[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2353 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        H.R.2353

                       One Hundred Fourth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE SECOND SESSION

         Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday,
   the third day of January, one thousand nine hundred and ninety-six


                                 An Act


 
 To amend title 38, United States Code, to extend the authority of the 
    Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out certain programs and 
 activities, to require certain reports from the Secretary of Veterans 
                    Affairs, and for other purposes.

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

                    TITLE I--EXTENSIONS OF AUTHORITY

SEC. 101. EXTENSION OF AUTHORITIES UNDER TITLE 38, UNITED STATES CODE.

    (a) Authority To Provide Priority Health Care for Certain Veterans 
Exposed to Toxic Substances.--(1) Section 1710(e)(3) of title 38, 
United States Code, is amended by striking out ``after June 30, 1995,'' 
and all that follows through ``December 31, 1995'' and inserting in 
lieu thereof ``after December 31, 1996''.
    (2) Section 1712(a)(1)(D) of such title is amended by striking out 
``December 31, 1995,'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``December 31, 
1996,''.
    (b) Drug and Alcohol Abuse and Dependence.--Section 1720A(e) of 
such title is amended by striking out ``December 31, 1995'' and 
inserting in lieu thereof ``December 31, 1997''.
    (c) Pilot Program for Noninstitutional Alternatives to Nursing Home 
Care.--Section 1720C(a) of such title is amended by striking out 
``September 30, 1995,'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``December 31, 
1997,''.
    (d) Negotiated Interest Rates.--Section 3703(c)(4) of such title is 
amended by striking out subparagraph (D).
    (e) Mortgages for Energy Efficient Improvements.--Section 3710(d) 
of such title is amended by striking out paragraph (7).
    (f) Enhanced Loan Asset Sale Authority.--Section 3720(h)(2) of such 
title is amended by striking out ``December 31, 1995'' and inserting in 
lieu thereof ``December 31, 1996''.
    (g) Authority of Lenders of Automatically Guaranteed Loans To 
Review Appraisals.--Section 3731(f) of such title is amended by 
striking out paragraph (3).
    (h) Agreements for Housing Assistance for Homeless Veterans.--
Section 3735(c) of such title is amended by striking out ``December 31, 
1995'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``December 31, 1997''.
    (i) Use of Data on Compensation for Certified Registered Nurse 
Anesthetists.--Section 7451(d)(3)(C)(iii) of such title is amended by 
striking out ``April 1, 1995'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``January 
1, 1998''.
    (j) Health Professional Scholarship Program.--Section 7618 of such 
title is amended by striking out ``December 31, 1995'' and inserting in 
lieu thereof ``December 31, 1997''.
    (k) Enhanced-Use Leases of Real Property.--Section 8169 of such 
title is amended by striking out ``December 31, 1995'' and inserting in 
lieu thereof ``December 31, 1997''.

SEC. 102. EXTENSION OF AUTHORITIES UNDER OTHER PROVISIONS OF LAW.

    (a) Authority for Community-Based Residential Care for Homeless 
Chronically Mentally Ill Veterans and Other Veterans.--Section 115(d) 
of the Veterans' Benefits and Services Act of 1988 (38 U.S.C. 1712 
note) is amended by striking out ``September 30, 1995'' and inserting 
in lieu thereof ``December 31, 1997''.
    (b) Demonstration Program of Compensated Work Therapy.--Section 
7(a) of Public Law 102-54 (38 U.S.C. 1718 note) is amended by striking 
out ``fiscal years 1991 through 1995'' and inserting in lieu thereof 
``the period beginning on October 1, 1991, and ending on December 31, 
1997,''.
    (c) Services and Assistance to Homeless Veterans.--The Homeless 
Veterans Comprehensive Service Programs Act of 1992 (Public Law 102-
590; 38 U.S.C. 7721 note) is amended--
        (1) in section 2, by striking out ``September 30, 1995,'' and 
    inserting in lieu thereof ``September 30, 1997,'';
        (2) in section 3(a)--
            (A) by inserting ``(1)'' before ``Subject to'';
            (B) by striking out ``fiscal years 1993, 1994, and 1995,''; 
        and
            (C) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
    ``(2) The authority of the Secretary to make grants under this 
section expires on September 30, 1997.''; and
        (3) in section 12, by striking out ``each of the fiscal years 
    1993, 1994, and 1995'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``each of 
    fiscal years 1993 through 1997''.
    (d) Homeless Veterans' Reintegration Projects.--(1) Section 
738(e)(1) of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 
11448(e)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
        ``(D) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 1996.''.
    (2) Section 741 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 11450) is amended by 
striking out ``October 1, 1995'' and inserting in lieu thereof 
``December 31, 1997''.

