[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 78 (Thursday, June 2, 2011)]
[House]
[Pages H3964-H3977]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    MILITARY CONSTRUCTION AND VETERANS AFFAIRS AND RELATED AGENCIES 
                        APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2012

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 288 and rule 
XVIII, the Chair declares the House in the Committee of the Whole House 
on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill, H.R. 2055.

                              {time}  1903


                     In the Committee of the Whole

  Accordingly, the House resolved itself into the Committee of the 
Whole House on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill 
(H.R. 2055) making appropriations for military construction, the 
Department of Veterans Affairs, and related agencies for the fiscal 
year ending September 30, 2012, and for other purposes, with Mr. Terry 
in the chair.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The CHAIR. Pursuant to the rule, the bill is considered read the 
first time.
  The gentleman from Texas (Mr. Culberson) and the gentleman from 
Georgia (Mr. Bishop) each will control 30 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.
  Mr. CULBERSON. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Chairman, it's my privilege to lay out tonight for the House for 
consideration the appropriations bill for Military Construction and 
Veterans Affairs, and my good friend, Mr. Sanford Bishop of Georgia, we 
have worked together arm in arm in this committee to make sure that our 
men and women in uniform have everything they need to do their job. We 
on this committee think of our job as sort of we are the peace of mind 
committee for the United States military and for our veterans.
  We have an obligation--this Congress, this government--has an 
obligation, first and foremost, to provide for national security, to 
make sure that our men and women in uniform, not only here at home, but 
overseas have everything they need to do their job.
  The scope of our appropriations bill today includes construction, of 
course, of all the military bases here and overseas. We have fully 
funded in this bill all the requests of the branches of the military 
for our men and women in uniform on active duty. We've made sure that 
all the retired men and women who have served this Nation have 
everything they need when it comes to the veterans hospitals, the 
Department of Veterans Affairs.
  We are laying before the House tonight this funding bill as a part of 
our Nation's--I like to also think of it as part of our Nation's 
mortgage payment. This is one of those fundamental obligations that we 
have as a government to ensure that our military is fully funded, that 
they've got the equipment, the logistical support that they need, that 
their housing is the best it can be, that the facilities are the very 
best they can be, and this is one of those fundamental obligations 
we've absolutely got to take care of.
  In this bill and in all the appropriations bills, Mr. Chairman, 
brought to the House for the first time, this new Republican majority, 
this conservative majority is for the first time--money that has been 
left in the Treasury unspent in previous years was just spent in other 
areas. For the first time under the leadership of Chairman Hal Rogers 
of Kentucky, our committee, the other subcommittees of Appropriations, 
are returning that unspent money back to taxpayers to reduce the 
deficit.
  Chairman Rogers and the leadership of the House, Speaker Boehner, our 
Republican leadership, all of us are committed to bringing the Nation--
doing everything in our power to get back to a balanced budget, to 
reduce Federal spending, to bring the size, scope, and cost of the 
Federal Government back under control.
  While we recognize our responsibility to fully fund and take care of 
our troops in military construction, of our veterans in the Veterans 
Affairs, the hospitals, through the VA, we also have an obligation to 
manage the money in a way that's fiscally sound. So we've identified 
rescissions, or returned money, unspent money, to taxpayers in the 
amount of $388 million, again, the first time that's ever be done.
  Again, these savings don't impact in any way the level of services 
provided to our veterans. This in no way impacts or diminishes the 
quality of housing or the level of service necessary on bases here in 
the United States or overseas.
  But we have found savings. For example, $100 million in planning and 
design money that was left over from previous years. We found $100 
million in unspent funds from the BRAC, the Base Realignment and 
Closure Commission in 1990, money that was unspent and left over. We 
found money in a variety of accounts, Mr. Chairman, that in previous 
years would have been respent elsewhere.
  And under the leadership of Chairman Rogers and Speaker Boehner, our

[[Page H3965]]

subcommittee, every subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee is 
committed to return that money to taxpayers and to find savings 
everywhere we can that will not diminish, again, the level of service 
provided to our military because we want to make sure they have 
absolutely no worries as they stand on the wall defending our freedom 
every night, every day, 24/7.
  We have also incrementally funded, Mr. Chairman, five projects and 
found savings of $304 million that we have been able to return to 
taxpayers. In three cases, we found there's three projects which we did 
not fund for the F-35 aircraft facility at the Nellis Air Force Base in 
Nevada because that aircraft is not ready to be fully deployed. There 
is a central distribution facility in Germany, a commissary building, a 
variety of savings that we've looked for, not just unspent money but 
looking for ways we can save money for taxpayers while maintaining that 
very high level of service for our men and women in uniform while being 
good stewards of the public's precious tax dollars.
  In the areas of Veterans Affairs, Mr. Chairman, we were able to find 
savings of $25 million in the general administration of the VA. We also 
found savings of $136 million in information technology. And in a whole 
separate category of accounts for minor construction, we saved about 
$75 million there. All of this money has been returned to taxpayers to 
reduce the deficit, to do everything we can within our power to reduce 
the level of obligation that our children and grandchildren are going 
to inherit.
  Finally, I want to point out we also found savings--the U.S. Court of 
Appeals for Veterans Claims had asked for a new courthouse. And in 
light of the unprecedented size of the debt and the deficit, we did not 
recommend to the House that that new courthouse be built. That resulted 
in a $25 million savings. The Court of Appeals for Veteran Claims does 
a great job. They're working in a leased facility right now, and we 
recommend that that be continued.
  Mr. Chairman, the situation the Nation faces today is truly 
unprecedented. We calculated that about $2.2 trillion in revenue comes 
into the Treasury every year, yet the existing obligations of the 
Federal Government to pay the current liability of Social Security, 
Medicare, Medicaid, interest on the national debt, and our veterans 
benefits are all programs that have to be funded upfront. That is sort 
of our national mortgage payment. And those programs alone consume $2.3 
trillion.
  So if you just look at the math, right out of the gate, the Nation 
begins the year, at the stroke of midnight on the first day of the 
year, American taxpayers are already $105 billion in debt.

                              {time}  1910

  So every dollar the Appropriations Committee spends all year is 
borrowed. This is why you see fiscal conservatives, all of us, 
constitutional conservatives in this new majority are so passionate, so 
determined to get us back on path to a balanced budget, to do 
everything we can within each one of these subcommittees to find 
savings. I am so grateful to Chairman Rogers and Speaker Boehner for 
the first time returning unspent money to reduce the deficit.
  We have had to reduce the overall amount of money available to every 
sector of the government dramatically. And it is tough. We have a lot 
of tough savings. But in the area of supporting our military, when it 
comes to making sure that they have got the best equipment, that they 
have got the absolute best in their housing and their hospital care, 
whether you are active duty military or if you are retired and in the 
care of the Veterans Administration, you can be sure that the United 
States Congress stands behind you. We are immensely proud of you. We 
have made sure that we have fully funded every need that you have got, 
and we have made sure that you are given the absolute best medical 
care.
  All of the family members out there who have sons or daughters or 
fathers or mothers serving in the U.S. military need to know that, 
despite this tough budget environment, this Congress stands behind your 
father, your mother, your brother, your sister who serves in the 
military, and we are absolutely committed to ensuring that they have 
the very best equipment possible on the face of the Earth, that they 
have got everything they need to do their job, to stand on the wall 
defending this great Nation 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, as they do 
so beautifully.
  We are very fortunate on this subcommittee, Mr. Chairman. We have an 
extraordinary group of people working behind the scenes--we have had 
for years--to make sure that this subcommittee has produced a bill that 
this House can support in a bipartisan way with great pride.
  I want to make sure to thank our extraordinary staff: Tim Peterson 
who is our chief clerk of the subcommittee and has served with the 
Appropriations Committee for 22 years and served on the staff of the 
Secretary of the Navy for 9 years. Tim has done an extraordinary job, 
and I am very grateful to him for the time and effort he has put into 
this bill. I want to thank Sue Quantius for her work on the committee 
and her expertise when it comes to veterans affairs. To Sarah Young who 
has done such an extraordinary job as well and has been such a great 
asset. They have all done a magnificent job, and we are lucky to have 
them.
  On the minority side, Matt Washington has just done an extraordinary 
job, as has Danny Cromer. All of us have worked together, arm in arm. 
My good friend, Mr. Bishop from Georgia.
  This is one bill, Mr. Chairman, that I know that Members of the House 
will be able to support in a bipartisan way with great pride because 
our subcommittee has produced this bill in a bipartisan way without 
regard to party label. Our entire focus has been: How can we make sure 
that our men and women in uniform, active duty and retired, have got 
everything they need? How can we be better stewards of the taxpayers' 
precious dollars?
  We identified things, for example, we share a concern for money that 
was unspent. Veterans hospitals and the giant facilities like the new 
one in Denver that I understand had $978 million unspent for years, and 
we put language in this bill telling them they are going to lose that 
money after 5 years unless they make sure that they get it obligated 
and get these hospitals built.
  We had great support from Mr. Bishop on ensuring that our veterans 
who have valid claims for disabilities get those disability claims 
handled in an expeditious way.
  We worked together arm in arm not just to find savings, but to make 
sure we identify efficiencies. How can we make sure that our men and 
women in uniform not only have the best housing, but veterans who are 
retired are given the best possible service?
  We have, on every occasion throughout the year working on this bill, 
found that we have areas of agreement in this bill, and we produce it 
in a way that is really unanimous. It is a real privilege for me to 
work with Mr. Bishop and with our ranking member from Washington State, 
Mr. Dicks. It has been a real privilege to work with him.
  But above all, I am extraordinarily proud to serve as the 
subcommittee chairman under my chairman, Hal Rogers of Kentucky, who I 
count as a role model and as a mentor to me. Mr. Rogers has been a very 
good friend and a great leader for this committee and is a stalwart 
fiscal conservative, committed to making sure that our men and women in 
uniform continue to be the very best military in the world.
  It is my privilege to be here tonight to present this bipartisan bill 
to the House.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  I am pleased to join Chairman Culberson as the House takes up the 
fiscal year 2012 appropriations bill for Military Construction, 
Veterans Affairs, and related agencies. The MilCon-VA bill is 
critically important to the strength and the well-being of our 
military, our veterans, and the families who sacrificed so much to 
defend our country.
  Working with Chairman Culberson and the members of the subcommittee, 
we have crafted a bill that will address the funding needs for military 
construction and family housing for our troops and for their families, 
as well as other quality of life construction projects.
  In addition, it will provide funding for many important VA programs 
as

[[Page H3966]]

well as agencies like the Veterans Court of Appeals and the American 
Battle Monuments Commission.
  The bill before us today touches every soldier, every sailor, every 
marine, and every airman. In addition, this bill will also impact 
military spouses, their children, and every veteran that participates 
in veterans programs.
  I want to commend Chairman Culberson for his hard work. He has done 
his best to hold hearings that he believes are important to the work of 
the subcommittee. Together we sat through 12 hearings, gaining valuable 
insight into the working of all of the agencies under the 
subcommittee's jurisdiction.
  I would like to thank all of the subcommittee members and recognize 
them for their hard work on the bill.
  I believe that the minority was treated fairly during this process, 
and I want to thank Chairman Culberson for that. We worked very well in 
a very collegial fashion, and I think that is the way that this 
institution should work.
  Chairman Culberson has already provided the funding highlights in the 
bill, and I won't repeat them all, but I want to point out a few items 
that I think are extremely important.
  The Department of Defense schools. The bill before us today includes 
$483 million for the renovation and replacement of 15 Department of 
Defense schools. Six schools here in the United States and nine schools 
at overseas installations will be refurbished with this funding. Mr. 
Chairman, I believe that providing the funds for DOD schools will not 
only help our servicemembers' children get a quality education in a 
safe facility, but it will also give our servicemembers some peace of 
mind.
  Medical center replacement. Mr. Chairman, I was pleased that the bill 
includes $1.1 billion for the medical center replacement in Germany. As 
you know, a large proportion of the serious casualties from the Iraq 
and Afghanistan theaters are treated there in Landstuhl, and I am 
pleased to see we are making this very, very important investment.
  Regarding veteran affairs, the bill contains $52.5 billion for 
advance appropriations for medical services, for medical support and 
compliance, and medical facilities at the VA, which is $1.8 billion 
above the amount that was included in the FY 2011 continuing 
resolution.
  Mr. Chairman, I strongly believe that advance funding provides timely 
and predictable funding for the veterans health care system. For 
example, during the delay in the FY 2011 funding, veterans health care 
funding was already in place and the veterans health care programs were 
not subject to the continuing resolution process and our veterans did 
not have to go without their health care.
  Mr. Chairman, overall the bill provides adequate funding for programs 
included in this bill. However, I am troubled by one item. 
Unfortunately, during the full committee markup, an amendment was 
adopted to eliminate funding to implement Executive Order 13502, which 
was issued in February 2009, which addresses project labor agreements, 
PLAs. Now, if you are opposed to that Executive Order, that's fine; but 
using the MilCon-VA bill to address this issue, I believe, is the wrong 
place.

