114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4974 

AN ACT 

Making appropriations for military construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and related agencies for the 

fiscal year ending September 30, 2017, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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1 That the following sums are appropriated, out of any 

2 money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for 

3 military construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, 

4 and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 

5 30, 2017, and for other purposes, namely: 

6 TITLE I 

7 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

8 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, ARMY

9 For acquisition, construction, installation, and equip10 ment of temporary or permanent public works, military 

11 installations, facilities, and real property for the Army as 

12 currently authorized by law, including personnel in the 

13 Army Corps of Engineers and other personal services nec14 essary for the purposes of this appropriation, and for con15 struction and operation of facilities in support of the func16 tions of the Commander in Chief, $503,459,000, to re17 main available until September 30, 2021: Provided, That, 

18 of this amount, not to exceed $98,159,000 shall be avail19 able for study, planning, design, architect and engineer 

20 services, and host nation support, as authorized by law, 

21 unless the Secretary of the Army determines that addi22 tional obligations are necessary for such purposes and no23 tifies the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses 

24 of Congress of the determination and the reasons therefor. 
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1 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, NAVY AND MARINE CORPS

2 For acquisition, construction, installation, and equip3 ment of temporary or permanent public works, naval in4 stallations, facilities, and real property for the Navy and 

5 Marine Corps as currently authorized by law, including 

6 personnel in the Naval Facilities Engineering Command 

7 and other personal services necessary for the purposes of 

8 this appropriation, $1,021,580,000, to remain available 

9 until September 30, 2021: Provided, That, of this amount, 

10 not to exceed $88,230,000 shall be available for study, 

11 planning, design, and architect and engineer services, as 

12 authorized by law, unless the Secretary of the Navy deter13 mines that additional obligations are necessary for such 

14 purposes and notifies the Committees on Appropriations 

15 of both Houses of Congress of the determination and the 

16 reasons therefor. 

17 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, AIR FORCE

18 For acquisition, construction, installation, and equip19 ment of temporary or permanent public works, military 

20 installations, facilities, and real property for the Air Force 

21 as currently authorized by law, $1,398,758,000, to remain 

22 available until September 30, 2021: Provided, That of this 

23 amount, not to exceed $143,582,000 shall be available for 

24 study, planning, design, and architect and engineer serv25 ices, as authorized by law, unless the Secretary of the Air 
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1 Force determines that additional obligations are necessary 

2 for such purposes and notifies the Committees on Appro3 priations of both Houses of Congress of the determination 

4 and the reasons therefor: Provided further, That none of 

5 the funds made available under this heading shall be for 

6 construction of the Joint Intelligence Analysis Complex 

7 Consolidation, Phase 3, at Royal Air Force Croughton, 

8 United Kingdom, unless authorized in an Act authorizing 

9 appropriations for fiscal year 2017 for military construc10 tion. 

11 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, DEFENSE-WIDE

12 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

13 For acquisition, construction, installation, and equip14 ment of temporary or permanent public works, installa15 tions, facilities, and real property for activities and agen16 cies of the Department of Defense (other than the military 

17 departments), as currently authorized by law, 

18 $2,024,643,000 (reduced by $801,000) (increased by 

19 $801,000), to remain available until September 30, 2021: 

20 Provided, That such amounts of this appropriation as may 

21 be determined by the Secretary of Defense may be trans22 ferred to such appropriations of the Department of De23 fense available for military construction or family housing 

24 as the Secretary may designate, to be merged with and 

25 to be available for the same purposes, and for the same 
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1 time period, as the appropriation or fund to which trans2 ferred: Provided further, That of the amount appropriated, 

3 not to exceed $201,422,000 shall be available for study, 

4 planning, design, and architect and engineer services, as 

5 authorized by law, unless the Secretary of Defense deter6 mines that additional obligations are necessary for such 

7 purposes and notifies the Committees on Appropriations 

8 of both Houses of Congress of the determination and the 

9 reasons therefor. 

10 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, ARMY NATIONAL GUARD

11 For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilita12 tion, and conversion of facilities for the training and ad13 ministration of the Army National Guard, and contribu14 tions therefor, as authorized by chapter 1803 of title 10, 

15 United States Code, and Military Construction Authoriza16 tion Acts, $232,930,000, to remain available until Sep17 tember 30, 2021: Provided, That, of the amount appro18 priated, not to exceed $8,729,000 shall be available for 

19 study, planning, design, and architect and engineer serv20 ices, as authorized by law, unless the Director of the Army 

21 National Guard determines that additional obligations are 

22 necessary for such purposes and notifies the Committees 

23 on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of the de24 termination and the reasons therefor. 
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1 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, AIR NATIONAL GUARD

2 For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilita3 tion, and conversion of facilities for the training and ad4 ministration of the Air National Guard, and contributions 

5 therefor, as authorized by chapter 1803 of title 10, United 

6 States Code, and Military Construction Authorization 

7 Acts, $143,957,000, to remain available until September 

8 30, 2021: Provided, That, of the amount appropriated, not 

9 to exceed $10,462,000 shall be available for study, plan10 ning, design, and architect and engineer services, as au11 thorized by law, unless the Director of the Air National 

12 Guard determines that additional obligations are nec13 essary for such purposes and notifies the Committees on 

14 Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of the deter15 mination and the reasons therefor. 

16 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, ARMY RESERVE

17 For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilita18 tion, and conversion of facilities for the training and ad19 ministration of the Army Reserve as authorized by chapter 

20 1803 of title 10, United States Code, and Military Con21 struction Authorization Acts, $68,230,000, to remain 

22 available until September 30, 2021: Provided, That, of the 

23 amount appropriated, not to exceed $7,500,000 shall be 

24 available for study, planning, design, and architect and en25 gineer services, as authorized by law, unless the Chief of 
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1 the Army Reserve determines that additional obligations 

2 are necessary for such purposes and notifies the Commit3 tees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of the 

4 determination and the reasons therefor. 

5 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, NAVY RESERVE

6 For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilita7 tion, and conversion of facilities for the training and ad8 ministration of the reserve components of the Navy and 

9 Marine Corps as authorized by chapter 1803 of title 10, 

10 United States Code, and Military Construction Authoriza11 tion Acts, $38,597,000, to remain available until Sep12 tember 30, 2021: Provided, That, of the amount appro13 priated, not to exceed $3,783,000 shall be available for 

14 study, planning, design, and architect and engineer serv15 ices, as authorized by law, unless the Secretary of the 

16 Navy determines that additional obligations are necessary 

17 for such purposes and notifies the Committees on Appro18 priations of both Houses of Congress of the determination 

19 and the reasons therefor. 

20 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, AIR FORCE RESERVE

21 For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilita22 tion, and conversion of facilities for the training and ad23 ministration of the Air Force Reserve as authorized by 

24 chapter 1803 of title 10, United States Code, and Military 

25 Construction Authorization Acts, $188,950,000, to remain 
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1 available until September 30, 2021: Provided, That, of the 

2 amount appropriated, not to exceed $4,500,000 shall be 

3 available for study, planning, design, and architect and en4 gineer services, as authorized by law, unless the Chief of 

5 the Air Force Reserve determines that additional obliga6 tions are necessary for such purposes and notifies the 

7 Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress 

8 of the determination and the reasons therefor. 

9 NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION

10 SECURITY INVESTMENT PROGRAM

11 For the United States share of the cost of the North 

12 Atlantic Treaty Organization Security Investment Pro13 gram for the acquisition and construction of military fa14 cilities and installations (including international military 

15 headquarters) and for related expenses for the collective 

16 defense of the North Atlantic Treaty Area as authorized 

17 by section 2806 of title 10, United States Code, and Mili18 tary Construction Authorization Acts, $177,932,000, to 

19 remain available until expended. 

20 FAMILY HOUSING CONSTRUCTION, ARMY

21 For expenses of family housing for the Army for con22 struction, including acquisition, replacement, addition, ex23 pansion, extension, and alteration, as authorized by law, 

24 $200,735,000, to remain available until September 30, 

25 2021. 
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1 FAMILY HOUSING OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE, 

2 ARMY

3 For expenses of family housing for the Army for op4 eration and maintenance, including debt payment, leasing, 

5 minor construction, principal and interest charges, and in6 surance premiums, as authorized by law, $325,995,000. 

7 FAMILY HOUSING CONSTRUCTION, NAVY AND MARINE

8 CORPS

9 For expenses of family housing for the Navy and Ma10 rine Corps for construction, including acquisition, replace11 ment, addition, expansion, extension, and alteration, as 

12 authorized by law, $94,011,000, to remain available until 

13 September 30, 2021. 

14 FAMILY HOUSING OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE, 

15 NAVY AND MARINE CORPS

16 For expenses of family housing for the Navy and Ma17 rine Corps for operation and maintenance, including debt 

18 payment, leasing, minor construction, principal and inter19 est charges, and insurance premiums, as authorized by 

20 law, $300,915,000. 

21 FAMILY HOUSING CONSTRUCTION, AIR FORCE

22 For expenses of family housing for the Air Force for 

23 construction, including acquisition, replacement, addition, 

24 expansion, extension, and alteration, as authorized by law, 
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1 $61,352,000, to remain available until September 30, 

2 2021. 

3 FAMILY HOUSING OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE, AIR

4 FORCE

5 For expenses of family housing for the Air Force for 

6 operation and maintenance, including debt payment, leas7 ing, minor construction, principal and interest charges, 

8 and insurance premiums, as authorized by law, 

9 $274,429,000. 

10 FAMILY HOUSING OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE, 

11 DEFENSE-WIDE

12 For expenses of family housing for the activities and 

13 agencies of the Department of Defense (other than the 

14 military departments) for operation and maintenance, 

15 leasing, and minor construction, as authorized by law, 

16 $59,157,000. 

17 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FAMILY HOUSING

18 IMPROVEMENT FUND

19 For the Department of Defense Family Housing Im20 provement Fund, $3,258,000, to remain available until ex21 pended, for family housing initiatives undertaken pursu22 ant to section 2883 of title 10, United States Code, pro23 viding alternative means of acquiring and improving mili24 tary family housing and supporting facilities. 
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1 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE BASE CLOSURE ACCOUNT

2 For deposit into the Department of Defense Base 

3 Closure Account, established by section 2906(a) of the De4 fense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 (10 

5 U.S.C. 2687 note), $230,237,000, to remain available 

6 until expended. 

7 ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS

8 SEC. 101. None of the funds made available in this 

9 title shall be expended for payments under a cost-plus-a10 fixed-fee contract for construction, where cost estimates 

11 exceed $25,000, to be performed within the United States, 

12 except Alaska, without the specific approval in writing of 

13 the Secretary of Defense setting forth the reasons there14 for. 

15 SEC. 102. Funds made available in this title for con16 struction shall be available for hire of passenger motor ve17 hicles. 

