[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2206 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2206

   To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve programs of the 
  Department of Veterans Affairs for homeless veterans, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 22, 1997

 Mr. Stearns (for himself and Mr. Gutierrez) introduced the following 
     bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve programs of the 
  Department of Veterans Affairs for homeless veterans, and for other 
                               purposes.

    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 ``Veterans Health Programs Improvement 
Act of 1997''.

SEC. 2. TREATMENT AND REHABILITATION FOR SERIOUSLY MENTALLY ILL AND 
              HOMELESS VETERANS.

    (a) Codification and Revisions of Veterans Homeless Programs.--
Chapter 17 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following new subchapter:

 ``Subchapter VII--Treatment and Rehabilitation for Seriously Mentally 
                       Ill and Homeless Veterans

``Sec. 1771. General treatment
    ``In providing care and services under section 1710 of this title 
to veterans suffering from serious mental illness, including veterans 
who are homeless, the Secretary may provide (directly or in conjunction 
with a governmental or other entity)--
            ``(1) outreach services;
            ``(2) care, treatment, and rehabilitative services 
        (directly or by contract in community-based treatment 
        facilities, including halfway houses); and
            ``(3) therapeutic transitional housing assistance under 
        section 1772 of this title, in conjunction with work therapy 
        under section 1718(a) or (b) of this title and outpatient care.
``Sec. 1772. Therapeutic housing
    ``(a) The Secretary, in connection with the conduct of compensated 
work therapy programs, may operate residences and facilities as 
therapeutic housing.
    ``(b) The Secretary may use such procurement procedures for the 
purchase, lease, or other acquisition of residential housing for 
purposes of this section as the Secretary considers appropriate to 
expedite the opening and operation of transitional housing and to 
protect the interests of the United States.
    ``(c) A residence or other facility may be operated as transitional 
housing for veterans described in paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 
1710(a) of this title under the following conditions:
            ``(1) Only veterans described in those paragraphs and a 
        house manager may reside in the residence.
            ``(2) Each resident, other than the house manager, shall be 
        required to make payments that contribute to covering the 
        expenses of board and the operational costs of the residence 
        for the period of residence in such housing.
            ``(3) In order to foster the therapeutic and rehabilitative 
        objectives of such housing (A) residents shall be prohibited 
        from using alcohol or any controlled substance or item, (B) any 
        resident violating that prohibition may be expelled from the 
        residence, and (C) each resident shall agree to undergo drug 
        testing or such other measures as the Secretary shall prescribe 
        to ensure compliance with that prohibition.
            ``(4) In the establishment and operation of housing under 
        this section, the Secretary shall consult with appropriate 
        representatives of the community in which the housing is 
        established and shall comply with zoning requirements, building 
        permit requirements, and other similar requirements applicable 
        to other real property used for similar purposes in the 
        community.
            ``(5) The residence shall meet State and community fire and 
        safety requirements applicable to other real property used for 
        similar purposes in the community in which the transitional 
        housing is located, but fire and safety requirements applicable 
        to buildings of the Federal Government shall not apply to such 
        property.
    ``(d) The Secretary shall prescribe the qualifications for house 
managers for transitional housing units operated under this section. 
The Secretary may provide for free room and subsistence for house 
managers in addition to, or instead of payment of, a fee for such 
services.
    ``(e)(1) The Secretary may operate as transitional housing under 
this section--
            ``(A) any suitable residential property acquired by the 
        Secretary as the result of a default on a loan made, 
        guaranteed, or insured under chapter 37 of this title;
            ``(B) any suitable space in a facility under the 
        jurisdiction of the Secretary that is no longer being used (i) 
        to provide acute hospital care, or (ii) as housing for medical 
        center employees; and
            ``(C) any other suitable residential property purchased, 
        leased, or otherwise acquired by the Secretary.
    ``(2) In the case of any property referred to in paragraph (1)(A), 
the Secretary shall--
            ``(A) transfer administrative jurisdiction over such 
        property within the Department from the Veterans Benefits 
        Administration to the Veterans Health Services and Research 
        Administration; and
            ``(B) transfer from the General Post Fund of the Department 
        of Veterans Affairs to the Loan Guaranty Revolving Fund under 
        chapter 37 of this title an amount (not to exceed the amount 
        the Secretary paid for the property) representing the amount 
        the Secretary considers could be obtained by sale of such 
        property to a nonprofit organization or a State for use as a 
        shelter for homeless veterans.
    ``(3) In the case of any residential property obtained by the 
Secretary from the Department of Housing and Urban Development under 
this section, the amount paid by the Secretary to that Department for 
that property may not exceed the amount that the Secretary of Housing 
and Urban Development would charge for the sale of that property to a 
nonprofit organization or a State for use as a shelter for homeless 
persons. Funds for such charge shall be derived from the General Post 