SEC. 103. RATIFICATION OF ACTIONS TAKEN DURING PERIOD OF EXPIRED 
              AUTHORITY.

    Any action taken by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs before the 
date of the enactment of this Act under a provision of law amended by 
this title that was taken during the period beginning on the date on 
which the authority of the Secretary under that provision of law 
expired and ending on the date of the enactment of this Act shall be 
considered to have the same force and effect as if the amendment to 
that provision of law made by this title had been in effect at the time 
of that action.

                       TITLE II--OTHER PROVISIONS

SEC. 201. CODIFICATION OF HOUSING REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND CHANGES IN 
              THEIR FREQUENCY.

    (a) Codification of Housing Related Reporting Requirements.--(1) 
Chapter 37 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding after 
section 3735 the following new section:

``Sec. 3736. Reporting requirements

    ``The annual report required by section 529 of this title shall 
include a discussion of the activities under this chapter. Beginning 
with the report submitted at the close of fiscal year 1996, and every 
second year thereafter, this discussion shall include information 
regarding the following:
        ``(1) Loans made to veterans whose only qualifying service was 
    in the Selected Reserve.
        ``(2) Interest rates and discount points which were negotiated 
    between the lender and the veteran pursuant to section 
    3703(c)(4)(A)(i) of this title.
        ``(3) The determination of reasonable value by lenders pursuant 
    to section 3731(f) of this title.
        ``(4) Loans that include funds for energy efficiency 
    improvements pursuant to section 3710(a)(10) of this title.
        ``(5) Direct loans to Native American veterans made pursuant to 
    subchapter V of this chapter.''.
    (2) The table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is 
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 3735 the 
following new item:
``3736. Reporting requirements.''.
    (b) Repeal of Superseded Reporting Requirements.--The Veterans Home 
Loan Program Amendments of 1992 (Public Law 102-547; 106 Stat. 3633) is 
amended by striking out sections 2(c), 3(b), 8(d), 9(c), and 10(b).

SEC. 202. OTHER REPORT REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Report on Consolidation of Certain Programs.--The Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs shall submit to Congress, not later than March 1, 
1997, a report on the advantages and disadvantages of consolidating 
into one program the following three programs:
        (1) The alcohol and drug abuse contract care program under 
    section 1720A of title 38, United States Code.
        (2) The program to provide community-based residential care to 
    homeless chronically mentally ill veterans under section 115 of the 
    Veterans' Benefits and Services Act of 1988 (38 U.S.C. 1712 note).
        (3) The demonstration program under section 7 of Public Law 
    102-54 (38 U.S.C. 1718 note).
    (b) Health Professional Scholarship Program.--(1) The Secretary 
shall submit to Congress, not later than March 31, 1997, a report 
setting forth the results of a study evaluating the operation of the 
health professional scholarship program under subchapter II of chapter 
76 of title 38, United States Code. The study shall evaluate the 
efficacy of the program with respect to recruitment and retention of 
health care personnel for the Department of Veterans Affairs and shall 
compare the costs and benefits of the program with the costs and 
benefits of alternative methods of ensuring adequate recruitment and 
retention of such personnel.
    (2) The Secretary shall carry out the study under this paragraph 
through a private contractor. The report under paragraph (1) shall 
include the report of the contractor and the comments, if any, of the 
Secretary on that report.
    (c) Enhanced Use Leases.--The Secretary shall submit to Congress, 
not later than March 31, 1997, a report evaluating the operation of the 
program under subchapter V of chapter 81 of title 38, United States 
Code.

SEC. 203. CONTRACTS FOR UTILITIES, AUDIE L. MURPHY MEMORIAL HOSPITAL.

    (a) Authority To Contract.--Subject to subsection (b), the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs may enter into contracts for the 
provision of utilities (including steam and chilled water) to the Audie 
L. Murphy Memorial Hospital in San Antonio, Texas. Each such contract 
may--
        (1) be for a period not to exceed 35 years;
        (2) provide for the construction and operation of a production 
    facility on or near property under the jurisdiction of the 
    Secretary;
        (3) require capital contributions by the parties involved for 
    the construction of such a facility, such contribution to be in the 
    form of cash, equipment, or other in-kind contribution; and
        (4) provide for a predetermined formula to compute the cost of 
    providing such utilities to the parties for the duration of the 
    contract.
    (b) Funds.--A contract may be entered into under subsection (a) 
only to the extent as provided for in advance in appropriations Acts.
    (c) Additional Terms.--The Secretary may include in a contract 
under subsection (a) such additional provisions as the Secretary 
considers necessary to secure the provision of utilities and to protect 
the interests of the United States.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.