                              {time}  1920

  This language is purely an ideological and political provision that 
really is beyond the scope of this bill.
  If we want to deal with this issue, we should deal with it on a labor 
bill and not on the Military Construction-VA bill. The MilCon-VA bill 
has always enjoyed broad bipartisan support, and has avoided divisive 
issues like this no matter which party has held the gavel. I believe 
including this language only causes unnecessary complications and does 
nothing to help our servicemembers or our veterans.
  Mr. Chairman, please know that as we continue through the process, I 
will work to address this issue because an item like this really has no 
place in a bill that has always placed our troops, their families and 
our veterans above ideology.
  Before I close, I would like to recognize the staff for all of the 
work and the time that they have put into this bill. From the minority 
committee staff, I would like to thank Matt Washington and Danny Cromer 
as well as Michael Reed and Greg Browder from my personal office. From 
the majority committee staff, I would like to thank Tim Peterson, Sue 
Quantius, Sarah Young, and Tracey Russell as well as Alec Fritchie and 
Evan Ewachiw from the chairman's personal office.
  I would also like to thank the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Dicks), 
our ranking member; and the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Rogers), who 
set the standard for the committee and for the subcommittees with their 
collegial relationship in their ability to work together and in their 
efforts to make sure that we move these appropriations bills through 
regular order. I appreciate that very much.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, it is my privilege to yield such time as 
he may consume to the distinguished chairman of the full committee, the 
gentleman from Kentucky, Congressman Hal Rogers.
  Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. I thank the chairman for yielding me this 
time.
  I want to, at the outset, congratulate him on a great job on this 
bill. He and his terrific staff have worked long and hard, along with 
the subcommittee members, to produce, I think, a star of a bill.
  So, on your maiden voyage, Mr. Chairman, congratulations on a good 
job.
  To Mr. Bishop and the minority members of the subcommittee, including 
my distinguished cohort, Mr. Dicks, the ranking on the full committee, 
we've all worked together on this, and we appreciate the collegial 
atmosphere, as Mr. Bishop has said, that has governed this proceeding.
  I rise in support of this act. Colleagues on both sides of the aisle 
agree that our Nation's servicemembers, their families and our veterans 
deserve the greatest quality of care and support for their service and 
their sacrifices. This bill funds their most pressing needs in a timely 
manner while also acknowledging the urgent need to rein in Federal 
spending at a time of historically high and dangerous deficits.
  This legislation provides $72.5 billion in discretionary funding for 
military construction projects, veterans' programs and other agencies 
that support the quality of life of our warfighters, veterans and 
families. This funding level represents a $615 million cut from last 
year's level and a $1.2 billion reduction from the budgetary request.
  The bill fully funds the construction of Department of Defense 
hospitals and clinics, schools and family housing, providing our 
military personnel with the resources to effectively advance U.S. 
missions abroad and the support they need here at home. The bill also 
protects the health and well-being of our veterans, funding medical 
care, disability benefits and education benefits.
  But in addition to adequately funding these programs, the 
subcommittee also made difficult but responsible choices that eliminate 
excess spending wherever appropriate. Much of the reduction in this 
bill comes from savings related to the BRAC process and from 
rescissions of previous year funding left over from lower-than-
estimated construction costs. The bill also includes provisions for 
strong oversight overspending.
  Mr. Chairman, cleaning up the way we spend taxpayer dollars will help 
balance our Nation's budgets, and will show the American taxpayers that 
we can be trusted with their hard-earned money. We can't restrict cuts 
to only some areas of government. All agencies and programs must be 
held accountable to tighter budgets with more stringent supervision.
  Chairman Culberson and members of this subcommittee have shown great 
fiscal restraint and a commitment to real savings in reducing the 
discretionary spending in this bill below the 2011 levels while 
providing the resources our troops and our vets deserve.
  So, again, I want to congratulate Chairman Culberson, Ranking Member 
Bishop, all the members of the subcommittee, and my ranking partner, 
Mr. Dicks, for their great work on this bill. Of course, I want to 
again say how much we appreciate the work of this fine staff, both on 
the minority and majority levels. Great work.

[[Page H3967]]

  Mr. Chairman, I believe this bill is an excellent representation of 
the good work that we can do in Congress when we work together, both as 
we support our troops and our veterans and as we work in regular order 
to fund our government responsibly. I urge my colleagues to support the 
bill.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I am delighted to yield 4 
minutes to the distinguished ranking member of the Defense Subcommittee 
and of the full Appropriations Committee, the gentleman from Washington 
(Mr. Dicks).
  Mr. DICKS. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  Mr. Bishop, I want to congratulate you on being the new ranking 
member on MilCon-VA. I also congratulate Chairman Culberson, who has, I 
think, done an outstanding job, and of course my good friend and 
colleague, Hal Rogers, the chairman of our committee. I want to also 
congratulate the staff. The staff has done an amazing job considering 
we had to go through the 2011 episode and then come right back and get 
the 2012 bill out.
  The MilCon-VA Subcommittee has always had a strong reputation for 
common ground and bipartisanship as members traditionally work together 
to fund the construction of military facilities and strive to improve 
the quality of life and care afforded to our veterans and military 
families.
  Many years ago, during the Reagan administration, we got David 
Stockman to allow us and Cap Weinberger to do incremental funding on 
military hospitals, and I'm glad the committee has gone back to an 
incremental funding approach. I think it's the only way we can do these 
major projects.
  We all acknowledge the challenges facing the Nation today with 
respect to the debt and deficit, and I believe this bill has done a 
commendable job in addressing these fiscal challenges while ensuring 
that we are not impacting the level of care and benefits that our 
servicemembers have so rightfully earned.
  Military construction is funded at $14 billion, which is $2.6 billion 
below the FY11 enacted amount and $752 million below the President's 
request. The subcommittee achieved these cuts through the incremental 
funding of projects and by eliminating funding for several projects 
that were ahead of need. As Ranking Member Bishop noted, this bill 
makes a strong investment into Defense Department schools by investing 
$483 million for the construction and replacement of substandard 
facilities. I have been a strong advocate for the modernization of 
schools serving the children of our Nation's servicemembers, and I 
commend the chairman and ranking member on their commitment to this 
effort.
  The Department of Veterans Affairs would be funded at $58.3 billion 
in discretionary spending, which is $1.85 billion above the fiscal year 
2011 enacted level and $476 million below the President's request. Most 
of this funding is for veterans' medical services. The recommendation 
provides the full funding of $69.5 billion for the mandatory VA 
programs providing compensation and pensions, educational benefits, 
vocational rehabilitation, life insurance, and housing loan programs.
  I would like to commend the chairman and ranking member for their 
efforts to ensure that our Nation's veterans are well taken care of by 
maintaining adequate funding for veterans' health care and other 
benefits on which so many have come to count on.
  Again, I am pleased overall with the funding levels proposed in this 
bill today, and I am pleased that during the full committee markup we 
were able to remove a contentious and divisive restriction on the 
implementation of Davis-Bacon wage requirements; but unfortunately, 
there is one item that I believe will complicate the passage of this 
bill.

                              {time}  1930

  I am troubled by the inclusion of a provision that prohibits the use 
of project labor agreements for any project in this bill. This divisive 
policy rider should not be included in an appropriations bill, and the 
decision to implement PLAs should remain at the discretion of the 
agency as to whether it is appropriate for an individual project. The 
inclusion of this provision unnecessarily complicates the support for a 
bill that would otherwise pass with wide bipartisan support. I expect 
an amendment to be offered that would remove this restriction on PLAs 
and would further improve the bill. I would like to urge my colleagues 
on both sides of the aisle to support the amendment.
  The CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. I yield the gentleman an additional 30 
seconds.
  Mr. DICKS. Regardless, I remain committed to working with my 
colleagues to respectfully work out any differences on the floor so 
that we may pass a bipartisan bill that adequately provides for our 
troops, veterans, and military families.
  Again, I intend to support this bill. I wish we could finish tonight, 
but I understand we can't. I look forward to seeing this bill done. I 
commend, again, the chairman and ranking member for their good work.
  Mr. CULBERSON. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Chairman, I want to say very briefly, again, truly how much I 
appreciate working with all the members of this committee, including 
the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Dicks) and the gentleman from 
Georgia (Mr. Bishop). All of us have worked with one goal in mind, and 
that is to ensure the peace of mind of our men and women in uniform and 
our retired military members, to ensure that no matter where they go, 
no matter what they're doing, they don't have a worry in the world. We 
want to make sure they are taken care of. And we've done so in a way 
that is fiscally responsible. We've done so in a way ever mindful of 
the record debt, the record deficit, of the inability of many of the 
projects the VA has worked on before getting done on time or, frankly, 
even getting started, making sure that disability claims are paid on 
time.
  We are also presenting the bill tonight, Mr. Chairman, giving any 
Member of the House an opportunity to come down and file an amendment 
and be heard in an open and transparent way, something that we in the 
new majority committed to do, that every American would have an 
opportunity to read the bill online at least 72 hours in advance. It is 
vitally important that we, doing the Nation's business, do so in a way 
that's absolutely transparent and open and straightforward, especially 
when it comes to supporting our men and women in uniform. When it comes 
to making sure they are taken care of and have no worries, there are no 
party labels. It's really been a privilege to work with each and every 
one of you on this committee.
  I see my good friend Mr. Farr of California is here. He's been a 
particularly valuable member of the subcommittee. He has brought great 
expertise to the committee. I look forward to hearing from him tonight 
as well.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I am delighted to yield 2\1/2\ 
minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Farr), ranking member of 
the Agriculture Subcommittee of Appropriations but who is a longtime 
member of this MilCon-VA subcommittee.
  Mr. FARR. I thank the gentleman from Georgia for yielding.
  It is a pleasure to serve on this committee. I might be the longest 
serving member on the committee, but I'm a ranking member on another 
committee. It's a pleasure to serve. I welcome the gentleman from Texas 
(Mr. Culberson) to his new role as chair of the committee. And it's 
always a pleasure to serve with the gentleman from Washington (Mr. 
Dicks) and the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Rogers), the ranking and 
chair of the major committee.
  This committee is unique in Congress. It's the only committee where 
both active duty military and veterans are dealt with from the same 
policy. There's no other committee in this House or in the Senate that 
has the one-stop that this committee has. It's a pleasure to be focused 
on the continuum of care for active duty and reservists and veterans.
  This past weekend, we remembered the patriotic sacrifice of those who 
have lost their lives in service to our country, and today we renew our 
commitment to keep our promise to our Nation's more than 2 million 
troops and reservists, their families, and 23 million veterans.
  This committee has a strong history of working in a bipartisan way to

[[Page H3968]]

produce a bill that supports our active duty servicemembers and our 
veterans. I am proud to support some much needed increases for the 
Veterans Affairs Department, and I would note that while this bill is 
$1.4 billion above last year's level, it is also $1.2 billion less than 
what the President requested.
  Additionally, I am pleased to see that this bill emphasizes the needs 
of our veterans in rural areas. The National Cemetery Administration 
anticipates that 10 percent of all veterans will not receive access to 
a burial option in a national, State, or tribal cemetery within 75 
miles of their home. I am pleased that this bill directs the National 
Cemetery Administration to develop a strategy to serve our rural 
veterans.
  This language is important because it recognizes that veterans who 
live in rural communities should be treated on par with veterans who 
live in urban areas in all services provided by the VA. In my rural 
district, the central coast of California, veterans are moving a step 
closer to achieving a dream of a veterans cemetery at the former Fort 
Ord military base.
  I commend the chairman and ranking member for their hard work in 
ensuring that this bill is another significant step in fulfilling the 
promise our country has made to leave no veteran behind.
  I urge support for this bill on one condition. The condition is that 
the language against project labor agreements needs to be taken out.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. CULBERSON. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Chairman, I want to say very briefly that one of the reasons 
we're trying to move expeditiously on this is we want to make sure our 
men and women in uniform have everything they need as soon as possible. 
We're trying to get this bill through to ensure that we not only get 
it, but that we get it done in an expeditious fashion.
  We are waiting for an amendment to be completed drafting, but it's 
important, I think, to reemphasize, if I could, in the time I have 
remaining, the scale of the problem the Nation faces. This is not just 
a record deficit and record debt we face. It's actually a whole lot 
bigger than that.
  As we make sure that our men and women in uniform are taken care of 
with their housing, we've made sure that, for example, all the BEQs, 
the bachelor enlisted quarters, are fully funded; that the Army, the 
Navy, the Air Force is fully funded; our veterans are fully funded. 
We've had to do this in a way that is fiscally responsible because we 
are ever mindful of the scale of the problem the Nation faces 
financially.
  It is difficult to even begin to comprehend how huge the problem is 
that has been created by so many years of previous Congresses, of 
previous administrations, too many promises to too many people on too 
many occasions on money that was borrowed from future generations. The 
result has been that today, the unfunded liabilities facing the 
taxpayers of the Nation are about $49.6 trillion. Those are liabilities 
at present value.
  For example, the publicly held debt, military and civilian pensions, 
retiree health benefits and other explicit, direct liabilities of about 
$16.9 trillion. The entire U.S. economy is about $13 trillion. Our 
gross domestic product is, I think, right at about $13 trillion. So 
just the explicit liabilities that we have to pay already exceed the 
size of the entire U.S. economy.
  We've got long-term contingencies and implicit liabilities. For 
example, the future cost of Social Security benefits is $31 trillion.