18 SEC. 103. Funds made available in this title for con19 struction may be used for advances to the Federal High20 way Administration, Department of Transportation, for 

21 the construction of access roads as authorized by section 

22 210 of title 23, United States Code, when projects author23 ized therein are certified as important to the national de24 fense by the Secretary of Defense. 
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1 SEC. 104. None of the funds made available in this 

2 title may be used to begin construction of new bases in 

3 the United States for which specific appropriations have 

4 not been made. 

5 SEC. 105. None of the funds made available in this 

6 title shall be used for purchase of land or land easements 

7 in excess of 100 percent of the value as determined by 

8 the Army Corps of Engineers or the Naval Facilities Engi9 neering Command, except: (1) where there is a determina10 tion of value by a Federal court; (2) purchases negotiated 

11 by the Attorney General or the designee of the Attorney 

12 General; (3) where the estimated value is less than 

13 $25,000; or (4) as otherwise determined by the Secretary 

14 of Defense to be in the public interest. 

15 SEC. 106. None of the funds made available in this 

16 title shall be used to: (1) acquire land; (2) provide for site 

17 preparation; or (3) install utilities for any family housing, 

18 except housing for which funds have been made available 

19 in annual Acts making appropriations for military con20 struction. 

21 SEC. 107. None of the funds made available in this 

22 title for minor construction may be used to transfer or 

23 relocate any activity from one base or installation to an24 other, without prior notification to the Committees on Ap25 propriations of both Houses of Congress. 
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1 SEC. 108. None of the funds made available in this 

2 title may be used for the procurement of steel for any con3 struction project or activity for which American steel pro4 ducers, fabricators, and manufacturers have been denied 

5 the opportunity to compete for such steel procurement. 

6 SEC. 109. None of the funds available to the Depart7 ment of Defense for military construction or family hous8 ing during the current fiscal year may be used to pay real 

9 property taxes in any foreign nation. 

10 SEC. 110. None of the funds made available in this 

11 title may be used to initiate a new installation overseas 

12 without prior notification to the Committees on Appro13 priations of both Houses of Congress. 

14 SEC. 111. None of the funds made available in this 

15 title may be obligated for architect and engineer contracts 

16 estimated by the Government to exceed $500,000 for 

17 projects to be accomplished in Japan, in any North Atlan18 tic Treaty Organization member country, or in countries 

19 bordering the Arabian Gulf, unless such contracts are 

20 awarded to United States firms or United States firms 

21 in joint venture with host nation firms. 

22 SEC. 112. None of the funds made available in this 

23 title for military construction in the United States terri24 tories and possessions in the Pacific and on Kwajalein 

25 Atoll, or in countries bordering the Arabian Gulf, may be 
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1 used to award any contract estimated by the Government 

2 to exceed $1,000,000 to a foreign contractor: Provided, 

3 That this section shall not be applicable to contract 

4 awards for which the lowest responsive and responsible bid 

5 of a United States contractor exceeds the lowest respon6 sive and responsible bid of a foreign contractor by greater 

7 than 20 percent: Provided further, That this section shall 

8 not apply to contract awards for military construction on 

9 Kwajalein Atoll for which the lowest responsive and re10 sponsible bid is submitted by a Marshallese contractor. 

11 SEC. 113. The Secretary of Defense shall inform the 

12 appropriate committees of both Houses of Congress, in13 cluding the Committees on Appropriations, of plans and 

14 scope of any proposed military exercise involving United 

15 States personnel 30 days prior to its occurring, if amounts 

16 expended for construction, either temporary or permanent, 

17 are anticipated to exceed $100,000. 

18 SEC. 114. Funds appropriated to the Department of 

19 Defense for construction in prior years shall be available 

20 for construction authorized for each such military depart21 ment by the authorizations enacted into law during the 

22 current session of Congress. 

23 SEC. 115. For military construction or family housing 

24 projects that are being completed with funds otherwise ex25 pired or lapsed for obligation, expired or lapsed funds may 
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1 be used to pay the cost of associated supervision, inspec2 tion, overhead, engineering and design on those projects 

3 and on subsequent claims, if any. 

4 SEC. 116. Notwithstanding any other provision of 

5 law, any funds made available to a military department 

6 or defense agency for the construction of military projects 

7 may be obligated for a military construction project or 

8 contract, or for any portion of such a project or contract, 

9 at any time before the end of the fourth fiscal year after 

10 the fiscal year for which funds for such project were made 

11 available, if the funds obligated for such project: (1) are 

12 obligated from funds available for military construction 

13 projects; and (2) do not exceed the amount appropriated 

14 for such project, plus any amount by which the cost of 

15 such project is increased pursuant to law. 

16 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

17 SEC. 117. Subject to 30 days prior notification, or 

18 14 days for a notification provided in an electronic me19 dium pursuant to sections 480 and 2883 of title 10, 

20 United States Code, to the Committees on Appropriations 

21 of both Houses of Congress, such additional amounts as 

22 may be determined by the Secretary of Defense may be 

23 transferred to: (1) the Department of Defense Family 

24 Housing Improvement Fund from amounts appropriated 

25 for construction in ‘‘Family Housing’’ accounts, to be 
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1 merged with and to be available for the same purposes 

2 and for the same period of time as amounts appropriated 

3 directly to the Fund; or (2) the Department of Defense 

4 Military Unaccompanied Housing Improvement Fund 

5 from amounts appropriated for construction of military 

6 unaccompanied housing in ‘‘Military Construction’’ ac7 counts, to be merged with and to be available for the same 

8 purposes and for the same period of time as amounts ap9 propriated directly to the Fund: Provided, That appropria10 tions made available to the Funds shall be available to 

11 cover the costs, as defined in section 502(5) of the Con12 gressional Budget Act of 1974, of direct loans or loan 

13 guarantees issued by the Department of Defense pursuant 

14 to the provisions of subchapter IV of chapter 169 of title 

15 10, United States Code, pertaining to alternative means 

16 of acquiring and improving military family housing, mili17 tary unaccompanied housing, and supporting facilities. 

18 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

19 SEC. 118. In addition to any other transfer authority 

20 available to the Department of Defense, amounts may be 

21 transferred from the Department of Defense Base Closure 

22 Account to the fund established by section 1013(d) of the 

23 Demonstration Cities and Metropolitan Development Act 

24 of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 3374) to pay for expenses associated 

25 with the Homeowners Assistance Program incurred under 
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1 42 U.S.C. 3374(a)(1)(A). Any amounts transferred shall 

2 be merged with and be available for the same purposes 

3 and for the same time period as the fund to which trans4 ferred. 

5 SEC. 119. Notwithstanding any other provision of 

6 law, funds made available in this title for operation and 

7 maintenance of family housing shall be the exclusive 

8 source of funds for repair and maintenance of all family 

9 housing units, including general or flag officer quarters: 

10 Provided, That not more than $35,000 per unit may be 

11 spent annually for the maintenance and repair of any gen12 eral or flag officer quarters without 30 days prior notifica13 tion, or 14 days for a notification provided in an electronic 

14 medium pursuant to sections 480 and 2883 of title 10, 

15 United States Code, to the Committees on Appropriations 

16 of both Houses of Congress, except that an after-the-fact 

17 notification shall be submitted if the limitation is exceeded 

18 solely due to costs associated with environmental remedi19 ation that could not be reasonably anticipated at the time 

20 of the budget submission: Provided further, That the 

21 Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller) is to report an22 nually to the Committees on Appropriations of both 

23 Houses of Congress all operation and maintenance ex24 penditures for each individual general or flag officer quar25 ters for the prior fiscal year. 
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1 SEC. 120. Amounts contained in the Ford Island Im2 provement Account established by subsection (h) of sec3 tion 2814 of title 10, United States Code, are appro4 priated and shall be available until expended for the pur5 poses specified in subsection (i)(1) of such section or until 

6 transferred pursuant to subsection (i)(3) of such section. 

7 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

8 SEC. 121. During the 5-year period after appropria9 tions available in this Act to the Department of Defense 

10 for military construction and family housing operation and 

11 maintenance and construction have expired for obligation, 

12 upon a determination that such appropriations will not be 

13 necessary for the liquidation of obligations or for making 

14 authorized adjustments to such appropriations for obliga15 tions incurred during the period of availability of such ap16 propriations, unobligated balances of such appropriations 

17 may be transferred into the appropriation ‘‘Foreign Cur18 rency Fluctuations, Construction, Defense’’, to be merged 

19 with and to be available for the same time period and for 

20 the same purposes as the appropriation to which trans21 ferred. 

22 SEC. 122. (a) Except as provided in subsection (b), 

23 none of the funds made available in this Act may be used 

24 by the Secretary of the Army to relocate a unit in the 

25 Army that— 
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1 (1) performs a testing mission or function that 

2 is not performed by any other unit in the Army and 

3 is specifically stipulated in title 10, United States 

4 Code; and 

5 (2) is located at a military installation at which 

6 the total number of civilian employees of the Depart7 ment of the Army and Army contractor personnel 

8 employed exceeds 10 percent of the total number of 

9 members of the regular and reserve components of 

10 the Army assigned to the installation. 

11 (b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply if 

12 the Secretary of the Army certifies to the congressional 

13 defense committees that in proposing the relocation of the 

14 unit of the Army, the Secretary complied with Army Regu15 lation 5–10 relating to the policy, procedures, and respon16 sibilities for Army stationing actions. 

17 SEC. 123. Amounts appropriated or otherwise made 

18 available in an account funded under the headings in this 

19 title may be transferred among projects and activities 

20 within the account in accordance with the reprogramming 

21 guidelines for military construction and family housing 

22 construction contained in Department of Defense Finan23 cial Management Regulation 7000.14–R, Volume 3, Chap24 ter 7, of March 2011, as in effect on the date of enactment 

25 of this Act. 
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1 SEC. 124. None of the funds made available in this 

2 title may be obligated or expended for planning and design 

3 and construction of projects at Arlington National Ceme4 tery. 

5 (RESCISSION OF FUNDS)

6 SEC. 125. Of the unobligated balances available for 

7 ‘‘Military Construction, Army’’, from prior appropriation 

8 Acts (other than appropriations designated by law as 

9 being for contingency operations directly related to the 

10 global war on terrorism or as an emergency requirement), 

11 $25,000,000 are hereby rescinded. 

12 (RESCISSION OF FUNDS)

13 SEC. 126. Of the unobligated balances available for 

14 ‘‘Military Construction, Navy and Marine Corps’’, from 

15 prior appropriation Acts (other than appropriations des16 ignated by law as being for contingency operations directly 

17 related to the global war on terrorism or as an emergency 

18 requirement), $51,848,000 are hereby rescinded. 

