[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1978 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1978

 To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a veterans 
              conservation corps, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 22, 2015

 Mr. Polis (for himself, Mr. Caardenas, Mr. Grayson, Mr. Hastings, Mr. 
Lowenthal, Mrs. Napolitano, Mr. Rangel, Mr. Veasey, Mr. Cartwright, Mr. 
Israel, Mr. Sarbanes, Mr. Sires, Ms. DeLauro, Mrs. Bustos, Mr. Deutch, 
Mr. Walz, Ms. Kaptur, Mr. Ruiz, Mr. Murphy of Florida, Mr. Cleaver, Mr. 
 Conyers, Mr. Garamendi, Mr. McGovern, Ms. Speier, Ms. Norton, and Mr. 
    Nolan) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on 
 Transportation and Infrastructure, the Judiciary, and Science, Space, 
   and Technology, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
  Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a veterans 
              conservation corps, 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 Conservation Corps Act of 
2015''.

SEC. 2. VETERANS CONSERVATION CORPS.

    (a) Establishment.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall, 
        in cooperation with the Attorney General, the Secretary of 
        Agriculture, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of 
        Homeland Security, the Secretary of the Interior, the Chief 
        Executive Officer of the Corporation for National and Community 
        Service, and the Chief of Engineers, establish a veterans 
        conservation corps to assist veterans in the transition from 
        service in the Armed Forces to civilian life and to employ 
        veterans--
                    (A) in conservation, resource management, 
                firefighting, law enforcement, and historic 
                preservation projects on public lands and maintenance 
                and improvement projects for cemeteries under the 
                jurisdiction of the National Cemetery Administration; 
                and
                    (B) as firefighters, law enforcement officers, and 
                disaster relief personnel.
            (2) Veteran eligibility.--To be eligible to participate in 
        the veterans conservation corps, a veteran shall be unemployed.
    (b) Conservation, Resource Management, Historic Preservation, and 
Cemetery Maintenance and Improvement Projects.--
            (1) In general.--As part of the veterans conservation 
        corps, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the Secretary of 
        Agriculture, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of the 
        Interior, the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation for 
        National and Community Service, and the Chief of Engineers 
        shall--
                    (A) employ veterans to carry out projects described 
                in subsection (a)(1); and
                    (B) award grants to, or enter into contracts with, 
                State governments, local governments, or 
                nongovernmental entities to employ veterans to carry 
                out projects described in subsection (a)(1).
            (2) Priority.--In employing or awarding grants or contracts 
        to employ veterans under this subsection, the Secretaries 
        referred to in paragraph (1) and the Chief of Engineers shall 
        give priority towards the employment of veterans who served on 
        active duty in the Armed Forces on or after September 11, 2001.
            (3) Coordination.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
        coordinate the activities of the Secretary of Agriculture, the 
        Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of the Interior, the Chief 
        Executive Officer of the Corporation for National and Community 
        Service, and the Chief of Engineers to employ veterans as part 
        of the veterans conservation corps.
            (4) Oversight of projects.--The Secretaries referred to in 
        paragraph (1) and the Chief of Engineers shall each provide 
        oversight of the projects for which they employ veterans under 
        subparagraph (A) of such paragraph or award grants or enter 
        into contracts under subparagraph (B) of such paragraph.
    (c) First Responders.--
            (1) Firefighters.--As part of the veterans conservation 
        corps, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall award grants 
        under section 34 of the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act 
        of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2229a) to hire veterans as firefighters.
            (2) Law enforcement officers.--As part of the veterans 
        conservation corps, the Attorney General shall award grants 
        under part Q of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
        Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796dd et seq.) to hire veterans 
        as law enforcement officers.
            (3) Disaster relief personnel.--As part of the veterans 
        conservation corps, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall 
        provide funds to increase participation by veterans in the FEMA 
        Corps program, which is a partnership between the Corporation 
        for National and Community Service and the Federal Emergency 
        Management Agency.
            (4) Priority.--In awarding grants or providing funds under 
        this subsection to hire veterans, the Secretary of Homeland 
        Security and the Attorney General shall give priority to the 
        hiring of veterans who served on active duty in the Armed 
        Forces on or after September 11, 2001.
    (d) Assistance.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may 
        provide assistance to the Secretaries referred to in subsection 
        (a), the Attorney General, the Chief of Engineers, and the 
        Chief Executive Officer to carry out the veterans conservation 
        corps. Such assistance may take the form of a transfer under 
        paragraph (2).
            (2) Transfers.--Except as otherwise provided in this 
        subsection, of amounts appropriated or otherwise made available 
        to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out this section, 