                              {time}  1940

  Future Medicare benefits under part A, part B, and part D all added 
together create--and this is unfunded liability for which there is no 
source or revenue lined up to pay for this--about $50 trillion, $49.6 
trillion. And to give you an idea of how big that number is, in order 
to pay that liability off, every living American would have to write a 
check tonight for $159,000 to pay off that future unfunded liability. 
I've had constituents ask me if they just write that check, can they be 
done? Is that it? They're done? I wish it were that simple. But we, on 
the Appropriations Committee, this vast amount of money that we spend 
every year, this extraordinary responsibility with which we have been 
entrusted by our constituents, the amount of money we spend every year 
pales in significance to the size of the unfunded liabilities in the 
future.
  The amount of money that we spend every year on the Appropriations 
Committee--a little over $1 trillion, an extraordinary amount of money, 
$1,000 billion--is dwarfed by the size of the unfunded liability that 
we face in the future.
  And it's important for everyone, Mr. Speaker, listening to this 
debate tonight to remember that the money we spend here tonight in 
support of our troops, the money we spend on Homeland Security, to 
build highways, to pay for all the things the Federal Government does, 
it's all borrowed. The hole is so deep that's been dug by our 
predecessors, and again, too many promises to too many people on too 
many occasions, too many Big Government promises--I'm still wondering 
about Lyndon Johnson's war on poverty, that is, how many trillions of 
dollars later and that still hasn't worked out.
  We, in the new constitutional conservative majority, are absolutely 
committed to getting us back on track to a balanced budget because we 
recognize the scale of the problem, the urgency of these impending 
unfunded liabilities, this massive bill that's going to come due to our 
children and grandchildren. In fact, the Joint Chiefs of Staff do an 
analysis about every 5 years on the strategic threats facing the United 
States. And analyzing all the threats facing our Nation, the Joint 
Chiefs concluded that one of the greatest strategic threats America 
faces is our national debt, this unfunded liability, these crushing 
obligations that our kids are going to inherit if we as a Congress 
don't work--as we have on this subcommittee in a way without regard to 
party for the benefit of the Nation--to find ways to make sure that 
Social Security and Medicare are solvent, that we get the entitlement 
programs under control because they're going right off a cliff unless 
we make sure we rescue them and make sure they're solvent and there for 
our kids. But we've got to make sure that we are doing everything 
within our power in the annual appropriations process to save every 
single dollar that we can.
  There has been some debate, Mr. Chairman, some Members of Congress in 
the past have said, well, we just need to raise taxes. My predecessor, 
Bill Archer, who was chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, had an 
analysis done that showed that even if you were to confiscate all of 
the corporate income--100 percent of the corporate income in America--
that would generate about $1.3 trillion. If the government were to 
confiscate 100 percent of all individual income, over $200,000, that 
would generate about $2.1 trillion. So you can see that it isn't 
possible to solve this problem by raising taxes. And that is something 
that we also understand instinctively as conservatives; if you just 
simply get the government out of our lives, out of our pocket, out of 
our way, and leave us alone to raise our kids, to run our businesses, 
to run our lives--let Texans run Texas, let Georgians run Georgia. If 
you unleash the entrepreneurial creativity of the American people, the 
economy will grow, people will invest and save their own money far 
wiser than the government will, and we will begin to dig out of this 
hole that we're in.
  We're committed not just to saving money year to year through the 
appropriations process, we're committed to ensuring that Medicare, 
Social Security, that these social safety net programs that are so 
essential to our Nation are there for the future, for our children and 
our grandchildren. We're going to do everything in our power to make 
sure that we have done our job in a fiscally responsible way this year. 
When it comes to Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, or 
Homeland Security, or Transportation, or Labor, Health and Human 
Services, all the various subcommittees of appropriations, that's year-
to-year dollars that we have direct control over right now, but we're 
also thinking long term.
  We also want to eliminate that threat that the Joint Chiefs of Staff

[[Page H3969]]

identified, the greatest threat to our long-term national security they 
identified as the national debt--much of which is held by nations 
hostile to the United States. Deeply, deeply disturbing, Mr. Chairman, 
that the Communist Chinese Government buys so much of our debt. They're 
the largest purchaser today of gold. The Chinese economy is thundering. 
They have a very aggressive campaign underway to acquire as much 
intellectual property as they can through espionage and acquisition. We 
have, as a Nation, in allowing this debt to be created and allowing so 
many nations that are hostile to the United States to buy our debt, 
have placed too much power in the hands of the Chinese, of sovereign 
wealth funds.
  And we here tonight, when it comes to supporting our military, 
through this construction bill, through the Veterans Affairs, we've 
made sure our men and women in uniform have everything they need in a 
fiscally responsible way. And this is just a first step of many that we 
will take on this committee to get America back on track to a balanced 
budget.
  Mr. Chairman, the Members of the minority and our staff have been 
working to put together an en bloc amendment so we can attempt to 
continue to expedite this process and ensure that this bill is done as 
quickly as possible in order that, again, our men and women in uniform 
can have the peace of mind of knowing they're taken care of--there is 
no bubble in the logistical supply chain. And they are not going to 
have to worry about disability claims if they go to a veterans 
hospital, or make sure their housing needs are taken care of on bases.
  We have an en bloc amendment, Mr. Chairman, that should be on the 
brink of being ready for consideration so that we can move very rapidly 
to passage of this bill and get it over to the Senate--because we know 
how long it sometimes takes the Senate to get things done.
  I yield to my good friend from Georgia.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  We have, I think, presented a good bill, with the caveats that have 
been expressed by Ranking Member Dicks and myself, along with Mr. Farr. 
At this time, we are prepared to entertain the amendments. I think the 
chairman has some en bloc amendments that he would like to offer. We 
are happy to entertain those and move forward at this time.
  Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The CHAIR. All time for general debate has expired.
  Pursuant to the rule, the bill shall be considered for amendment 
under the 5-minute rule.
  During consideration of the bill for amendment, the Chair may accord 
priority in recognition to a Member offering an amendment who has 
caused it to be printed in the designated place in the Congressional 
Record. Those amendments will be considered read.
  The Clerk will read.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 2055

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the 
     following sums are appropriated, out of any money in the 
     Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for military 
     construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and related 
     agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2012, and 
     for other purposes, namely:

                                TITLE I

                         DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

                      Military Construction, Army

                    (including rescission of funds)

       For acquisition, construction, installation, and equipment 
     of temporary or permanent public works, military 
     installations, facilities, and real property for the Army as 
     currently authorized by law, including personnel in the Army 
     Corps of Engineers and other personal services necessary for 
     the purposes of this appropriation, and for construction and 
     operation of facilities in support of the functions of the 
     Commander in Chief, $3,141,491,000, to remain available until 
     September 30, 2016: Provided, That of this amount, not to 
     exceed $255,241,000 shall be available for study, planning, 
     design, architect and engineer services, and host nation 
     support, as authorized by law, unless the Secretary of Army 
     determines that additional obligations are necessary for such 
     purposes and notifies the Committees on Appropriations of 
     both Houses of Congress of the determination and the reasons 
     therefor: Provided further, That of the unobligated balances 
     available for ``Military Construction, Army'' from prior 
     appropriations Acts (other than appropriations designated by 
     law as being for contingency operations directly related to 
     the global war on terrorism or as an emergency requirement), 
     $100,000,000 are hereby rescinded.

              Military Construction, Navy and Marine Corps

                    (including rescission of funds)

       For acquisition, construction, installation, and equipment 
     of temporary or permanent public works, naval installations, 
     facilities, and real property for the Navy and Marine Corps 
     as currently authorized by law, including personnel in the 
     Naval Facilities Engineering Command and other personal 
     services necessary for the purposes of this appropriation, 
     $2,461,547,000, to remain available until September 30, 2016: 
     Provided, That of this amount, not to exceed $84,362,000 
     shall be available for study, planning, design, and architect 
     and engineer services, as authorized by law, unless the 
     Secretary of the Navy determines that additional obligations 
     are necessary for such purposes and notifies the Committees 
     on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of the 
     determination and the reasons therefor: Provided further, 
     That of the unobligated balances available for ``Military 
     Construction, Navy and Marine Corps'' from prior 
     appropriations Acts (other than appropriations designated by 
     law as being for contigency operations directly related to 
     the global war on terrorism or as an emergency requirement), 
     $25,000,000 are hereby rescinded.

                    Military Construction, Air Force

                    (including rescission of funds)

       For acquisition, construction, installation, and equipment 
     of temporary or permanent public works, military 
     installations, facilities, and real property for the Air 
     Force as currently authorized by law, $1,279,358,000, to 
     remain available until September 30, 2016: Provided, That of 
     this amount, not to exceed $81,913,000 shall be available for 
     study, planning, design, and architect and engineer services, 
     as authorized by law, unless the Secretary of the Air Force 
     determines that additional obligations are necessary for such 
     purposes and notifies the Committees on Appropriations of 
     both Houses of Congress of the determination and the reasons 
     therefor: Provided further, That of the unobligated balances 
     available for ``Military Construction, Air Force'' from prior 
     appropriations Acts (other than appropriations designated by 
     law as being for contigency operations directly related to 
     the global war on terrorism or as an emergency requirement), 
     $32,000,000 are hereby rescinded.

                  Military Construction, Defense-Wide

              (including transfer and rescission of funds)

       For acquisition, construction, installation, and equipment 
     of temporary or permanent public works, installations, 
     facilities, and real property for activities and agencies of 
     the Department of Defense (other than the military 
     departments), as currently authorized by law, $3,665,157,000, 
     to remain available until September 30, 2016: Provided, That 
     such amounts of this appropriation as may be determined by 
     the Secretary of Defense may be transferred to such 
     appropriations of the Department of Defense available for 
     military construction or family housing as the Secretary may 
     designate, to be merged with and to be available for the same 
     purposes, and for the same time period, as the appropriation 
     or fund to which transferred: Provided further, That of the 
     amount appropriated, not to exceed $454,602,000 shall be 
     available for study, planning, design, and architect and 
     engineer services, as authorized by law, unless the Secretary 
     of Defense determines that additional obligations are 
     necessary for such purposes and notifies the Committees on 
     Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of the 
     determination and the reasons therefor: Provided further, 
     That of the amount appropriated, notwithstanding any other 
     provision of law, $24,118,000 shall be available for payments 
     to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization for the planning, 
     design, and construction of a new North Atlantic Treaty 
     Organization headquarters: Provided further, That of the 
     unobligated balances available for ``Military Construction, 
     Defense-Wide'' in prior appropriations Acts (other than 
     appropriations designated by law as being for contingency 
     operations directly related to the global war on terrorism or 
     as an emergency requirement), $131,400,000 are hereby 
     rescinded.

               Military Construction, Army National Guard

       For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilitation, 
     and conversion of facilities for the training and 
     administration of the Army National Guard, and contributions 
     therefore, as authorized by chapter 1803 of title 10, United 
     States Code, and Military Construction Authorization Acts, 
     $773,592,000, to remain available until September 30, 2016: 
     Provided, That of the amount appropriated, not to exceed 
     $20,671,000 shall be available for study, planning, design, 
     and architect and engineer services, as authorized by law, 
     unless the Secretary of Defense determines that additional 
     obligations are necessary for such purposes and notifies the 
     Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of 
     the determination and the reasons therefor.

               Military Construction, Air National Guard

       For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilitation, 
     and conversion of facilities

[[Page H3970]]

     for the training and administration of the Air National 
     Guard, and contributions therefor, as authorized by chapter 
     1803 of title 10, United States Code, and Military 
     Construction Authorization Acts, $116,246,000, to remain 
     available until September 30, 2016: Provided, That of the 
     amount appropriated, not to exceed $9,000,000 shall be 
     available for study, planning, design, and architect and 
     engineer services, as authorized by law, unless the Secretary 
     of Defense determines that additional obligations are 
     necessary for such purposes and notifies the Committees on 
     Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of the 
     determination and the reasons therefor.

