

15 (2) ENTITY DESCRIBED.—An entity described in 

16 this paragraph is— 

17 (A) a healthcare system of the Department; 

18 or 

19 (B) a Veterans Integrated System Network, 

20 if such Veterans Integrated System Network does 

21 not contain a healthcare system. 

22 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each advisory board estab24 lished under subsection (a)(1) shall be, to the maxVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00147 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
148 

•S 944 RS

1 imum extent practicable, composed of individuals se2 lected by the Secretary from among the following: 

3 (A) Individuals who are eminent in their 

4 respective fields of public relations. 

5 (B) Representatives of organizations with 

6 offices that focus on communications and dis7 tribute messages through major media news out8 lets and social media. 

9 (C) Individuals with experience commu10 nicating financial results and business strategy 

11 for purposes of shaping a confident brand image. 

12 (D) Individuals with experience with con13 sumer and lifestyle imaging and creating pub14 licity for a particular product or service. 

15 (E) Employees of the Department who are 

16 involved in press and public relations strategy 

17 for an entity described in subsection (a)(2). 

18 (F) To the maximum extent practicable, 

19 veterans who have experience in press and public 

20 relations. 

21 (2) VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION.—The participa22 tion of an individual selected under paragraph (1) 

23 shall be at the election of the individual. 

24 (c) DUTIES.—Each advisory board established under 

25 subsection (a)(1) at an entity described in subsection (a)(2) 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
149 

•S 944 RS

1 shall advise the Assistant Secretary for Public and Inter2 governmental Affairs— 

3 (1) to ensure that the Department of Veterans 

4 Affairs is strategically and effectively— 

5 (A) engaging the public and Department 

6 stakeholders to increase awareness nationally re7 garding benefits and services furnished by the 

8 Department; 

9 (B) explaining new or changing policies of 

10 the Department; 

11 (C) improving the image and reputation of 

12 the Department; 

13 (D) coordinating and collaborating with 

14 national community-based organizations, non15 profits, and State and local government agencies; 

16 and 

17 (E) coordinating and collaborating on ef18 forts within the Department for the development, 

19 implementation, and review of local outreach 

20 with respect to benefits that include— 

21 (i) compensation and pension benefits; 

22 (ii) insurance benefits; 

23 (iii) burial and memorial benefits; 

24 (iv) education benefits; 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
150 

•S 944 RS

1 (v) vocational rehabilitation and em2 ployment benefits; 

3 (vi) readjustment counseling benefits; 

4 (vii) loan guarantee benefits; and 

5 (viii) such other benefits as the Sec6 retary considers appropriate; and 

7 (2) to assist the director of that entity in con8 ducting such other press or public relations activities 

9 relating to outreach activities of the Department as 

10 that advisory board considers appropriate. 

11 (d) MEETING LOCATION.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—If teleconference technology is 

13 not used, meetings of each advisory board established 

14 under subsection (a)(1) shall be held at a location 

15 that is property of the Department. 

16 (2) TELECONFERENCE TECHNOLOGY.—Each ad17 visory board shall use, to the maximum extent prac18 ticable, teleconference technology. 

19 (e) CONSULTATION.—Each director of an entity de20 scribed in subsection (a)(2) shall consult with and seek the 

21 advice of the advisory board established at such entity not 

22 less frequently than once every two months on matters relat23 ing to the duties of the advisory board under subsection (c). 

24 (f) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not less frequently than each 

25 year, each advisory board established under subsection 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
151 

•S 944 RS

1 (a)(1) shall submit to the Secretary a report with such in2 formation as may be beneficial to the Secretary in pre3 paring the reports required by section 6308 of title 38, 

4 United States Code. 

5 (g) TERMINATION.—Each advisory board established 

6 under subsection (a)(1) and the authorities and require7 ments of this section shall terminate three years after the 

8 effective date specified in subsection (h). 

9 (h) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect 

10 on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

11 of this Act. 

12 SEC. 605. MODIFICATION OF REQUIREMENT FOR PERIODIC 

13 REPORTS TO CONGRESS ON OUTREACH AC14 TIVITIES OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AF15 FAIRS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 6308 is amended— 

17 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘even-num18 bered’’; and 

19 (2) in subsection (b)— 

20 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘bien21 nial’’; 

22 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘for leg23 islative and administrative action’’ after ‘‘Rec24 ommendations’’; and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
152 

•S 944 RS

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

2 paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(3) Recommendations that such administrative 

4 actions as may be taken— 

5 ‘‘(A) to maximize resources for outreach ac6 tivities of the Department; and 

7 ‘‘(B) to focus outreach efforts on activities 

8 that are proven to be more effective.’’. 

9 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.— 

10 (1) SECTION HEADING.—The heading for section 

11 6308 is amended by striking ‘‘Biennial’’ and in12 serting ‘‘Annual’’. 

13 (2) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections 

14 at the beginning of chapter 63 is amended by striking 

15 the item relating to section 6308 and inserting the 

16 following new item: 

‘‘6308. Annual report to Congress.’’. 

17 TITLE VII—EMPLOYMENT AND 

18 RELATED MATTERS 

19 Subtitle A—Employment Matters 

20 SEC. 701. EMPLOYMENT OF VETERANS WITH THE FEDERAL 

21 GOVERNMENT. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 4214 is amended— 

23 (1) in subsection (b), by adding at the end the 

24 following: 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
153 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(4)(A) The requirement under this paragraph is in 

2 addition to the appointment of qualified covered veterans 

3 under the authority under paragraph (1) by the Depart4 ment of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense. 

5 ‘‘(B) The head of each agency, in consultation with 

6 the Director of the Office of Personnel Management, shall 

7 develop a plan for exercising the authority specified in sub8 paragraph (C) during the five-year period beginning on the 

9 date of the enactment of the Veterans Health and Benefits 

10 Improvement Act of 2013. 

11 ‘‘(C) The authority specified in this subparagraph is 

12 the authority as follows: 

13 ‘‘(i) The authority under paragraph (1). 

14 ‘‘(ii) The authority available to the agency con15 cerned under the Veterans Employment Opportunities 

16 Act of 1998 (Public Law 105–339) and the amend17 ments made by that Act. 

18 ‘‘(D) The Director of the Office of Personnel Manage19 ment shall ensure that under the plans developed under sub20 paragraph (B) agencies shall appoint to existing vacancies 

21 not fewer than 15,000 qualified covered veterans during the 

22 five-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of 

23 the Veterans Health and Benefits Improvement Act of 2013. 

24 For purposes of complying with this subparagraph, an ap25 pointment pursuant to the authority referred to in subparaVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00153 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
154 

•S 944 RS

1 graph (C)(ii) shall not count toward the number required 

2 by this subparagraph unless the appointment is to a va3 cancy in a full-time, permanent position.’’; 

4 (2) in subsection (d), in the third sentence, by 

5 inserting ‘‘(including, during the 5-year period begin6 ning on the date of the enactment of the Veterans 

7 Health and Benefits Improvement Act of 2013, the de8 velopment and implementation by each agency of the 

9 plan required under subsection (b)(4), which shall in10 clude information regarding the grade or pay level of 

11 appointments by the agency under the plan and 

12 whether the appointments are, or are converted to, ca13 reer or career-conditional appointments)’’ after ‘‘sub14 section (b) of this section’’; and 

15 (3) in subsection (e)— 

16 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

17 (i) in the matter before subparagraph 

18 (A), by striking ‘‘to the Congress’’ and in19 serting ‘‘to the appropriate committees of 

20 Congress’’; and 

21 (ii) in subparagraph (A), by inserting 

22 ‘‘(including, during the 5-year period begin23 ning on the date of the enactment of the 

24 Veterans Health and Benefits Improvement 

25 Act of 2013, the development and implemenVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00154 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
155 

•S 944 RS

1 tation by the agency of the plan required 

2 under subsection (b)(4), which shall include 

3 information regarding the grade or pay 

4 level of appointments by the agency under 

5 the plan and whether the appointments are, 

6 or are converted to, permanent appoint7 ments)’’ before the period; and 

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

9 paragraph: 

10 ‘‘(3) In this subsection, the term ‘appropriate commit11 tees of Congress’ means— 

12 ‘‘(A) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and the 

13 Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 

14 Affairs of the Senate; and 

15 ‘‘(B) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and the 

16 Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of 

17 the House of Representatives.’’. 