Fund.
    ``(f) The Secretary shall prescribe--
            ``(1) a procedure for establishing reasonable payment rates 
        for persons residing in transitional housing; and
            ``(2) appropriate limits on the period for which such 
        persons may reside in transitional housing.
    ``(g) The Secretary may dispose of any property acquired for the 
purpose of this section. The proceeds of any such disposal shall be 
credited to the General Post Fund of the Department of Veterans 
Affairs.
    ``(h) Funds received by the Department under this section shall be 
deposited in the General Post Fund. The Secretary may distribute out of 
the fund such amounts as necessary for the acquisition, management, 
maintenance, and disposition of real property for the purpose of 
carrying out such program. The Secretary shall manage the operation of 
this section so as to ensure that expenditures under this subsection 
for any fiscal year shall not exceed by more than $500,000 proceeds 
credited to the General Post Fund under this section. The operation of 
the program and funds received shall be separately accounted for, and 
shall be stated in the documents accompanying the President's budget 
for each fiscal year.
``Sec. 1773. Additional services at certain locations
    ``(a) Subject to the availability of appropriations, the Secretary 
shall operate a program under this section to expand and improve the 
provision of benefits and services by the Department to homeless 
veterans.
    ``(b) The program shall include the establishment of not fewer than 
eight programs (in addition to any existing programs providing similar 
services) at sites under the jurisdiction of the Secretary to be 
centers for the provision of comprehensive services to homeless 
veterans. The services to be provided at each site shall include a 
comprehensive and coordinated array of those specialized services which 
may be provided under existing law.
    ``(c) The program shall include the services of such employees of 
the Veterans Benefits Administration as the Secretary determines 
appropriate at sites under the jurisdiction of the Secretary at which 
services are provided to homeless veterans.
``Sec. 1774. Coordination with other agencies and organizations
    ``(a) In assisting homeless veterans, the Secretary shall 
coordinate with, and may provide services authorized under this title 
in conjunction with, State and local governments, other appropriate 
departments and agencies of the Federal Government, and nongovernmental 
organizations.
    ``(b)(1) The Secretary shall require the director of each medical 
center or the director of each regional benefits office to make an 
assessment of the needs of homeless veterans living within the area 
served by the medical center or regional office, as the case may be.
    ``(2) Each such assessment shall be made in coordination with 
representatives of State and local governments, other appropriate 
departments and agencies of the Federal Government, and nongovernmental 
organizations that have experience working with homeless persons in 
that area.
    ``(3) Each such assessment shall identify the needs of homeless 
veterans with respect to the following:
            ``(A) Health care.
            ``(B) Education and training.
            ``(C) Employment.
            ``(D) Shelter.
            ``(E) Counseling.
            ``(F) Outreach services.
    ``(4) Each assessment shall also indicate the extent to which the 
needs referred to in paragraph (3) are being met adequately by the 
programs of the Department, of other departments and agencies of the 
Federal Government, of State and local governments, and of 
nongovernmental organizations.
    ``(5) Each assessment shall be carried out in accordance with 
uniform procedures and guidelines prescribed by the Secretary.
    ``(c) In furtherance of subsection (a), the Secretary shall require 
the director of each medical center and the director of each regional 
benefits office, in coordination with representatives of State and 
local governments, other Federal officials, and nongovernmental 
organizations that have experience working with homeless persons in the 
areas served by such facility or office, to--
            ``(1) develop a list of all public and private programs 
        that provide assistance to homeless persons or homeless 
        veterans in the area concerned, together with a description of 
        the services offered by those programs;
            ``(2) seek to encourage the development by the 
        representatives of such entities, in coordination with the 
        director, of a plan to coordinate among such public and private 
        programs the provision of services to homeless veterans;
            ``(3) take appropriate action to meet, to the maximum 
        extent practicable through existing programs and available 
        resources, the needs of homeless veterans that are identified 
        in the assessment conducted under subsection (b); and
            ``(4) attempt to inform homeless veterans whose needs the 
        director cannot meet under paragraph (3) of the services 
        available to such veterans within the area served by such 
        center or office.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--(1) Section 1720A of such title is 
amended--
            (A) by striking out subsections (a), (e), (f), and (g); and
            (B) by redesignating subsections (b), (c), and (d) as 
        subsections (a), (b), and (c), respectively.
    (2) The heading of such section is amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 1720A. Treatment and rehabilitative services for persons with 
              drug or alcohol dependency''.
    (c) Conforming Repeals.--The following provisions are repealed:
            (1) Section 7 of Public Law 102-54 (38 U.S.C. 1718 note).
            (2) Section 107 of the Veterans' Medical Programs 
        Amendments of 1992 (38 U.S.C. 527 note).
            (3) Section 2 of the Homeless Veterans Comprehensive 
        Service Programs Act of 1992 (38 U.S.C. 7721 note).
    (d) Clerical Amendments.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 17 of such title is amended--
            (1) by striking out the item relating to section 1720A and 
        inserting in lieu thereof the following:

``1720A. Treatment and rehabilitative services for persons with drug or 
                            alcohol dependency.''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
 ``subchapter vii--treatment and rehabilitation for seriously mentally 
                       ill and homeless veterans
``1771. General treatment.
``1772. Therapeutic housing.
``1773. Additional services at certain locations.
``1774. Coordination with other agencies and organizations.''.

SEC. 3. EXTENSION OF HOMELESS VETERANS COMPREHENSIVE SERVICE GRANT 
              PROGRAM.

    Section 3 of the Homeless Veterans Comprehensive Service Programs 
Act of 1992 (38 U.S.C. 7721 note) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(2), by striking out ``September 30, 
        1997'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``September 30, 1999''; 
        and
            (2) in subsection (b)(2), by striking out ``, which shall'' 
        and all that follows through ``paragraph (1)''.

SEC. 4. ANNUAL REPORT ON ASSISTANCE TO HOMELESS VETERANS.

    Section 1001 of the Veterans' Benefits Improvements Act of 1994 (38 
U.S.C. 7721 note) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(2)--
                    (A) by striking out ``and'' at the end of 
                subparagraph (B);
                    (B) by striking out the period at the end of 
                subparagraph (C) and inserting in lieu thereof ``; 
                and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                subparagraphs:
            ``(D) evaluate the effectiveness of the programs of the 
        Department (including residential work-therapy programs, 
        programs combining outreach, community-based residential 
        treatment, and case-management, and contract care programs for 
        alcohol and drug-dependence or abuse disabilities) in providing 
        assistance to homeless veterans; and
            ``(E) evaluate the effectiveness of programs established by 
        recipients of grants under section 3 of the Homeless Veterans 
        Comprehensive Service Programs Act of 1992 (38 U.S.C. 7721 
        note), and describe the experience of such entities in applying 
        for and receiving grants from the Secretary of Housing and 
        Urban Development to serve primarily homeless persons who are 
        veterans.''; and
            (2) by striking out subsection (b) and redesignating 
        subsection (c) as subsection (b).

SEC. 5. NONINSTITUTIONAL ALTERNATIVES TO NURSING HOME CARE.

    Section 1720C of title 38, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by striking out ``During'' and all 
        that follows through ``furnishing of'' and inserting in lieu 
        thereof ``The Secretary may furnish''; and
            (2) in subsection (b)(1), by striking out ``shall'' and 
        inserting in lieu thereof ``may''.

SEC. 6. PERSIAN GULF WAR VETERANS.