19 (RESCISSION OF FUNDS)

20 SEC. 127. Of the unobligated balances available for 

21 ‘‘Military Construction, Defense-Wide’’, from prior appro22 priation Acts (other than appropriations designated by law 

23 as being for contingency operations directly related to the 

24 global war on terrorism or as an emergency requirement), 

25 $37,377,000 are hereby rescinded. 
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1 SEC. 128. For an additional amount for ‘‘Military 

2 Construction, Army’’, $40,500,000, to remain available 

3 until September 30, 2021: Provided, That such funds may 

4 only be obligated to carry out construction projects, in pri5 ority order, identified in the Department of the Army’s 

6 Unfunded Priority List for Fiscal Year 2017 submitted 

7 by the Secretary of Defense to Congress: Provided further, 

8 That such funding is subject to authorization prior to obli9 gation and expenditure of funds: Provided further, That, 

10 not later than 30 days after enactment of this Act, the 

11 Secretary of the Army shall submit to the Committees on 

12 Appropriations of both Houses of Congress an expenditure 

13 plan for funds provided under this section. 

14 SEC. 129. For an additional amount for ‘‘Military 

15 Construction, Navy and Marine Corps’’, $293,600,000, to 

16 remain available until September 30, 2021: Provided, 

17 That such funds may only be obligated to carry out con18 struction projects, in priority order, identified in the De19 partment of the Navy’s Unfunded Priority List for Fiscal 

20 Year 2017 submitted by the Secretary of Defense to Con21 gress: Provided further, That such funding is subject to 

22 authorization prior to obligation and expenditure of funds: 

23 Provided further, That, not later than 30 days after enact24 ment of this Act, the Secretary of the Navy shall submit 

25 to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of 
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1 Congress an expenditure plan for funds provided under 

2 this section. 

3 SEC. 130. For an additional amount for ‘‘Military 

4 Construction, Army National Guard’’, $67,500,000, to re5 main available until September 30, 2021: Provided, That 

6 such funds may only be obligated to carry out construction 

7 projects, in priority order, identified in the Department 

8 of the Army’s Unfunded Priority List for Fiscal Year 

9 2017 submitted by the Secretary of Defense to Congress: 

10 Provided further, That such funding is subject to author11 ization prior to obligation and expenditure of funds: Pro12 vided further, That, not later than 30 days after enact13 ment of this Act, the Secretary of the Army shall submit 

14 to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of 

15 Congress an expenditure plan for funds provided under 

16 this section. 

17 SEC. 131. For an additional amount for ‘‘Military 

18 Construction, Army Reserve’’, $86,500,000, to remain 

19 available until September 30, 2021: Provided, That such 

20 funds may only be obligated to carry out construction 

21 projects, in priority order, identified in the Department 

22 of the Army’s Unfunded Priority List for Fiscal Year 

23 2017 submitted by the Secretary of Defense to Congress: 

24 Provided further, That such funding is subject to author25 ization prior to obligation and expenditure of funds: Pro-
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1 vided further, That, not later than 30 days after enact2 ment of this Act, the Secretary of the Army shall submit 

3 to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of 

4 Congress an expenditure plan for funds provided under 

5 this section. 

6 SEC. 132. For an additional amount for ‘‘Military 

7 Construction, Air Force’’, $26,000,000, to remain avail8 able until September 30, 2021: Provided, That such funds 

9 may only be obligated to carry out construction projects, 

10 in priority order, identified in the Department of the Air 

11 Force’s Unfunded Priority List for Fiscal Year 2017 sub12 mitted by the Secretary of Defense to Congress: Provided 

13 further, That such funding is subject to authorization 

14 prior to obligation and expenditure of funds: Provided fur15 ther, That not later than 30 days after enactment of this 

16 Act, the Secretary of the Air Force shall submit to the 

17 Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress 

18 an expenditure plan for funds provided under this section. 

19 (RESCISSION OF FUNDS)

20 SEC. 133. Of the unobligated balances made available 

21 in prior appropriation Acts for the fund established in sec22 tion 1013(d) of the Demonstration Cities and Metropoli23 tan Development Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 3374) (other 

24 than appropriations designated by law as being for contin25 gency operations directly related to the global war on ter-
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1 rorism or as an emergency requirement), $25,000,000 are 

2 hereby rescinded. 

3 SEC. 134. For the purposes of this Act, the term 

4 ‘‘congressional defense committees’’ means the Commit5 tees on Armed Services of the House of Representatives 

6 and the Senate, the Subcommittee on Military Construc7 tion and Veterans Affairs of the Committee on Appropria8 tions of the Senate, and the Subcommittee on Military 

9 Construction and Veterans Affairs of the Committee on 

10 Appropriations of the House of Representatives. 

11 (RESCISSION OF FUNDS)

12 SEC. 135. Of the unobligated balances available for 

13 ‘‘NATO Security Investment Program’’, from prior appro14 priations Acts (other than appropriations designated by 

15 law as being for contingency operations directly related to 

16 the global war on terrorism or as an emergency require17 ment), $30,000,000 are hereby rescinded. 

18 SEC. 136. None of the funds made available by this 

19 Act may be used to carry out the closure or realignment 

20 of the United States Naval Station, Guanta ́namo Bay, 

21 Cuba. 
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1 TITLE II 

2 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS 

3 VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION

4 COMPENSATION AND PENSIONS

5 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

6 For the payment of compensation benefits to or on 

7 behalf of veterans and a pilot program for disability ex8 aminations as authorized by section 107 and chapters 11, 

9 13, 18, 51, 53, 55, and 61 of title 38, United States Code; 

10 pension benefits to or on behalf of veterans as authorized 

11 by chapters 15, 51, 53, 55, and 61 of title 38, United 

12 States Code; and burial benefits, the Reinstated Entitle13 ment Program for Survivors, emergency and other offi14 cers’ retirement pay, adjusted-service credits and certifi15 cates, payment of premiums due on commercial life insur16 ance policies guaranteed under the provisions of title IV 

17 of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. App. 

18 541 et seq.) and for other benefits as authorized by sec19 tions 107, 1312, 1977, and 2106, and chapters 23, 51, 

20 53, 55, and 61 of title 38, United States Code, 

21 $90,119,449,000, to remain available until expended and 

22 to become available on October 1, 2017: Provided, That 

23 not to exceed $17,224,000 of the amount made available 

24 for fiscal year 2018 under this heading shall be reim25 bursed to ‘‘General Operating Expenses, Veterans Bene-
26 

•HR 4974 EH

1 fits Administration’’, and ‘‘Information Technology Sys2 tems’’ for necessary expenses in implementing the provi3 sions of chapters 51, 53, and 55 of title 38, United States 

4 Code, the funding source for which is specifically provided 

5 as the ‘‘Compensation and Pensions’’ appropriation: Pro6 vided further, That such sums as may be earned on an 

7 actual qualifying patient basis, shall be reimbursed to 

8 ‘‘Medical Care Collections Fund’’ to augment the funding 

9 of individual medical facilities for nursing home care pro10 vided to pensioners as authorized. 

11 READJUSTMENT BENEFITS

12 For the payment of readjustment and rehabilitation 

13 benefits to or on behalf of veterans as authorized by chap14 ters 21, 30, 31, 33, 34, 35, 36, 39, 41, 51, 53, 55, and 

15 61 of title 38, United States Code, $13,708,648,000, to 

16 remain available until expended and to become available 

17 on October 1, 2017: Provided, That expenses for rehabili18 tation program services and assistance which the Sec19 retary is authorized to provide under subsection (a) of sec20 tion 3104 of title 38, United States Code, other than 

21 under paragraphs (1), (2), (5), and (11) of that sub22 section, shall be charged to this account. 

23 VETERANS INSURANCE AND INDEMNITIES

24 For military and naval insurance, national service life 

25 insurance, servicemen’s indemnities, service-disabled vet-
27 

•HR 4974 EH

1 erans insurance, and veterans mortgage life insurance as 

2 authorized by chapters 19 and 21, title 38, United States 

3 Code, $124,504,000, to remain available until expended, 

4 of which $107,899,000 shall become available on October 

5 1, 2017. 

6 VETERANS HOUSING BENEFIT PROGRAM FUND

7 For the cost of direct and guaranteed loans, such 

8 sums as may be necessary to carry out the program, as 

9 authorized by subchapters I through III of chapter 37 of 

10 title 38, United States Code: Provided, That such costs, 

11 including the cost of modifying such loans, shall be as de12 fined in section 502 of the Congressional Budget Act of 

13 1974: Provided further, That, during fiscal year 2017, 

14 within the resources available, not to exceed $500,000 in 

15 gross obligations for direct loans are authorized for spe16 cially adapted housing loans. 

17 In addition, for administrative expenses to carry out 

18 the direct and guaranteed loan programs, $167,612,000. 

19 VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION LOANS PROGRAM ACCOUNT

20 For the cost of direct loans, $36,000, as authorized 

21 by chapter 31 of title 38, United States Code: Provided, 

22 That such costs, including the cost of modifying such 

23 loans, shall be as defined in section 502 of the Congres24 sional Budget Act of 1974: Provided further, That funds 

25 made available under this heading are available to sub-
28 

•HR 4974 EH

1 sidize gross obligations for the principal amount of direct 

2 loans not to exceed $2,517,000. 

3 In addition, for administrative expenses necessary to 

4 carry out the direct loan program, $389,000, which may 

5 be paid to the appropriation for ‘‘General Operating Ex6 penses, Veterans Benefits Administration’’. 

7 NATIVE AMERICAN VETERAN HOUSING LOAN PROGRAM

8 ACCOUNT

9 For administrative expenses to carry out the direct 

10 loan program authorized by subchapter V of chapter 37 

11 of title 38, United States Code, $1,163,000. 