18 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

19 of enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office of Per20 sonnel Management shall submit to the appropriate com21 mittees of Congress (as defined under section 4214(e)(3) of 

22 title 38, United States Code, as amended by subsection (a)) 

23 regarding the development of a plan to carry out the 

24 amendments made by subsection (a). 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
156 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 702. STATE RECOGNITION OF MILITARY EXPERIENCE 

2 OF VETERANS IN ISSUING LICENSES AND 

3 CREDENTIALS TO VETERANS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 4102A(c) is amended by 

5 striking paragraph (9) and inserting the following new 

6 paragraph (9): 

7 ‘‘(9)(A) As a condition of a grant or contract under 

8 which funds are made available to a State under subsection 

9 (b)(5) in order to carry out section 4103A or 4104 of this 

10 title, the State shall— 

11 ‘‘(i) establish a program under which the State 

12 administers an examination to each veteran seeking a 

13 license or credential issued by the State and issues 

14 such license or credential to such veteran without re15 quiring such veteran to undergo any training or ap16 prenticeship if the veteran— 

17 ‘‘(I) receives a satisfactory score on comple18 tion of such examination, as determined by the 

19 State; 

20 ‘‘(II) has been awarded a military occupa21 tional specialty that is substantially equivalent 

22 to or exceeds the requirements of the State for the 

23 issuance of such license or credential; 

24 ‘‘(III) has engaged in the active practice of 

25 the occupation for which the veteran is seeking 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
157 

•S 944 RS

1 such license or credential for at least two of the 

2 five years preceding the date of application; and 

3 ‘‘(IV) pays any customary or usual fees re4 quired by the State for such license or credential; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(ii) submit each year to the Secretary a report 

7 on the exams administered under clause (i) during 

8 the most recently completed 12-month period that in9 cludes, for the period covered by the report the num10 ber of veterans who completed an exam administered 

11 by the State under clause (i) and a description of the 

12 results of such exams, disaggregated by occupational 

13 field. 

14 ‘‘(B) The Secretary may waive the requirement under 

15 subparagraph (A) that a State establish a program de16 scribed in that subparagraph as a condition of a grant or 

17 contract if the State certifies to the Secretary that the 

18 State— 

19 ‘‘(i) takes into account previous military train20 ing for the purposes of issuing licenses or credentials; 

21 ‘‘(ii) permits veterans to completely satisfy 

22 through examination any training or testing require23 ments for a license or credential with respect to which 

24 a veteran has previously completed military training; 

25 and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
158 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(iii) for any credential or license for which a 

2 veteran is unable to completely satisfy such require3 ments through examination, the State substantially 

4 reduces training time required to satisfy such require5 ment based on the military training received by the 

6 veteran. 

7 ‘‘(C) Not less frequently than once each year, the Sec8 retary shall submit to Congress and the Secretary of Defense 

9 a report summarizing the information received by the Sec10 retary under subparagraph (A)(ii).’’. 

11 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

12 (1) EXAMS.—Subparagraph (A) of section 

13 4102A(c)(9) of title 38, United States Code, as added 

14 by subsection (a), shall take effect on the date that is 

15 one year after the date of the enactment of this Act 

16 and shall apply with respect to grants and contracts 

17 described in such subparagraph awarded after such 

18 date. 

19 (2) REPORTS.—Subparagraph (B) of such sec20 tion 4102A(c)(9), as so added, shall take effect on the 

21 date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

22 of this Act and the Secretary of Labor shall submit 

23 the first report under such subparagraph not later 

24 than two years after the date of the enactment of this 

25 Act. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
159 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 703. REPORT ON UNIFIED GOVERNMENT INTERNET 

2 PORTAL FOR VETERANS ON JOBS AVAILABLE 

3 THROUGH THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. 

4 (a) IDENTIFICATION OF INTERNET WEBSITES AND AP5 PLICATIONS THAT CAN ASSIST VETERANS SEEKING EM6 PLOYMENT.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Labor shall, 

8 in consultation with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, 

9 the Secretary of Defense, and other appropriate public 

10 and private entities, take appropriate actions to iden11 tify Internet websites and applications that can assist 

12 veterans in seeking employment. 

13 (2) PRIORITY IN IDENTIFICATION OF CERTAIN

14 WEBSITES AND APPLICATIONS.—In identifying 

15 websites and applications pursuant to paragraph (1), 

16 the Secretary shall place a particular priority on 

17 identifying websites and applications that do the fol18 lowing: 

19 (A) Match veterans seeking employment 

20 with available jobs based on the skills the vet21 erans acquired as members of the Armed Forces. 

22 (B) Permit employers to post information 

23 about available jobs. 

24 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the effec25 tive date specified in subsection (c), the Secretary of Labor 

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


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
160 

•S 944 RS

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

2 of Representatives a report on the actions of the Secretary 

3 under subsection (a). The report shall include an assessment 

4 of the feasibility and advisability of creating a single, uni5 fied Internet-based employment portal for the Federal Gov6 ernment for use by veterans regarding employment through 

7 the Federal Government, including the cost of creating the 

8 portal, the collaboration with other Federal agencies re9 quired to create the portal, and the anticipated use of the 

10 portal. 

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

12 on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

13 of this Act. 

14 SEC. 704. INFORMATION ON DISABILITY-RELATED EMPLOY15 MENT AND EDUCATION PROTECTIONS IN 

16 TRANSITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1144(b) of title 10, United 

18 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following 

19 new paragraph: 

20 ‘‘(9) Provide information about disability-related 

21 employment and education protections.’’. 

22 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by sub23 section (a) shall take effect on the date that is one year after 

24 the date of the enactment of this Act. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
161 

•S 944 RS

1 Subtitle B—Small Business Matters 

2 SEC. 711. EXPANSION OF CONTRACTING GOALS AND PREF3 ERENCES OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AF4 FAIRS TO INCLUDE CONDITIONALLY OWNED 

5 SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS 100 PERCENT 

6 OWNED BY VETERANS. 

7 Section 8127(l) is amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘uncondition9 ally’’ before ‘‘owned by’’ each place it appears; and 

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

12 ‘‘(3) The term ‘unconditionally owned’ includes, 

13 with respect to ownership of a small business concern, 

14 conditional ownership of such small business concern 

15 if such business concern is 100 percent owned by one 

16 or more veterans.’’. 

