IB 

Union Calendar No. 31 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 216 

[Report No. 114–48] 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans 

Affairs to submit to Congress a Future-Years Veterans Program and 

a quadrennial veterans review, to establish in the Department of Veterans 

Affairs a Chief Strategy Officer, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 8, 2015 

Ms. BROWN of Florida (for herself and Mr. MILLER of Florida) introduced 

the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

MARCH 23, 2015 

Additional sponsors: Ms. KUSTER, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, and Mr. KILMER

MARCH 23, 2015 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 

House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 

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

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on January 8, 2015] 


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A BILL 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to submit to Congress a Future-Years Veterans Program and a quadrennial veterans 

review, to establish in the Department of Veterans Affairs a Chief Strategy Officer, and for other purposes. 


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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Department of Veterans 

5 Affairs Budget Planning Reform Act of 2015’’. 

6 SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF STRATEGIC PLANS TO IM7 PROVE PROGRAMS AND BENEFITS FOR VET8 ERANS. 

9 (a) FUTURE-YEARS VETERANS PROGRAM.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 1 of title 38, United 

11 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol12 lowing new section: 

13 ‘‘§ 119. Future-Years Veterans Program 

14 ‘‘(a) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary shall 

15 submit to Congress each year, at or about the time that 

16 the President’s budget is submitted to Congress pursuant 

17 to section 1105(a) of title 31, a Future-Years Veterans Pro18 gram reflecting the estimated expenditures and proposed 

19 appropriations included in that budget. Any such Future20 Years Veterans Program shall cover the fiscal year with re21 spect to which the budget is submitted and at least the four 

22 succeeding fiscal years. 

23 ‘‘(b) CONSISTENCY.—(1) The Secretary shall ensure 

24 that amounts described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph 

25 (2) for any fiscal year are consistent with amounts deVerDate Sep 11 2014 17:59 Mar 23, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H216.RH H216

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1 scribed in subparagraph (B) of such paragraph for that fis2 cal year. 

3 ‘‘(2) Amounts referred to in paragraph (1) are the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(A) The amounts specified in program and 

6 budget information submitted to Congress by the Sec7 retary in support of expenditure estimates and pro8 posed appropriations in the budget submitted to Con9 gress by the President under section 1105(a) of title 

10 31 for any fiscal year, as shown in the Future-Years 

11 Veterans Program submitted pursuant to subsection 

12 (a). 

13 ‘‘(B) The total amounts of estimated expendi14 tures and proposed appropriations necessary to sup15 port the programs, projects, and activities of the De16 partment of Veterans Affairs included pursuant to 

17 paragraph (5) of section 1105(a) of title 31 in the 

18 budget submitted to Congress under that section for 

19 any fiscal year. 

20 ‘‘(c) CONTENTS.—The Future-Years Veterans Program 

21 under subsection (a) shall set forth the five-year plan of the 

22 Department to address the commitment of the United States 

23 to veterans and the resources necessary to meet that commit24 ment and shall be developed and updated, as appropriate, 


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1 annually by the Secretary. Each Future-Years Veterans 

2 Program shall include an explanation of— 

3 ‘‘(1) the information that was used to develop 

4 program planning guidance for the Future-Years Vet5 erans Program; and 

6 ‘‘(2) how the resource allocations included in the 

7 Future-Years Veterans Program correlate to such five8 year strategy. 

9 ‘‘(d) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary shall publish on a 

10 publically accessible Internet website of the Department 

11 each Future-Years Veterans Program submitted pursuant to 

12 subsection (a).’’. 

13 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec14 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended by 

15 inserting after the item relating to section 118 the fol16 lowing new item: 

‘‘119. Future-Years Veterans Program.’’. 

17 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Section 119 of title 38, 

18 United States Code, as added by paragraph (1), shall 

19 apply with respect to the preparation and submission 

20 of the budget request for the Department of Veterans 

21 Affairs for fiscal year 2020 and fiscal years there22 after. 

23 (b) QUADRENNIAL VETERANS REVIEW.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Such chapter is further 

2 amended by adding after section 119, as added by 

3 subsection (a)(1), the following new section: 

4 ‘‘§ 120. Quadrennial veterans review 

5 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT.—(1) Not later than fiscal year 

6 2019, and every fourth year thereafter, the Secretary shall 

7 conduct a review of the strategy for meeting the commit8 ment of the United States to veterans and the resources nec9 essary to meet that commitment (in this section referred 

10 to as a ‘quadrennial veterans review’). 

