[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2344 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2344

To amend title 38, United States Code, to make certain improvements in 
 the vocational rehabilitation programs of the Department of Veterans 
                                Affairs.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 14, 2015

 Mr. Wenstrup introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to make certain improvements in 
 the vocational rehabilitation programs of the Department of Veterans 
                                Affairs.

    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 Vocational Rehabilitation 
and Employment Improvement Act of 2015''.

SEC. 2. APPROVAL OF COURSES OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING FOR PURPOSES OF 
              THE VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION PROGRAM OF THE DEPARTMENT 
              OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) In General.--Section 3104(b) of title 38, United States Code, 
is amended by adding at the end the following new sentence: ``To the 
maximum extent practicable, a course of education or training may be 
pursued by a veteran as part of a rehabilitation program under this 
chapter only if the course is approved for purposes of chapter 30 or 33 
of this title. The Secretary may waive the requirement under the 
preceding sentence to the extent the Secretary determines 
appropriate.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to a course of education or training pursued by a 
veteran who first begins a program of rehabilitation under chapter 31 
of title 38, United States Code, on or after the date that is one year 
after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 3. ELIGIBILITY OF CERTAIN VETERANS ENROLLED IN VOCATIONAL 
              REHABILITATION PROGRAMS FOR SPECIALLY ADAPTED HOUSING 
              PROVIDED BY THE SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) In General.--Section 2101(a)(2)(A) of title 38, United States 
Code, is amended--
            (1) in clause (i), by striking ``or'' at the end;
            (2) in clause (ii), by striking the period and inserting 
        ``; or''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(iii) has a disability for which the veteran is 
                eligible for a rehabilitation program under chapter 31 
                of this title and is referred for assistance under this 
                section pursuant to section 2107 of this title.''.
    (b) Amount of Assistance.--Section 2102(d) of such title is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) by striking ``The aggregate'' and inserting 
                ``(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the 
                aggregate''; and
                    (B) by inserting at the end the following new 
                subparagraph:
    ``(B) The Secretary may waive the limitation in subparagraph (A) in 
the case of a veteran described in section 2101(a)(2)(A)(iii).''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
    ``(4) The Secretary shall submit to the Committees on Veterans' 
Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives a biennial report on 
the use of the waiver authority under paragraph (1)(B).''.
    (c) Bar to Dual Eligibility for Home Adaptation Services.--Section 
3102 of such title is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subsection:
    ``(c) Bar to Dual Eligibility for Home Adaptation Services.--A 
person who receives adaptive housing assistance by reason of section 
2101(a)(2)(A)(iii) of this title may not also receive home adaptation 
services under this chapter.''.
    (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect on the date that is 180 days after the date of the enactment of 
this Act.

SEC. 4. AUTHORITY TO PRIORITIZE VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION SERVICES 
              BASED ON NEED.

    Section 3104 of title 38, United States Code, as amended by section 
3, is further amended by adding at the end the following new 
subsection:
    ``(c)(1) The Secretary shall have the authority to administer this 
chapter by prioritizing the provision of services under this chapter 
based on need, as determined by the Secretary. In evaluating need for 
purposes of this subsection, the Secretary shall consider disability 
ratings, the severity of employment handicaps, qualification for a 
program of independent living, income, and any other factor the 
Secretary determines appropriate.
    ``(2) Not later than 90 days before making any changes to the 
prioritization of the provision of services under this chapter as 
authorized under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall submit to Congress 
a plan describing such changes.''.

SEC. 5. REDUCTION IN REDUNDANCY AND INEFFICIENCIES IN VOCATIONAL 
              REHABILITATION CLAIMS PROCESSING.

    (a) Vocational Rehabilitation Claims.--The Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs shall reduce redundancy and inefficiencies in the use of 
information technology to process claims for rehabilitation programs 
under chapter 31 of title 38, United States Code, by--
            (1) ensuring that all payments for and on behalf of 
        veterans participating in a rehabilitation program under such 
        chapter are only processed and paid out of one corporate 
        information technology system, in order to eliminate the 
        redundancy of multiple information technology payment systems; 
        and
            (2) enhancing the information technology system supporting 
        veterans participating in such a program to support more 
        accurate accounting of services and outcomes for such veterans.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2016 
$10,000,000 to carry out this section.
    (c) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit 
to Congress a report on the changes made pursuant to subsection (a).
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