17 SEC. 712. MODIFICATION OF TREATMENT UNDER CON18 TRACTING GOALS AND PREFERENCES OF DE19 PARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS FOR 

20 SMALL BUSINESSES OWNED BY VETERANS OF 

21 SMALL BUSINESSES AFTER DEATH OF DIS22 ABLED VETERAN OWNERS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8127(h) is amended— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
162 

•S 944 RS

1 (1) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘rated as’’ and 

2 all that follows through ‘‘disability.’’ and inserting a 

3 period; and 

4 (2) in paragraph (2), by amending subpara5 graph (C) to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(C) The date that— 

7 ‘‘(i) in the case of a surviving spouse of a 

8 veteran with a service-connected disability rated 

9 as 100 percent disabling or who dies as a result 

10 of a service-connected disability, is 10 years after 

11 the date of the veteran’s death; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a surviving spouse of a 

13 veteran with a service-connected disability rated 

14 as less than 100 percent disabling who does not 

15 die as a result of a service-connected disability, 

16 is three years after the date of the veteran’s 

17 death.’’. 

18 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by sub19 section (a) shall take effect on the date that is 180 days 

20 after the date of the enactment of this Act and shall apply 

21 with respect to applications received pursuant to section 

22 8127(f)(2) of title 38, United States Code, that are verified 

23 on or after such date. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
163 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 713. TREATMENT OF BUSINESSES AFTER DEATHS OF 

2 SERVICEMEMBER-OWNERS FOR PURPOSES OF 

3 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS CON4 TRACTING GOALS AND PREFERENCES. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8127 is amended— 

6 (1) by redesignating subsections (i) through (l) 

7 as subsections (j) through (m), respectively; and 

8 (2) by inserting after subsection (h) the following 

9 new subsection (i): 

10 ‘‘(i) TREATMENT OF BUSINESSES AFTER DEATH OF

11 SERVICEMEMBER-OWNER.—(1) If a member of the Armed 

12 Forces owns at least 51 percent of a small business concern 

13 and such member is killed in line of duty in the active mili14 tary, naval, or air service, the surviving spouse or depend15 ent child of such member who acquires such ownership 

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

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

18 spouse or dependent child were a veteran with a service19 connected disability for purposes of determining the status 

20 of the small business concern as a small business concern 

21 owned and controlled by veterans for purposes of con22 tracting goals and preferences under this section. 

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

24 period beginning on the date on which the member of the 

25 Armed Forces dies and ending on the date as follows: 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
164 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(A) In the case of a surviving spouse, the ear2 liest of the following dates: 

3 ‘‘(i) The date on which the surviving spouse 

4 remarries. 

5 ‘‘(ii) The date on which the surviving 

6 spouse relinquishes an ownership interest in the 

7 small business concern and no longer owns at 

8 least 51 percent of such small business concern. 

9 ‘‘(iii) The date that is ten years after the 

10 date of the member’s death. 

11 ‘‘(B) In the case of a dependent child, the earliest 

12 of the following dates: 

13 ‘‘(i) The date on which the surviving de14 pendent child relinquishes an ownership interest 

15 in the small business concern and no longer owns 

16 at least 51 percent of such small business con17 cern. 

18 ‘‘(ii) The date that is ten years after the 

19 date of the member’s death.’’. 

20 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Subsection (i) of section 8127 

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

22 shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act 

23 and shall apply with respect to the deaths of members of 

24 the Armed Forces occurring on or after such date. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
165 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 714. SPECIAL RULE FOR TREATMENT UNDER CON2 TRACTING GOALS AND PREFERENCES OF DE3 PARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS OF SMALL 

4 BUSINESS CONCERNS LICENSED IN COMMU5 NITY PROPERTY STATES. 

6 Section 8127, as amended by section 713 of this Act, 

7 is further amended by adding at the end the following new 

8 subsection: 

9 ‘‘(n) SPECIAL RULE FOR COMMUNITY PROPERTY

10 STATES.—Whenever the Secretary assesses, for purposes of 

11 this section, the degree of ownership by an individual of 

12 a small business concern licensed in a community property 

13 State, the Secretary shall also assess what that degree of 

14 ownership would be if such small business concern had been 

15 licensed in a State other than a community property State. 

16 If the Secretary determines that such individual would have 

17 had a greater degree of ownership of the small business con18 cern had such small business concern been licensed in a 

19 State other than a community property State, the Secretary 

20 shall treat, for purposes of this section, such small business 

21 concern as if it had been licensed in a State other than 

22 a community property State.’’. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
166 

•S 944 RS

1 TITLE VIII—OTHER MATTERS 

2 SEC. 801. CONSIDERATION BY SECRETARY OF VETERANS 

3 AFFAIRS OF RESOURCES DISPOSED OF FOR 

4 LESS THAN FAIR MARKET VALUE BY INDIVID5 UALS APPLYING FOR PENSION. 

6 (a) VETERANS.—Section 1522 is amended— 

7 (1) in subsection (a)— 

8 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘The Sec9 retary’’; and 

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

11 paragraph: 

12 ‘‘(2)(A) If a veteran otherwise eligible for payment of 

13 pension under section 1513 or 1521 of this title or the 

14 spouse of such veteran disposes of covered resources for less 

15 than fair market value on or after the look-back date de16 scribed in subparagraph (C)(i), the Secretary shall deny or 

17 discontinue the payment of pension to such veteran under 

18 section 1513 or 1521 of this title, as the case may be, for 

19 months during the period beginning on the date described 

20 in subparagraph (D) and equal to the number of months 

21 calculated as provided in subparagraph (E). 

22 ‘‘(B)(i) For purposes of this paragraph, a covered re23 source is any resource that was a part of the corpus of the 

24 estate of the veteran or, if the veteran has a spouse, the cor25 pus of the estates of the veteran and of the veteran’s spouse, 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
167 

•S 944 RS

1 that the Secretary considers that under all the cir2 cumstances, if the veteran or spouse had not disposed of 

3 such resource, it would be reasonable that the resource (or 

4 some portion of the resource) be consumed for the veteran’s 

5 maintenance. 

6 ‘‘(ii) For purposes of this paragraph, the Secretary 

7 may consider, in accordance with regulations the Secretary 

8 shall prescribe, a transfer of an asset (including a transfer 

9 of an asset to an annuity, trust, or other financial instru10 ment or investment) a disposal of a covered resource for 

11 less than fair market value if such transfer reduces the 

12 amount in the corpus of the estate of the veteran or, if the 

13 veteran has a spouse, the corpus of the estates of the veteran 

14 and of the veteran’s spouse, that the Secretary considers, 

15 under all the circumstances, would be reasonable to be con16 sumed for the veteran’s maintenance. 

17 ‘‘(C)(i) The look-back date described in this clause is 

18 a date that is 36 months before the date described in clause 

19 (ii). 

20 ‘‘(ii) The date described in this clause is the date on 

21 which the veteran applies for pension under section 1513 

22 or 1521 of this title or, if later, the date on which the vet23 eran (or the spouse of the veteran) disposes of covered re24 sources for less than fair market value. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
168 

•S 944 RS

1 ‘‘(D) The date described in this subparagraph is the 

2 first day of the first month in or after which covered re3 sources were disposed of for less than fair market value and 

4 which does not occur in any other period of ineligibility 

5 under this paragraph. 