11 ‘‘(2) Each quadrennial veterans review shall include 

12 a comprehensive examination of the policies and strategies 

13 of the United States with respect to veterans, including rec14 ommendations regarding the long-term strategy and prior15 ities for programs, services, benefits, and outcomes regard16 ing veterans and guidance on the programs, assets, capa17 bilities, budget, policies, and authorities of the Department. 

18 ‘‘(3) The Secretary shall conduct each quadrennial vet19 erans review in consultation with key officials of the De20 partment, the heads of other Federal agencies, and other rel21 evant governmental and nongovernmental entities, includ22 ing State, local, and tribal government officials, members 

23 of Congress, veterans service organizations, private sector 

24 representatives, academics, and other policy experts. 


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1 ‘‘(4) The Secretary shall ensure that each quadrennial 

2 veterans review is coordinated with the Future-Years Vet3 erans Program required under section 119 of this title. 

4 ‘‘(b) CONTENTS OF REVIEW.—In each quadrennial vet5 erans review, the Secretary shall— 

6 ‘‘(1) delineate a veterans strategy consistent with 

7 the commitment of the United States to veterans and 

8 refine a strategy for the types of, and provision of, 

9 programs, services, benefits, and outcomes consistent 

10 with current authorities and requirements; 

11 ‘‘(2) outline and prioritize the full range of pro12 grams and capabilities regarding veterans provided 

13 by the Federal Government; 

14 ‘‘(3) identify the budget plan required to provide 

15 sufficient resources to successfully execute the full 

16 range of such programs and capabilities; 

17 ‘‘(4) include an assessment of the organizational 

18 alignment of the Department with respect to the strat19 egy referred to in paragraph (1) and the programs 

20 and capabilities referred to in paragraph (2); 

21 ‘‘(5) review and assess the effectiveness of the 

22 mechanisms of the Department for executing the proc23 ess of turning the requirements identified in the quad24 rennial veterans review into a plan to meet such reVerDate Sep 11 2014 17:59 Mar 23, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H216.RH H216

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1 quirements, including an expenditure plan for the De2 partment; and 

3 ‘‘(6) identify emerging trends, problems, oppor4 tunities, and issues that could affect veterans or the 

5 Department during the ten-year period following the 

6 period covered by the review. 

7 ‘‘(c) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—(1) The Secretary 

8 shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the 

9 Senate and the House of Representatives a report regarding 

10 each quadrennial veterans review. The Secretary shall sub11 mit the report in the year following the year in which the 

12 review is conducted, but not later than the date on which 

13 the President submits to Congress the budget for the next 

14 fiscal year under section 1105 of title 31. 

15 ‘‘(2) Each report submitted under paragraph (1) shall 

16 include— 

17 ‘‘(A) the results of the quadrennial veterans re18 view; 

19 ‘‘(B) a description of the challenges to, and op20 portunities for, the assumed or defined veterans-re21 lated interests of the Nation that were examined for 

22 the purposes of that review; 

23 ‘‘(C) the strategy for meeting the Nation’s com24 mitment to veterans, including a prioritized list of 

25 the missions of the Department; 


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1 ‘‘(D) a description of the interagency coopera2 tion, preparedness of Federal assets, infrastructure, 

3 budget plan, and other elements of the programs and 

4 policies of the Nation associated with the strategy re5 ferred to in subsection (b)(1) that are required to exe6 cute successfully the full range of programs and capa7 bilities identified in such strategy and the programs 

8 and capabilities outlined under subsection (b)(2); 

9 ‘‘(E) an assessment of the organizational align10 ment of the Department with the strategy referred to 

11 in subsection (b)(1) and the programs and capabili12 ties outlined under subsection (b)(2), including the 

13 Department’s organizational structure, management 

14 systems, budget and accounting systems, human re15 sources systems, procurement systems, and physical 

16 and technical infrastructure; 

17 ‘‘(F) a discussion of the status of cooperation 

18 among Federal agencies in the effort to promote na19 tional support for veterans; 

20 ‘‘(G) a discussion of the status of cooperation be21 tween the Federal Government and State, local, and 

22 tribal governments in supporting veterans and pro23 viding programs, services, benefits, and outcomes to 

24 assist veterans; 


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1 ‘‘(H) an explanation of any underlying assump2 tions used in conducting the review; and 

3 ‘‘(I) any other matter the Secretary considers 

4 appropriate. 