                  Military Construction, Army Reserve

       For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilitation, 
     and conversion of facilities for the training and 
     administration of the Army Reserve as authorized by chapter 
     1803 of title 10, United States Code, and Military 
     Construction Authorization Acts, $280,549,000, to remain 
     available until September 30, 2016: Provided, That of the 
     amount appropriated, not to exceed $28,924,000 shall be 
     available for study, planning, design, and architect and 
     engineer services, as authorized by law, unless the Secretary 
     of Defense determines that additional obligations are 
     necessary for such purposes and notifies the Committees on 
     Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of the 
     determination and the reasons therefor.

                  Military Construction, Navy Reserve

       For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilitation, 
     and conversion of facilities for the training and 
     administration of the reserve components of the Navy and 
     Marine Corps as authorized by chapter 1803 of title 10, 
     United States Code, and Military Construction Authorization 
     Acts, $26,299,000, to remain available until September 30, 
     2016: Provided, That of the amount appropriated, not to 
     exceed $2,591,000 shall be available for study, planning, 
     design, and architect and engineer services, as authorized by 
     law, unless the Secretary of Defense determines that 
     additional obligations are necessary for such purposes and 
     notifies the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of 
     Congress of the determination and the reasons therefor.

                Military Construction, Air Force Reserve

       For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilitation, 
     and conversion of facilities for the training and 
     administration of the reserve components of the Air Force 
     Reserve as authorized by chapter 1803 of title 10, United 
     States Code, and Military Construction Authorization Acts, 
     $33,620,000, to remain available until September 30, 2016: 
     Provided, That of the amount appropriated, not to exceed 
     $2,200,000 shall be available for study, planning, design, 
     and architect and engineer services, as authorized by law, 
     unless the Secretary of Defense determines that additional 
     obligations are necessary for such purposes and notifies the 
     Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of 
     the determination and the reasons therefor.

                   North Atlantic Treaty Organization

                      Security Investment Program

       For the United States share of the cost of the North 
     Atlantic Treaty Organization Security Investment Program for 
     the acquisition and construction of military facilities and 
     installations (including international military headquarters) 
     and for related expenses for the collective defense of the 
     North Atlantic Treaty Area as authorized by section 2806 of 
     title 10, United States Code, and Military Construction 
     Authorization Acts, $272,611,000, to remain available until 
     expended.

                   Family Housing Construction, Army

       For expenses of family housing for the Army for 
     construction, including acquisition, replacement, addition, 
     expansion, extension, and alteration, as authorized by law, 
     $186,897,000, to remain available until September 30, 2016.

             Family Housing Operation and Maintenance, Army

       For expenses of family housing for the Army for operation 
     and maintenance, including debt payment, leasing, minor 
     construction, principal and interest charges, and insurance 
     premiums, as authorized by law, $494,858,000.

           Family Housing Construction, Navy and Marine Corps

       For expenses of family housing for the Navy and Marine 
     Corps for construction, including acquisition, replacement, 
     addition, expansion, extension, and alteration, as authorized 
     by law, $100,972,000, to remain available until September 30, 
     2016.

    Family Housing Operation and Maintenance, Navy and Marine Corps

       For expenses of family housing for the Navy and Marine 
     Corps for operation and maintenance, including debt payment, 
     leasing, minor construction, principal and interest charges, 
     and insurance premiums, as authorized by law, $367,863,000.

                 Family Housing Construction, Air Force

       For expenses of family housing for the Air Force for 
     construction, including acquisition, replacement, addition, 
     expansion, extension, and alteration, as authorized by law, 
     $84,804,000, to remain available until September 30, 2016.

          Family Housing Operation and Maintenance, Air Force

       For expenses of family housing for the Air Force for 
     operation and maintenance, including debt payment, leasing, 
     minor construction, principal and interest charges, and 
     insurance premiums, as authorized by law, $404,761,000.

         Family Housing Operation and Maintenance, Defense-Wide

       For expenses of family housing for the activities and 
     agencies of the Department of Defense (other than the 
     military departments) for operation and maintenance, leasing, 
     and minor construction, as authorized by law, $50,723,000.

         Department of Defense Family Housing Improvement Fund

       For the Department of Defense Family Housing Improvement 
     Fund, $2,184,000, to remain available until expended, for 
     family housing initiatives undertaken pursuant to section 
     2883 of title 10, United States Code, providing alternative 
     means of acquiring and improving military family housing and 
     supporting facilities.

                       Homeowners Assistance Fund

       For the Homeowners Assistance Fund established by section 
     1013 of the Demonstration Cities and Metropolitan Development 
     Act of 1966, (42 U.S.C. 3374), as amended, $1,284,000, to 
     remain available until expended.

          Chemical Demilitarization Construction, Defense-Wide

       For expenses of construction, not otherwise provided for, 
     necessary for the destruction of the United States stockpile 
     of lethal chemical agents and munitions in accordance with 
     section 1412 of the Department of Defense Authorization Act, 
     1986 (50 U.S.C. 1521), and for the destruction of other 
     chemical warfare materials that are not in the chemical 
     weapon stockpile, as currently authorized by law, 
     $75,312,000, to remain available until September 30, 2016, 
     which shall be only for the Assembled Chemical Weapons 
     Alternatives Program.

            Department of Defense Base Closure Account 1990

       For deposit into the Department of Defense Base Closure 
     Account 1990, established by section 2906(a)(1) of the 
     Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 (10 U.S.C. 
     2687 note), $373,543,000, to remain available until expended.

            Department of Defense Base Closure Account 2005

                    (including rescission of funds)

       For deposit into the Department of Defense Base Closure 
     Account 2005, established by section 2906A(a)(1) of the 
     Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 (10 U.S.C. 
     2687 note), $258,776,000, to remain available until expended: 
     Provided, That the Department of Defense shall notify the 
     Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress 14 
     days prior to obligating an amount for a construction project 
     that exceeds or reduces the amount identified for that 
     project in the most recently submitted budget request for 
     this account by 20 percent or $2,000,000, whichever is less: 
     Provided further, That the previous proviso shall not apply 
     to projects costing less than $5,000,000, except for those 
     projects not previously identified in any budget submission 
     for this account and exceeding the minor construction 
     threshold under section 2805 of title 10, United States Code: 
     Provided further, That of the unobligated balances available 
     under this heading from prior appropriation Acts (other than 
     appropriations designated by law as being for contingency 
     operations directly related to the global war on terrorism or 
     as an emergency requirement), $50,000,000 are hereby 
     rescinded, which represent savings resulting from favorable 
     bids.

                       Administrative Provisions

       Sec. 101.  None of the funds made available in this title 
     shall be expended for payments under a cost-plus-a-fixed-fee 
     contract for construction, where cost estimates exceed 
     $25,000, to be performed within the United States, except 
     Alaska, without the specific approval in writing of the 
     Secretary of Defense setting forth the reasons therefor.
       Sec. 102.  Funds made available in this title for 
     construction shall be available for hire of passenger motor 
     vehicles.
       Sec. 103.  Funds made available in this title for 
     construction may be used for advances to the Federal Highway 
     Administration, Department of Transportation, for the 
     construction of access roads as authorized by section 210 of 
     title 23, United States Code, when projects authorized 
     therein are certified as important to the national defense by 
     the Secretary of Defense.
       Sec. 104.  None of the funds made available in this title 
     may be used to begin construction of new bases in the United 
     States for which specific appropriations have not been made.
       Sec. 105.  None of the funds made available in this title 
     shall be used for purchase of land or land easements in 
     excess of 100 percent of the value as determined by the Army 
     Corps of Engineers or the Naval Facilities Engineering 
     Command, except: (1) where there is a determination of value 
     by a Federal court; (2) purchases negotiated by the Attorney 
     General or the designee of the Attorney General; (3) where 
     the estimated value is less than $25,000; or (4) as otherwise 
     determined by the Secretary of Defense to be in the public 
     interest.
       Sec. 106.  None of the funds made available in this title 
     shall be used to: (1) acquire land; (2) provide for site 
     preparation; or (3) install utilities for any family housing, 
     except housing for which funds have been made available

[[Page H3971]]

     in annual Acts making appropriations for military 
     construction.
       Sec. 107.  None of the funds made available in this title 
     for minor construction may be used to transfer or relocate 
     any activity from one base or installation to another, 
     without prior notification to the Committees on 
     Appropriations of both Houses of Congress.
       Sec. 108.  None of the funds made available in this title 
     may be used for the procurement of steel for any construction 
     project or activity for which American steel producers, 
     fabricators, and manufacturers have been denied the 
     opportunity to compete for such steel procurement.
       Sec. 109.  None of the funds available to the Department of 
     Defense for military construction or family housing during 
     the current fiscal year may be used to pay real property 
     taxes in any foreign nation.
       Sec. 110.  None of the funds made available in this title 
     may be used to initiate a new installation overseas without 
     prior notification to the Committees on Appropriations of 
     both Houses of Congress.
       Sec. 111.  None of the funds made available in this title 
     may be obligated for architect and engineer contracts 
     estimated by the Government to exceed $500,000 for projects 
     to be accomplished in Japan, in any North Atlantic Treaty 
     Organization member country, or in countries within the 
     United States Central Command Area of Responsibility, unless 
     such contracts are awarded to United States firms or United 
     States firms in joint venture with host nation firms.
       Sec. 112.  None of the funds made available in this title 
     for military construction in the United States territories 
     and possessions in the Pacific and on Kwajalein Atoll, or in 
     countries within the United States Central Command Area of 
     Responsibility, may be used to award any contract estimated 
     by the Government to exceed $1,000,000 to a foreign 
     contractor: Provided, That this section shall not be 
     applicable to contract awards for which the lowest responsive 
     and responsible bid of a United States contractor exceeds the 
     lowest responsive and responsible bid of a foreign contractor 
     by greater than 20 percent: Provided further, That this 
     section shall not apply to contract awards for military 
     construction on Kwajalein Atoll for which the lowest 
     responsive and responsible bid is submitted by a Marshallese 
     contractor.
       Sec. 113.  The Secretary of Defense shall inform the 
     appropriate committees of both Houses of Congress, including 
     the Committees on Appropriations, of plans and scope of any 
     proposed military exercise involving United States personnel 
     30 days prior to its occurring, if amounts expended for 
     construction, either temporary or permanent, are anticipated 
     to exceed $100,000.
       Sec. 114.  Not more than 20 percent of the funds made 
     available in this title which are limited for obligation 
     during the current fiscal year shall be obligated during the 
     last 2 months of the fiscal year.
       Sec. 115.  Funds appropriated to the Department of Defense 
     for construction in prior years shall be available for 
     construction authorized for each such military department by 
     the authorizations enacted into law during the current 
     session of Congress.
       Sec. 116.  For military construction or family housing 
     projects that are being completed with funds otherwise 
     expired or lapsed for obligation, expired or lapsed funds may 
     be used to pay the cost of associated supervision, 
     inspection, overhead, engineering and design on those 
     projects and on subsequent claims, if any.
       Sec. 117.  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any 
     funds made available to a military department or defense 
     agency for the construction of military projects may be 
     obligated for a military construction project or contract, or 
     for any portion of such a project or contract, at any time 
     before the end of the fourth fiscal year after the fiscal 
     year for which funds for such project were made available, if 
     the funds obligated for such project: (1) are obligated from 
     funds available for military construction projects; and (2) 
     do not exceed the amount appropriated for such project, plus 
     any amount by which the cost of such project is increased 
     pursuant to law.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 118.  In addition to any other transfer authority 
     available to the Department of Defense, proceeds deposited to 
     the Department of Defense Base Closure Account established by 
     section 207(a)(1) of the Defense Authorization Amendments and 
     Base Closure and Realignment Act (10 U.S.C. 2687 note) 
     pursuant to section 207(a)(2)(C) of such Act, may be 
     transferred to the account established by section 2906(a)(1) 
     of the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 (10 
     U.S.C. 2687 note), to be merged with, and to be available for 
     the same purposes and the same time period as that account.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 119.  Subject to 30 days prior notification, or 14 
     days for a notification provided in an electronic medium 
     pursuant to sections 480 and 2883 of title 10, United States 
     Code, to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of 
     Congress, such additional amounts as may be determined by the 
     Secretary of Defense may be transferred to: (1) the 
     Department of Defense Family Housing Improvement Fund from 
     amounts appropriated for construction in ``Family Housing'' 
     accounts, to be merged with and to be available for the same 
     purposes and for the same period of time as amounts 
     appropriated directly to the Fund; or (2) the Department of 
     Defense Military Unaccompanied Housing Improvement Fund from 
     amounts appropriated for construction of military 
     unaccompanied housing in ``Military Construction'' accounts, 
     to be merged with and to be available for the same purposes 
     and for the same period of time as amounts appropriated 
     directly to the Fund: Provided, That appropriations made 
     available to the Funds shall be available to cover the costs, 
     as defined in section 502(5) of the Congressional Budget Act 
     of 1974, of direct loans or loan guarantees issued by the 
     Department of Defense pursuant to the provisions of 
     subchapter IV of chapter 169 of title 10, United States Code, 
     pertaining to alternative means of acquiring and improving 
     military family housing, military unaccompanied housing, and 
     supporting facilities.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 120.  In addition to any other transfer authority 
     available to the Department of Defense, amounts may be 
     transferred from the accounts established by sections 
     2906(a)(1) and 2906A(a)(1) of the Defense Base Closure and 
     Realignment Act of 1990 (10 U.S.C. 2687 note), to the fund 
     established by subsection (d) of section 1013 of the 
     Demonstration Cities and Metropolitan Development Act of 1966 
     (42 U.S.C. 3374) to pay for expenses associated with the 
     Homeowners Assistance Program incurred under subsection 
     (a)(1)(A) of such section 1013. Any amounts transferred shall 
     be merged with and be available for the same purposes and for 
     the same time period as the fund to which transferred.
       Sec. 121.  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, 
     funds made available in this title for operation and 
     maintenance of family housing shall be the exclusive source 
     of funds for repair and maintenance of all family housing 
     units, including general or flag officer quarters: Provided, 
     That not more than $35,000 per unit may be spent annually for 
     the maintenance and repair of any general or flag officer 
     quarters without 30 days prior notification, or 14 days for a 
     notification provided in an electronic medium pursuant to 
     sections 480 and 2883 of title 10, United States Code, to the 
     Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress, 
     except that an after-the-fact notification shall be submitted 
     if the limitation is exceeded solely due to costs associated 
     with environmental remediation that could not be reasonably 
     anticipated at the time of the budget submission: Provided 
     further,  That the Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller) 
     is to report annually to the Committees on Appropriations of 
     both Houses of Congress all operation and maintenance 
     expenditures for each individual general or flag officer 
     quarters for the prior fiscal year.
       Sec. 122.  Amounts contained in the Ford Island Improvement 
     Account established by subsection (h) of section 2814 of 
     title 10, United States Code, are appropriated and shall be 
     available until expended for the purposes specified in 
     subsection (i)(1) of such section or until transferred 
     pursuant to subsection (i)(3) of such section.
       Sec. 123.  None of the funds made available in this title, 
     or in any Act making appropriations for military construction 
     which remain available for obligation, may be obligated or 
     expended to carry out a military construction, land 
     acquisition, or family housing project at or for a military 
     installation approved for closure, or at a military 
     installation for the purposes of supporting a function that 
     has been approved for realignement to another installation, 
     in 2005 under the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 
     1990 (part A of title XXIX of Public Law 101-510: 10 U.S.C. 
     2687 note), unless such a project at a military installation 
     approved for realignment will support a continuing mission or 
     function at that installation or a new mission or function 
     that is planned for that installation, or unless the 
     Secretary of Defense certifies that the cost to the United 
     States of carrying out such project would be less than the 
     cost to the United States of cancelling such project, or if 
     the project is at an active component base that shall be 
     established as an enclave or in the case of projects having 
     multi-agency use, that another Government agency has 
     indicated it will assume ownership of the completed project. 
     The Secretary of Defense may not transfer funds made 
     available as a result of this limitation from any military 
     construction project, land acquisition, or family housing 
     project to another account or use such funds for another 
     purpose or project without the prior approval of the 
     Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress. This 
     section shall not apply to military construction projects, 
     land acquisition, or family housing projects for which the 
     project is vital to the national security or the protection 
     of health, safety, or environmental quality: Provided, That 
     the Secretary of Defense shall notify the congressional 
     defense committees within seven days of a decision to carry 
     out such a military construction project.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 124.  During the 5-year period after appropriations 
     available in this Act to the Department of Defense for 
     military construction and family housing operation and 
     maintenance and construction have expired for obligation, 
     upon a determination that such appropriations will not be 
     necessary for the liquidation of obligations or for making 
     authorized adjustments to such appropriations for obligations 
     incurred during the period of availability of such 
     appropriations, unobligated balances of such appropriations 
     may be transferred into the appropriation ``Foreign Currency 
     Fluctuations, Construction,