    (a) Scope of Counseling.--Section 703 of the Veterans Health Care 
Act of 1992 (Public Law 102-585; 106 Stat. 4976) is amended by adding 
at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(c) Form of Counseling.--Counseling provided in this section may 
not be provided through written materials only, but shall include 
verbal counseling.''.
    (b) Criteria for Priority Health Care.--(1) Subsection (a)(2)(F) of 
section 1710 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by striking 
out ``environmental hazard'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``other 
conditions''.
    (2) Subsection (e)(1)(C) of such section is amended--
            (A) by striking out ``the Secretary finds may have been 
        exposed while serving'' and inserting in lieu thereof 
        ``served'';
            (B) by striking out ``to a toxic substance or environmental 
        hazard''; and
            (C) by striking out ``exposure'' and inserting in lieu 
        thereof ``service''.
    (3) Subsection (e)(2)(B) of such section is amended by striking out 
``an exposure'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``the service''.
    (c) Demonstration Projects for Treatment of Persian Gulf Illness.--
(1) The Secretary shall carry out a program of demonstration projects 
to test new approaches to treating, and improving the satisfaction with 
such treatment of, Persian Gulf veterans who suffer from undiagnosed 
and ill-defined disabilities. The program shall be established not 
later than July 1, 1998, and shall be carried out at up to 10 
geographically dispersed medical centers of the Department of Veterans 
Affairs.
    (2) At least one of each of the following models shall be used at 
no less than two of the demonstration projects:
            (A) A specialized clinic which serves Persian Gulf 
        veterans.
            (B) Multidisciplinary treatment aimed at managing symptoms.
            (C) Use of case managers.
    (3) A demonstration project under this subsection may be undertaken 
in conjunction with another funding entity, including agreements under 
section 8111 of title 38, United States Code.
    (4) The Secretary shall make available from appropriated funds 
(which have been retained for contingent funding) $5,000,000 to carry 
out the demonstrations projects.
    (5) The Secretary may not approve a medical center as a location 
for a demonstration project under this subsection unless a peer review 
panel has determined that the proposal submitted by that medical center 
is among those proposals that have met the highest competitive 
standards of clinical merit and the Secretary has determined that the 
facility has the ability to--
            (A) attract the participation of clinicians of outstanding 
        caliber and innovation to the project; and
            (B) effectively evaluate the activities of the project.
    (6) In determining which medical centers to select as locations for 
demonstration projects under this subsection, the Secretary shall give 
special priority to medical centers that have demonstrated a capability 
to compete successfully for extramural funding support for research 
into the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the care provided 
under the demonstration project.

SEC. 7. PERSONNEL POLICY.

    Section 7425 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(c)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, employees 
described in paragraph (2), and the personnel positions in which such 
employees are employed, are not subject to any reduction required by 
law or executive branch policy in the number or percentage of 
employees, or of personnel positions, within specified pay grades.
    ``(2) Paragraph (1) applies to employees, and personnel positions, 
of the Veterans Health Administration performing the following 
functions:
            ``(A) The provision of, or the supervision of the provision 
        of, care and services to patients.
            ``(B) The conduct of research.''.

SEC. 8. VETERANS CANTEEN SERVICE.

    (a) Authority To Set Prices.--Paragraph (7) of section 7802 of 
title 38, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
            ``(7) notwithstanding any other provision of law, have sole 
        authority to establish canteens (including vending facilities 
        and vending machines), and determine, and fix the prices of, 
        merchandise and services sold at such canteens;''.
    (b) Off-Premises Use.--Section 7803 of such title is amended--
            (1) by striking out ``in this subsection;'' and all that 
        follows through ``the premises'' and inserting in lieu thereof 
        ``in this section''; and
            (2) by striking out subsection (b).
    (c) Support Services.--(1) Section 7803 of such title is further 
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(b) A canteen may provide support services to medical facilities 
of the Department. Such services shall be provided on a reimbursable 
basis.''.
    (d) Technical Amendments.--(1) Paragraphs (1) and (11) of section 
7802 of such title are each amended by striking out ``hospitals and 
homes'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``medical facilities''.
    (2) Section 7803(a) of such title is further amended--
            (A) by striking out ``hospitals and homes'' each place it 
        appears and inserting in lieu thereof ``medical facilities''; 
        and
            (B) by striking out ``hospital or home'' and inserting in 
        lieu thereof ``medical facility''.
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