5 ‘‘(d) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary shall publish on a 

6 publically accessible Internet website of the Department 

7 each quadrennial veterans review submitted pursuant to 

8 subsection (c). 

9 ‘‘(e) INDEPENDENT VETERANS REVIEW PANEL.—(1) 

10 Not later than February 1 of a year in which a quadrennial 

11 veterans review is conducted under this section, the Sec12 retary shall establish an independent panel to be known as 

13 the Independent Veterans Review Panel (in this subsection 

14 referred to as the ‘Panel’). The Panel shall have the duties 

15 set forth in this subsection. 

16 ‘‘(2) The Panel shall be composed of 10 members who 

17 are recognized experts in matters relating to veterans. The 

18 members shall be appointed as follows: 

19 ‘‘(A) Two by the chairman of the Committee on 

20 Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives. 

21 ‘‘(B) Two by the chairman of the Committee on 

22 Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate. 

23 ‘‘(C) Two by the ranking member of the Com24 mittee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Represent25 atives. 


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1 ‘‘(D) Two by the ranking member of the Com2 mittee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate. 

3 ‘‘(E) Two by the Secretary, who shall serve as 

4 co-chairs of the panel. 

5 ‘‘(3) Members shall be appointed for the life of the 

6 Panel. Any vacancy in the Panel shall be filled in the same 

7 manner as the original appointment. 

8 ‘‘(4) The Panel shall have the following duties with re9 spect to a quadrennial veterans review: 

10 ‘‘(A) While the review is being conducted, the 

11 Panel shall review the updates from the Secretary re12 quired under paragraph (7) on the progress of the 

13 conduct of the review. 

14 ‘‘(B) The Panel shall— 

15 ‘‘(i) review the Secretary’s terms of reference 

16 and any other materials providing the basis for, 

17 or substantial inputs to, the work of the Depart18 ment of Veterans Affairs on the quadrennial vet19 erans review; 

20 ‘‘(ii) conduct an assessment of the assump21 tions, strategy, findings, and risks included in 

22 the report on the quadrennial veterans review re23 quired in subsection (c); 


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1 ‘‘(iii) conduct an independent assessment of 

2 a variety of strategies for delivering services and 

3 support to veterans; 

4 ‘‘(iv) review the resource requirements iden5 tified pursuant to subsection (b)(3) and, to the 

6 extent practicable, make a general comparison to 

7 the resource requirements to support the strate8 gies assessed under this subparagraph; and 

9 ‘‘(v) provide to the Committees on Veterans’ 

10 Affairs of the Senate and the House of Rep11 resentatives and the Secretary, through the re12 port under paragraph (7), any recommendations 

13 the Panel determines appropriate. 

14 ‘‘(5) If the Secretary has not appointed members to 

15 the Panel under paragraph (2)(E) by February 1 of a year 

16 in which a quadrennial veterans review is conducted under 

17 this section, the Panel shall convene for its first meeting 

18 with the remaining members. 

19 ‘‘(6) Not later than three months after the date on 

20 which the report on a quadrennial veterans review is sub21 mitted under subsection (c) to the Committees on Veterans’ 

22 Affairs of the Senate and the House of Representatives, the 

23 Panel shall submit to such committees a report containing 

24 an assessment of the quadrennial veterans review, including 


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1 a description of the items addressed under paragraph (4) 

2 with respect to that quadrennial veterans review. 

3 ‘‘(7) Periodically, but not less often than every 60 days 

4 during the life of the panel, or at the request of the co-chairs, 

5 the Secretary shall brief the Panel on the progress of the 

6 conduct of the quadrennial veterans review. 

7 ‘‘(8)(A) The Panel may request directly from the De8 partment such information as the Panel considers necessary 

9 to carry out its duties under this subsection. The Secretary 

10 shall cooperate with the Panel to ensure that information 

11 requested by the Panel under this subparagraph is promptly 

12 provided to the maximum extent practical. 

13 ‘‘(B) Upon the request of the co-chairs, the Secretary 

14 shall make available to the Panel the services of any feder15 ally funded research and development center that is covered 

16 by a sponsoring agreement of the Department. 

17 ‘‘(C) The Panel shall have the authorities provided in 

18 section 3161 of title 5 and shall be subject to the conditions 

19 set forth in such section. 

20 ‘‘(D) Funds for activities of the Panel shall be provided 

21 from amounts available to the Department. 