[[Page H3972]]

     Defense'', to be merged with and to be available for the same 
     time period and for the same purposes as the appropriation to 
     which transferred.
       Sec. 125.  Amounts appropriated or otherwise made available 
     in an account funded under the headings in this title may be 
     transferred among projects and activities within the account 
     in accordance with the reprogramming guidelines for military 
     construction and family housing construction contained in the 
     report of the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
     Representatives to accompany this bill and in the guidance 
     for military construction reprogrammings and notifications 
     contained in Department of Defense Financial Management 
     Regulation 7000.14 -- R, Volume 3, Chapter 7, of February 
     2009, as in effect on the date of enactment of this Act.

                         (rescission of funds)

       Sec. 126.  Of the unobligated balances available for ``Base 
     Realignment and Closure Account, 1990'' from prior 
     appropriations Acts (other than appropriations designated by 
     law as being for contingency operations directly related to 
     the global war on terrorism or as an emergency requirement), 
     $100,000,000 are hereby rescinded.
       Sec. 127.  None of the funds made available by this Act may 
     be used by the Secretary of Defense to take beneficial 
     occupancy of more than 1,000 parking spaces provided by the 
     combination spaces provided by the BRAC 133 project and the 
     lease of spaces in the immediate vicinity of the BRAC 133 
     project.
       Sec. 128.  None of the funds made available by this Act may 
     be used for any action that relates to or promotes the 
     expansion of the boundaries or size of the Pinon Canyon 
     Maneuver Site, Colorado.
       Sec. 129.  None of the funds made available by this Act may 
     be used by the Secretary of the Army to relocate a unit of 
     the Army that would impact more than 200 personnel, 
     calculated as the sum of impacted members of the regular or 
     reserve components of the Army, civilian employees of the 
     Department of the Army, and Army contractor personnel, unless 
     the Secretary certifies to the congressional defense 
     committees that the Secretary complied with Army Regulation 
     5-10 relating to the policy, procedures, and responsibilities 
     for Army stationing actions.
       

                                TITLE II

                     DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

                    Veterans Benefits Administration

                       compensation and pensions

                     (including transfer of funds)

       For the payment of compensation benefits to or on behalf of 
     veterans and a pilot program for disability examinations as 
     authorized by section 107 and chapters 11, 13, 18, 51, 53, 
     55, and 61 of title 38, United States Code; pension benefits 
     to or on behalf of veterans as authorized by chapters 15, 51, 
     53, 55, and 61 of title 38, United States Code; and burial 
     benefits, the Reinstated Entitlement Program for Survivors, 
     emergency and other officers' retirement pay, adjusted-
     service credits and certificates, payment of premiums due on 
     commercial life insurance policies guaranteed under the 
     provisions of title IV of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act 
     (50 U.S.C. App. 541 et seq.) and for other benefits as 
     authorized by sections 107, 1312, 1977, and 2106, and 
     chapters 23, 51, 53, 55, and 61 of title 38, United States 
     Code, $58,067,319,000, to remain available until expended: 
     Provided, That not to exceed $32,187,000 of the amount 
     appropriated under this heading shall be reimbursed to 
     ``General operating expenses, Veterans Benefits 
     Administration'', ``Medical support and compliance'', and 
     ``Information technology systems'' for necessary expenses in 
     implementing the provisions of chapters 51, 53, and 55 of 
     title 38, United States Code, the funding source for which is 
     specifically provided as the ``Compensation and pensions'' 
     appropriation: Provided further, That such sums as may be 
     earned on an actual qualifying patient basis, shall be 
     reimbursed to ``Medical care collections fund'' to augment 
     the funding of individual medical facilities for nursing home 
     care provided to pensioners as authorized.

                         readjustment benefits

       For the payment of readjustment and rehabilitation benefits 
     to or on behalf of veterans as authorized by chapters 21, 30, 
     31, 33, 34, 35, 36, 39, 51, 53, 55, and 61 of title 38, 
     United States Code, $11,011,086,000, to remain available 
     until expended: Provided, That expenses for rehabilitation 
     program services and assistance which the Secretary is 
     authorized to provide under subsection (a) of section 3104 of 
     title 38, United States Code, other than under paragraphs 
     (1), (2), (5), and (11) of that subsection, shall be charged 
     to this account.

                   veterans insurance and indemnities

       For military and naval insurance, national service life 
     insurance, servicemen's indemnities, service-disabled 
     veterans insurance, and veterans mortgage life insurance as 
     authorized by chapters 19 and 21, title 38, United States 
     Code, $100,252,000, to remain available until expended.

                 veterans housing benefit program fund

       For the cost of direct and guaranteed loans, such sums as 
     may be necessary to carry out the program, as authorized by 
     subchapters I through III of chapter 37 of title 38, United 
     States Code: Provided, That such costs, including the cost of 
     modifying such loans, shall be as defined in section 502 of 
     the Congressional Budget Act of 1974: Provided further, That 
     during fiscal year 2012, within the resources available, not 
     to exceed $500,000 in gross obligations for direct loans are 
     authorized for specially adapted housing loans.
       In addition, for administrative expenses to carry out the 
     direct and guaranteed loan programs, $154,698,000.

            vocational rehabilitation loans program account

       For the cost of direct loans, $19,000, as authorized by 
     chapter 31 of title 38, United States Code: Provided, That 
     such costs, including the cost of modifying such loans, shall 
     be as defined in section 502 of the Congressional Budget Act 
     of 1974: Provided further, That funds made available under 
     this heading are available to subsidize gross obligations for 
     the principal amount of direct loans not to exceed 
     $3,019,000.
       In addition, for administrative expenses necessary to carry 
     out the direct loan program, $343,000, which may be paid to 
     the appropriation for ``General operating expenses, Veterans 
     Benefits Administration''.

          native american veteran housing loan program account

       For administrative expenses to carry out the direct loan 
     program authorized by subchapter V of chapter 37 of title 38, 
     United States Code, $1,116,000.

                     Veterans Health Administration

                            medical services

       For necessary expenses for furnishing, as authorized by 
     law, inpatient and outpatient care and treatment to 
     beneficiaries of the Department of Veterans Affairs and 
     veterans described in section 1705(a) of title 38, United 
     States Code, including care and treatment in facilities not 
     under the jurisdiction of the Department, and including 
     medical supplies and equipment, food services, and salaries 
     and expenses of health care employees hired under title 38, 
     United States Code, aid to State homes as authorized by 
     section 1741 of title 38, United States Code, assistance and 
     support services for careigvers as authorized by section 
     1720G of title 38, United States Code, and loan repayments 
     authorized by section 604 of the Caregivers and Veterans 
     Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-163; 124 
     Stat. 1174; 38 U.S.C. 7681 note) $41,354,000,000, plus 
     reimbursements, shall become available on October 1, 2012, 
     and shall remain available until September 30, 2013: 
     Provided, That, of the amount made available under this 
     heading $1,000,000,000 shall remain available until September 
     30, 2014: Provided further, That, notwithstanding any other 
     provision of law, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
     establish a priority for the provision of medical treatment 
     for veterans who have service-connected disabilities, lower 
     income, or have special needs: Provided further, That, 
     notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of 
     Veterans Affairs shall give priority funding for the 
     provision of basic medical benefits to veterans in enrollment 
     priority groups 1 through 6: Provided further, That, 
     notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of 
     Veterans Affairs may authorize the dispensing of prescription 
     drugs from Veterans Health Administration facilities to 
     enrolled veterans with privately written prescriptions based 
     on requirements established by the Secretary: Provided 
     further, That the implementation of the program described in 
     the previous proviso shall incur no additional cost to the 
     Department of Veterans Affairs: Provided further, That of the 
     funds provided in Public Law 112-10 for ``Department of 
     Veterans Affairs, Medical services'' for fiscal year 2012, 
     $664,000,000 shall be available only in the fourth quarter of 
     the fiscal year upon approval of the Committees on 
     Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of a request from 
     the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to release such funding due 
     to unanticipated needs related to economic conditions.

                     medical support and compliance

       For necessary expenses in the administration of the 
     medical, hospital, nursing home, domiciliary, construction, 
     supply, and research activities, as authorized by law; 
     administrative expenses in support of capital policy 
     activities; and administrative and legal expenses of the 
     Department for collecting and recovering amounts owed the 
     Department as authorized under chapter 17 of title 38, United 
     States Code, and the Federal Medical Care Recovery Act (42 
     U.S.C. 2651 et seq.); $5,746,000,000, plus reimbursements, 
     shall become available on October 1, 2012, and shall remain 
     available until September 30, 2013: Provided, That, of the 
     amount made available under this heading $100,000,000 shall 
     remain available until September 30, 2014.