12 VETERANS HEALTH ADMINISTRATION

13 MEDICAL SERVICES

14 For necessary expenses for furnishing, as authorized 

15 by law, inpatient and outpatient care and treatment to 

16 beneficiaries of the Department of Veterans Affairs and 

17 veterans described in section 1705(a) of title 38, United 

18 States Code, including care and treatment in facilities not 

19 under the jurisdiction of the Department, and including 

20 medical supplies and equipment, bioengineering services, 

21 food services, and salaries and expenses of healthcare em22 ployees hired under title 38, United States Code, aid to 

23 State homes as authorized by section 1741 of title 38, 

24 United States Code, assistance and support services for 

25 caregivers as authorized by section 1720G of title 38, 
29 

•HR 4974 EH

1 United States Code, loan repayments authorized by sec2 tion 604 of the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health 

3 Services Act of 2010 (Public Law 111–163; 124 Stat. 

4 1174; 38 U.S.C. 7681 note), and hospital care and med5 ical services authorized by section 1787 of title 38, United 

6 States Code; $850,000,000 (increased by $4,000,000) (re7 duced by $10,000,000) (increased by $10,000,000), which 

8 shall be in addition to funds previously appropriated under 

9 this heading that became available on October 1, 2016; 

10 and, in addition, $44,886,554,000, plus reimbursements, 

11 shall become available on October 1, 2017, and shall re12 main available until September 30, 2018: Provided, That, 

13 of the amount made available on October 1, 2017, under 

14 this heading, $1,400,000,000 shall remain available until 

15 September 30, 2019: Provided further, That, notwith16 standing any other provision of law, the Secretary of Vet17 erans Affairs shall establish a priority for the provision 

18 of medical treatment for veterans who have service-con19 nected disabilities, lower income, or have special needs: 

20 Provided further, That, notwithstanding any other provi21 sion of law, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall give 

22 priority funding for the provision of basic medical benefits 

23 to veterans in enrollment priority groups 1 through 6: Pro24 vided further, That, notwithstanding any other provision 

25 of law, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs may authorize 
30 

•HR 4974 EH

1 the dispensing of prescription drugs from Veterans Health 

2 Administration facilities to enrolled veterans with privately 

3 written prescriptions based on requirements established by 

4 the Secretary: Provided further, That the implementation 

5 of the program described in the previous proviso shall 

6 incur no additional cost to the Department of Veterans 

7 Affairs. 

8 MEDICAL COMMUNITY CARE

9 For necessary expenses for furnishing health care to 

10 individuals pursuant to chapter 17 of title 38, United 

11 States Code, at non-Department facilities, 

12 $7,246,181,000, plus reimbursements, to be derived from 

13 amounts appropriated in title II of division J of Public 

14 Law 114–113 under the headings ‘‘Medical Services’’, 

15 ‘‘Medical Support and Compliance’’, or ‘‘Medical Facili16 ties’’ which became available on October 1, 2016; and, in 

17 addition, $9,409,118,000 shall become available on Octo18 ber 1, 2017, and shall remain available until September 

19 30, 2018: Provided, That, of the amount made available 

20 on October 1, 2017, under this heading, $1,500,000,000 

21 shall remain available until September 30, 2019. 

22 MEDICAL SUPPORT AND COMPLIANCE

23 For necessary expenses in the administration of the 

24 medical, hospital, nursing home, domiciliary, construction, 

25 supply, and research activities, as authorized by law; ad-
31 

•HR 4974 EH

1 ministrative expenses in support of capital policy activi2 ties; and administrative and legal expenses of the Depart3 ment for collecting and recovering amounts owed the De4 partment as authorized under chapter 17 of title 38, 

5 United States Code, and the Federal Medical Care Recov6 ery Act (42 U.S.C. 2651 et seq.), $6,654,480,000, plus 

7 reimbursements, shall become available on October 1, 

8 2017, and shall remain available until September 30, 

9 2018: Provided, That, of the amount made available on 

10 October 1, 2017, under this heading, $100,000,000 shall 

11 remain available until September 30, 2019. 

12 MEDICAL FACILITIES

13 For necessary expenses for the maintenance and op14 eration of hospitals, nursing homes, domiciliary facilities, 

15 and other necessary facilities of the Veterans Health Ad16 ministration; for administrative expenses in support of 

17 planning, design, project management, real property ac18 quisition and disposition, construction, and renovation of 

19 any facility under the jurisdiction or for the use of the 

20 Department; for oversight, engineering, and architectural 

21 activities not charged to project costs; for repairing, alter22 ing, improving, or providing facilities in the several hos23 pitals and homes under the jurisdiction of the Depart24 ment, not otherwise provided for, either by contract or by 

25 the hire of temporary employees and purchase of mate-
32 

•HR 4974 EH

1 rials; for leases of facilities; and for laundry services, 

2 $5,434,880,000, plus reimbursements, shall become avail3 able on October 1, 2017, and shall remain available until 

4 September 30, 2018: Provided, That, of the amount made 

5 available on October 1, 2017, under this heading, 

6 $250,000,000 shall remain available until September 30, 

7 2019. 

8 MEDICAL AND PROSTHETIC RESEARCH

9 For necessary expenses in carrying out programs of 

10 medical and prosthetic research and development as au11 thorized by chapter 73 of title 38, United States Code, 

12 $663,366,000, plus reimbursements, shall remain avail13 able until September 30, 2018. 

14 NATIONAL CEMETERY ADMINISTRATION

15 For necessary expenses of the National Cemetery Ad16 ministration for operations and maintenance, not other17 wise provided for, including uniforms or allowances there18 for; cemeterial expenses as authorized by law; purchase 

19 of one passenger motor vehicle for use in cemeterial oper20 ations; hire of passenger motor vehicles; and repair, alter21 ation or improvement of facilities under the jurisdiction 

22 of the National Cemetery Administration, $271,220,000, 

23 of which not to exceed $26,600,000 shall remain available 

24 until September 30, 2018. 
33 

•HR 4974 EH

1 DEPARTMENTAL ADMINISTRATION

2 GENERAL ADMINISTRATION

3 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

4 For necessary operating expenses of the Department 

5 of Veterans Affairs, not otherwise provided for, including 

6 administrative expenses in support of Department-wide 

7 capital planning, management and policy activities, uni8 forms, or allowances therefor; not to exceed $25,000 for 

9 official reception and representation expenses; hire of pas10 senger motor vehicles; and reimbursement of the General 

11 Services Administration for security guard services, 

12 $336,659,000 (reduced by $5,500,000) (reduced by 

13 $1,500,000) (increased by $1,500,000) (reduced by 

14 $5,000,000) (reduced by $1,000,000) (increased by 

15 $1,000,000), of which not to exceed $10,000,000 shall re16 main available until September 30, 2018: Provided, That 

17 funds provided under this heading may be transferred to 

18 ‘‘General Operating Expenses, Veterans Benefits Adminis19 tration’’. 

20 BOARD OF VETERANS APPEALS

21 For necessary operating expenses of the Board of 

22 Veterans Appeals, $156,096,000, of which not to exceed 

23 $15,610,000 shall remain available until September 30, 

24 2018. 
34 

•HR 4974 EH

1 GENERAL OPERATING EXPENSES, VETERANS BENEFITS

2 ADMINISTRATION

3 For necessary operating expenses of the Veterans 

4 Benefits Administration, not otherwise provided for, in5 cluding hire of passenger motor vehicles, reimbursement 

6 of the General Services Administration for security guard 

7 services, and reimbursement of the Department of De8 fense for the cost of overseas employee mail, 

9 $2,826,160,000 (reduced by $5,000,000) (increased by 

10 $5,000,000): Provided, That expenses for services and as11 sistance authorized under paragraphs (1), (2), (5), and 

12 (11) of section 3104(a) of title 38, United States Code, 

13 that the Secretary of Veterans Affairs determines are nec14 essary to enable entitled veterans: (1) to the maximum ex15 tent feasible, to become employable and to obtain and 

16 maintain suitable employment; or (2) to achieve maximum 

17 independence in daily living, shall be charged to this ac18 count: Provided further, That, of the funds made available 

19 under this heading, not to exceed $141,000,000 shall re20 main available until September 30, 2018. 

21 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SYSTEMS

22 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

23 For necessary expenses for information technology 

24 systems and telecommunications support, including devel25 opmental information systems and operational information 
35 

•HR 4974 EH

1 systems; for pay and associated costs; and for the capital 

2 asset acquisition of information technology systems, in3 cluding management and related contractual costs of said 

4 acquisitions, including contractual costs associated with 

5 operations authorized by section 3109 of title 5, United 

6 States Code, $4,220,869,000 (increased by $5,000,000), 

7 plus reimbursements: Provided, That $1,247,548,000 

8 shall be for pay and associated costs, of which not to ex9 ceed $36,300,000 shall remain available until September 

10 30, 2018: Provided further, That $2,502,052,000 shall be 

11 for operations and maintenance, of which not to exceed 

12 $177,900,000 shall remain available until September 30, 

13 2018: Provided further, That $471,269,000 (increased by 

14 $5,000,000) shall be for information technology systems 

15 development, modernization, and enhancement, and shall 

16 remain available until September 30, 2018: Provided fur17 ther, That amounts made available for information tech18 nology systems development, modernization, and enhance19 ment may not be obligated or expended until the Secretary 

20 of Veterans Affairs or the Chief Information Officer of 

21 the Department of Veterans Affairs submits to the Com22 mittees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a 

23 certification of the amounts, in parts or in full, to be obli24 gated and expended for each development project: Pro25 vided further, That amounts made available for salaries 
36 

•HR 4974 EH

1 and expenses, operations and maintenance, and informa2 tion technology systems development, modernization, and 

3 enhancement may be transferred among the three sub4 accounts after the Secretary of Veterans Affairs requests 

5 from the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses 

6 of Congress the authority to make the transfer and an 

7 approval is issued: Provided further, That amounts made 

8 available for the ‘‘Information Technology Systems’’ ac9 count for development, modernization, and enhancement 

10 may be transferred among projects or to newly defined 

11 projects: Provided further, That no project may be in12 creased or decreased by more than $1,000,000 of cost 

13 prior to submitting a request to the Committees on Appro14 priations of both Houses of Congress to make the transfer 

15 and an approval is issued, or absent a response, a period 

16 of 30 days has elapsed: Provided further, That funds under 

17 this heading may be used by the Interagency Program Of18 fice through the Department of Veterans Affairs to define 

19 data standards, code sets, and value sets used to enable 

20 interoperability: Provided further, That of the amounts 

21 made available under this heading for operations and 

22 maintenance and information technology systems develop23 ment, modernization, and enhancement, not more than a 

24 total amount of $168,113,000 shall be available for VistA 

25 Evolution or any successor: Provided further, That none 
37 

•HR 4974 EH

1 of the funds made available by the preceding proviso may 

2 be obligated or expended for such program or any suc3 cessor until the Secretary of Veterans Affairs: (1) certifies 

4 to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of 

5 Congress that the Department of Veterans Affairs has de6 ployed modernized electronic health record software sup7 porting clinicians of the Department of Veterans Affairs 

8 and the Department of Defense no later than December 

9 31, 2016, while ensuring continued support and compat10 ibility with the interoperability platform and full stand11 ards-based interoperability, as stipulated by the National 

12 Defense Authorization Act of Fiscal Year 2014 (Public 

13 Law 113–66); (2) submits to the Committees on Appro14 priations of both Houses of Congress the VistA Evolution 

15 Business Case and supporting documents regarding con16 tinuation of VistA Evolution or alternatives to VistA Evo17 lution, including an analysis of necessary or desired capa18 bilities, technical and security requirements, the plan for 

19 modernizing the platform framework, and all associated 

20 costs; and (3) submits to the Committees on Appropria21 tions of both Houses of Congress, and such Committees 

22 approve, the following: a report that describes a strategic 

23 plan for VistA Evolution, or any successor, and the associ24 ated implementation plan including metrics and timelines; 

25 a master schedule and lifecycle cost estimate for VistA 
38 

•HR 4974 EH

1 Evolution or any successor; and an implementation plan 

2 for the transition from the Project Management Account3 ability System (PMAS) to the new project delivery frame4 work (the Veteran-focused Integration Process (VIP)) 

5 that includes the methodology by which projects will be 

6 tracked, progress measured, and deliverables evaluated: 

7 Provided further, That the funds made available under this 

8 heading for information technology systems development, 

9 modernization, and enhancement, shall be for the projects, 

10 and in the amounts, specified under this heading in the 

11 report accompanying this Act. 

