118 S5074 IS: Protecting Regular Order for Veterans Act of 2024
U.S. Senate
2024-09-17
text/xml
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II
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 5074
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
September 17, 2024
Mr. Sullivan (for himself, Mr. Wicker, Mr. Daines, Mr. Tuberville, Mrs. Blackburn, Ms. Ernst, Mr. Ricketts, Mr. Budd, Mr. Braun, Mr. Cassidy, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Grassley, Ms. Murkowski, Mr. Tillis, and Mrs. Fischer) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
A BILL
To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide to Congress quarterly briefings on budgetary shortfalls of the Department of Veterans Affairs and to prohibit the provision of bonuses to Department of Veterans Affairs employees in Senior Executive Service positions in fiscal years with budgetary shortfalls, and for other purposes.
1.

Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Protecting Regular Order for Veterans Act of 2024” or the “PRO Veterans Act of 2024”.
2.

Matters addressing Department of Veterans Affairs budgetary shortfalls
(a)

Quarterly briefings
(1)

Quarterly briefings required
During the first quarter beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act and in each quarter thereafter until the date that is three years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall provide to the appropriate committees of Congress a quarterly briefing, in person, on the budget of the Department of Veterans Affairs and any shortfall the Department may be experiencing.
(2)

Plans
In any case in which the Secretary informs Congress during a briefing under paragraph (1) that the Department is experiencing a shortfall, the Secretary shall, during such briefing, present the plans of the Secretary to address or mitigate the shortfall.
(b)

Prohibition on provision of bonuses to certain Department of Veterans Affairs employees in Senior Executive Service positions in calendar years with certain budgetary shortfalls
(1)

Prohibition
(A)

Department of Veterans Affairs
Subject to paragraph (2), during a period described in subparagraph (C), the Secretary may not provide any bonus or cash award to any employee or officer of the Department who works in the central office of the Department in a Senior Executive Service position, or a position in another comparable system for senior-level Government employees, if the Secretary submits to the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate or the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives a request for an appropriation for the Department for that fiscal year and the request is not submitted in the course of a proceeding relating to—
(i)
the preparation, submittal, or presentation of the budget of the President submitted pursuant to section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, for the applicable fiscal year; or
(ii)
a midsession review by either of such committees.
(B)

Office of management and budget
Subject to paragraph (2), during a period described in subparagraph (C), the Director of the Office of Management and Budget may not provide any bonus or cash award to any employee or officer of the Office of Management and Budget who serves in a Senior Executive Service position, or a position in another comparable system for senior-level Government employees, if the Secretary submits to the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate or the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives a request for an appropriation for the Department for that fiscal year and the request is not submitted in the course of a proceeding relating to—
(i)
the preparation, submittal, or presentation of the budget of the President submitted pursuant to section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, for the applicable fiscal year; or
(ii)
a midsession review by either of such committees.
(C)

Period
A period described in this subparagraph is any period—
(i)
beginning on the date on which the Secretary submits a request described in subparagraph (A); and
(ii)
ending on the last day of the fiscal year during which the Secretary submits such request.
(2)

Sunset
The prohibitions in paragraph (1) shall terminate on the date that is three years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(c)

Definitions
In this section:
(1)

Appropriate committees of Congress
The term appropriate committees of Congress means—
(A)
the Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and
(B)
the Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
(2)

Senior Executive Service position
The term Senior Executive Service position has the meaning given such term in section 3132(a) of title 5, United States Code.
(3)

Shortfall
The term shortfall, with respect to a fiscal year, means that the amount of appropriations required by the Department of Veterans Affairs for such fiscal year to meet all of the statutory obligations of the Department during that fiscal year exceeds the amount of appropriations requested for the Department for that fiscal in the budget of the President submitted pursuant to section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, for that fiscal year.
3.

Report on Department of Veterans Affairs positions created since October 1, 2022
(a)

Report required
Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to Congress a report on positions of employment created within the Department of Veterans Affairs during the period beginning on October 1, 2022, and ending on the date of the enactment of this Act.
(b)

Contents
The report submitted pursuant to subsection (a) shall include the following:
(1)
A description for each position of employment described in subsection (a).
(2)
For each position described pursuant to paragraph (1), the following:
(A)
The job description.
(B)
The compensation.
(C)
Bonuses provided.
(D)
Remote work status.