                           medical facilities

       For necessary expenses for the maintenance and operation of 
     hospitals, nursing homes, domiciliary facilities, and other 
     necessary facilities of the Veterans Health Administration; 
     for administrative expenses in support of planning, design, 
     project management, real property acquisition and 
     disposition, construction, and renovation of any facility 
     under the jurisdiction or for the use of the Department; for 
     oversight, engineering, and architectural activities not 
     charged to project costs; for repairing, altering, improving, 
     or providing facilities in the several hospitals and homes 
     under the jurisdiction of the Department, not otherwise 
     provided for, either by contract or by the hire of temporary 
     employees and purchase of materials; for leases of 
     facilities; and for laundry services, $5,441,000,000, plus 
     reimbursements, shall become available on October 1, 2012, 
     and shall remain available until September

[[Page H3973]]

     30, 2013: Provided, That, of the amount made available under 
     this heading, $100,000,000 shall remain available until 
     September 30, 2014.

                    medical and prosthetic research

       For necessary expenses in carrying out programs of medical 
     and prosthetic research and development as authorized by 
     chapter 73 of title 38, United States Code, $508,774,000, 
     plus reimbursements, shall remain available until September 
     30, 2013.

                    National Cemetery Administration

       For necessary expenses of the National Cemetery 
     Administration for operations and maintenance, not otherwise 
     provided for, including uniforms or allowances therefor; 
     cemeterial expenses as authorized by law; purchase of one 
     passenger motor vehicle for use in cemeterial operations; 
     hire of passenger motor vehicles; and repair, alteration or 
     improvement of facilities under the jurisdiction of the 
     National Cemetery Administration, $250,934,000, of which not 
     to exceed $25,100,000 shall remain available until September 
     30, 2013: Provided, That no funds shall be made available to 
     any project associated with the National Cemetery 
     Administration's Urban Initiative program until a strategy to 
     serve rural veterans is finalized and operational.

                      Departmental Administration

                         general administration

                     (including transfer of funds)

       For necessary operating expenses of the Department of 
     Veterans Affairs, not otherwise provided for, including 
     administrative expenses in support of Department-Wide capital 
     planning, management and policy activities, uniforms, or 
     allowances therefor; not to exceed $25,000 for official 
     reception and representation expenses; hire of passenger 
     motor vehicles; and reimbursement of the General Services 
     Administration for security guard services, $422,500,000, of 
     which not to exceed $22,144,000 shall remain available until 
     September 30, 2013: Provided, That $20,000,000 shall be used 
     to increase the Department's acquisition workforce capacity 
     and capabilities and may be transferred by the Secretary to 
     any other account in the Department to carry out the purposes 
     provided therein: Provided further, That funds provided under 
     this heading may be transferred to ``General operating 
     expenses, Veterans Benefits Administration''.

      general operating expenses, veterans benefits administration

        For necessary operating expenses of the Veterans Benefits 
     Administration, not otherwise provided for, including hire of 
     passenger motor vehicles, reimbursement of the General 
     Services Administration for security guard services, and 
     reimbursement of the Department of Defense for the cost of 
     overseas employee mail, $2,020,128,000: Provided, That 
     expenses for services and assistance authorized under 
     paragraphs (1), (2), (5), and (11) of section 3104(a) of 
     title 38, United States Code, that the Secretary of Veterans 
     Affairs determines are necessary to enable entitled veterans: 
     (1) to the maximum extent feasible, to become employable and 
     to obtain and maintain suitable employment; or (2) to achieve 
     maximum independence in daily living, shall be charged to 
     this account: Provided further, That of the funds made 
     available under this heading, not to exceed $105,856,000 
     shall remain available until September 30, 2013: Provided 
     further, That from the funds made available under this 
     heading, the Veterans Benefits Administration may purchase 
     (on a one-for-one replacement basis only) up to two passenger 
     motor vehicles for use in operations of that Administration 
     in Manila, Philippines.

                     information technology systems

       For necessary expenses for information technology systems 
     and telecommunications support, including developmental 
     information systems and operational information systems; for 
     pay and associated costs; and for the capital asset 
     acquisition of information technology systems, including 
     management and related contractual costs of said 
     acquisitions, including contractual costs associated with 
     operations authorized by section 3109 of title 5, United 
     States Code, $3,025,000,000, plus reimbursements, shall 
     remain available until September 30, 2013: Provided, That 
     none of the funds made available under this heading may be 
     obligated until the Department of Veterans Affairs submits to 
     the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress, 
     and such Committees approve, a plan for expenditure that: (1) 
     meets the capital planning and investment control review 
     requirements established by the Office of Management and 
     Budget; (2) complies with the Department of Veterans Affairs 
     enterprise architecture; (3) conforms with an established 
     enterprise life cycle methodology; and (4) complies with the 
     acquisition rules, requirements, guidelines, and systems 
     acquisition management practices of the Federal Government: 
     Provided further, That not later than 30 days after the date 
     of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans 
     Affairs shall submit to the Committees on Appropriations of 
     both Houses of Congress a reprogramming base letter which 
     sets forth, by project, the operations and maintenance costs, 
     with salary expenses separately designated, and development 
     costs to be carried out utilizing amounts made available 
     under this heading.

                      office of inspector general

       For necessary expenses of the Office of Inspector General, 
     to include information technology, in carrying out the 
     provisions of the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. 
     App.), $109,391,000, of which $6,000,000 shall remain 
     available until September 30, 2013.

                      construction, major projects

       For constructing, altering, extending, and improving any of 
     the facilities, including parking projects, under the 
     jurisdiction or for the use of the Department of Veterans 
     Affairs, or for any of the purposes set forth in sections 
     316, 2404, 2406, 8102, 8103, 8106, 8108, 8109, 8110, and 8122 
     of title 38, United States Code, including planning, 
     architectural and engineering services, construction 
     management services, maintenance or guarantee period services 
     costs associated with equipment guarantees provided under the 
     project, services of claims analysts, offsite utility and 
     storm drainage system construction costs, and site 
     acquisition, where the estimated cost of a project is more 
     than the amount set forth in section 8104(a)(3)(A) of title 
     38, United States Code, or where funds for a project were 
     made available in a previous major project appropriation, 
     $589,604,000, to remain available until September 30, 2016, 
     of which $5,000,000 shall be to make reimbursements as 
     provided in section 13 of the Contract Disputes Act of 1978 
     (41 U.S.C. 612) for claims paid for contract disputes: 
     Provided, That except for advance planning activities, 
     including needs assessments which may or may not lead to 
     capital investments, and other capital asset management 
     related activities, including portfolio development and 
     management activities, and investment strategy studies funded 
     through the advance planning fund and the planning and design 
     activities funded through the design fund, including needs 
     assessments which may or may not lead to capital investments, 
     and salaries and associated costs of the resident engineers 
     who oversee those capital investments funded through this 
     account, and funds provided for the purchase of land for the 
     National Cemetery Administration through the land acquisition 
     line item, none of the funds made available under this 
     heading shall be used for any project which has not been 
     approved by the Congress in the budgetary process: Provided 
     further, That funds made available under this heading for 
     fiscal year 2012, for each approved project shall be 
     obligated: (1) by the awarding of a construction documents 
     contract by September 30, 2012; and (2) by the awarding of a 
     construction contract by September 30, 2013: Provided 
     further, That the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
     promptly submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both 
     Houses of Congress a written report on any approved major 
     construction project for which obligations are not incurred 
     within the time limitations established above.

                      construction, minor projects

       For constructing, altering, extending, and improving any of 
     the facilities, including parking projects, under the 
     jurisdiction or for the use of the Department of Veterans 
     Affairs, including planning and assessments of needs which 
     may lead to capital investments, architectural and 
     engineering services, maintenance or guarantee period 
     services costs associated with equipment guarantees provided 
     under the project, services of claims analysts, offsite 
     utility and storm drainage system construction costs, and 
     site acquisition, or for any of the purposes set forth in 
     sections 316, 2404, 2406, 8102, 8103, 8106, 8108, 8109, 8110, 
     8122, and 8162 of title 38, United States Code, where the 
     estimated cost of a project is equal to or less than the 
     amount set forth in section 8104(a)(3)(A) of title 38, United 
     States Code, $475,091,000, to remain available until 
     September 30, 2016, along with unobligated balances of 
     previous ``Construction, minor projects'' appropriations 
     which are hereby made available for any project where the 
     estimated cost is equal to or less than the amount set forth 
     in such section: Provided, That funds made available under 
     this heading shall be for: (1) repairs to any of the 
     nonmedical facilities under the jurisdiction or for the use 
     of the Department which are necessary because of loss or 
     damage caused by any natural disaster or catastrophe; and (2) 
     temporary measures necessary to prevent or to minimize 
     further loss by such causes.

       grants for construction of state extended care facilities

       For grants to assist States to acquire or construct State 
     nursing home and domiciliary facilities and to remodel, 
     modify, or alter existing hospital, nursing home, and 
     domiciliary facilities in State homes, for furnishing care to 
     veterans as authorized by sections 8131 through 8137 of title 
     38, United States Code, $85,000,000, to remain available 
     until expended.

             grants for construction of veterans cemeteries

       For grants to assist States and tribal governments in 
     establishing, expanding, or improving veterans cemeteries as 
     authorized by section 2408 of title 38, United States Code, 
     $46,000,000, to remain available until expended.

                       Administrative Provisions

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 201.  Any appropriation for fiscal year 2012 for 
     ``Compensation and pensions'', ``Readjustment benefits'', and 
     ``Veterans insurance and indemnities'' may be transferred as 
     necessary to any other of the mentioned appropriations: 
     Provided, That before such transfer may take place, the 
     Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall request from the 
     Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of

[[Page H3974]]

