II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 833 

To authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out certain major 

medical facility projects for which appropriations were made for fiscal 

year 2015, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 23, 2015 

Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself and Mrs. BOXER) introduced the following bill; 

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

A BILL 

To authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out 

certain major medical facility projects for which appropriations were made for fiscal year 2015, and for other 

purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Department of Vet5 erans Affairs Medical Facility Earthquake Protection and 

6 Improvement Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF CERTAIN MAJOR MEDICAL FA2 CILITY PROJECTS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF 

3 VETERANS AFFAIRS FOR WHICH AMOUNTS 

4 HAVE BEEN APPROPRIATED. 

5 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

6 (1) The Consolidated and Further Continuing 

7 Appropriations Act, 2015 (Public Law 113–235) ap8 propriated to the Department of Veterans Affairs— 

9 (A) $35,000,000 to make seismic correc10 tions to Building 205 in the West Los Angeles 

11 Medical Center of the Department in Los Ange12 les, California, which, according to the Depart13 ment, is a building that is designated as having 

14 an exceptionally high risk of sustaining sub15 stantial damage or collapsing during an earth16 quake; 

17 (B) $101,900,000 to replace the commu18 nity living center and mental health facilities of 

19 the Department in Long Beach, California, 

20 which, according to the Department, are des21 ignated as having an exceptionally high risk of 

22 sustaining substantial damage or collapsing 

23 during an earthquake; 

24 (C) $187,500,000 to replace the existing 

25 spinal cord injury clinic of the Department in 

26 San Diego, California, which, according to the 


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1 Department, is designated as having an ex2 tremely high risk of sustaining major damage 

3 during an earthquake; and 

4 (D) $122,400,000 to make renovations to 

5 address substantial safety and compliance 

6 issues at the medical center of the Department 

7 in Canandaigua, New York, and for the con8 struction of a new clinic and community living 

9 center at such medical center. 

10 (2) The Department is unable to obligate or ex11 pend the amounts described in paragraph (1) be12 cause it lacks an explicit authorization by an Act of 

13 Congress pursuant to section 8104(a)(2) of title 38, 

14 United States Code, to carry out the major medical 

15 facility projects described in such paragraph. 

16 (3) Among the major medical facility projects 

17 described in paragraph (1), three are critical seismic 

18 safety projects in California. 

19 (4) Every day that the critical seismic safety 

20 projects described in paragraph (3) are delayed puts 

21 the lives of veterans and employees of the Depart22 ment at risk. 

23 (5) According to the United States Geological 

24 Survey— 


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1 (A) California has a 99-percent chance or 

2 greater of experiencing an earthquake of mag3 nitude 6.7 or greater in the next 30 years; 

4 (B) even earthquakes of less severity than 

5 magnitude 6.7 can cause life threatening dam6 age to seismically unsafe buildings; and 

7 (C) in California, earthquakes of mag8 nitude 6.0 or greater occur on average once 

9 every 1.2 years. 

10 (b) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary of Veterans Af11 fairs may carry out the major medical facility projects of 

12 the Department of Veterans Affairs specified in the ex13 planatory statement accompanying the Consolidated and 

14 Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 (Public 

15 Law 113–235) at the locations and in the amounts speci16 fied in such explanatory statement, including by obligating 

17 and expending such amounts. 

Æ 


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