109TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6342
AN ACT 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to extend certain 
expiring provisions of law administered by the Secretary 
of Veterans Affairs, to expand eligibility for the Sur-
vivors’ and Dependents’ Educational Assistance program, 
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 
‘‘Veterans Programs Extension Act of 2006’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 
this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Extension of certain expiring provisions of law administered by the Sec-
retary of Veterans Affairs. 
Sec. 3. Expansion of eligibility for Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational As-
sistance program. 
Sec. 4. Deadline and permanent requirement for report on educational assist-
ance program. 
Sec. 5. Reauthorization of biennial report of Advisory Committee on Women 
Veterans. 
Sec. 6. Parkinson’s Disease research, education, and clinical centers and mul-
tiple sclerosis centers of excellence. 
Sec. 7. Authorization of major medical facility leases. 
Sec. 8. Technical and clerical amendments. 
Sec. 9. Codification of cost-of-living adjustment provided in Public Law 109–
361.
SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF CERTAIN EXPIRING PROVISIONS OF 
LAW ADMINISTERED BY THE SECRETARY OF 
VETERANS AFFAIRS. 
(a) AUTHORITY FOR HEALTH CARE FOR PARTICIPA-
TION IN DOD CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL WARFARE 
TESTING.—Section 1710(e)(3)(D) of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘December 31, 2005’’ 
and inserting ‘‘December 31, 2007’’. 
(b) GRANT AND PER DIEM GRANT ASSISTANCE FOR 
HOMELESS VETERANS.—Section 2011(a)(2) of such title 
is amended by striking ‘‘September 30, 2005’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘September 30, 2007’’.
(c) TREATMENT AND REHABILITATION FOR SERI-
OUSLY MENTALLY ILL AND HOMELESS VETERANS.—Sec-
tion 2031(b) of such title is amended by striking ‘‘Decem-
ber 31, 2006’’ and inserting ‘‘December 31, 2007’’. 
(d) ADDITIONAL SERVICES FOR HOMELESS AND SE-
RIOUSLY MENTALLY ILL VETERANS.—Section 2033(d) of 
such title is amended by striking ‘‘December 31, 2006’’ 
and inserting ‘‘December 31, 2007’’. 
(e) ADVISORY COMMITTEE
ON HOMELESS VET-
ERANS.—Section 2066(d) of such title is amended by 
striking ‘‘December 31, 2006’’ and inserting ‘‘December 
31, 2007’’. 
(f) GOVERNMENT MARKERS
IN PRIVATE CEME-
TERIES.—Section 2306(d)(3) of such title is amended by 
striking ‘‘December 31, 2006’’ and inserting ‘‘December 
31, 2007’’. 
(g) ADDITIONAL EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE ALLOW-
ANCE FOR WORK-STUDY.—Section 3485(a)(4) of such 
title is amended in subparagraphs (A), (C), and (F) by 
striking ‘‘December 27, 2006’’ and inserting ‘‘June 30, 
2007’’.
SEC. 3. EXPANSION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR SURVIVORS’ AND 
DEPENDENTS’ 
EDUCATIONAL 
ASSISTANCE 
PROGRAM. 
(a) 
EXPANSION
OF
ELIGIBILITY.—Section 
3501(a)(1) of title 38, United States Code, is amended—
(1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), 
by striking ‘‘means—’’ and inserting ‘‘means any of 
the following:’’; 
(2) in each of subparagraphs (A) through (D), 
by capitalizing the first letter of the first word; 
(3) in subparagraph (A)—
(A) by inserting after ‘‘a person who’’ the 
following: ‘‘, as a result of qualifying service’’; 
(B) by striking the comma at the end of 
clause (i) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; 
(C) by striking ‘‘, or’’ at the end of clause 
(ii) and inserting a period; and 
(D) by striking clause (iii); 
(4) in subparagraph (B) by striking the comma 
at the end and inserting the following: ‘‘sustained 
during a period of qualifying service.’’; 
(5) in subparagraph (C)—
(A) by inserting ‘‘or child’’ after ‘‘the 
spouse’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘, or’’ at the end and in-
serting a period;
(6) in subparagraph (D)—
(A) in clause (i), by inserting before the 
comma the following: ‘‘sustained during a pe-
riod of qualifying service’’; and 
(B) by striking the comma at the end and 
inserting a period; 
(7) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the fol-
lowing new subparagraph: 
‘‘(E) The spouse or child of a person 
who—
‘‘(i) at the time of the Secretary’s de-
termination under clause (ii), is a member 
of the Armed Forces who is hospitalized or 
receiving outpatient medical care, services, 
or treatment; 
‘‘(ii) the Secretary determines has a 
total disability permanent in nature in-
curred or aggravated in the line of duty in 
the active military, naval, or air service; 
and 
‘‘(iii) is likely to be discharged or re-
leased from such service for such dis-
ability.’’; and 
(8) by striking ‘‘arising out of’’ and all that fol-
lows through the end.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO CHAPTER 35.—
Chapter 35 of such title is further amended as follows: 
(1) Section 3501(a) is amended by adding at 
the end the following new paragraph: 
‘‘(12) The term ‘qualifying service’ means serv-
ice in the active military, naval, or air service after 
the beginning of the Spanish-American War that did 
not terminate under dishonorable conditions.’’. 