     Congress the authority to make the transfer and such 
     Committees issue an approval, or absent a response, a period 
     of 30 days has elapsed.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 202.  Amounts made available for the Department of 
     Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2012, in this Act or any 
     other Act, under the ``Medical services'', ``Medical support 
     and compliance'', and ``Medical facilities'' accounts may be 
     transferred among the accounts: Provided, That any transfers 
     between the ``Medical services'' and ``Medical support and 
     compliance'' accounts of 1 percent or less of the total 
     amount appropriated to the account in this or any other Act 
     may take place subject to notification from the Secretary of 
     Veterans Affairs to the Committees on Appropriations of both 
     Houses of Congress of the amount and purpose of the transfer: 
     Provided further, That any transfers between the ``Medical 
     services'' and ``Medical support and compliance'' accounts in 
     excess of 1 percent, or exceeding the cumulative 1 percent 
     for the fiscal year, may take place only after the Secretary 
     requests from the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses 
     of Congress the authority to make the transfer and an 
     approval is issued: Provided further, That any transfers to 
     or from the ``Medical facilities'' account may take place 
     only after the Secretary requests from the Committees on 
     Appropriations of both Houses of Congress the authority to 
     make the transfer and an approval is issued.
       Sec. 203.  Appropriations made available in this title for 
     salaries and expenses shall be available for services 
     authorized by section 3109 of title 5, United States Code; 
     hire of passenger motor vehicles; lease of a facility or land 
     or both; and uniforms or allowances therefore, as authorized 
     by sections 5901 through 5902 of title 5, United States Code.
       Sec. 204.  No appropriations in this title (except the 
     appropriations for ``Construction, major projects'' and 
     ``Construction, minor projects'') shall be available for the 
     purchase of any site for or toward the construction of any 
     new Department of Veterans Affairs hospital or home.
       Sec. 205.  No appropriations in this title shall be 
     available for hospitalization or examination of any persons 
     (except beneficiaries entitled to such hospitalization or 
     examination under the laws providing such benefits to 
     veterans, and persons receiving such treatment under sections 
     7901 through 7904 of title 5, United States Code, or the 
     Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 
     Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.)), unless reimbursement of the 
     cost of such hospitalization or examination is made to the 
     ``Medical services'' account at such rates as may be fixed by 
     the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
       Sec. 206.  Appropriations available in this title for 
     ``Compensation and pensions'', ``Readjustment benefits'', and 
     ``Veterans insurance and indemnities'' shall be available for 
     payment of prior year accrued obligations required to be 
     recorded by law against the corresponding prior year accounts 
     within the last quarter of fiscal year 2011.
       Sec. 207.  Appropriations available in this title shall be 
     available to pay prior year obligations of corresponding 
     prior year appropriations accounts resulting from sections 
     3328(a), 3334, and 3712(a) of title 31, United States Code, 
     except that if such obligations are from trust fund accounts 
     they shall be payable only from ``Compensation and 
     pensions''.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 208.  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, 
     during fiscal year 2012, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
     shall, from the National Service Life Insurance Fund under 
     section 1920 of title 38, United States Code, the Veterans' 
     Special Life Insurance Fund under section 1923 of title 38, 
     United States Code, and the United States Government Life 
     Insurance Fund under section 1955 of title 38, United States 
     Code, reimburse the ``General operating expenses, Veterans 
     Benefits Administration'' and ``Information technology 
     systems'' accounts for the cost of administration of the 
     insurance programs financed through those accounts: Provided, 
     That reimbursement shall be made only from the surplus 
     earnings accumulated in such an insurance program during 
     fiscal year 2012 that are available for dividends in that 
     program after claims have been paid and actuarially 
     determined reserves have been set aside: Provided further, 
     That if the cost of administration of such an insurance 
     program exceeds the amount of surplus earnings accumulated in 
     that program, reimbursement shall be made only to the extent 
     of such surplus earnings: Provided further, That the 
     Secretary shall determine the cost of administration for 
     fiscal year 2012 which is properly allocable to the provision 
     of each such insurance program and to the provision of any 
     total disability income insurance included in that insurance 
     program.
       Sec. 209.  Amounts deducted from enhanced-use lease 
     proceeds to reimburse an account for expenses incurred by 
     that account during a prior fiscal year for providing 
     enhanced-use lease services, may be obligated during the 
     fiscal year in which the proceeds are received.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 210.  Funds available in this title for salaries and 
     other administrative expenses shall also be available to 
     reimburse the Office of Resolution Management of the 
     Department of Veterans Affairs and the Office of Employment 
     Discrimination Complaint Adjudication under section 319 of 
     title 38, United States Code, for all services provided at 
     rates which will recover actual costs but not exceed 
     $42,904,000 for the Office of Resolution Management and 
     $3,360,000 for the Office of Employment and Discrimination 
     Complaint Adjudication: Provided, That payments may be made 
     in advance for services to be furnished based on estimated 
     costs: Provided further, That amounts received shall be 
     credited to the ``General administration'' and ``Information 
     technology systems'' accounts for use by the office that 
     provided the service.
       Sec. 211.  No appropriations in this title shall be 
     available to enter into any new lease of real property if the 
     estimated annual rental cost is more than $1,000,000, unless 
     the Secretary submits a report which the Committees on 
     Appropriations of both Houses of Congress approve within 30 
     days following the date on which the report is received.
       Sec. 212.  No funds of the Department of Veterans Affairs 
     shall be available for hospital care, nursing home care, or 
     medical services provided to any person under chapter 17 of 
     title 38, United States Code, for a non-service-connected 
     disability described in section 1729(a)(2) of such title, 
     unless that person has disclosed to the Secretary of Veterans 
     Affairs, in such form as the Secretary may require, current, 
     accurate third-party reimbursement information for purposes 
     of section 1729 of such title: Provided, That the Secretary 
     may recover, in the same manner as any other debt due the 
     United States, the reasonable charges for such care or 
     services from any person who does not make such disclosure as 
     required: Provided further, That any amounts so recovered for 
     care or services provided in a prior fiscal year may be 
     obligated by the Secretary during the fiscal year in which 
     amounts are received.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 213.  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, 
     proceeds or revenues derived from enhanced-use leasing 
     activities (including disposal) may be deposited into the 
     ``Construction, major projects'' and ``Construction, minor 
     projects'' accounts and be used for construction (including 
     site acquisition and disposition), alterations, and 
     improvements of any medical facility under the jurisdiction 
     or for the use of the Department of Veterans Affairs. Such 
     sums as realized are in addition to the amount provided for 
     in ``Construction, major projects'' and ``Construction, minor 
     projects''.
       Sec. 214.  Amounts made available under ``Medical 
     services'' are available--
       (1) for furnishing recreational facilities, supplies, and 
     equipment; and
       (2) for funeral expenses, burial expenses, and other 
     expenses incidental to funerals and burials for beneficiaries 
     receiving care in the Department.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 215.  Such sums as may be deposited to the Medical 
     Care Collections Fund pursuant to section 1729A of title 38, 
     United States Code, may be transferred to ``Medical 
     services'', to remain available until expended for the 
     purposes of that account.
       Sec. 216.  The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may enter into 
     agreements with Indian tribes and tribal organizations which 
     are party to the Alaska Native Health Compact with the Indian 
     Health Service, and Indian tribes and tribal organizations 
     serving rural Alaska which have entered into contracts with 
     the Indian Health Service under the Indian Self Determination 
     and Educational Assistance Act, to provide healthcare, 
     including behavioral health and dental care. The Secretary 
     shall require participating veterans and facilities to comply 
     with all appropriate rules and regulations, as established by 
     the Secretary. The term ``rural Alaska'' shall mean those 
     lands sited within the external boundaries of the Alaska 
     Native regions specified in sections 7(a)(1)-(4) and (7)-(12) 
     of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, as amended (43 
     U.S.C. 1606), and those lands within the Alaska Native 
     regions specified in sections 7(a)(5) and 7(a)(6) of the 
     Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, as amended (43 U.S.C. 
     1606), which are not within the boundaries of the 
     Municipality of Anchorage, the Fairbanks North Star Borough, 
     the Kenai Peninsula Borough or the Matanuska Susitna Borough.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 217.  Such sums as may be deposited to the Department 
     of Veterans Affairs Capital Asset Fund pursuant to section 
     8118 of title 38, United States Code, may be transferred to 
     the ``Construction, major projects'' and ``Construction, 
     minor projects'' accounts, to remain available until 
     September 30, 2016 for the purposes of these accounts.
       Sec. 218.  None of the funds made available in this title 
     may be used to implement any policy prohibiting the Directors 
     of the Veterans Integrated Services Networks from conducting 
     outreach or marketing to enroll new veterans within their 
     respective Networks.
       Sec. 219.  The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit 
     to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of 
     Congress a quarterly report on the financial status of the 
     Veterans Health Administration.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 220.  Amounts made available under the ``Medical 
     services'', ``Medical support and compliance'', ``Medical 
     facilities'', ``General operating expenses, Veterans Benefits 
     Administration'', ``General administration'', and ``National 
     Cemetery Administration''

[[Page H3975]]

     accounts for fiscal year 2012, may be transferred to or from 
     the ``Information technology systems'' account: Provided, 
     That before a transfer may take place, the Secretary of 
     Veterans Affairs shall request from the Committees on 
     Appropriations of both Houses of Congress the authority to 
     make the transfer and an approval is issued.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 221.  Amounts made available for the ``Information 
     technology systems'' account may be transferred between 
     projects: Provided, That no project may be increased or 
     decreased by more than $1,000,000 of cost prior to submitting 
     a request to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses 
     of Congress to make the transfer and an approval is issued or 
     absent a response, a period of 30 days has elapsed.
       Sec. 222.  Of the amounts made available to the Department 
     of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2012, in this Act or any 
     other Act, under the ``Medical facilities'' account for 
     nonrecurring maintenance, not more than 20 percent of the 
     funds made available shall be obligated during the last 2 
     months of that fiscal year: Provided, That the Secretary may 
     waive this requirement after providing written notice to the 
     Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 223.  Of the amounts appropriated to the Department of 
     Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2012 for ``Medical 
     services'', ``Medical support and compliance'', ``Medical 
     facilities'', ``Construction, minor projects'', and 
     ``Information technology systems'', up to $241,666,000, plus 
     reimbursements, may be transferred to the Joint Department of 
     Defense-Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility 
     Demonstration Fund, established by section 1704 of the 
     National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 
     (Public Law 111-84; 123 Stat. 3571) and may be used for 
     operation of the facilities designated as combined Federal 
     medical facilities as described by section 706 of the Duncan 
     Hunter National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 
     2009 (Public Law 110-417; 122 Stat. 4500): Provided, That 
     additional funds may be transferred from accounts designated 
     in this section to the Joint Department of Defense-Department 
     of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Demonstration Fund upon 
     written notification by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to 
     the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress.

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 224.  Such sums as may be deposited to the Medical 
     Care Collections Fund pursuant to section 1729A of title 38, 
     United States Code, for health care provided at facilities 
     designated as combined Federal medical facilities as 
     described by section 706 of the Duncan Hunter National 
     Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 (Public Law 
     110-417; 122 Stat. 4500) shall also be available: (1) for 
     transfer to the Joint Department of Defense-Department of 
     Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Demonstration Fund, 
     established by section 1704 of the National Defense 
     Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 (Public Law 111-84; 
     123 Stat. 3571); and (2) for operations of the facilities 
     designated as combined Federal medical facilities as 
     described by section 706 of the Duncan Hunter National 
     Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 (Public Law 
     110-417; 122 Stat. 4500).

                     (including transfer of funds)

       Sec. 225.  Of the amounts available in this title for 
     ``Medical services'', ``Medical support and compliance'', and 
     ``Medical facilities'', a minimum of $15,000,000, shall be 
     transferred to the DOD-VA Health Care Sharing Incentive Fund, 
     as authorized by section 8111(d) of title 38, United States 
     Code, to remain until expended, for any purpose authorized by 
     section 8111 of title 38, United States Code.

                    (including rescission of funds)

       Sec. 226. (a) Of the funds appropriated in title X of 
     division B of Public Law 112-10, the following amounts which 
     become available on October 1, 2011, are hereby rescinded 
     from the following accounts in the amounts specified:
       (1) ``Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical services'', 
     $1,000,000,000.
       (2) ``Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical support and 
     compliance'', $100,000,000.
       (3) ``Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical facilities'', 
     $100,000,000.
       (b) In addition to amounts provided elsewhere in this Act, 
     an additional amount is appropriated to the following 
     accounts in the amounts specified, to remain available until 
     September 30, 2013:
       (1) ``Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical services'', 
     $1,000,000,000.
       (2) ``Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical support and 
     compliance'', $100,000,000.
       (3) ``Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical facilities'', 
     $100,000,000.
       Sec. 227.  The Secretary of the Department of Veterans 
     Affairs shall notify the Committees on Appropriations of both 
     Houses of Congress of all bid savings in major construction 
     projects that total at least $5,000,000, or 5 percent of the 
     programmed amount of the project, whichever is less: 
     Provided, That such notification shall occur within 14 days 
     of entering into a contract: Provided further, That the 
     Secretary shall notify the committees 14 days prior to the 
     obligation of such bid savings and shall describe the 
     anticipated use of such savings.
       Sec. 228.  The scope of work for a project included in 
     ``Construction, major projects'' may not be increased above 
     the scope specified for that project in the original 
     justification data provided to the Congress as part of the 
     request for appropriations.
       Sec. 229. (a) Section 5701 of title 38, United States Code, 
     is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
       ``(l)(1) The Secretary shall disclose to a State controlled 
     substance monitoring program, including a program under 
     section 399O of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
     280g-3), the name and address of a veteran or a dependent of 
     a veteran to the extent necessary to prevent misuse and 
     diversion of prescription medicines.
       ``(2) In this subsection, the terms `State' and `controlled 
     substance' have the meaning given such terms in section 
     399O(m) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280g-
     3(m)).''.
       (b) Section 7332(b)(2) of title 38, Unites States Code is 
     amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
       ``(G)(i) To a State controlled substance monitoring 
     program, including a program under section 399O of the Public 
     Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280g-3), to the extent 
     necessary to prevent misuse and diversion of prescription 
     medicines.
       ``(ii) In this subparagraph, the terms `State' and 
     `controlled substance' have the meanings given such terms in 
     section 399O(m) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
     280g-3(m)).''.
       Sec. 230.  Not more than $250,000 may be used by the 
     Department of Veterans Affairs to conduct any single national 
     outreach and awareness marketing campaign, including 
     motorsports sponsorship, prior to submitting a request to the 
     Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress and 
     an approval is issued or absent a response, a period of 30 
     days has elapsed.

                               TITLE III

                            RELATED AGENCIES

                  American Battle Monuments Commission

                         salaries and expenses

       For necessary expenses, not otherwise provided for, of the 
     American Battle Monuments Commission, including the 
     acquisition of land or interest in land in foreign countries; 
     purchases and repair of uniforms for caretakers of national 
     cemeteries and monuments outside of the United States and its 
     territories and possessions; rent of office and garage space 
     in foreign countries; purchase (one-for-one replacement basis 
     only) and hire of passenger motor vehicles; not to exceed 
     $7,500 for official reception and representation expenses; 
     and insurance of official motor vehicles in foreign 
     countries, when required by law of such countries, 
     $61,100,000, to remain available until expended.

                 foreign currency fluctuations account

       For necessary expenses, not otherwise provided for, of the 
     American Battle Monuments Commission, such sums as may be 
     necessary, to remain available until expended, for purposes 
     authorized by section 2109 of title 36, United States Code.

           United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims

                         salaries and expenses

       For necessary expenses for the operation of the United 
     States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims as authorized by 
     sections 7251 through 7298 of title 38, United States Code, 
     $30,770,000: Provided, That $2,726,363 shall be available for 
     the purpose of providing financial assistance as described, 
     and in accordance with the process and reporting procedures 
     set forth, under this heading in Public Law 102-229.

