[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1441 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1441

 To amend title 38, United States Code, to modify authorities for the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs to accept new applications for grants for 
 State home construction projects, to authorize the Secretary to award 
 grants for construction of facilities used in non-institutional care 
                   programs, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 21, 2007

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title 38, United States Code, to modify authorities for the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs to accept new applications for grants for 
 State home construction projects, to authorize the Secretary to award 
 grants for construction of facilities used in non-institutional care 
                   programs, 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 ``State Veterans Home Modernization 
Act of 2007''.

SEC. 2. MODIFICATION OF AUTHORITIES FOR CONSTRUCTION OF STATE HOMES.

    (a) Prohibition on Approval of New Grants for New Construction That 
Would Expand the Number of Beds in State Homes in a State.--Section 
8135 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 
the following new subsection:
    ``(g)(1) The Secretary shall not approve any application for 
financial assistance under this subchapter that is first submitted 
after the date that is 730 days after the date of the enactment of this 
subsection if the Secretary determines that the construction for which 
the assistance is sought would result in an increase in the total 
number of beds in such State for which the Secretary makes payments 
under section 1741(a)(1) of this title.
    ``(2) The Secretary shall allow a State to modify an application to 
meet the requirements of this subsection and the modified application 
shall be treated as submitted on the date of the original 
application.''.
    (b) Disapproval of Projects That Lack Matching Funds.--
            (1) In general.--Notwithstanding section 8135(c)(5) of such 
        title, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall disapprove any 
        application for financial assistance under subchapter III of 
        chapter 81 of such title that--
                    (A) was submitted under section 8135 of such title 
                on or before the 730th day after the date of the 
                enactment of this Act;
                    (B) after the date that is 730 days after the date 
                of the enactment of this Act--
                            (i) is on the list of approved projects 
                        established under subsection (c)(4) of such 
                        section; and
                            (ii) has not been accorded priority under 
                        subsection (c)(2)(A) of such section; and
                    (C) the Secretary determines that the construction 
                for which the assistance is sought would result in an 
                increase in the total number of beds in such State for 
                which the Secretary makes payments under section 
                1741(a)(1) of such title.
            (2) No notice or opportunity for hearing required.--Section 
        8135(d) of such title shall not apply to a disapproval under 
        paragraph (1).

SEC. 3. EXPANSION OF STATE HOME GRANT PROGRAM TO INCLUDE GRANTS FOR 
              NON-INSTITUTIONAL CARE PROGRAMS.

    (a) Definitions.--Section 8131 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (3)--
                    (A) by striking ``domiciliary or'' and inserting 
                ``non-institutional care, domiciliary,''; and
                    (B) by striking ``provision of'' and inserting 
                ``provision of non-institutional care or''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(5) The term `non-institutional care' means care 
        consisting of services described in paragraphs (4), (5), and 
        (6) of section 1710B(a) of this title.''.
    (b) Authorization of Grants.--Section 8132 of such title is amended 
to read as follows:
``Sec. 8132. Declaration of purpose
    ``The purpose of this subchapter is to assist the several States in 
the following:
            ``(1) Constructing--
                    ``(A) State home facilities (or acquiring 
                facilities to be used as State home facilities) for 
                furnishing domiciliary or nursing home care to 
                veterans; and
                    ``(B) non-institutional care facilities (or to 
                acquire facilities to be used as non-institutional care 
                facilities) for furnishing non-institutional care to 
                veterans.
            ``(2) Expanding, remodeling, or altering existing buildings 
        for--
                    ``(A) furnishing domiciliary, nursing home, adult 
                day health, or hospital care to veterans in State 
                homes; and
                    ``(B) furnishing non-institutional care to veterans 
                in non-institutional care programs.''.
    (c) Modification of Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 
8133(a) of such title is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``(1)'' before ``There are'';
            (2) by designating the second sentence as paragraph (2) and 
        indenting the margin of such paragraph, as so designated, two 
        ems from the left margin;
            (3) in paragraph (2), as so designated by paragraph (2) of 
        this subsection, by striking ``Sums appropriated'' and 
        inserting ``Subject to paragraph (3), sums appropriated''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
    ``(3) In the case of each fiscal year beginning after September 30, 
2007, not less than 10 percent of sums appropriated for construction 
under this subchapter shall be used for making grants to States which 
have submitted, and have had approved by the Secretary, applications 
for non-institutional care projects.''.
    (d) Applications.--Section 8135(a) of such title is amended--
            (1) in the matter before paragraph (1), by inserting ``or 
        non-institutional care'' after ``State home'' both places it 
        appears; and
            (2) in paragraph (4), by inserting ``, in the case of a 
        State home facility,'' after ``and''.
    (e) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Section 1741(a)(2) of such title is amended by striking 
        ``extended care services'' and inserting ``non-institutional 
        care services''.
            (2) Section 8136 of such title is amended by striking ``or 
        hospital care'' and inserting ``hospital care, or non-
        institutional care''.
            (3) Section 8137 of such title is amended inserting ``or 
        non-institutional care program'' after ``State home''.
            (4) The heading at the beginning of subchapter III of 
        chapter 81 of such title, is amended to read as follows:

``SUBCHAPTER III--FACILITIES FOR STATE HOMES AND NON-INSTITUTIONAL CARE 
                              PROGRAMS''.

    (f) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
such chapter is amended by striking the item related to subchapter III 
and inserting the following new item:

   ``subchapter iii--facilities for state homes and non-institutional 
                            care programs''.

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