Title: Autonomy for Disabled Veterans Act
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
Autonomy for Disabled Veterans Act
This bill increases the maximum amount authorized under the Home Improvements and Structural Alterations (HISA) grant program to $10,000 for veterans with a service-connected disability and $5,000 for those with disabilities that are not service-connected. The HISA grant program provides medically necessary improvements and structural alterations to veterans' (or service members') primary residence for specified purposes (e.g., allowing for entrance to their home).
The bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to increase the dollar amount of the grant in accordance with inflation as determined by the Consumer Price Index.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5819 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 5819

 To amend title 38, United States Code, to increase the amount paid by 
  the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to veterans for improvements and 
   structural alterations furnished as part of home health services.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            November 2, 2021

Mr. Lawson of Florida (for himself, Ms. Norton, Ms. Roybal-Allard, Ms. 
  Titus, Ms. Newman, Mrs. Axne, Ms. Moore of Wisconsin, Mr. Larson of 
Connecticut, Mr. Krishnamoorthi, Mr. Michael F. Doyle of Pennsylvania, 
 Mr. Peters, Ms. Strickland, Mr. Carson, Mr. Quigley, Mr. Thompson of 
   Mississippi, Ms. Kuster, Ms. Castor of Florida, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. 
  O'Halleran, Ms. Stansbury, Ms. Dean, Mr. Pappas, Mr. Cicilline, Mr. 
 Fitzpatrick, Mrs. Cammack, Mr. Bacon, Mr. Newhouse, Mr. Palazzo, Miss 
   Gonzalez-Colon, Mr. Garbarino, Mrs. Bice of Oklahoma, Mrs. Kim of 
 California, Mr. Rutherford, Mr. McHenry, Mr. Valadao, Mrs. Rodgers of 
  Washington, Mr. Feenstra, Mr. Turner, Ms. Stefanik, Ms. Letlow, Mr. 
  Timmons, Mr. Meuser, and Mr. Trone) introduced the following bill; 
        which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title 38, United States Code, to increase the amount paid by 
  the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to veterans for improvements and 
   structural alterations furnished as part of home health services.

    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 ``Autonomy for Disabled Veterans 
Act''.

SEC. 2. INCREASE IN AMOUNT AVAILABLE TO DISABLED VETERANS FOR 
              IMPROVEMENTS AND STRUCTURAL ALTERATIONS FURNISHED AS PART 
              OF HOME HEALTH SERVICES.

    (a) Increase.--Paragraph (2) of section 1717(a) of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (A)(ii), by striking ``$6,800'' and 
        inserting ``$10,000''; and
            (2) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by striking ``$2,000'' and 
        inserting ``$5,000''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to a veteran who first applies for benefits under 
section 1717(a)(2) of title 38, United States Code, on or after the 
date of the enactment of this Act.
    (c) Applicability.--A veteran who exhausts such veteran's 
eligibility for benefits under section 1717(a)(2) of title 38, United 
States Code, before the date of the enactment of this Act, is not 
entitled to additional benefits under such section by reason of the 
amendments made by subsection (a).

SEC. 3. ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.

    Section 1717(a) of title 38, United States Code, is further amended 
by adding at the end the following:
    ``(4) On an annual basis, the Secretary shall increase the dollar 
amount in effect under subsection (a)(2) by a percentage equal to the 
percentage by which the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers 
(United States city average) increased during the 12-month period 
ending with the last month for which Consumer Price Index data is 
available. In the event that such Consumer Price Index does not 
increase during such period, the Secretary shall maintain the dollar 
amount in effect under subsection (a)(2) during the previous fiscal 
year.''.
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