12 OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL

13 For necessary expenses of the Office of Inspector 

14 General, to include information technology, in carrying out 

15 the provisions of the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 

16 U.S.C. App.), $160,106,000, of which not to exceed 

17 $14,800,000 shall remain available until September 30, 

18 2018. 

19 CONSTRUCTION, MAJOR PROJECTS

20 For constructing, altering, extending, and improving 

21 any of the facilities, including parking projects, under the 

22 jurisdiction or for the use of the Department of Veterans 

23 Affairs, or for any of the purposes set forth in sections 

24 316, 2404, 2406 and chapter 81 of title 38, United States 

25 Code, not otherwise provided for, including planning, ar-
39 

•HR 4974 EH

1 chitectural and engineering services, construction manage2 ment services, maintenance or guarantee period services 

3 costs associated with equipment guarantees provided 

4 under the project, services of claims analysts, offsite utility 

5 and storm drainage system construction costs, and site ac6 quisition, where the estimated cost of a project is more 

7 than the amount set forth in section 8104(a)(3)(A) of title 

8 38, United States Code, or where funds for a project were 

9 made available in a previous major project appropriation, 

10 $528,110,000, of which $494,310,000 shall remain avail11 able until September 30, 2021, and of which $33,800,000 

12 shall remain available until expended: Provided, That ex13 cept for advance planning activities, including needs as14 sessments which may or may not lead to capital invest15 ments, and other capital asset management related activi16 ties, including portfolio development and management ac17 tivities, and investment strategy studies funded through 

18 the advance planning fund and the planning and design 

19 activities funded through the design fund, including needs 

20 assessments which may or may not lead to capital invest21 ments, and salaries and associated costs of the resident 

22 engineers who oversee those capital investments funded 

23 through this account and contracting officers who manage 

24 specific major construction projects, and funds provided 

25 for the purchase of land, security, and maintenance for 
40 

•HR 4974 EH

1 the National Cemetery Administration through the land 

2 acquisition line item, none of the funds made available 

3 under this heading shall be used for any project which has 

4 not been approved by the Congress in the budgetary proc5 ess: Provided further, That funds made available under 

6 this heading for fiscal year 2017, for each approved 

7 project shall be obligated: (1) by the awarding of a con8 struction documents contract by September 30, 2017; and 

9 (2) by the awarding of a construction contract by Sep10 tember 30, 2018: Provided further, That the Secretary of 

11 Veterans Affairs shall promptly submit to the Committees 

12 on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a written 

13 report on any approved major construction project for 

14 which obligations are not incurred within the time limita15 tions established above: Provided further, That, of the 

16 amount made available under this heading, $222,620,000 

17 for Veterans Health Administration major construction 

18 projects shall not be available until the Department of 

19 Veterans Affairs— 

20 (1) enters into an agreement with an appro21 priate non-Department of Veterans Affairs Federal 

22 entity to serve as the design and/or construction 

23 agent for any Veterans Health Administration major 

24 construction project with a Total Estimated Cost of 

25 $100,000,000 or above by providing full project 
41 

•HR 4974 EH

1 management services, including management of the 

2 project design, acquisition, construction, and con3 tract changes, consistent with section 502 of Public 

4 Law 114–58; and 

5 (2) certifies in writing that such an agreement 

6 is executed and intended to minimize or prevent sub7 sequent major construction project cost overruns 

8 and provides a copy of the agreement entered into 

9 and any required supplementary information to the 

10 Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of 

11 Congress. 

12 CONSTRUCTION, MINOR PROJECTS

13 For constructing, altering, extending, and improving 

14 any of the facilities, including parking projects, under the 

15 jurisdiction or for the use of the Department of Veterans 

16 Affairs, including planning and assessments of needs 

17 which may lead to capital investments, architectural and 

18 engineering services, maintenance or guarantee period 

19 services costs associated with equipment guarantees pro20 vided under the project, services of claims analysts, offsite 

21 utility and storm drainage system construction costs, and 

22 site acquisition, or for any of the purposes set forth in 

23 sections 316, 2404, 2406 and chapter 81 of title 38, 

24 United States Code, not otherwise provided for, where the 

25 estimated cost of a project is equal to or less than the 
42 

•HR 4974 EH

1 amount set forth in section 8104(a)(3)(A) of title 38, 

2 United States Code, $372,069,000, to remain available 

3 until September 30, 2021, along with unobligated balances 

4 of previous ‘‘Construction, Minor Projects’’ appropriations 

5 which are hereby made available for any project where the 

6 estimated cost is equal to or less than the amount set forth 

7 in such section: Provided, That funds made available 

8 under this heading shall be for: (1) repairs to any of the 

9 nonmedical facilities under the jurisdiction or for the use 

10 of the Department which are necessary because of loss or 

11 damage caused by any natural disaster or catastrophe; 

12 and (2) temporary measures necessary to prevent or to 

13 minimize further loss by such causes. 

14 GRANTS FOR CONSTRUCTION OF STATE EXTENDED CARE

15 FACILITIES

16 For grants to assist States to acquire or construct 

17 State nursing home and domiciliary facilities and to re18 model, modify, or alter existing hospital, nursing home, 

19 and domiciliary facilities in State homes, for furnishing 

20 care to veterans as authorized by sections 8131 through 

21 8137 of title 38, United States Code, $80,000,000, to re22 main available until expended. 

23 GRANTS FOR CONSTRUCTION OF VETERANS CEMETERIES

24 For grants to assist States and tribal organizations 

25 in establishing, expanding, or improving veterans ceme-
43 

•HR 4974 EH

1 teries as authorized by section 2408 of title 38, United 

2 States Code, $45,000,000, to remain available until ex3 pended. 

4 ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS

5 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

6 SEC. 201. Any appropriation for fiscal year 2017 for 

7 ‘‘Compensation and Pensions’’, ‘‘Readjustment Benefits’’, 

8 and ‘‘Veterans Insurance and Indemnities’’ may be trans9 ferred as necessary to any other of the mentioned appro10 priations: Provided, That, before a transfer may take 

11 place, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall request from 

12 the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Con13 gress the authority to make the transfer and such Com14 mittees issue an approval, or absent a response, a period 

15 of 30 days has elapsed. 

16 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

17 SEC. 202. Amounts made available for the Depart18 ment of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2017, in this or 

19 any other Act, under the ‘‘Medical Services’’, ‘‘Medical 

20 Community Care’’, ‘‘Medical Support and Compliance’’, 

21 and ‘‘Medical Facilities’’ accounts may be transferred 

22 among the accounts: Provided, That any transfers among 

23 the ‘‘Medical Services’’, ‘‘Medical Community Care’’, and 

24 ‘‘Medical Support and Compliance’’ accounts of 1 percent 

25 or less of the total amount appropriated to the account 
44 

•HR 4974 EH

1 in this or any other Act may take place subject to notifica2 tion from the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to the Com3 mittees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of 

4 the amount and purpose of the transfer: Provided further, 

5 That any transfers among the ‘‘Medical Services’’, ‘‘Med6 ical Community Care’’, and ‘‘Medical Support and Compli7 ance’’ accounts in excess of 1 percent, or exceeding the 

8 cumulative 1 percent for the fiscal year, may take place 

9 only after the Secretary requests from the Committees on 

10 Appropriations of both Houses of Congress the authority 

11 to make the transfer and an approval is issued: Provided 

12 further, That any transfers to or from the ‘‘Medical Facili13 ties’’ account may take place only after the Secretary re14 quests from the Committees on Appropriations of both 

15 Houses of Congress the authority to make the transfer 

16 and an approval is issued. 

17 SEC. 203. Appropriations available in this title for 

18 salaries and expenses shall be available for services au19 thorized by section 3109 of title 5, United States Code; 

20 hire of passenger motor vehicles; lease of a facility or land 

21 or both; and uniforms or allowances therefore, as author22 ized by sections 5901 through 5902 of title 5, United 

23 States Code. 

24 SEC. 204. No appropriations in this title (except the 

25 appropriations for ‘‘Construction, Major Projects’’, and 
45 

•HR 4974 EH

1 ‘‘Construction, Minor Projects’’) shall be available for the 

2 purchase of any site for or toward the construction of any 

3 new hospital or home. 

4 SEC. 205. No appropriations in this title shall be 

5 available for hospitalization or examination of any persons 

6 (except beneficiaries entitled to such hospitalization or ex7 amination under the laws providing such benefits to vet8 erans, and persons receiving such treatment under sec9 tions 7901 through 7904 of title 5, United States Code, 

10 or the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 

11 Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.)), unless reim12 bursement of the cost of such hospitalization or examina13 tion is made to the ‘‘Medical Services’’ account at such 

14 rates as may be fixed by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. 

15 SEC. 206. Appropriations available in this title for 

16 ‘‘Compensation and Pensions’’, ‘‘Readjustment Benefits’’, 

17 and ‘‘Veterans Insurance and Indemnities’’ shall be avail18 able for payment of prior year accrued obligations re19 quired to be recorded by law against the corresponding 

20 prior year accounts within the last quarter of fiscal year 

21 2016. 

22 SEC. 207. Appropriations available in this title shall 

23 be available to pay prior year obligations of corresponding 

24 prior year appropriations accounts resulting from sections 

25 3328(a), 3334, and 3712(a) of title 31, United States 
46 

•HR 4974 EH

1 Code, except that if such obligations are from trust fund 

2 accounts they shall be payable only from ‘‘Compensation 

3 and Pensions’’. 

4 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

5 SEC. 208. Notwithstanding any other provision of 

6 law, during fiscal year 2017, the Secretary of Veterans 

7 Affairs shall, from the National Service Life Insurance 

8 Fund under section 1920 of title 38, United States Code, 

9 the Veterans’ Special Life Insurance Fund under section 

10 1923 of title 38, United States Code, and the United 

11 States Government Life Insurance Fund under section 

12 1955 of title 38, United States Code, reimburse the ‘‘Gen13 eral Operating Expenses, Veterans Benefits Administra14 tion’’ and ‘‘Information Technology Systems’’ accounts for 

15 the cost of administration of the insurance programs fi16 nanced through those accounts: Provided, That reimburse17 ment shall be made only from the surplus earnings accu18 mulated in such an insurance program during fiscal year 

19 2017 that are available for dividends in that program after 

20 claims have been paid and actuarially determined reserves 

21 have been set aside: Provided further, That if the cost of 

22 administration of such an insurance program exceeds the 

23 amount of surplus earnings accumulated in that program, 

24 reimbursement shall be made only to the extent of such 

25 surplus earnings: Provided further, That the Secretary 
47 

•HR 4974 EH

1 shall determine the cost of administration for fiscal year 

2 2017 which is properly allocable to the provision of each 

3 such insurance program and to the provision of any total 

4 disability income insurance included in that insurance pro5 gram. 