6 ‘‘(E) The number of months calculated under this sub7 paragraph shall be equal to— 

8 ‘‘(i) the total, cumulative uncompensated value 

9 of the portion of covered resources so disposed of by 

10 the veteran (or the spouse of the veteran) on or after 

11 the look-back date described in subparagraph (C)(i) 

12 that the Secretary determines would reasonably have 

13 been consumed for the veteran’s maintenance; divided 

14 by 

15 ‘‘(ii) the maximum amount of monthly pension 

16 that is payable to a veteran under section 1513 or 

17 1521 of this title, including the maximum amount of 

18 increased pension payable under such sections on ac19 count of family members, but not including any 

20 amount of pension payable under such sections be21 cause a veteran is in need of regular aid and attend22 ance or is permanently housebound, 

23 rounded down, in the case of any fraction, to the nearest 

24 whole number, but shall not in any case exceed 36 months.’’; 

25 (2) in subsection (b)— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
169 

•S 944 RS

1 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘The Sec2 retary’’; and 

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

4 paragraph: 

5 ‘‘(2)(A) If a veteran otherwise eligible for payment of 

6 increased pension under subsection (c), (d), (e), or (f) of 

7 section 1521 of this title on account of a child, the spouse 

8 of the veteran, or the child disposes of covered resources for 

9 less than fair market value on or after the look-back date 

10 described in subparagraph (C)(i), the Secretary shall deny 

11 or discontinue payment of such increased pension for 

12 months during the period beginning on the date described 

13 in subparagraph (D) and equal to the number of months 

14 calculated as provided in subparagraph (E). 

15 ‘‘(B)(i) For purposes of this paragraph, a covered re16 source is any resource that was a part of the corpus of the 

17 estate of the child that the Secretary considers that under 

18 all the circumstances, if the veteran, the spouse of the vet19 eran, or the child had not disposed of such resource, it would 

20 be reasonable that the resource (or some portion of the re21 source) be consumed for the child’s maintenance. 

22 ‘‘(ii) For purposes of this paragraph, the Secretary 

23 may consider, in accordance with regulations the Secretary 

24 shall prescribe, a transfer of an asset (including a transfer 

25 of an asset to an annuity, trust, or other financial instruVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00169 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
170 

•S 944 RS

1 ment or investment) a disposal of a covered resource for 

2 less than fair market value if such transfer reduces the 

3 amount in the corpus of the estate of the child that the Sec4 retary considers, under all the circumstances, would be rea5 sonable to be consumed for the child’s maintenance. 

6 ‘‘(C)(i) The look-back date described in this clause is 

7 a date that is 36 months before the date described in clause 

8 (ii). 

9 ‘‘(ii) The date described in this clause is the date on 

10 which the veteran applies for payment of increased pension 

11 under subsection (c), (d), (e), or (f) of section 1521 of this 

12 title on account of a child or, if later, the date on which 

13 the veteran, the spouse of the veteran, or the child disposes 

14 of covered resources for less than fair market value. 

15 ‘‘(D) The date described in this subparagraph is the 

16 first day of the first month in or after which covered re17 sources were disposed of for less than fair market value and 

18 which does not occur in any other period of ineligibility 

19 under this paragraph. 

20 ‘‘(E) The number of months calculated under this sub21 paragraph shall be equal to— 

22 ‘‘(i) the total, cumulative uncompensated value 

23 of the portion of the covered resources so disposed of 

24 by the veteran, the spouse of the veteran, or the child 

25 on or after the look-back date described in subparaVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00170 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
171 

•S 944 RS

1 graph (C)(i) that the Secretary determines would rea2 sonably have been consumed for the child’s mainte3 nance; divided by 

4 ‘‘(ii) the maximum amount of increased monthly 

5 pension that is payable to a veteran under subsection 

6 (c), (d), (e), or (f) of section 1521 of this title on ac7 count of a child, 

8 rounded down, in the case of any fraction, to the nearest 

9 whole number, but shall not in any case exceed 36 months.’’; 

10 and 

11 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub12 section: 

13 ‘‘(c)(1)(A) The Secretary shall not deny or discontinue 

14 payment of pension under section 1513 or 1521 of this title 

15 or payment of increased pension under subsection (c), (d), 

16 (e), or (f) of section 1521 of this title on account of a child 

17 by reason of the application of subsection (a)(2) or (b)(2) 

18 of this section to the disposal of resources by an indi19 vidual— 

20 ‘‘(i) if— 

21 ‘‘(I) a satisfactory showing is made to the 

22 Secretary (in accordance with regulations pro23 mulgated by the Secretary) that all resources dis24 posed of for less than fair market value have been 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
172 

•S 944 RS

1 returned to the individual who disposed of the 

2 resources; or 

3 ‘‘(II) the Secretary determines, under proce4 dures established by the Secretary in accordance 

5 with subparagraph (B), that the denial or dis6 continuance of payment would work an undue 

7 hardship; or 

8 ‘‘(ii) to the extent that any portion of the re9 sources disposed of for less than fair market value 

10 have been returned to the individual who disposed of 

11 the resources. 

12 ‘‘(B) Undue hardship would be worked by the denial 

13 or discontinuance of payment for purposes of subparagraph 

14 (A)(i)(II) if the denial or discontinuance of payment would 

15 deprive the individual during the period of denial or dis16 continuance— 

17 ‘‘(i) of medical care such that the individual’s 

18 life or health would be endangered; 

19 ‘‘(ii) of necessary food or clothing, or other neces20 sities of life; or 

21 ‘‘(iii) on such other basis as the Secretary shall 

22 specify in the procedures required by subparagraph 

23 (A)(i)(II). 

24 ‘‘(C) If payment of pension or increased pension that 

25 would otherwise be denied or discontinued by reason of the 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
173 

•S 944 RS

1 application of subsection (a)(2) or (b)(2) is denied or dis2 continued only in part by reason of the return of resources 

3 as described in subparagraph (A)(ii), the period of the de4 nial or discontinuance as determined pursuant to subpara5 graph (E) of subsection (a)(2) or (b)(2), as applicable, shall 

6 be recalculated to take into account such return of resources. 

7 ‘‘(2) At the time a veteran applies for pension under 

8 section 1513 or 1521 of this title or increased pension under 

9 subsection (c), (d), (e), or (f) of section 1521 of this title 

10 on account of a child, and at such other times as the Sec11 retary considers appropriate, the Secretary shall— 

12 ‘‘(A) inform such veteran of the provisions of 

13 subsections (a)(2) and (b)(2) providing for a period 

14 of ineligibility for payment of pension under such sec15 tions for individuals who make certain dispositions of 

16 resources for less than fair market value, including 

17 the exception for hardship from such period of ineligi18 bility; 

19 ‘‘(B) obtain from such veteran information 

20 which may be used in determining whether or not a 

21 period of ineligibility for such payments would be re22 quired by reason of such subsections; and 

23 ‘‘(C) provide such veteran a timely process for 

24 determining whether or not the exception for hardship 

25 shall apply to such veteran.’’. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
174 

•S 944 RS

1 (b) SURVIVING SPOUSES AND CHILDREN.—Section 

2 1543 is amended— 

3 (1) in subsection (a)— 

4 (A) by redesignating paragraph (2) as 

5 paragraph (3); 

6 (B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol7 lowing new paragraph (2): 

8 ‘‘(2)(A) If a surviving spouse otherwise eligible for 

9 payment of pension under section 1541 of this title disposes 

10 of covered resources for less than fair market value on or 

11 after the look-back date described in subparagraph (C)(i), 

12 the Secretary shall deny or discontinue the payment of pen13 sion to such surviving spouse under section 1541 of this 

14 title for months during the period beginning on the date 

15 described in subparagraph (D) and equal to the number of 

16 months calculated as provided in subparagraph (E). 