        the Secretary of Veterans Affairs may transfer such amounts as 
        the Secretary considers appropriate to carry out the veterans 
        conservation corps to the following:
                    (A) The Attorney General.
                    (B) The Secretary of Agriculture.
                    (C) The Secretary of Commerce.
                    (D) The Secretary of Homeland Security.
                    (E) The Secretary of the Interior.
                    (F) The Corporation for National and Community 
                Service.
                    (G) The Chief of Engineers.
            (3) Assistance for conservation, resource management, 
        historic preservation, and cemetery maintenance and improvement 
        projects.--
                    (A) Application.--If a Secretary referred to in 
                subsection (b)(1) or the Chief of Engineers or the 
                Chief Executive Officer seeks assistance under 
                paragraph (1) to employ a veteran to carry out a 
                project under subparagraph (A) of subsection (b)(1) or 
                to award a grant or contract to carry out a project 
                under subparagraph (B) of such subsection, such 
                Secretary or the Chief of Engineers shall submit to the 
                Secretary of Veterans Affairs an application therefor 
                at such time, in such manner, and containing such 
                information as the Secretary of Veterans Affairs may 
                require.
                    (B) Selection.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
                shall, in consultation with the steering committee 
                established under subparagraph (C), award assistance 
                under this paragraph in accordance with such criteria 
                as the steering committee establishes.
                    (C) Steering committee.--
                            (i) In general.--The Secretary of Veterans 
                        Affairs shall establish a steering committee--
                                    (I) to establish selection criteria 
                                for the awarding of assistance under 
                                paragraph (1) to employ a veteran to 
                                carry out a project under subparagraph 
                                (A) of subsection (b)(1) or to award a 
                                grant or contract to carry out a 
                                project under subparagraph (B) of such 
                                subsection; and
                                    (II) to provide the Secretary of 
                                Veterans Affairs with advice on 
                                awarding assistance under this 
                                subsection with respect to projects 
                                described in subsection (a)(1) and 
                                carrying out the requirements of the 
                                veterans conservation corps under 
                                subsection (b).
                            (ii) Composition.--The steering committee 
                        shall be composed of the following:
                                    (I) The Secretary of Veterans 
                                Affairs.
                                    (II) The Secretary of Agriculture.
                                    (III) The Secretary of Commerce.
                                    (IV) The Secretary of the Interior.
                                    (V) The Corporation for National 
                                and Community Service.
                                    (VI) The Chief of Engineers.
                            (iii) Chairperson.--The chairperson of the 
                        steering committee shall be the Secretary of 
                        Veterans Affairs.
                            (iv) Advisory input.--The Secretary of 
                        Defense, the Secretary of Labor, and the Chief 
                        Executive Officer of the Corporation for 
                        National and Community Service may provide 
                        advice to the steering committee.
            (4) Assistance for first responders.--Not more than 10 
        percent of amounts appropriated or otherwise made available to 
        the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out this section may 
        be transferred to the Attorney General and the Secretary of 
        Homeland Security to employ veterans under subsection (c).
    (e) Reporting Framework.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
establish a reporting framework to regularly monitor and evaluate the 
veterans conservation corps to ensure proper oversight and 
accountability of the veterans conservation corps.
    (f) Outreach.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall ensure that 
veterans employed under the veterans conservation corps are aware of 
benefits and assistance available to them under laws administered by 
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
    (g) Donations.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may solicit, 
accept, hold, administer, use, and dispose of, in furtherance of the 
purpose of this Act, donations of any money or property, real, 
personal, or mixed, tangible or intangible, received by gift, devise, 
bequest, or otherwise. Donations accepted under this subparagraph shall 
be used as nearly as possible in accordance with the terms, if any, of 
such donation.
    (h) Authorization of Appropriations.--
            (1) In general.--There is available without further 
        appropriation to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out 
        this section, $600,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2016 
        through 2020.
            (2) Limitation.--Of amounts appropriated or otherwise made 
        available to carry out this section, not more than five percent 
        may be spent to administer the veterans conservation corps.
    (i) Definition of Veteran.--In this section, the term ``veteran'' 
has the meaning given the term in section 101 of title 38, United 
States Code.
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