6 SEC. 209. Amounts deducted from enhanced-use 

7 lease proceeds to reimburse an account for expenses in8 curred by that account during a prior fiscal year for pro9 viding enhanced-use lease services, may be obligated dur10 ing the fiscal year in which the proceeds are received. 

11 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

12 SEC. 210. Funds available in this title or funds for 

13 salaries and other administrative expenses shall also be 

14 available to reimburse the Office of Resolution Manage15 ment of the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Of16 fice of Employment Discrimination Complaint Adjudica17 tion under section 319 of title 38, United States Code, 

18 for all services provided at rates which will recover actual 

19 costs but not to exceed $47,668,000 for the Office of Reso20 lution Management and $3,532,000 for the Office of Em21 ployment Discrimination Complaint Adjudication: Pro22 vided, That payments may be made in advance for services 

23 to be furnished based on estimated costs: Provided further, 

24 That amounts received shall be credited to the ‘‘General 
48 

•HR 4974 EH

1 Administration’’ and ‘‘Information Technology Systems’’ 

2 accounts for use by the office that provided the service. 

3 SEC. 211. No funds of the Department of Veterans 

4 Affairs shall be available for hospital care, nursing home 

5 care, or medical services provided to any person under 

6 chapter 17 of title 38, United States Code, for a non-serv7 ice-connected disability described in section 1729(a)(2) of 

8 such title, unless that person has disclosed to the Sec9 retary of Veterans Affairs, in such form as the Secretary 

10 may require, current, accurate third-party reimbursement 

11 information for purposes of section 1729 of such title: Pro12 vided, That the Secretary may recover, in the same man13 ner as any other debt due the United States, the reason14 able charges for such care or services from any person who 

15 does not make such disclosure as required: Provided fur16 ther, That any amounts so recovered for care or services 

17 provided in a prior fiscal year may be obligated by the 

18 Secretary during the fiscal year in which amounts are re19 ceived. 

20 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

21 SEC. 212. Notwithstanding any other provision of 

22 law, proceeds or revenues derived from enhanced-use leas23 ing activities (including disposal) may be deposited into 

24 the ‘‘Construction, Major Projects’’ and ‘‘Construction, 

25 Minor Projects’’ accounts and be used for construction 
49 

•HR 4974 EH

1 (including site acquisition and disposition), alterations, 

2 and improvements of any medical facility under the juris3 diction or for the use of the Department of Veterans Af4 fairs. Such sums as realized are in addition to the amount 

5 provided for in ‘‘Construction, Major Projects’’ and ‘‘Con6 struction, Minor Projects’’. 

7 SEC. 213. Amounts made available under ‘‘Medical 

8 Services’’ are available— 

9 (1) for furnishing recreational facilities, sup10 plies, and equipment; and 

11 (2) for funeral expenses, burial expenses, and 

12 other expenses incidental to funerals and burials for 

13 beneficiaries receiving care in the Department. 

14 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

15 SEC. 214. Such sums as may be deposited to the 

16 Medical Care Collections Fund pursuant to section 1729A 

17 of title 38, United States Code, may be transferred to the 

18 ‘‘Medical Services’’ and ‘‘Medical Community Care’’ ac19 counts to remain available until expended for the purposes 

20 of these accounts. 

21 SEC. 215. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may 

22 enter into agreements with Indian tribes and tribal organi23 zations which are party to the Alaska Native Health Com24 pact with the Indian Health Service, and Indian tribes and 

25 tribal organizations serving rural Alaska which have en-
50 

•HR 4974 EH

1 tered into contracts with the Indian Health Service under 

2 the Indian Self Determination and Educational Assistance 

3 Act, to provide healthcare, including behavioral health and 

4 dental care. The Secretary shall require participating vet5 erans and facilities to comply with all appropriate rules 

6 and regulations, as established by the Secretary. The term 

7 ‘‘rural Alaska’’ shall mean those lands sited within the ex8 ternal boundaries of the Alaska Native regions specified 

9 in sections 7(a)(1)–(4) and (7)–(12) of the Alaska Native 

10 Claims Settlement Act, as amended (43 U.S.C. 1606), and 

11 those lands within the Alaska Native regions specified in 

12 sections 7(a)(5) and 7(a)(6) of the Alaska Native Claims 

13 Settlement Act, as amended (43 U.S.C. 1606), which are 

14 not within the boundaries of the municipality of Anchor15 age, the Fairbanks North Star Borough, the Kenai Penin16 sula Borough or the Matanuska Susitna Borough. 

17 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

18 SEC. 216. Such sums as may be deposited to the De19 partment of Veterans Affairs Capital Asset Fund pursu20 ant to section 8118 of title 38, United States Code, may 

21 be transferred to the ‘‘Construction, Major Projects’’ and 

22 ‘‘Construction, Minor Projects’’ accounts, to remain avail23 able until expended for the purposes of these accounts. 

24 SEC. 217. None of the funds made available in this 

25 title may be used to implement any policy prohibiting the 
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1 Directors of the Veterans Integrated Services Networks 

2 from conducting outreach or marketing to enroll new vet3 erans within their respective Networks. 

4 SEC. 218. Not later than 30 days after the end of 

5 each fiscal quarter, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 

6 submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both 

7 Houses of Congress a report on the financial status of the 

8 Department of Veterans Affairs for the preceding quarter: 

9 Provided, That, at a minimum, the report shall include 

10 the direction contained in the explanatory statement de11 scribed in section 4 in the matter preceding division A of 

12 the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016, Public Law 

13 114–113 in title II of Division J of the consolidated Act 

14 in the paragraph entitled ‘‘Quarterly Report’’, under the 

15 heading ‘‘General Administration’’. 

16 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

17 SEC. 219. Amounts made available under the ‘‘Med18 ical Services’’, ‘‘Medical Community Care’’, ‘‘Medical Sup19 port and Compliance’’, ‘‘Medical Facilities’’, ‘‘General Op20 erating Expenses, Veterans Benefits Administration’’, 

21 ‘‘General Administration’’, and ‘‘National Cemetery Ad22 ministration’’ accounts for fiscal year 2017 may be trans23 ferred to or from the ‘‘Information Technology Systems’’ 

24 account: Provided, That such transfers may not result in 

25 a more than 10 percent aggregate increase in the total 
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•HR 4974 EH

1 amount made available by this Act for the ‘‘Information 

2 Technology Systems’’ account: Provided further, That, be3 fore a transfer may take place, the Secretary of Veterans 

4 Affairs shall request from the Committees on Appropria5 tions of both Houses of Congress the authority to make 

6 the transfer and an approval is issued. 

7 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

8 SEC. 220. Of the amounts appropriated to the De9 partment of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2017 for 

10 ‘‘Medical Services’’, ‘‘Medical Support and Compliance’’, 

11 ‘‘Medical Facilities’’, ‘‘Construction, Minor Projects’’, and 

12 ‘‘Information Technology Systems’’, up to $274,731,000, 

13 plus reimbursements, may be transferred to the Joint De14 partment of Defense-Department of Veterans Affairs 

15 Medical Facility Demonstration Fund, established by sec16 tion 1704 of the National Defense Authorization Act for 

17 Fiscal Year 2010 (Public Law 111–84; 123 Stat. 3571) 

18 and may be used for operation of the facilities designated 

19 as combined Federal medical facilities as described by sec20 tion 706 of the Duncan Hunter National Defense Author21 ization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 (Public Law 110–417; 

22 122 Stat. 4500): Provided, That additional funds may be 

23 transferred from accounts designated in this section to the 

24 Joint Department of Defense-Department of Veterans Af25 fairs Medical Facility Demonstration Fund upon written 
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1 notification by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to the 

2 Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Con3 gress: Provided further, That section 223 of title II of Di4 vision J of Public Law 114–113 is repealed. 

5 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

6 SEC. 221. Of the amounts appropriated to the De7 partment of Veterans Affairs which become available on 

8 October 1, 2017, for ‘‘Medical Services’’, ‘‘Medical Com9 munity Care’’, ‘‘Medical Support and Compliance’’, and 

10 ‘‘Medical Facilities’’, up to $280,802,000, plus reimburse11 ments, may be transferred to the Joint Department of De12 fense-Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility 

13 Demonstration Fund, established by section 1704 of the 

14 National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 

15 (Public Law 111–84; 123 Stat. 3571) and may be used 

16 for operation of the facilities designated as combined Fed17 eral medical facilities as described by section 706 of the 

18 Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization Act for 

19 Fiscal Year 2009 (Public Law 110–417; 122 Stat. 4500): 

20 Provided, That additional funds may be transferred from 

21 accounts designated in this section to the Joint Depart22 ment of Defense-Department of Veterans Affairs Medical 

23 Facility Demonstration Fund upon written notification by 

24 the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to the Committees on 

25 Appropriations of both Houses of Congress. 
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1 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

2 SEC. 222. Such sums as may be deposited to the 

3 Medical Care Collections Fund pursuant to section 1729A 

4 of title 38, United States Code, for healthcare provided 

5 at facilities designated as combined Federal medical facili6 ties as described by section 706 of the Duncan Hunter 

7 National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 

8 (Public Law 110–417; 122 Stat. 4500) shall also be avail9 able: (1) for transfer to the Joint Department of Defense10 Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Dem11 onstration Fund, established by section 1704 of the Na12 tional Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 

13 (Public Law 111–84; 123 Stat. 3571); and (2) for oper14 ations of the facilities designated as combined Federal 

15 medical facilities as described by section 706 of the Dun16 can Hunter National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 

17 Year 2009 (Public Law 110–417; 122 Stat. 4500). 

18 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

19 SEC. 223. Of the amounts available in this title for 

20 ‘‘Medical Services’’, ‘‘Medical Community Care’’, ‘‘Medical 

21 Support and Compliance’’, and ‘‘Medical Facilities’’, a 

22 minimum of $15,000,000 shall be transferred to the 

23 DOD–VA Health Care Sharing Incentive Fund, as au24 thorized by section 8111(d) of title 38, United States 
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1 Code, to remain available until expended, for any purpose 

2 authorized by section 8111 of title 38, United States Code. 

3 SEC. 224. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall no4 tify the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of 

5 Congress of all bid savings in a major construction project 

6 that total at least $5,000,000, or 5 percent of the pro7 grammed amount of the project, whichever is less: Pro8 vided, That such notification shall occur within 14 days 

9 of a contract identifying the programmed amount: Pro10 vided further, That the Secretary shall notify the Commit11 tees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress 14 

12 days prior to the obligation of such bid savings and shall 

13 describe the anticipated use of such savings. 

