I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4731 
To amend the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to set 
aside community development block grant amounts in each fiscal year 
for grants to local chapters of veterans service organizations for the 
renovation, rehabilitation, and modernization of local chapter facilities. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 27, 2021 
Ms. WATERS (for herself, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. SUOZZI, Mr. VICENTE GON-
ZALEZ of Texas, Mrs. HAYES, Ms. CHU, Mr. LAWSON of Florida, Mr. 
MCGOVERN, Mr. BOWMAN, Mr. SAN
NICOLAS, Mr. CARSON, Mr. 
CICILLINE, Ms. PRESSLEY, Ms. NORTON, and Ms. SCHAKOWSKY) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Finan-
cial Services 
A BILL 
To amend the Housing and Community Development Act 
of 1974 to set aside community development block grant 
amounts in each fiscal year for grants to local chapters 
of veterans service organizations for the renovation, reha-
bilitation, and modernization of local chapter facilities. 
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 ‘‘Veterans Service Orga-
nization Modernization Act of 2021’’. 
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SEC. 2. COMPETITIVE GRANTS TO VETERANS SERVICE OR-
GANIZATIONS FOR FACILITY REHABILITA-
TION AND MODERNIZATION. 
(a) GRANTS.—Section 107 of the Housing and Com-
munity Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5307) is 
amended by adding at the end the following new sub-
section: 
‘‘(g) COMPETITIVE GRANTS TO VETERANS SERVICE 
ORGANIZATIONS
FOR FACILITY REHABILITATION
AND 
UPGRADING TECHNOLOGY.— 
‘‘(1) AUTHORITY; ELIGIBLE
ACTIVITIES
AND 
USES.—Using the amounts made available under 
section 106(a)(4) in each fiscal year for grants 
under this subsection, the Secretary shall make 
grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible veterans 
service organizations, which grant amounts shall be 
available for use only for— 
‘‘(A) repairs or rehabilitation of existing 
facilities of such organizations; and 
‘‘(B) modernization of technologies used by 
such organizations. 
‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE VETERANS SERVICE ORGANIZA-
TIONS.—For purposes of this subsection, the term 
‘eligible veterans service organization’ means— 
‘‘(A) an entity that— 
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‘‘(i) is organized on a local or area 
basis; and 
‘‘(ii) is— 
‘‘(I) exempt from taxation pursu-
ant to section 501(c)(19) of the Inter-
nal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 
501(c)(19)); or 
‘‘(II) an organization of past or 
present members of the Armed Forces 
of the United States that is chartered 
under title 36, United States Code; 
and 
‘‘(B) a local or area chapter, post, or other 
unit of a national, regional, Statewide, or other 
larger entity of which local or area chapters, 
posts, or units are members— 
‘‘(i) that is exempt from taxation pur-
suant to section 501(c)(19) of the Internal 
Revenue 
Code 
of 
1986 
(26 
U.S.C. 
501(c)(19)); or 
‘‘(ii) which larger entity is an organi-
zation of past or present members of the 
Armed Forces of the United States that is 
chartered under title 36, United States 
Code. 
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‘‘(3) LIMITATIONS.— 
‘‘(A) AMOUNT.—No eligible veterans serv-
ice organization may receive grant amounts 
under this subsection, from the amounts made 
available for any single fiscal year, in an 
amount exceeding the lesser of— 
‘‘(i) the aggregate cost of the pro-
posed activities and uses under paragraph 
(1) for which the grant amounts will be 
used; or 
‘‘(ii) $100,000. 
‘‘(B) TIMING.—Any eligible veterans serv-
ice organization that receives grant amounts 
under this subsection from amounts made avail-
able for a fiscal year shall be ineligible for any 
grant from any amounts made available for 
such grants for any of the succeeding three fis-
cal years. 
‘‘(4) APPLICATIONS.—Applications for assist-
ance under this subsection may be submitted only by 
eligible veterans service organizations, and shall be 
in such form and in accordance with such proce-
dures as the Secretary shall establish. Such applica-
tions shall include a plan for the proposed repair or 
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rehabilitation activities to be conducted using grant 
amounts under this subsection. 
‘‘(5) SELECTION; 
CRITERIA.—The Secretary 
shall select applications to receive grants under this 
subsection pursuant to a competition and based on 
criteria for such selection, which shall include— 
‘‘(A) the extent of need for such assist-
ance; 
‘‘(B) the quality of the plan proposed for 
repair or rehabilitation of the facility involved; 
‘‘(C) the capacity or potential capacity of 
the applicant to successfully carry out the plan; 
and 
‘‘(D) such other factors as the Secretary 
determines to be appropriate. 
‘‘(6) PROHIBITION OF CONSTRUCTION OR AC-
QUISITION.—No amounts from a grant under this 
subsection may be used for the construction or ac-
quisition of a new facility.’’. 
(b) FUNDING.—Subsection (a) of section 106 of the 
Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 
U.S.C. 5306(a)) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and (3)’ ’’ 
and inserting ‘‘(3), and (4)’’; 
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(2) by redesignating paragraph (4) as para-
graph (5); and 
(3) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol-
lowing new paragraph: 
‘‘(4) For each fiscal year, after reserving 
amounts under paragraphs (1) and (2) and allo-
cating amounts under paragraph (3), the Secretary 
shall allocate $10,000,000 (subject to sufficient 
amounts remaining after such reservations and allo-
cation) for grants under section 107(g).’’. 
(c) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary of Housing and 
Urban Development shall issue any regulations necessary 
to carry out sections 106(a)(4) and 107(g) of the Housing 
and Community Development Act of 1974, as added by 
the amendments made by this section, not later than the 
expiration of the 90-day period beginning on the date of 
the enactment of this Act. 
Æ 
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