17 ‘‘(B)(i) For purposes of this paragraph, a covered re18 source is any resource that was a part of the corpus of the 

19 estate of the surviving spouse that the Secretary considers 

20 that under all the circumstances, if the surviving spouse 

21 had not disposed of such resource, it would be reasonable 

22 that the resource (or some portion of the resource) be con23 sumed for the surviving spouse’s maintenance. 

24 ‘‘(ii) For purposes of this paragraph, the Secretary 

25 may consider, in accordance with regulations the Secretary 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
175 

•S 944 RS

1 shall prescribe, a transfer of an asset (including a transfer 

2 of an asset to an annuity, trust, or other financial instru3 ment or investment) a disposal of a covered resource for 

4 less than fair market value if such transfer reduces the 

5 amount in the corpus of the estate of the surviving spouse 

6 that the Secretary considers, under all the circumstances, 

7 would be reasonable to be consumed for the surviving 

8 spouse’s maintenance. 

9 ‘‘(C)(i) The look-back date described in this clause is 

10 a date that is 36 months before the date described in clause 

11 (ii). 

12 ‘‘(ii) The date described in this clause is the date on 

13 which the surviving spouse applies for pension under sec14 tion 1541 of this title or, if later, the date on which the 

15 surviving spouse disposes of covered resources for less than 

16 fair market value. 

17 ‘‘(D) The date described in this subparagraph is the 

18 first day of the first month in or after which covered re19 sources were disposed of for less than fair market value and 

20 which does not occur in any other period of ineligibility 

21 under this paragraph. 

22 ‘‘(E) The number of months calculated under this sub23 paragraph shall be equal to— 

24 ‘‘(i) the total, cumulative uncompensated value 

25 of the portion of the covered resources so disposed of 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
176 

•S 944 RS

1 by the surviving spouse on or after the look-back date 

2 described in subparagraph (C)(i) that the Secretary 

3 determines would reasonably have been consumed for 

4 the surviving spouse’s maintenance; divided by 

5 ‘‘(ii) the maximum amount of monthly pension 

6 that is payable to a surviving spouse under section 

7 1541 of this title, including the maximum amount of 

8 increased pension payable under such section on ac9 count of a child, but not including any amount of 

10 pension payable under such section because a sur11 viving spouse is in need of regular aid and attend12 ance or is permanently housebound, 

13 rounded down, in the case of any fraction, to the nearest 

14 whole number, but shall not in any case exceed 36 months.’’; 

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

16 paragraph: 

17 ‘‘(4)(A) If a surviving spouse otherwise eligible for 

18 payment of increased pension under subsection (c), (d), or 

19 (e) of section 1541 of this title on account of a child or 

20 the child disposes of covered resources for less than fair mar21 ket value on or after the look-back date described in sub22 paragraph (C)(i), the Secretary shall deny or discontinue 

23 payment of such increased pension for months during the 

24 period beginning on the date described in subparagraph (D) 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
177 

•S 944 RS

1 and equal to the number of months calculated as provided 

2 in subparagraph (E). 

3 ‘‘(B)(i) For purposes of this paragraph, a covered re4 source is any resource that was a part of the corpus of the 

5 estate of the child that the Secretary considers that under 

6 all the circumstances, if the surviving spouse or the child 

7 had not disposed of such resource, it would be reasonable 

8 that the resource (or some portion of the resource) be con9 sumed for the child’s maintenance. 

10 ‘‘(ii) For purposes of this paragraph, the Secretary 

11 may consider, in accordance with regulations the Secretary 

12 shall prescribe, a transfer of an asset (including a transfer 

13 of an asset to an annuity, trust, or other financial instru14 ment or investment) a disposal of a covered resource for 

15 less than fair market value if such transfer reduces the 

16 amount in the corpus of the estate of the child that the Sec17 retary considers, under all the circumstances, would be rea18 sonable to be consumed for the child’s maintenance. 

19 ‘‘(C)(i) The look-back date described in this clause is 

20 a date that is 36 months before the date described in clause 

21 (ii). 

22 ‘‘(ii) The date described in this clause is the date on 

23 which the surviving spouse applies for payment of increased 

24 pension under subsection (c), (d), or (e) of section 1541 of 

25 this title on account of a child or, if later, the date on which 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
178 

•S 944 RS

1 the surviving spouse (or the child) disposes of covered re2 sources for less than fair market value. 

3 ‘‘(D) The date described in this subparagraph is the 

4 first day of the first month in or after which covered re5 sources were disposed of for less than fair market value and 

6 which does not occur in any other period of ineligibility 

7 under this paragraph. 

8 ‘‘(E) The number of months calculated under this 

9 clause shall be equal to— 

10 ‘‘(i) the total, cumulative uncompensated value 

11 of the portion of the covered resources so disposed of 

12 by the surviving spouse (or the child) on or after the 

13 look-back date described in subparagraph (C)(i) that 

14 the Secretary determines would reasonably have been 

15 consumed for the child’s maintenance; divided by 

16 ‘‘(ii) the maximum amount of increased monthly 

17 pension that is payable to a surviving spouse under 

18 subsection (c), (d), or (e) of section 1541 of this title 

19 on account of a child, 

20 rounded down, in the case of any fraction, to the nearest 

21 whole number, but shall not in any case exceed 36 months.’’; 

22 (2) in subsection (b)— 

23 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘The Sec24 retary’’; and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
179 

•S 944 RS

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

2 paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(2)(A) If a child otherwise eligible for payment of 

4 pension under section 1542 of this title or any person with 

5 whom such child is residing who is legally responsible for 

6 such child’s support disposes of covered resources for less 

7 than fair market value on or after the look-back date de8 scribed in subparagraph (C)(i), the Secretary shall deny or 

9 discontinue the payment of pension to such child under sec10 tion 1542 of this title for months during the period begin11 ning on the date described in subparagraph (D) and equal 

12 to the number of months calculated as provided in subpara13 graph (E). 

14 ‘‘(B)(i) For purposes of this paragraph, a covered re15 source is any resource that was a part of the corpus of the 

16 estate of the child or the corpus of the estate of any person 

17 with whom such child is residing who is legally responsible 

18 for such child’s support that the Secretary considers that 

19 under all the circumstances, if the child or person had not 

20 disposed of such resource, it would be reasonable that the 

21 resource (or some portion of the resource) be consumed for 

22 the child’s maintenance. 

23 ‘‘(ii) For purposes of this paragraph, the Secretary 

24 may consider, in accordance with regulations the Secretary 

25 shall prescribe, a transfer of an asset (including a transfer 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
180 

•S 944 RS

1 of an asset to an annuity, trust, or other financial instru2 ment or investment) a disposal of a covered resource for 

3 less than fair market value if such transfer reduces the 

4 amount in the corpus of the estate described in clause (i) 

5 that the Secretary considers, under all the circumstances, 

6 would be reasonable to be consumed for the child’s mainte7 nance. 

8 ‘‘(C)(i) The look-back date described in this clause is 

9 a date that is 36 months before the date described in clause 

10 (ii). 

11 ‘‘(ii) The date described in this clause is the date on 

12 which the child applies for pension under section 1542 of 

13 this title or, if later, the date on which the child (or person 

14 described in subparagraph (B)) disposes of covered resources 

15 for less than fair market value. 

16 ‘‘(D) The date described in this clause is the first day 

17 of the first month in or after which covered resources were 

18 disposed of for less than fair market value and which does 

19 not occur in any other period of ineligibility under this 

20 paragraph. 

