I 
109TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5815 
To authorize major medical facility projects and major medical facility leases 
for the Department of Veterans Affairs for fiscal years 2006 and 2007, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 17, 2006 
Mr. BROWN of South Carolina (for himself and Mr. MICHAUD) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 
A BILL 
To authorize major medical facility projects and major med-
ical facility leases for the Department of Veterans Affairs 
for fiscal years 2006 and 2007, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Author-
ization Act of 2006’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
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Sec. 2. Authorization of major medical facility project, Biloxi and Gulfport, 
Mississippi. 
Sec. 3. Authorization of design, construction, and operation of major medical 
facility project, New Orleans, Louisiana. 
Sec. 4. Authorization of design, construction, and operation of a major medical 
facility project, Charleston, South Carolina. 
Sec. 5. Authorization of site purchase for major medical facility project, re-
placement site, Denver Colorado. 
Sec. 6. Extension of authorization for certain major medical facility construc-
tion projects previously authorized in connection with Capital 
Asset Realignment Initiative. 
Sec. 7. Authorization of major medical facility leases. 
Sec. 8.
Authorization of appropriations. 
Sec. 9. Sense of Congress and report on option for medical facility improve-
ments in San Juan, Puerto Rico. 
Sec. 10. Land conveyance, city of Fort Thomas, Kentucky. 
Sec. 11. Establishment within the Department of Veterans Affairs of a career 
position responsible for Department-wide construction and fa-
cilities management. 
Sec. 12. Business plans for enhanced access to outpatient care in certain rural 
areas. 
SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF MAJOR MEDICAL FACILITY 
PROJECT, 
BILOXI 
AND 
GULFPORT, 
MIS-
SISSIPPI. 
(a) PROJECT AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs may carry out a major medical facility 
project for restoration of the Department of Veterans Af-
fairs Medical Center, Biloxi, Mississippi, and consolidation 
of services performed at the Department of Veterans Af-
fairs Medical Center, Gulfport, Mississippi. 
(b) COST LIMITATION.—The project authorized by 
subsection (a) shall be carried out in an amount not to 
exceed $310,000,000. 
(c) REQUIREMENT FOR JOINT-USE FACILITY.—The 
project authorized by subsection (a) may only be carried 
out as part of a joint-use facility shared by the Depart-
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ment of Veterans Affairs with Keesler Air Force Base, Bi-
loxi, Mississippi. 
SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION, AND 
OPERATION OF MAJOR MEDICAL FACILITY 
PROJECT, NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA. 
(a) AGREEMENT AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs may enter into an agreement with the 
Louisiana State University to design, construct, and oper-
ate a co-located, joint-use medical facility in New Orleans 
to replace the medical center facility for the Department 
of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, New Orleans, Lou-
isiana, damaged by Hurricane Katrina in August 2005. 
(b) COST LIMITATION.—Advance planning and de-
sign for a co-located, joint-use medical facility in New Or-
leans under subsection (a) shall be carried out in an 
amount not to exceed $100,000,000. 
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION, AND 
OPERATION OF A MAJOR MEDICAL FACILITY 
PROJECT, CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA. 
(a) AGREEMENT AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs may enter into an agreement with the 
Medical University of South Carolina to design, construct, 
and operate a co-located joint-use medical facility in 
Charleston, South Carolina, to replace the Ralph H. John-
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son Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 
Charleston, South Carolina. 
(b) COST LIMITATION.—Advance planning and de-
sign for a co-located, joint-use medical facility in Charles-
ton, South Carolina, under subsection (a) shall be carried 
out in an amount not to exceed $70,000,000. 
SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF SITE PURCHASE FOR MAJOR 
MEDICAL FACILITY PROJECT, REPLACEMENT 
SITE, DENVER COLORADO. 
(a) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary of Veterans Af-
fairs may enter into an agreement to purchase a site for 
the replacement of the Department of Veterans Affairs 
Medical Center, Denver, Colorado, in an amount not to 
exceed $98,000,000. 
(b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Af-
fairs of the Senate and House of Representatives a report 
identifying and outlining the various options available to 
the Department for replacing the current Department of 
Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Denver, Colorado. The 
report shall include the following: 
(1) The feasibility of entering into a partner-
ship with a Federal, State, or local governmental 
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agency, or a suitable non-profit organization, for the 
construction and operation of a new facility. 
(2) The medical, legal, and financial implica-
tions of each of the options identified, including rec-
ommendations regarding any statutory changes nec-
essary for the Department to carry out any of the 
options identified. 
(3) A detailed cost-benefit analysis of each of 
the options identified. 
(4) Estimates regarding the length of time and 
associated costs needed to complete such a facility 
under each of the options identified. 
SEC. 6. EXTENSION OF AUTHORIZATION FOR CERTAIN 
MAJOR MEDICAL FACILITY CONSTRUCTION 
PROJECTS 
PREVIOUSLY 
AUTHORIZED 
IN 
CONNECTION WITH CAPITAL ASSET REALIGN-
MENT INITIATIVE. 
The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may carry out the 
following major medical facility projects, with each such 
project to be carried out in the amount specified for that 
project: 
(1) Construction of an outpatient clinic and re-
gional office at the Department of Veterans Affairs 
Medical Center, Anchorage, Alaska, in an amount 
not to exceed $75,270,000. 
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(2) Consolidation of clinical and administrative 
functions of the Department of Veterans Affairs 
Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio, and the Depart-
ment 
of 
Veterans 
Affairs 
Medical 
Center, 
Brecksville, Ohio, in an amount not to exceed 
$102,300,000. 
(3) Construction of the extended care building 
at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Cen-
ter, Des Moines, Iowa, in an amount not to exceed 
$25,000,000. 
(4) Renovation of patient wards at the Depart-
ment of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Durham, 
North Carolina, in an amount not to exceed 
$9,100,000. 
(5) Correction of patient privacy deficiencies at 
the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 
Gainesville, Florida, in an amount not to exceed 
$85,200,000. 
(6) 7th and 8th floor wards modernization addi-
tion at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical 
Center, Indianapolis, Indiana, in an amount not to 
exceed $27,400,000. 
(7) Construction of a new medical center facil-
ity at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical 
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