I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5516 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs to enter into contracts with States or to award grants to States 
to promote health and wellness, prevent suicide, and improve outreach 
to veterans, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 19, 2019 
Mr. LEVIN of California introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 
A BILL 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs to enter into contracts 
with States or to award grants to States to promote 
health and wellness, prevent suicide, and improve out-
reach to veterans, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Commitment to Vet-
eran Support and Outreach Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. AUTHORITY FOR SECRETARY OF VETERANS AF-
FAIRS TO AWARD CONTRACTS AND GRANTS 
TO 
STATES 
TO 
PROMOTE 
HEALTH 
AND 
WELLNESS, PREVENT SUICIDE, AND IMPROVE 
OUTREACH TO VETERANS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 63 of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended— 
(1) by redesignating sections 6307 and 6308 
and sections 6308 and 6309, respectively; and 
(2) by inserting after section 6306 the following 
new section 6307: 
‘‘§ 6307. Contracts and grants to promote health and 
wellness, prevent suicide, and improve 
outreach to veterans 
‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this section to 
provide for assistance by the Secretary to States to carry 
out programs that promote health and wellness, strength-
en the coordination, implementation, and evaluation of 
comprehensive veteran suicide prevention programs, and 
offer a high probability of improving outreach and assist-
ance to veterans and the spouses, children, and parents 
of veterans, to ensure that such individuals are fully in-
formed about, and assisted in applying for, any veterans 
and veterans-related benefits and programs (including 
State veterans programs) for which they may be eligible. 
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‘‘(b) CONTRACTS.—(1) The Secretary may enter into 
a contract with a State in order to carry out, coordinate, 
improve, or otherwise enhance health and wellness pro-
grams, comprehensive veteran suicide prevention pro-
grams, and outreach by the Department and the State (in-
cluding outreach with respect to a State, county, or other 
local veterans program). 
‘‘(2) As a condition of entering into a contract with 
a State under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall require 
the State to submit to the Secretary a detailed plan for 
the use of any funds provided to the State pursuant to 
the contract and to meet the outcome measures developed 
by the Secretary under subsection (c)(4). 
‘‘(3) Each contract entered into with a State under 
this subsection to carry out an activity shall include a re-
quirement that the State carry out the activity through— 
‘‘(A) the county veterans service officers of the 
State; or 
‘‘(B) if a county veterans service officer does 
not exist in the State or exists only in portions of 
the State, an appropriate State, local, or tribal enti-
ty as determined by the Secretary. 
‘‘(c) GRANTS.—(1) The Secretary may award a grant 
to a State to be used— 
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‘‘(A) to carry out, coordinate, improve, or oth-
erwise enhance— 
‘‘(i) health and wellness programs; 
‘‘(ii) comprehensive veteran suicide preven-
tion programs; 
‘‘(iii) outreach activities; or 
‘‘(iv) activities to assist in the development 
and submittal of claims for veterans and vet-
erans-related benefits; or 
‘‘(B) to increase the number of county veterans 
service officers serving in the State by hiring new, 
additional county veterans service officers. 
‘‘(2) A State that receives a grant under this sub-
section to carry out an activity described in paragraph 
(1)(A) shall carry out the activity through— 
‘‘(A) a county veterans service officer of the 
State; or 
‘‘(B) if a county veterans service officer does 
not exist in the State or exists only in portions of 
the State, an appropriate State, local, or tribal enti-
ty as determined by the Secretary. 
‘‘(3)(A) To be eligible for a grant under this sub-
section, a State shall submit to the Secretary an applica-
tion therefor at such time, in such manner, and containing 
such information as the Secretary may require. 
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‘‘(B) Each application submitted under subparagraph 
(A) shall include the following: 
‘‘(i) A detailed plan for the use of the grant. 
‘‘(ii) A description of the programs through 
which the State will meet the outcome measures de-
veloped by the Secretary under paragraph (4). 
‘‘(4)(A) The Secretary shall develop and provide to 
the recipient of a grant under this subsection written guid-
ance on outcome measures, policies of the Department, 
and procedures for applying for grants under this section. 
‘‘(B) The Secretary shall review the performance of 
each State that receives a grant under this section and 
shall make information regarding such performance pub-
licly available. 
‘‘(C) In the case of a State that is a recipient of a 
grant under this subsection that does not meet the out-
come measures developed by the Secretary, the Secretary 
shall require the State to submit a remediation plan under 
which the State shall describe how and when it plans to 
meet such outcome measures. The Secretary must approve 
such plan before the Secretary may award a subsequent 
grant to that State under this subsection. 
‘‘(5) A grant under this subsection— 
‘‘(A) shall be used— 
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‘‘(i) to expand existing programs, activi-
ties, and services; 
‘‘(ii) to hire new, additional county vet-
erans service officers; or 
‘‘(iii) for travel and transportation to fa-
cilitate carrying out clause (i) or (ii); and 
‘‘(B) shall be used to supplement and not sup-
plant State and local funding that is otherwise avail-
able. 
‘‘(6) A grant under this subsection may be used to 
provide education and training, including on-the-job train-
ing, for State, county, local, and tribal government em-
ployees who provide (or when trained will provide) vet-
erans outreach services in order for those employees to 
obtain accreditation in accordance with procedures ap-
proved by the Secretary and, for employees so accredited, 
for purposes of continuing education. 
‘‘(7) A grant awarded under paragraph (1)(A) may 
be used to carry out, coordinate, improve, or otherwise en-
hance an activity carried out pursuant to a contract en-
tered into under subsection (b). 
‘‘(d) COUNTY VETERANS SERVICE OFFICER DE-
FINED.—In this section, the term ‘county veterans service 
officer’ includes— 
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‘‘(1) a local equivalent veterans service officer; 
and 
‘‘(2) a tribal veterans service officer or tribal 
veteran representative. 
‘‘(e) FUNDING.—(1) Amounts for the activities of the 
Department under this section shall be budgeted and ap-
propriated through a separate appropriation account. 
‘‘(2) In the budget justification materials submitted 
to Congress in support of the Department budget for any 
fiscal year (as submitted with the budget of the President 
under section 1105(a) of title 31), the Secretary shall in-
clude a separate statement of the amount requested to be 
appropriated for that fiscal year for the account specified 
in paragraph (1). 
‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary for each 
of fiscal years 2020 through 2024, $50,000,000 to carry 
out this section.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 
at the beginning of chapter 63 of such title is amended 
by striking the items relating to sections 6307 and 6308 
and inserting the following new items: 
‘‘6307. Contracts and grants to promote health and wellness, prevent suicide, 
and improve outreach to veterans. 
‘‘6308. Outreach for eligible dependents. 
‘‘6309. Biennial report to Congress.’’. 
Æ 
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