14 SEC. 225. None of the funds made available for 

15 ‘‘Construction, Major Projects’’ may be used for a project 

16 in excess of the scope specified for that project in the origi17 nal justification data provided to the Congress as part of 

18 the request for appropriations unless the Secretary of Vet19 erans Affairs receives approval from the Committees on 

20 Appropriations of both Houses of Congress. 

21 SEC. 226. Of the funds provided to the Department 

22 of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2017 for ‘‘Medical Sup23 port and Compliance’’, a maximum of $40,000,000 may 

24 be obligated from the ‘‘Medical Support and Compliance’’ 

25 account for the VistA Evolution and electronic health 
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1 record interoperability projects: Provided, That funds in 

2 addition to these amounts may be obligated for the VistA 

3 Evolution and electronic health record interoperability 

4 projects upon written notification by the Secretary of Vet5 erans Affairs to the Committees on Appropriations of both 

6 Houses of Congress. 

7 SEC. 227. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 

8 provide written notification to the Committees on Appro9 priations of both Houses of Congress 15 days prior to or10 ganizational changes which result in the transfer of 25 or 

11 more full-time equivalents from one organizational unit of 

12 the Department of Veterans Affairs to another. 

13 SEC. 228. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 

14 provide on a quarterly basis to the Committees on Appro15 priations of both Houses of Congress notification of any 

16 single national outreach and awareness marketing cam17 paign in which obligations exceed $2,000,000. 

18 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

19 SEC. 229. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, upon 

20 determination that such action is necessary to address 

21 needs of the Veterans Health Administration, may trans22 fer to the ‘‘Medical Services’’ account any discretionary 

23 appropriations made available for fiscal year 2017 in this 

24 title (except appropriations made to the ‘‘General Oper25 ating Expenses, Veterans Benefits Administration’’ ac-
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1 count) or any discretionary unobligated balances within 

2 the Department of Veterans Affairs, including those ap3 propriated for fiscal year 2017, that were provided in ad4 vance by appropriations Acts: Provided, That transfers 

5 shall be made only with the approval of the Office of Man6 agement and Budget: Provided further, That the transfer 

7 authority provided in this section is in addition to any 

8 other transfer authority provided by law: Provided further, 

9 That no amounts may be transferred from amounts that 

10 were designated by Congress as an emergency requirement 

11 pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the 

12 Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 

13 1985: Provided further, That such authority to transfer 

14 may not be used unless for higher priority items, based 

15 on emergent healthcare requirements, than those for 

16 which originally appropriated and in no case where the 

17 item for which funds are requested has been denied by 

18 Congress: Provided further, That, upon determination that 

19 all or part of the funds transferred from an appropriation 

20 are not necessary, such amounts may be transferred back 

21 to that appropriation and shall be available for the same 

22 purposes as originally appropriated: Provided further, 

23 That before a transfer may take place, the Secretary of 

24 Veterans Affairs shall request from the Committees on 
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•HR 4974 EH

1 Appropriations of both Houses of Congress the authority 

2 to make the transfer and receive approval of that request. 

3 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

4 SEC. 230. Amounts made available for the Depart5 ment of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2017, under the 

6 ‘‘Board of Veterans Appeals’’ and the ‘‘General Operating 

7 Expenses, Veterans Benefits Administration’’ accounts 

8 may be transferred between such accounts: Provided, That 

9 before a transfer may take place, the Secretary of Vet10 erans Affairs shall request from the Committees on Appro11 priations of both Houses of Congress the authority to 

12 make the transfer and receive approval from such Com13 mittees for such request. 

14 SEC. 231. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may not 

15 reprogram funds among major construction projects or 

16 programs if such instance of reprogramming will exceed 

17 $5,000,000, unless such reprogramming is approved by 

18 the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Con19 gress. 

20 (RESCISSION OF FUNDS)

21 SEC. 232. Of the unobligated balances available with22 in the ‘‘DOD–VA Health Care Sharing Incentive Fund’’, 

23 $30,000,000 are hereby rescinded. 
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1 (RESCISSIONS OF FUNDS)

2 SEC. 233. Of the discretionary funds made available 

3 in Public Law 114–113 for the Department of Veterans 

4 Affairs for fiscal year 2017, $266,760,000 are rescinded 

5 from ‘‘Medical Services’’, $52,031,000 are rescinded from 

6 ‘‘Medical Support and Compliance’’, and $18,591,000 are 

7 rescinded from ‘‘Medical Facilities’’. 

8 SEC. 234. The amounts otherwise made available by 

9 this Act for the following accounts of the Department of 

10 Veterans Affairs are hereby reduced by the following 

11 amounts: 

12 (1) ‘‘Veterans Health Administration—Medical 

13 and Prosthetic Research’’, $4,004,000. 

14 (2) ‘‘National Cemetery Administration’’, 

15 $1,464,000. 

16 (3) ‘‘Departmental Administration—General 

17 Administration’’, $1,250,000. 

18 (4) ‘‘Departmental Administration—Board of 

19 Veterans Appeals’’, $1,214,000. 

20 (5) ‘‘Departmental Administration—General 

21 Operating Expenses, Veterans Benefits Administra22 tion’’, $24,849,000. 

23 (6) ‘‘Departmental Administration—Informa24 tion Technology Systems’’, $12,535,000. 
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1 (7) ‘‘Departmental Administration—Office of 

2 Inspector General’’, $1,302,000. 

3 SEC. 235. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall en4 sure that the toll-free suicide hotline under section 

5 1720F(h) of title 38, United States Code— 

6 (1) provides to individuals who contact the hot7 line immediate assistance from a trained profes8 sional; and 

9 (2) adheres to all requirements of the American 

10 Association of Suicidology. 

11 SEC. 236. (a) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 

12 treat a marriage and family therapist described in sub13 section (b) as qualified to serve as a marriage and family 

14 therapist in the Department of Veterans Affairs, regard15 less of any requirements established by the Commission 

16 on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Edu17 cation. 

18 (b) A marriage and family therapist described in this 

19 subsection is a therapist who meets each of the following 

20 criteria: 

21 (1) Has a masters or higher degree in marriage 

22 and family therapy, or a related field, from a region23 ally accredited program. 

24 (2) Is licensed as a marriage and family thera25 pist in a State (as defined in section 101(20) of title 
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1 38, United States Code) and possesses the highest 

2 level of licensure offered from the State. 

3 (3) Has passed the Association of Marital and 

4 Family Therapy Regulatory Board Examination in 

5 Marital and Family Therapy. 

6 SEC. 237. None of the funds made available by this 

7 Act may be used by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to 

8 pay a performance award under section 5384 of title 5, 

9 United States Code. 

10 SEC. 238. None of the funds made available by this 

11 Act may be used to end, suspend, or relocate hospital12 based services with respect to a health care facility of the 

13 Department of Veterans Affairs that is— 

14 (1) the subject of an environmental impact 

15 statement in accordance with the National Environ16 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); 

17 (2) designated as a National Historic Land18 mark by the National Park Service; and 

19 (3) located in a highly rural area. 

20 TITLE III 

21 RELATED AGENCIES 

22 AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMISSION

23 SALARIES AND EXPENSES

24 For necessary expenses, not otherwise provided for, 

25 of the American Battle Monuments Commission, including 
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1 the acquisition of land or interest in land in foreign coun2 tries; purchases and repair of uniforms for caretakers of 

3 national cemeteries and monuments outside of the United 

4 States and its territories and possessions; rent of office 

5 and garage space in foreign countries; purchase (one-for6 one replacement basis only) and hire of passenger motor 

7 vehicles; not to exceed $7,500 for official reception and 

8 representation expenses; and insurance of official motor 

9 vehicles in foreign countries, when required by law of such 

10 countries, $75,100,000, to remain available until ex11 pended. 

12 FOREIGN CURRENCY FLUCTUATIONS ACCOUNT

13 For necessary expenses, not otherwise provided for, 

14 of the American Battle Monuments Commission, such 

15 sums as may be necessary, to remain available until ex16 pended, for purposes authorized by section 2109 of title 

17 36, United States Code. 

18 UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR VETERANS

19 CLAIMS

20 SALARIES AND EXPENSES

21 For necessary expenses for the operation of the 

22 United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims as 

23 authorized by sections 7251 through 7298 of title 38, 

24 United States Code, $30,945,000: Provided, That 

25 $2,500,000 shall be available for the purpose of providing 
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1 financial assistance as described, and in accordance with 

2 the process and reporting procedures set forth, under this 

3 heading in Public Law 102–229. 

4 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE—CIVIL

5 CEMETERIAL EXPENSES, ARMY

6 SALARIES AND EXPENSES

7 For necessary expenses for maintenance, operation, 

8 and improvement of Arlington National Cemetery and Sol9 diers’ and Airmen’s Home National Cemetery, including 

10 the purchase or lease of passenger motor vehicles for re11 placement on a one-for-one basis only, and not to exceed 

12 $1,000 for official reception and representation expenses, 

13 $70,800,000, of which not to exceed $15,000,000 shall re14 main available until September 30, 2019. In addition, 

15 such sums as may be necessary for parking maintenance, 

16 repairs and replacement, to be derived from the ‘‘Lease 

17 of Department of Defense Real Property for Defense 

18 Agencies’’ account. 

19 ARMED FORCES RETIREMENT HOME

20 TRUST FUND

21 For expenses necessary for the Armed Forces Retire22 ment Home to operate and maintain the Armed Forces 

23 Retirement Home—Washington, District of Columbia, 

24 and the Armed Forces Retirement Home—Gulfport, Mis25 sissippi, to be paid from funds available in the Armed 
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1 Forces Retirement Home Trust Fund, $64,300,000, of 

2 which $1,000,000 shall remain available until expended 

3 for construction and renovation of the physical plants at 

4 the Armed Forces Retirement Home—Washington, Dis5 trict of Columbia, and the Armed Forces Retirement 

6 Home—Gulfport, Mississippi: Provided, That of the 

7 amounts made available under this heading from funds 

8 available in the Armed Forces Retirement Home Trust 

9 Fund, $22,000,000 shall be paid from the general fund 

10 of the Treasury to the Trust Fund. 

11 ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS

12 SEC. 301. Funds appropriated in this Act under the 

13 heading ‘‘Department of Defense—Civil, Cemeterial Ex14 penses, Army’’, may be provided to Arlington County, Vir15 ginia, for the relocation of the federally owned water main 

16 at Arlington National Cemetery, making additional land 

17 available for ground burials. 

18 SEC. 302. Amounts deposited into the special account 

19 established under 10 U.S.C. 4727 are appropriated and 

20 shall be available until expended to support activities at 

21 the Army National Military Cemeteries. 
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1 TITLE IV 

2 OVERSEAS CONTINGENCY OPERATIONS 

3 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

4 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, ARMY

5 For an additional amount for ‘‘Military Construction, 

6 Army’’, $18,900,000, to remain available until September 

7 30, 2021, for projects outside of the United States: Pro8 vided, That such amount is designated by the Congress 

9 for Overseas Contingency Operations/Global War on Ter10 rorism pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(ii) of the Bal11 anced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985. 