22 ‘‘(9) The Panel shall terminate 45 days after the date 

23 on which the Panel submits the report on the quadrennial 

24 veterans review under paragraph (6).’’. 


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

3 inserting after the item relating to section 119, as 

4 added by subsection (a)(2), the following new item: 

‘‘120. Quadrennial veterans review.’’. 

5 (c) POLICY GUIDANCE.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Such chapter is further 

7 amended by adding after section 120, as added by 

8 subsection (b)(1), the following new section: 

9 ‘‘§ 121. Policy guidance 

10 ‘‘The Secretary shall provide annually to the appro11 priate officials of the Department written policy guidance 

12 for the preparation and review of the planning and pro13 gram recommendations and budget proposals of the ele14 ments of the Department of such officials. Such guidance 

15 shall include guidance on the objectives of the Department 

16 in accordance with Future-Years Veterans Program under 

17 section 119 of this title and the quadrennial veterans review 

18 under section 120 and the resource levels projected to be 

19 available for the period of time for which such recommenda20 tions and proposals are to be effective.’’. 

21 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec22 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended by 

23 inserting after the item relating to section 120, as 

24 added by subsection (b)(2), the following new item: 

‘‘121. Policy guidance.’’. 


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1 SEC. 3. CHIEF STRATEGY OFFICER OF THE DEPARTMENT 

2 OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 3 of title 38, United States 

4 Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new 

5 section: 

6 ‘‘§ 323. Chief Strategy Officer 

7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall designate the 

8 Assistant Secretary whose functions include planning, stud9 ies, and evaluations as the Chief Strategy Officer of the De10 partment. The Chief Strategy Officer shall advise the Sec11 retary on long-range strategy and implications. 

12 ‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Chief Strategy Officer 

13 is the principal advisor to the Secretary and other senior 

14 officials of the Department, and shall provide independent 

15 analysis and advice to the Secretary and such officials. The 

16 Chief Strategy Officer shall carry out the following respon17 sibilities: 

18 ‘‘(1) Conducting cost estimation and cost anal19 ysis for the programs of the Department. 

20 ‘‘(2) Establishing policies for, and overseeing the 

21 integration of, the planning, programming, budgeting 

22 and execution process for the Department. 

23 ‘‘(3) Providing analysis and advice on matters 

24 relating to the planning and programming phase of 

25 the planning, programming, budgeting and execution 

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1 ance for such process, as directed by the Secretary, 

2 working in coordination with the Assistant Secretary 

3 for Management. 

4 ‘‘(4) Developing and executing the Future-Years 

5 Veterans Program of the Department, as specified 

6 under section 119 of this title. 

7 ‘‘(5) Developing resource discussions relating to 

8 requirements under consideration in the quadrennial 

9 veterans review under section 120 of this title. 

10 ‘‘(6) Formulating study guidance for analysis of 

11 alternatives for programs and initiatives, including 

12 any necessary acquisitions, development, or procure13 ment commensurate with such alternatives, and per14 formance of such analysis as directed by the Sec15 retary. 

16 ‘‘(7) Reviewing, analyzing, and evaluating pro17 grams for executing approved strategies and policies, 

18 ensuring that information on programs and expected 

19 outcomes is presented accurately and completely. 

20 ‘‘(8) Ensuring that the costs of programs and al21 ternatives are presented accurately and completely by 

22 assisting in establishing standards, policies, and pro23 cedures for the conduct of cost estimation and cost 

24 analysis throughout the Department, including guid25 ance relating to the proper selection of confidence levVerDate Sep 11 2014 17:59 Mar 23, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H216.RH H216

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1 els in cost estimates generally and for specific pro2 grams of the Department. 

3 ‘‘(9) Conducting studies at the request of the Sec4 retary regarding costs, policy assumptions, and stra5 tegic implications of current policies and possible al6 ternatives. 

7 ‘‘(10) Communicating directly to the Secretary 

8 and the Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs about 

9 matters for which the Chief Strategy Officer is re10 sponsible without obtaining the approval or concur11 rence of any other official within the Department.’’. 

12 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections at 

13 the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after 

14 the item relating to section 322 the following new item: 

‘‘323. Chief Strategy Officer.’’. 


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Union Calendar No. 31 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 216 

[Report No. 114–48] 

A BILL 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct 

Officer, and for other purposes. Department of Veterans Affairs a Chief Strategy a quadrennial veterans review, to establish in the Congress a Future-Years Veterans Program and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to submit to 

MARCH 23, 2015 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Comand ordered to be printed mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 


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