Title: Accelerating Veterans Recovery Outdoors Act
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
Accelerating Veterans Recovery Outdoors Act
This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to establish the Task Force on Outdoor Recreation for Veterans to report on and make recommendations regarding the use of public lands or other outdoor spaces for medical treatment and therapy for veterans.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2435 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2435

     To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish an 
 interagency task force on the use of public lands to provide medical 
     treatment and therapy to veterans through outdoor recreation.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 1, 2019

   Mr. Smith of New Jersey (for himself and Mr. Smith of Washington) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                           Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish an 
 interagency task force on the use of public lands to provide medical 
     treatment and therapy to veterans through outdoor recreation.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Accelerating Veterans Recovery 
Outdoors Act''.

SEC. 2. INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE ON OUTDOOR RECREATION FOR VETERANS.

    (a) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
establish a task force to be known as the ``Task Force on Outdoor 
Recreation for Veterans'' (in this section referred to as the ``Task 
Force'').
    (b) Composition.--The Task Force shall be composed of the following 
members or their designees:
            (1) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
            (2) The Secretary of the Interior.
            (3) The Secretary of Health and Human Services.
            (4) The Secretary of Agriculture.
            (5) The Secretary of Defense.
            (6) The Secretary of Homeland Security.
            (7) The Chief of the Army Corps of Engineers.
            (8) Any other member that the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
        determines to be appropriate.
    (c) Chairpersons.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the 
Secretary of the Interior shall serve as co-chairpersons of the Task 
Force (in this section referred to as the ``Chairpersons'').
    (d) Duties.--
            (1) Task force.--The duties of the Task Force shall be--
                    (A) to identify opportunities to formalize 
                coordination between the Department of Veterans 
                Affairs, public land agencies, and partner 
                organizations regarding the use of public lands or 
                other outdoor spaces for medical treatment and 
                recreational therapy for veterans;
                    (B) to identify barriers that exist to providing 
                veterans with opportunities for medical treatment and 
                therapy through the use of outdoor recreation on public 
                lands or other outdoor spaces; and
                    (C) to develop recommendations to better facilitate 
                the use of public lands or other outdoor spaces for 
                preventative care, medical treatment, and therapy for 
                veterans.
            (2) Consultation.--The Task Force shall carry out the 
        duties under paragraph (1) in consultation with appropriate 
        veterans outdoor recreation groups.
    (e) Reports.--
            (1) Preliminary report.--Not later than 180 days after the 
        date on which the Task Force is established, the Chairpersons 
        shall submit to Congress a report on the preliminary findings 
        of the Task Force.
            (2) Final report.--Not later than one year after the date 
        of the submittal of the preliminary report under paragraph (1), 
        the Chairpersons shall submit to Congress a report on the 
        findings of the Task Force, which shall include the 
        recommendations developed under subsection (d)(1)(C).
    (f) Duration.--The Task Force shall terminate on the date that is 
one year after the date of the submittal of the final report in 
subsection (e)(2).
    (g) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) The term ``public lands'' means any recreational lands 
        under the jurisdiction of the Federal Government or a State or 
        local government.
            (2) The term ``veteran'' has the meaning given that term in 
        section 101 of title 38, United States Code.
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