12 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, NAVY AND MARINE CORPS

13 For an additional amount for ‘‘Military Construction, 

14 Navy and Marine Corps’’, $59,809,000, to remain avail15 able until September 30, 2021, for projects outside of the 

16 United States: Provided, That such amount is designated 

17 by the Congress for Overseas Contingency Operations/ 

18 Global War on Terrorism pursuant to section 

19 251(b)(2)(A)(ii) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 

20 Deficit Control Act of 1985. 

21 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, AIR FORCE

22 For an additional amount for ‘‘Military Construction, 

23 Air Force’’ $88,291,000, to remain available until Sep24 tember 30, 2021, for projects outside of the United States: 

25 Provided, That such amount is designated by the Congress 
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1 for Overseas Contingency Operations/Global War on Ter2 rorism pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(ii) of the Bal3 anced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985. 

4 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, DEFENSE-WIDE

5 For an additional amount for ‘‘Military Construction, 

6 Defense-Wide’’, $5,000,000, to remain available until Sep7 tember 30, 2021, for projects outside of the United States: 

8 Provided, That such amount is designated by the Congress 

9 for Overseas Contingency Operations/Global War on Ter10 rorism pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(ii) of the Bal11 anced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985. 

12 TITLE V 

13 GENERAL PROVISIONS 

14 SEC. 501. No part of any appropriation contained in 

15 this Act shall remain available for obligation beyond the 

16 current fiscal year unless expressly so provided herein. 

17 SEC. 502. None of the funds made available in this 

18 Act may be used for any program, project, or activity, 

19 when it is made known to the Federal entity or official 

20 to which the funds are made available that the program, 

21 project, or activity is not in compliance with any Federal 

22 law relating to risk assessment, the protection of private 

23 property rights, or unfunded mandates. 

24 SEC. 503. All departments and agencies funded under 

25 this Act are encouraged, within the limits of the existing 
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1 statutory authorities and funding, to expand their use of 

2 ‘‘E-Commerce’’ technologies and procedures in the con3 duct of their business practices and public service activi4 ties. 

5 SEC. 504. Unless stated otherwise, all reports and no6 tifications required by this Act shall be submitted to the 

7 Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Af8 fairs, and Related Agencies of the Committee on Appro9 priations of the House of Representatives and the Sub10 committee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, 

11 and Related Agencies of the Committee on Appropriations 

12 of the Senate. 

13 SEC. 505. None of the funds made available in this 

14 Act may be transferred to any department, agency, or in15 strumentality of the United States Government except 

16 pursuant to a transfer made by, or transfer authority pro17 vided in, this or any other appropriations Act. 

18 SEC. 506. None of the funds made available in this 

19 Act may be used for a project or program named for an 

20 individual serving as a Member, Delegate, or Resident 

21 Commissioner of the United States House of Representa22 tives. 

23 SEC. 507. (a) Any agency receiving funds made avail24 able in this Act, shall, subject to subsections (b) and (c), 

25 post on the public Web site of that agency any report re-
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1 quired to be submitted by the Congress in this or any 

2 other Act, upon the determination by the head of the agen3 cy that it shall serve the national interest. 

4 (b) Subsection (a) shall not apply to a report if— 

5 (1) the public posting of the report com6 promises national security; or 

7 (2) the report contains confidential or propri8 etary information. 

9 (c) The head of the agency posting such report shall 

10 do so only after such report has been made available to 

11 the requesting Committee or Committees of Congress for 

12 no less than 45 days. 

13 SEC. 508. (a) None of the funds made available in 

14 this Act may be used to maintain or establish a computer 

15 network unless such network blocks the viewing, 

16 downloading, and exchanging of pornography. 

17 (b) Nothing in subsection (a) shall limit the use of 

18 funds necessary for any Federal, State, tribal, or local law 

19 enforcement agency or any other entity carrying out crimi20 nal investigations, prosecution, or adjudication activities. 

21 SEC. 509. None of the funds made available in this 

22 Act may be used by an agency of the executive branch 

23 to pay for first-class travel by an employee of the agency 

24 in contravention of sections 301–10.122 through 301– 

25 10.124 of title 41, Code of Federal Regulations. 
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1 SEC. 510. None of the funds made available in this 

2 Act may be used to execute a contract for goods or serv3 ices, including construction services, where the contractor 

4 has not complied with Executive Order No. 12989. 

5 SEC. 511. None of the funds made available by this 

6 Act may be used by the Department of Defense or the 

7 Department of Veterans Affairs to lease or purchase new 

8 light duty vehicles for any executive fleet, or for an agen9 cy’s fleet inventory, except in accordance with Presidential 

10 Memorandum—Federal Fleet Performance, dated May 

11 24, 2011. 

12 SEC. 512. (a) IN GENERAL.—None of the funds ap13 propriated or otherwise made available to the Department 

14 of Defense in this Act may be used to construct, renovate, 

15 or expand any facility in the United States, its territories, 

16 or possessions to house any individual detained at United 

17 States Naval Station, Guanta ́namo Bay, Cuba, for the 

18 purposes of detention or imprisonment in the custody or 

19 under the control of the Department of Defense. 

20 (b) The prohibition in subsection (a) shall not apply 

21 to any modification of facilities at United States Naval 

22 Station, Guanta ́namo Bay, Cuba. 

23 (c) An individual described in this subsection is any 

24 individual who, as of June 24, 2009, is located at United 

25 States Naval Station, Guanta ́namo Bay, Cuba, and who— 
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1 (1) is not a citizen of the United States or a 

2 member of the Armed Forces of the United States; 

3 and 

4 (2) is— 

5 (A) in the custody or under the effective 

6 control of the Department of Defense; or 

7 (B) otherwise under detention at United 

8 States Naval Station, Guanta ́namo Bay, Cuba. 

9 SEC. 513. Unobligated balances of amounts appro10 priated under title VI of the Departments of Labor, 

11 Health and Human Services, Education and Related 

12 Agencies Appropriations Act, 2015 (division G of Public 

13 Law 113–235) and title IX of the Department of State, 

14 Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropria15 tions Act, 2015 (division J of Public Law 113–235) shall 

16 also be available for necessary expenses to prevent, pre17 pare for, and respond to Zika virus, domestically and 

18 internationally: Provided, That such amounts are des19 ignated by the Congress as an emergency requirement 

20 pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budg21 et and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, except that 

22 such amounts shall be available only if the President sub23 sequently so designates such amounts and transmits such 

24 designation to the Congress. 
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1 SPENDING REDUCTION ACCOUNT

2 SEC. 514. The amount by which the applicable alloca3 tion of new budget authority made by the Committee on 

4 Appropriations of the House of Representatives under sec5 tion 302(b) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 ex6 ceeds the amount of proposed new budget authority is $0. 

7 SEC. 515. None of the funds made available by this 

8 Act may be used to propose, plan for, or execute a new 

9 or additional Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) 

10 round. 

11 SEC. 516. None of the funds made available by this 

12 Act may be used to enter into a contract with any offeror 

13 or any of its principals if the offeror certifies, as required 

14 by Federal Acquisition Regulation, that the offeror or any 

15 of its principals— 

16 (1) within a 3-year period preceding this offer 

17 has been convicted of or had a civil judgment ren18 dered against it for: commission of fraud or a crimi19 nal offense in connection with obtaining, attempting 

20 to obtain, or performing a public (Federal, State, or 

21 local) contract or subcontract; violation of Federal or 

22 State antitrust statutes relating to the submission of 

23 offers; or commission of embezzlement, theft, for24 gery, bribery, falsification or destruction of records, 
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1 making false statements, tax evasion, violating Fed2 eral criminal tax laws, or receiving stolen property; 

3 (2) are presently indicted for, or otherwise 

4 criminally or civilly charged by a governmental enti5 ty with, commission of any of the offenses enumer6 ated above in paragraph (1); or 

7 (3) within a 3-year period preceding this offer, 

8 has been notified of any delinquent Federal taxes in 

9 an amount that exceeds $3,000 for which the liabil10 ity remains unsatisfied. 

11 SEC. 517. None of the funds made available by this 

12 Act may be used for the Veterans Experience Office. 

13 SEC. 518. None of the funds made available by this 

14 Act may be used to— 

15 (1) carry out the memorandum from the Vet16 erans Benefit Administration known as Fast Letter 

17 13–10, issued on May 20, 2013; or 

18 (2) create or maintain any patient record-keep19 ing system other than those currently approved by 

20 the Department of Veterans Affairs Central Office 

21 in Washington, D.C. 

22 SEC. 519. (a) For an additional amount for ‘‘Vet23 erans Health Administration—Medical Services’’ for 

24 grants to States under subchapter III of chapter 81 of 

25 title 38, United States Code, to expand, remodel, or alter 
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1 existing buildings for furnishing nursing home care to vet2 erans in State homes that are former nursing home facili3 ties of the Department of Veterans Affairs, as authorized 

4 by section 8133 of such subchapter, there is hereby appro5 priated, and the amount otherwise provided by this Act 

6 for ‘‘Departmental Administration—General Administra7 tion’’ is hereby reduced by, $10,000,000. 

8 (b) None of the funds made available by this Act may 

9 be used to implement, administer, or enforce the 

10 prioritization requirements in paragraphs (1)(C) or (2) 

11 through (5) of section 8135(c) of title 38, United States 

12 Code, with respect to the appropriation in subsection (a). 

13 SEC. 520. None of the funds made available by this 

14 Act may be used in contravention of sections 575.106 or 

15 575.206 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations. 

16 SEC. 521. None of the funds made available by this 

17 Act may be used by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs in 

18 contravention of subchapter III of chapter 20 of title 38, 

19 United States Code. 

20 SEC. 522. None of the funds made available in this 

21 Act may be used to enforce VA Adjudication Procedure 

22 Manual M21–1, Part IV, Subpart II, Chapter 1, Section 

23 H, Topic 28.h related to Developing Claims Based on 

24 Service Aboard Ships Offshore the RVN. 
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1 SEC. 523. None of the funds made available by this 

2 Act may be used to implement, administer, or enforce Vet3 erans Health Administration directive 2011–004 (or direc4 tive of the same substance) with respect to the prohibition 

5 on ‘‘VA providers from completing forms seeking rec6 ommendations or opinions regarding a Veteran’s partici7 pation in a State marijuana program’’. 

8 SEC. 524. None of the funds made available by this 

9 Act may be used to modify a military installation in the 

10 United States, including construction or modification of 

11 a facility on a military installation, to provide temporary 

12 housing for unaccompanied alien children. 

13 SEC. 525. None of the funds made available by this 

14 Act may be used to implement section 8(d)(2) of the De15 partment of Veterans Affairs National Cemetery Adminis16 tration Directive 3220 of November 22, 2005. 

17 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Military Construction 

18 and Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations 

19 Act, 2017’’. 

Passed the House of Representatives May 19, 2016. 

Attest: 

Clerk. 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4974 

AN ACT 

Making appropriations for military construction, 

2017, and for other purposes. agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and related