[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1160 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1160

 To amend section 1714 of title 38, United States Code, to modify the 
authority of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide dog-guides to 
 blind veterans and authorize the provision of service dogs to hearing-
impaired veterans and veterans with spinal cord injuries, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 10, 2001

Mr. Rockefeller introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
             referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend section 1714 of title 38, United States Code, to modify the 
authority of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide dog-guides to 
 blind veterans and authorize the provision of service dogs to hearing-
impaired veterans and veterans with spinal cord injuries, 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. MODIFICATION AND ENHANCEMENT OF AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE DOG-
              GUIDES AND SERVICE DOGS TO VETERANS WITH DISABILITIES.

    (a) Enhancement of Authority.--Subsection (b) of section 1714 of 
title 38, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
    ``(b)(1) The Secretary may provide any blind veteran who is 
entitled to disability compensation with--
            ``(A) a dog-guide trained for the aid of the blind; and
            ``(B) mechanical or electronic equipment for aid in 
        overcoming the disability of blindness.
    ``(2) The Secretary may provide a service dog to the following:
            ``(A) Any hearing-impaired veteran who is entitled to 
        disability compensation.
            ``(B) Any veteran with a spinal cord injury or dysfunction 
        who is entitled to disability compensation.
    ``(3) In providing a dog-guide or service dog to a veteran under 
this subsection, the Secretary may pay travel and incidental expenses 
(under the terms and conditions set forth in section 111 of this title) 
of the veteran to and from the veteran's home and incurred in becoming 
adjusted to the dog-guide or service dog, as the case may be.''.
    (b) Conforming and Clerical Amendments.--(1) The section heading of 
that section is amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 1714. Fitting and training in use of prosthetic appliances; dog-
              guides and service dogs''
    (2) The table of section at the beginning of chapter 17 of that 
title is amended by striking the item relating to section 1714 and 
inserting the following new item:

``1714. Fitting and training in use of prosthetic appliances; dog-
                            guides and service dogs.''.
                                 <all>