I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 6361 

To amend the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to set 

aside community development block grant amounts in each fiscal year 

for grants to local chapters of veterans service organizations for the 

renovation, rehabilitation, and modernization of local chapter facilities. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 9, 2023 

Ms. WATERS (for herself, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mrs. 

HAYES, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Ms. NORTON, Mr. CARSON, Mr. CARBAJAL, 

and Mr. BOWMAN) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 

the Committee on Financial Services 

A BILL 

To amend the Housing and Community Development Act 

of 1974 to set aside community development block grant 

amounts in each fiscal year for grants to local chapters 

of veterans service organizations for the renovation, rehabilitation, and modernization of local chapter facilities. 

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 ‘‘Veterans Service Orga5 nization Modernization Act of 2023’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. COMPETITIVE GRANTS TO VETERANS SERVICE OR2 GANIZATIONS FOR FACILITY REHABILITA3 TION AND MODERNIZATION. 

4 (a) GRANTS.—Section 107 of the Housing and Com5 munity Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5307) is 

6 amended by adding at the end the following new sub7 section: 

8 ‘‘(g) COMPETITIVE GRANTS TO VETERANS SERVICE

9 ORGANIZATIONS FOR FACILITY REHABILITATION AND

10 UPGRADING TECHNOLOGY.— 

11 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY; ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES AND

12 USES.—Using the amounts made available under 

13 section 106(a)(4) in each fiscal year for grants 

14 under this subsection, the Secretary shall make 

15 grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible veterans 

16 service organizations, which grant amounts shall be 

17 available for use only for— 

18 ‘‘(A) repairs or rehabilitation of existing 

19 facilities of such organizations; and 

20 ‘‘(B) modernization of technologies used by 

21 such organizations. 

22 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE VETERANS SERVICE ORGANIZA23 TIONS.—For purposes of this subsection, the term 

24 ‘eligible veterans service organization’ means— 

25 ‘‘(A) an entity that— 


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1 ‘‘(i) is organized on a local or area 

2 basis; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) is— 

4 ‘‘(I) exempt from taxation pursu5 ant to section 501(c)(19) of the Inter6 nal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 

7 501(c)(19)); or 

8 ‘‘(II) an organization of past or 

9 present members of the Armed Forces 

10 of the United States that is chartered 

11 under title 36, United States Code; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(B) a local or area chapter, post, or other 

14 unit of a national, regional, statewide, or other 

15 larger entity of which local or area chapters, 

16 posts, or units are members— 

17 ‘‘(i) that is exempt from taxation pur18 suant to section 501(c)(19) of the Internal 

19 Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 

20 501(c)(19)); or 

21 ‘‘(ii) which larger entity is an organi22 zation of past or present members of the 

23 Armed Forces of the United States that is 

24 chartered under title 36, United States 

25 Code. 


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1 ‘‘(3) LIMITATIONS.— 

2 ‘‘(A) AMOUNT.—No eligible veterans serv3 ice organization may receive grant amounts 

4 under this subsection, from the amounts made 

5 available for any single fiscal year, in an 

6 amount exceeding the lesser of— 

7 ‘‘(i) the aggregate cost of the pro8 posed activities and uses under paragraph 

9 (1) for which the grant amounts will be 

10 used; or 

11 ‘‘(ii) $100,000. 

12 ‘‘(B) TIMING.—Any eligible veterans serv13 ice organization that receives grant amounts 

14 under this subsection from amounts made avail15 able for a fiscal year shall be ineligible for any 

16 grant from any amounts made available for 

17 such grants for any of the succeeding three fis18 cal years. 

19 ‘‘(4) APPLICATIONS.—Applications for assist20 ance under this subsection may be submitted only by 

21 eligible veterans service organizations, and shall be 

22 in such form and in accordance with such proce23 dures as the Secretary shall establish. Such applica24 tions shall include a plan for the proposed repair or 


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1 rehabilitation activities to be conducted using grant 

2 amounts under this subsection. 

3 ‘‘(5) SELECTION; CRITERIA.—The Secretary 

4 shall select applications to receive grants under this 

5 subsection pursuant to a competition and based on 

6 criteria for such selection, which shall include— 

7 ‘‘(A) the extent of need for such assist8 ance; 

9 ‘‘(B) the quality of the plan proposed for 

10 repair or rehabilitation of the facility involved; 

11 ‘‘(C) the capacity or potential capacity of 

12 the applicant to successfully carry out the plan; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(D) such other factors as the Secretary 

15 determines to be appropriate. 

16 ‘‘(6) PROHIBITION OF CONSTRUCTION OR AC17 QUISITION.—No amounts from a grant under this 

18 subsection may be used for the construction or ac19 quisition of a new facility.’’. 

20 (b) FUNDING.—Subsection (a) of section 106 of the 

21 Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 

22 U.S.C. 5306(a)) is amended— 

23 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and (3)’ ’’ 

24 and inserting ‘‘(3), and (4)’’; 


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1 (2) by redesignating paragraph (4) as para2 graph (5); and 

3 (3) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol4 lowing new paragraph: 

5 ‘‘(4) For each fiscal year, after reserving 

6 amounts under paragraphs (1) and (2) and allo7 cating amounts under paragraph (3), the Secretary 

8 shall allocate $10,000,000 (subject to sufficient 

9 amounts remaining after such reservations and allo10 cation) for grants under section 107(g).’’. 

11 (c) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary of Housing and 

12 Urban Development shall issue any regulations necessary 

13 to carry out sections 106(a)(4) and 107(g) of the Housing 

14 and Community Development Act of 1974, as added by 

15 the amendments made by this section, not later than the 

16 expiration of the 90-day period beginning on the date of 

17 the enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


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