21 ‘‘(E) The number of months calculated under this 

22 clause shall be equal to— 

23 ‘‘(i) the total, cumulative uncompensated value 

24 of the portion of the covered resources so disposed of 

25 by the child (or person described in subparagraph 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
181 

•S 944 RS

1 (B)) on or after the look-back date described in sub2 paragraph (C)(i) that the Secretary determines would 

3 reasonably have been consumed for the child’s mainte4 nance; divided by 

5 ‘‘(ii) the maximum amount of monthly pension 

6 that is payable to a child under section 1542 of this 

7 title, 

8 rounded down, in the case of any fraction, to the nearest 

9 whole number, but shall not in any case exceed 36 months.’’; 

10 and 

11 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub12 section: 

13 ‘‘(c)(1)(A) The Secretary shall not deny or discontinue 

14 payment of pension under section 1541 or 1542 of this title 

15 or payment of increased pension under subsection (c), (d), 

16 or (e) of section 1541 of this title on account of a child 

17 by reason of the application of subsection (a)(2), (a)(4), or 

18 (b)(2) of this section to the disposal of resources by an indi19 vidual— 

20 ‘‘(i) if— 

21 ‘‘(I) a satisfactory showing is made to the 

22 Secretary (in accordance with regulations pro23 mulgated by the Secretary) that all resources dis24 posed of for less than fair market value have been 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
182 

•S 944 RS

1 returned to the individual who disposed of the 

2 resources; or 

3 ‘‘(II) the Secretary determines, under proce4 dures established by the Secretary in accordance 

5 with subparagraph (B), that the denial or dis6 continuance of payment would work an undue 

7 hardship; or 

8 ‘‘(ii) to the extent that any portion of the re9 sources disposed of for less than fair market value 

10 have been returned to the individual who disposed of 

11 the resources. 

12 ‘‘(B) Undue hardship would be worked by the denial 

13 or discontinuance of payment for purposes of subparagraph 

14 (A)(i)(II) if the denial or discontinuance of payment would 

15 deprive the individual during the period of denial or dis16 continuance— 

17 ‘‘(i) of medical care such that the individual’s 

18 life or health would be endangered; 

19 ‘‘(ii) of necessary food or clothing, or other neces20 sities of life; or 

21 ‘‘(iii) on such other basis as the Secretary shall 

22 specify in the procedures required by subparagraph 

23 (A)(i)(II). 

24 ‘‘(C) If payment of pension or increased pension that 

25 would otherwise be denied or discontinued by reason of the 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
183 

•S 944 RS

1 application of subsection (a)(2), (a)(4), or (b)(2) is denied 

2 or discontinued only in part by reason of the return of re3 sources as described in subparagraph (A)(ii), the period of 

4 the denial or discontinuance as determined pursuant to sub5 paragraph (E) of subsection (a)(2), (a)(4), or (b)(2), as ap6 plicable, shall be recalculated to take into account such re7 turn of resources. 

8 ‘‘(2) At the time a surviving spouse or child applies 

9 for pension under section 1541 or 1542 of this title or in10 creased pension under subsection (c), (d), or (e) of section 

11 1541 of this title on account of a child, and at such other 

12 times as the Secretary considers appropriate, the Secretary 

13 shall— 

14 ‘‘(A) inform such surviving spouse or child of the 

15 provisions of subsections (a)(2), (a)(4), and (b)(2), as 

16 applicable, providing for a period of ineligibility for 

17 payment of pension or increased pension under such 

18 sections for individuals who make certain dispositions 

19 of resources for less than fair market value, including 

20 the exception for hardship from such period of ineligi21 bility; 

22 ‘‘(B) obtain from such surviving spouse or child 

23 information which may be used in determining 

24 whether or not a period of ineligibility for such payVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00183 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
184 

•S 944 RS

1 ments would be required by reason of such sub2 sections; and 

3 ‘‘(C) provide such surviving spouse or child a 

4 timely process for determining whether or not the ex5 ception for hardship shall apply to such surviving 

6 spouse or child.’’. 

7 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Subsections (a)(2), (b)(2), and 

8 (c) of section 1522 of title 38, United States Code, as added 

9 by subsection (a), and subsections (a)(2), (a)(4), (b)(2), and 

10 (c) of section 1543 of such title, as added by subsection (b), 

11 shall take effect on the date that is one year after the date 

12 of the enactment of this Act and shall apply with respect 

13 to payments of pension and increased pension applied for 

14 after such date and to payments of pension and increased 

15 pension for which eligibility is redetermined after such date, 

16 except that no reduction in pension shall be made under 

17 such subsections because of any disposal of covered resources 

18 made before such date. 

19 (d) ANNUAL REPORTS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 months 

21 after the date of the enactment of this Act and not less 

22 frequently than once each year thereafter through 

23 2018, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit 

24 to the appropriate committees of Congress a report on 

25 the administration of subsections (a)(2), (b)(2), and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
185 

•S 944 RS

1 (c) of section 1522 of title 38, United States Code, as 

2 added by subsection (a), and subsections (a)(2), 

3 (a)(4), (b)(2), and (c) of section 1543 of such title, as 

4 added by subsection (b), during the most recent 12- 

5 month period. 

6 (2) ELEMENTS.—Each report submitted under 

7 paragraph (1) shall include the following, for the pe8 riod covered by the report: 

9 (A) The number of individuals who applied 

10 for pension under chapter 15 of such title. 

11 (B) The number of individuals who received 

12 pension under such chapter. 

13 (C) The number of individuals with respect 

14 to whom the Secretary denied or discontinued 

15 payment of pension under the subsections re16 ferred to in paragraph (1). 

17 (D) A description of any trends identified 

18 by the Secretary regarding pension payments 

19 that have occurred as a result of the amendments 

20 made by this section. 

21 (E) Such other information as the Secretary 

22 considers appropriate. 

23 (3) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS

24 DEFINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘‘appropriate 

25 committees of Congress’’ means— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
186 

•S 944 RS

1 (A) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and 

2 the Select Committee on Aging of the Senate; 

3 and 

4 (B) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

5 the House of Representatives. 

6 SEC. 802. OFFICE OF NATIONAL VETERANS SPORTS PRO7 GRAMS AND SPECIAL EVENTS. 

8 (a) REAUTHORIZATION AND USE OF CERTAIN

9 FUNDS.—Subsection (d)(4) of section 322 is amended— 

10 (1) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(4)’’; 

11 (2) by striking ‘‘2013’’ and inserting ‘‘2018’’; 

12 and 

13 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub14 paragraph: 

15 ‘‘(B) Any amounts appropriated or otherwise made 

16 available to carry out this subsection that the Secretary de17 termines are unnecessary to carry out this subsection may 

18 be used by the Secretary to carry out this section.’’. 

19 (b) COOPERATION WITH ORGANIZATION.—Subsection 

20 (b)(4) of such section is amended by striking ‘‘shall, to the 

21 extent feasible,’’ and inserting ‘‘may’’. 

22 (c) SUBSTITUTION OF USOC IN RESPONSIBILITY FOR

23 UNITED STATES PARALYMPICS, INC.—Such section is fur24 ther amended— 

25 (1) in subsection (b)(4)— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
187 

•S 944 RS

1 (A) by striking ‘‘United States 

2 Paralympics, Inc.,’’ each place it appears and 

3 inserting ‘‘United States Olympic Committee’’; 

4 and 

5 (B) by striking ‘‘sporting’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘paralympic’’; and 

7 (2) in subsection (d)(1), by striking ‘‘United 

8 States Paralympics, Inc.,’’ each place it appears and 

9 inserting ‘‘United States Olympic Committee’’. 