(2) Section 3511 is amended—
(A) in subsection (a)(1)—
(i) by striking ‘‘Each eligible person’’ 
and inserting the following: ‘‘Each eligible 
person, whether made eligible by one or 
more 
of 
the 
provisions 
of 
section 
3501(a)(1) of this title,’’; 
(ii) by striking ‘‘a period’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘an aggregate period’’; and 
(iii) by striking the second sentence; 
(B) in subsection (b)—
(i) in paragraph (2)—
(I) by striking ‘‘the provisions of 
section 3501(a)(1)(A)(iii) or’’ and in-
serting ‘‘section’’; and 
(II) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end; 
(ii) in paragraph (3)—
(I) 
by 
striking 
‘‘section 
3501(a)(1)(D)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub-
paragraph (D) or (E) of section 
3501(a)(1)’’; and 
(II) by inserting ‘‘or’’ after the 
comma at the end; and 
(iii) by inserting after paragraph (3) 
the following new paragraph: 
‘‘(4) the parent or spouse from whom such eli-
gibility is derived based upon subparagraph (E) of 
section 3501(a)(1) of this title no longer meets a re-
quirement under clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of that sub-
paragraph,’’; and 
(C) by striking subsection (c). 
(3) Section 3512 is amended—
(A) in subsection (a)—
(i) by striking ‘‘an eligible person 
(within 
the 
meaning 
of 
section 
3501(a)(1)(A) of this title)’’ and inserting 
‘‘an eligible person whose eligibility is 
based on the death or disability of a parent 
or on a parent being listed in one of the 
categories 
referred 
to 
in 
section 
3501(a)(1)(C) of this title’’; and
(ii) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘the 
provisions of section 3501(a)(1)(A)(iii)’’ 
and inserting ‘‘a parent being listed in one 
of the categories referred to in section 
3501(a)(1)(C)’’; 
(B) in subsection (b)—
(i) in paragraph (1)(A)—
(I) by inserting after ‘‘section 
3501(a)(1) of this title’’ the following: 
‘‘or a person made eligible by the dis-
ability of a spouse under section 
3501(a)(1)(E) of this title’’; and 
(II) 
by 
striking 
‘‘or 
3501(a)(1)(D)(ii) of this title’’ and in-
serting 
‘‘3501(a)(1)(D)(ii), 
or 
3501(a)(1)(E) of this title’’; 
(ii) in paragraph (1)(B), by adding at 
the end the following new clause: 
‘‘(iii) The date on which the Secretary notifies 
the member of the Armed Forces from whom eligi-
bility is derived that the member has a total dis-
ability permanent in nature incurred or aggravated 
in the line of duty in the active military, naval, or 
air service.’’; and 
(iii) in paragraph (2)—
(I) by striking ‘‘or (D) of this 
title’’ and inserting ‘‘(D), or (E) of 
this title’’; and 
(II) by inserting ‘‘whose eligi-
bility is based on the death or dis-
ability of a spouse or on a spouse 
being listed in one of the categories 
referred to in section 3501(a)(1)(C) of 
this title’’ after ‘‘of this title)’’; 
(C) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘vet-
eran’’ and inserting ‘‘person’’; and 
(D) in subsection (e)—
(i) by inserting ‘‘based on a spouse 
being listed in one of the categories re-
ferred to in section 3501(a)(1)(C) of this 
title’’ after ‘‘of this title’’; 
(ii) by inserting ‘‘so’’ after ‘‘the 
spouse was’’; and 
(iii) by striking ‘‘by the Secretary’’ 
and all that follows through ‘‘occurs’’. 
(4) Section 3540 is amended by striking ‘‘(as 
defined in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (D) of sec-
tion 3501(a)(1) of this title)’’ and inserting ‘‘(other 
than a person made eligible under subparagraph (C) 
of such section by reason of a spouse being listed in