10 SEC. 803. ADAPTIVE SPORTS PROGRAMS FOR DISABLED 

11 VETERANS AND MEMBERS OF THE ARMED 

12 FORCES THROUGH UNITED STATES OLYMPIC 

13 COMMITTEE. 

14 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF PROGRAM.—Subsection (a) of 

15 section 521A is amended to read as follows: 

16 ‘‘(a) ADAPTIVE SPORTS PROGRAM.—(1) The Secretary 

17 may plan, develop, manage, and implement an integrated 

18 adaptive sports program for disabled veterans and disabled 

19 members of the Armed Forces. 

20 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may award grants to the United 

21 States Olympic Committee to carry out paragraph (1).’’. 

22 (b) ADDITIONAL APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—Sub23 section (c)(2) of such section is amended— 

24 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

25 the end; 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
188 

•S 944 RS

1 (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period 

2 at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

3 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub4 paragraph: 

5 ‘‘(C) a statement that includes a detailed de6 scription of— 

7 ‘‘(i) the anticipated personnel, travel, and 

8 administrative costs that will be paid for by the 

9 United States Olympic Committee with funds 

10 provided under this section; 

11 ‘‘(ii) the financial controls implemented by 

12 the United States Olympic Committee, including 

13 methods to track expenditures of funds provided 

14 under this section; 

15 ‘‘(iii) the performance metrics to be used by 

16 the United States Olympic Committee to evalu17 ate the effectiveness of the activities to be carried 

18 out with the funds provided under this section; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(iv) the anticipated personnel, travel, and 

21 administrative costs that will be paid for by sub22 grantees with funds provided under this sec23 tion.’’. 

24 (c) FUNDING.—Subsection (g) of such section is 

25 amended by striking ‘‘2013’’ and inserting ‘‘2015’’. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
189 

•S 944 RS

1 (d) EXCEPTION TO PROHIBITION ON COMMINGLING OF

2 FUNDS.—Subsection (h) of such section is amended by in3 serting before the period at the end the following: ‘‘, except 

4 that funds appropriated to carry out this section may be 

5 used by the Department to carry out subsections (a), (b), 

6 and (c) of section 322 of this title’’. 

7 (e) SUBSTITUTION OF USOC IN RESPONSIBILITY FOR

8 UNITED STATES PARALYMPICS, INC.—Such section is fur9 ther amended— 

10 (1) by striking ‘‘United States Paralympics, 

11 Inc.,’’ each place it appears (other than in subsection 

12 (d)) and inserting ‘‘United States Olympic Com13 mittee’’; and 

14 (2) in subsection (d)— 

15 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

16 (i) by striking ‘‘United States 

17 Paralympics, Inc., with the assistance’’ and 

18 inserting ‘‘United States Olympic Com19 mittee, with the assistance’’; and 

20 (ii) by striking ‘‘United States 

21 Paralympics, Inc., has entered’’ and insert22 ing ‘‘United States Olympic Committee has 

23 entered’’; 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
190 

•S 944 RS

1 (B) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘United 

2 States Paralympics, Inc.’’ and inserting ‘‘United 

3 States Olympic Committee’’; and 

4 (C) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘United 

5 States Paralympics, Inc.,’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘United States Olympic Committee’’. 

7 (f) COMPTROLLER GENERAL REPORT.—Such section 

8 is further amended— 

9 (1) by redesignating subsection (l) as subsection 

10 (m); and 

11 (2) by inserting after subsection (k) the following 

12 new subsection (l): 

13 ‘‘(l) COMPTROLLER GENERAL REPORT.—(1) Not later 

14 than two years after the date of the enactment of the Vet15 erans Health and Benefits Improvement Act of 2013, the 

16 Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to 

17 Congress a report on the use of grants, if any, awarded to 

18 the United States Olympic Committee, under this section 

19 during the two-year period preceding the report. 

20 ‘‘(2) The report required under paragraph (1) shall 

21 contain the following: 

22 ‘‘(A) An assessment of how the Department, the 

23 United States Olympic Committee, and subgrantees of 

24 the United States Olympic Committee, have provided 

25 adaptive sports opportunities to veterans and memVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:14 Dec 10, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00190 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S944.RS S944

tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
191 

•S 944 RS

1 bers of the Armed Forces through grants awarded 

2 under this section. 

3 ‘‘(B) An assessment of how the Department over4 sees the use of funds provided under this section by 

5 the United States Olympic Committee and sub6 grantees of the United States Olympic Committee. 

7 ‘‘(C) A description of the benefit provided to vet8 erans and members of the Armed Forces through pro9 grams and activities developed through grants award10 ed under this section.’’. 

11 (g) EXTENSION OF SUNSET.—Subsection (m) of such 

12 section, as redesignated by subsection (f) of this section, is 

13 amended by striking ‘‘2013’’ and inserting ‘‘2015’’. 

14 (h) CONFORMING AND CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.— 

15 (1) SECTION HEADING AMENDMENT.—The head16 ing of such section is amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘§ 521A. Adaptive sports programs for disabled vet18 erans and members of the Armed Forces 

19 through the United States Olympic Com20 mittee’’. 

21 (2) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections 

22 at the beginning of chapter 5 is amended by striking 

23 the item relating to section 521A and inserting the 

24 following new item: 

‘‘521A. Adaptive sports programs for disabled veterans and members of the Armed 

Forces through the United States Olympic Committee’’. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
192 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 804. MAKING EFFECTIVE DATE PROVISION CON2 SISTENT WITH PROVISION FOR BENEFITS 

3 ELIGIBILITY OF A VETERAN’S CHILD BASED 

4 UPON TERMINATION OF REMARRIAGE BY AN5 NULMENT. 

6 Section 5110(l) is amended by striking ‘‘, or of an 

7 award or increase of benefits based on recognition of a child 

8 upon termination of the child’s marriage by death or di9 vorce,’’. 

10 SEC. 805. EXTENDED PERIOD FOR SCHEDULING OF MED11 ICAL EXAMS FOR VETERANS RECEIVING TEM12 PORARY DISABILITY RATINGS FOR SEVERE 

13 MENTAL DISORDERS. 

14 Section 1156(a)(3) is amended by striking ‘‘six 

15 months’’ and inserting ‘‘18 months’’. 

16 SEC. 806. AUTHORITY TO ISSUE VETERANS ID CARDS. 

17 (a) AUTHORITY.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans Af19 fairs may issue a card to a veteran that identifies the 

20 veteran as a veteran and includes a photo of the vet21 eran and the name of the veteran. 

22 (2) NO REQUIREMENT FOR ENROLLMENT OR RE23 CEIPT OF BENEFITS.—The Secretary may issue a 

24 card under paragraph (1) to a veteran, whether or 

25 not such veteran is— 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
193 

•S 944 RS

1 (A) enrolled in the system of annual patient 

2 enrollment established under section 1705(a) of 

3 title 38, United States Code; or 

4 (B) in receipt of educational assistance, 

5 compensation, or pension under laws adminis6 tered by the Secretary. 

7 (3) DESIGNATION.—A card issued under para8 graph (1) may be known as a ‘‘Veterans ID Card’’. 

9 (b) RECOGNITION OF VETERANS ID CARDS FOR RE10 DUCED PRICING OF PHARMACEUTICALS, CONSUMER PROD11 UCTS, AND SERVICES.—The Secretary may work with na12 tional retail chains that offer reduced prices on pharma13 ceuticals, consumer products, and services to veterans to en14 sure that such retail chains recognize cards issued under 

15 subsection (a)(1) for purposes of offering reduced prices on 

16 pharmaceuticals, consumer products, and services. 

17 (c) VETERAN DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘vet18 eran’’ has the meaning given the term in section 101 of 

19 title 38, United States Code. 

20 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect 

21 on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

22 of this Act. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
194 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 807. HONORING AS VETERANS CERTAIN PERSONS WHO 

2 PERFORMED SERVICE IN THE RESERVE COM3 PONENTS OF THE ARMED FORCES. 

4 Any person who is entitled under chapter 1223 of title 

5 10, United States Code, to retired pay for nonregular serv6 ice or, but for age, would be entitled under such chapter 

7 to retired pay for nonregular service shall be honored as 

8 a veteran but shall not be entitled to any benefit by reason 

9 of this honor. 

10 SEC. 808. EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY FOR SECRETARY OF 

11 VETERANS AFFAIRS TO ISSUE AND GUAR12 ANTEE CERTAIN LOANS. 

13 Section 3729(b)(2) is amended— 

14 (1) in subparagraph (A)— 

15 (A) in clause (iii), by striking ‘‘October 1, 

16 2017’’ and inserting ‘‘May 1, 2018’’; and 

17 (B) in clause (iv), by striking ‘‘October 1, 

18 2017’’ and inserting ‘‘May 1, 2018’’; 

19 (2) in subparagraph (B)— 

20 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘October 1, 

21 2017’’ and inserting ‘‘May 1, 2018’’; and 

22 (B) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘October 1, 

23 2017’’ and inserting ‘‘May 1, 2018’’; 

24 (3) in subparagraph (C)— 

25 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘October 1, 

26 2017’’ and inserting ‘‘May 1, 2018’’; and 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
195 

•S 944 RS

1 (B) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘October 1, 

2 2017’’ and inserting ‘‘May 1, 2018’’; and 

3 (4) in subparagraph (D)— 

4 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘October 1, 

5 2017’’ and inserting ‘‘May 1, 2018’’; and 

6 (B) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘October 1, 

7 2017’’ and inserting ‘‘May 1, 2018’’. 

8 SEC. 809. REVIEW OF DETERMINATION OF CERTAIN SERV9 ICE IN PHILIPPINES DURING WORLD WAR II. 

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

11 in consultation with the Secretary of Defense and such mili12 tary historians as the Secretary of Defense recommends, 

13 shall review the process used to determine whether a covered 

14 individual served in support of the Armed Forces of the 

15 United States during World War II in accordance with sec16 tion 1002(d) of title X of Division A of the American Recov17 ery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111–5; 38 

18 U.S.C. 107 note) for purposes of determining whether such 

19 covered individual is eligible for payments described in such 

20 section. 

21 (b) COVERED INDIVIDUALS.—In this section, a covered 

22 individual is any individual who timely submitted a claim 

23 for benefits under subsection (c) of section 1002 of title X 

24 of Division A of the American Recovery and Reinvestment 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
196 

•S 944 RS

1 Act of 2009 (Public Law 111–5; 38 U.S.C. 107 note) based 

2 on service as described in subsection (d) of that section. 

3 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after the date 

4 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Af5 fairs shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

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

7 House of Representatives a report detailing any findings, 

8 actions taken, or recommendations for legislative action 

9 with respect to the review conducted under subsection (a). 

10 (d) PROHIBITION ON BENEFITS FOR DISQUALIFYING

11 CONDUCT UNDER NEW PROCESS PURSUANT TO REVIEW.— 

12 If pursuant to the review conducted under subsection (a) 

13 the Secretary of Veterans Affairs determines to establish a 

14 new process for the making of payments as described in that 

15 subsection, the process shall include mechanisms to ensure 

16 that individuals are not treated as covered individuals for 

17 purposes of such payments if such individuals engaged in 

18 any disqualifying conduct during service described in that 

19 subsection, including collaboration with the enemy or 

20 criminal conduct. 

21 SEC. 810. REPORT ON LAOTIAN MILITARY SUPPORT OF 

22 ARMED FORCES OF THE UNITED STATES DUR23 ING VIETNAM WAR. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year after the 

25 effective date specified in subsection (c), the Secretary of 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
197 

•S 944 RS

1 Veterans Affairs, in consultation with the Secretary of De2 fense and such agencies and individuals as the Secretary 

3 of Veterans Affairs considers appropriate, shall submit to 

4 the appropriate committees of Congress a report on— 

5 (1) the extent to which Laotian military forces 

6 provided combat support to the Armed Forces of the 

7 United States between February 28, 1961, and May 

8 15, 1975; 

9 (2) whether the current classification by the Ci10 vilian/Military Service Review Board of the Depart11 ment of Defense of service by individuals of Hmong 

12 ethnicity is appropriate; and 

13 (3) any recommendations for legislative action. 

14 (b) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS.—In 

15 this section, the term ‘‘appropriate committees of Congress’’ 

16 means— 

17 (1) the Committee on Armed Services and the 

18 Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate; and 

19 (2) the Committee on Armed Services and the 

20 Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep21 resentatives. 

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

23 on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

24 of this Act. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
198 

•S 944 RS

1 SEC. 811. REPORT ON ASSISTANCE FOR VETERANS IN OB2 TAINING TRAINING ON PURCHASING AND OP3 ERATING A FRANCHISE. 

4 (a) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than one year 

5 after the effective date specified in subsection (c), the Sec6 retary of Labor shall, in consultation with the Secretary 

7 of Veterans Affairs, the Administrator of the Small Business 

8 Administration, and other appropriate entities, submit to 

9 Congress a report on the assistance available to veterans 

10 to obtain training necessary to purchase and operate a 

11 franchise. 

12 (b) ELEMENTS.—The report required by subsection (a) 

13 shall include the following: 

14 (1) A description of the assistance available for 

15 veterans through the Department of Labor, the De16 partment of Veterans Affairs, the Small Business Ad17 ministration, or any other agency of the Federal Gov18 ernment in order to obtain training necessary to pur19 chase or operate a franchise. 

20 (2) Information on the number of veterans who 

21 have sought and obtained the training described in 

22 paragraph (1) during the five calendar years pre23 ceding the report. 

24 (3) A description of any barriers encountered by 

25 veterans in obtaining the training described in para26 graph (1). 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
199 

•S 944 RS

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

2 on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment 

3 of this Act. 

4 SEC. 812. LIMITATION ON AGGREGATE AMOUNT OF BO5 NUSES PAYABLE TO PERSONNEL OF THE DE6 PARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS DURING 

7 FISCAL YEAR 2014. 

8 The aggregate amount of bonuses and awards payable 

9 to personnel of the Department of Veterans Affairs under 

10 chapter 45 or 53 of title 5, United States Code, or any other 

11 provision of such title, during fiscal year 2014 may not 

12 exceed $368,000,000. 

Amend the title so as to read: ‘‘A bill to improve the 

provision of medical services and benefits to veterans, 

and for other purposes.’’. 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
Calendar No. 258 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 944 

[Report No. 113–123] 

A BILL 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to require 

the in-State tuition rate, and for other purposes. Assistance to charge veterans tuition and fees at Assistance Program and Post-9/11 Educational purposes of the All-Volunteer Force Educational tions of higher education that are approved for courses of education provided by public instituDECEMBER 9, 2013 

Reported with an amendment and an amendment to the 

title 


tjames on DSK6SPTVN1PROD with BILLS