                      Department of Defense--Civil

                       Cemeterial Expenses, Army

                         salaries and expenses

       For necessary expenses, as authorized by law, for 
     maintenance, operation, and improvement of Arlington National 
     Cemetery and Soldiers' and Airmen's Home National Cemetery, 
     including the purchase or lease of passenger motor vehicles 
     for replacement on a one-for-one basis only, and not to 
     exceed $1,000 for official reception and representation 
     expenses, $45,800,000, to remain available until expended. In 
     addition, such sums as may be necessary for parking 
     maintenance, repairs and replacement, to be derived from the 
     ``Lease of Department of Defense Real Property for Defense 
     Agencies'' account.
       Funds appropriated under this Act may be provided to 
     Arlington County, Virginia, for the relocation of the 
     federally-owned water main at Arlington National Cemetery 
     making additional land available for ground burials.

                      Armed Forces Retirement Home

                               trust fund

       For expenses necessary for the Armed Forces Retirement Home 
     to operate and maintain the Armed Forces Retirement Home--
     Washington, District of Columbia, and the Armed Forces 
     Retirement Home--Gulfport, Mississippi, to be paid from funds 
     available in the Armed Forces Retirement Home Trust Fund, 
     $67,700,000, of which $2,000,000 shall remain available until 
     expended for construction and renovation of the physical 
     plants at the Armed Forces Retirement Home--Washington, 
     District of Columbia, and the Armed Forces Retirement Home--
     Gulfport, Mississippi.

                                TITLE IV

                           GENERAL PROVISIONS

       Sec. 401.  No part of any appropriation contained in this 
     Act shall remain available for

[[Page H3976]]

     obligation beyond the current fiscal year unless expressly so 
     provided herein.
       Sec. 402.  None of the funds made available in this Act may 
     be used for any program, project, or activity, when it is 
     made known to the Federal entity or official to which the 
     funds are made available that the program, project, or 
     activity is not in compliance with any Federal law relating 
     to risk assessment, the protection of private property 
     rights, or unfunded mandates.
       Sec. 403.  No part of any funds appropriated in this Act 
     shall be used by an agency of the executive branch, other 
     than for normal and recognized executive-legislative 
     relationships, for publicity or propaganda purposes, or for 
     the preparation, distribution, or use of any kit, pamphlet, 
     booklet, publication, radio, television, or film presentation 
     designed to support or defeat legislation pending before 
     Congress, except in presentation to Congress itself.
       Sec. 404.  All departments and agencies funded under this 
     Act are encouraged, within the limits of the existing 
     statutory authorities and funding, to expand their use of 
     ``E-Commerce'' technologies and procedures in the conduct of 
     their business practices and public service activities.
       Sec. 405.  Unless stated otherwise, all reports and 
     notifications required by this Act shall be submitted to the 
     Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, 
     and Related Agencies of the Committee on Appropriations of 
     the House of Representatives and the Subcommittee on Military 
     Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies of 
     the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate.
       Sec. 406.  None of the funds made available in this Act may 
     be used for a project or program named for an individual 
     serving as a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner of 
     the United States House of Representatives.
       Sec. 407. (a) Any agency receiving funds made available in 
     this Act, shall, subject to subsections (b) and (c), post on 
     the public website of that agency any report required to be 
     submitted by the Congress in this or any other Act, upon the 
     determination by the head of the agency that it shall serve 
     the national interest.
       (b) Subsection (a) shall not apply to a report if--
       (1) the public posting of the report compromises national 
     security; or
       (2) the report contains confidential or proprietary 
     information.
       (c) The head of the agency posting such report shall do so 
     only after such report has been made available to the 
     requesting Committee or Committees of Congress for no less 
     than 45 days.
       Sec. 408.  None of the funds made available in this Act may 
     be distributed to the Association of Community Organizations 
     for Reform Now (ACORN) or its subsidiaries or successors.
       Sec. 409. (a) None of the funds made available in this Act 
     may be used to maintain or establish a computer network 
     unless such network blocks the viewing, downloading, and 
     exchanging of pornography.
       (b) Nothing in subsection (a) shall limit the use of funds 
     necessary for any Federal, State, tribal, or local law 
     enforcement agency or any other entity carrying out criminal 
     investigations, prosecution, or adjudication activities.
       Sec. 410.  None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made 
     available in this Act may be used by an agency of the 
     executive branch to pay for first-class travel by an employee 
     of the agency in contravention of sections 301-10.122 through 
     301-10.124 of title 41, Code of Federal Regulations.
       Sec. 411.  None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made 
     available in this Act may be used by an agency of the 
     executive branch to exercise the power of eminent domain (to 
     take private property for public use) without the payment of 
     just compensation.
       Sec. 412.  None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made 
     available to the Department of Defense in this Act may be 
     used to renovate, expand, or construct any facility in the 
     continental United States for the purpose of housing any 
     individual who has been detained, at any time after September 
     11, 2001, at United States Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, 
     Cuba.
       Sec. 413.  None of the funds provided in this Act may be 
     used to execute a contract for goods or services, including 
     construction services, where the contractor has not complied 
     with Executive Order 12989.

  Mr. CULBERSON (during the reading). Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous 
consent that the remainder of the bill through page 60, line 9, be 
considered as read, printed in the Record, and open to amendment at any 
point.
  The CHAIR. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from 
Texas?
  There was no objection.


                   Amendment Offered by Mr. Culberson

  Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.
  The CHAIR. The Clerk will report the amendment.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       On page 29, line 16, after the dollar amount, insert 
     (reduced by $20,000,000) (increased by $20,000,000)
       Page 31, line 2, after the dollar amount, insert 
     ``(reducted by $100,000) (increased by $100,000)''.
       Page 32, line 7, after the dollar amount, insert 
     ``(increased by $22,000,000)''.
       Page 33, line 12, after the dollar amount, insert 
     ``(reduced by $22,000,000)''.
       Page 34, line 4, after the dollar amount, insert the 
     following: ``(reduced by $100,000) (increased by $100,000)''.
       Page 35, line 4, after the dollar amount, insert ``(reduced 
     by $70,000,000) (increased by $70,000,000)''.

  Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent that debate on 
this amendment, and any amendments thereto, be limited to 10 minutes, 
to be equally divided and controlled by myself and the ranking member.
  The CHAIR. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from 
Texas?
  There was no objection.

                              {time}  1950

  The CHAIR. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.
  Mr. CULBERSON. This is an amendment which we've worked hard again to 
come up with arm in arm in a cooperative, bipartisan way to increase, 
for example--we're making sure we've got $20 million set aside for 
suicide prevention outreach. A terrible, terrible problem among 
veterans and a high priority for us to do everything we can to help 
prevent suicide, that amendment offered by Congressmen Holt and Runyan.
  Also, this is another amendment we are submitting to attempt to 
reduce wait times for mental health services, also to increase research 
funding by $22 million offset by a reduction in general administration. 
And also, Mr. Chairman, to set aside $100,000 for the purpose of a 
study of Veterans Affairs, VA historic properties.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  The CHAIR. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Georgia.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the 
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Holt).
  Mr. HOLT. I thank the gentleman, and I appreciate that this 
bipartisan amendment offered by my colleague Representative Runyan of 
New Jersey has been accepted by the majority, and I thank Chair 
Culberson and Ranking Member Bishop and their staffs for making this 
possible.
  As you may know, Mr. Chairman, last month the Federal Ninth Circuit 
Court sided with two veterans groups that sued the Department of 
Veterans Affairs for failing to provide timely care to veterans at risk 
of suicide. The court noted that on average, 18 veterans per day take 
their own lives. I'll repeat. On average, 18 veterans per day take 
their own lives. We must end this suicide epidemic.
  This amendment is one important step in that process. Our amendment 
is simple. It fences $20 million of the billion dollars in advance 
funding for the VA for fiscal years 2013 and 2014 and dedicates these 
funds to suicide prevention outreach. Specifically, our intention is to 
use television ads and social media. We know that when veterans are 
made aware of the national suicide prevention number, which is 1-800-
273-TALK, they use it. And lives are saved. 1-800-273-TALK. Indeed, in 
the State of New Jersey, we have our own veteran counseling hotline, 
the Vet-to-Vet Program run by the University of Medicine and Dentistry 
in New Jersey.
  Since it went live a half dozen years ago, no New Jersey Guard member 
who has used its services has taken his or her own life. It is a 
successful program. We want to see this expanded. When we get the word 
out about these counseling services, we save lives. It's past time that 
we push the VA to do the advertising and the outreach that's necessary 
to reach the people who need it.
  This amendment is budget neutral, it's vitally needed, and I thank my 
colleagues for carrying it forward.
  Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased at this time to yield such 
time as he may consume to my colleague from New Jersey (Mr. Runyan).
  Mr. RUNYAN. Thank you for the time.
  I thank my colleague from New Jersey (Mr. Holt) for his work on this 
amendment.
  Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of the Holt-Runyan amendment, 
which takes further steps towards keeping veterans alive by dedicating 
$20 million of suicide prevention outreach within the VA for fiscal 
year 2012.
  Suicide is always tragic, but suicide by a veteran, especially young 
veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan, is especially troubling. VA officials 
tell us that one in five suicides in America is a veteran, and that the 
suicide rate of male veterans is twice that of the general population. 
While most of these are older

[[Page H3977]]

veterans, young male veterans are still more likely to commit suicide 
than those who have never served in Iraq or Afghanistan.
  When the suicide rate of veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan spiked in 
2004, Congress responded by increasing VA's budget for mental health by 
nearly a third. This allowed VA to create a veterans crisis line and 
place suicide prevention coordinators in every medical center.
  But if any veteran who needs help cannot get help or does not know it 
is available, the program is a failure. As I said before, every suicide 
is tragic. And more must be done.
  This is why I strongly support this amendment which would give the VA 
the necessary additional resources to let veterans know, through TV and 
social media, to reach out to our veterans. I hope all of my colleagues 
will stand with me and my colleague, Mr. Holt, in support of this 
amendment.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the 
gentlelady from Wisconsin (Ms. Moore).
  Ms. MOORE. Thank you so much to the gentleman from Georgia.
  I rise to support this omnibus amendment and for the purpose of 
directing the Department of Veterans Affairs to examine its practices 
on how it plans to rehabilitate and reuse national landmarks that are 
aging, outdated, or in obsolete condition within the VA infrastructure 
and issue a report to Congress no later than January 1, 2012, on any 
actions taken or planned to be taken to rehabilitate and use these 
national landmarks, to fulfill its responsibilities under section 106 
of the National Historic Preservation and to our veterans.
  An example of these landmarks is the Milwaukee Soldier's Home, built 
in 1867, one of the original soldier's homes established by 
congressional legislation and approved by President Abraham Lincoln on 
March 3, 1865. The soldier's home reflects how our foresisters chose to 
care for and honor the soldiers who fought to keep the country united 
as one Nation.
  I say foresisters because it was the ladies of Milwaukee's West Side 
Soldiers Aid Society whose tenacity and dedication made it possible to 
raise the funds necessary to create the Milwaukee Home for Disabled 
Volunteer Soldiers which they generously gifted to the soldier's home 
system, a forerunner of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
  This summer, on the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, the soldier's 
home will hopefully be dedicated as a national historic landmark.
  I urge the Department of Veterans Affairs to send a report to 
Congress.
  Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I would note we're pleased to support 
this amendment. As the gentlewoman has just pointed out, this Veterans 
Hospital was created, I think she said March 30 of 1865. That would 
have been one of the last acts on Earth of President Abraham Lincoln. 
So we're pleased to accept her amendment to ensure the preservation of 
this very historic and important piece of American history.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. We want to commend the gentlelady for her 
amendment and her compassion in offering it.
  While I have the time, let me discuss the Altmire amendment which has 
been offered, and Mr. Altmire, I believe, is on his way to the floor. 
This amendment will move $22 million from the Veterans Administration's 
general administration account to the medical and prosthetic research 
account.
  A recent Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs heard testimony from 
wounded soldiers about the disparity of prosthetics technologies 
between the Department of Defense and the veterans health care. This 
amendment will restore some of the funding that was cut from the 
medical and prosthetic research account by taking a small dollar amount 
from the VA general administration account.
  Wounded warriors are deserving of no less than this Nation's full 
commitment. I rise in strong support of this amendment.
  I reserve the balance of my time.

                              {time}  2000

  Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I do support Mr. Altmire's amendment.
  Obviously, we are all committed to supporting prosthetics research. 
Our military doctors have done an extraordinary job of saving the lives 
of these young men and women who are wounded in combat, and we want to 
make sure we are giving them all the support they need.
  I am glad Mr. Altmire has brought this amendment to us. I understand 
he is on the way to the floor because he would like to speak on his 
amendment.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. CULBERSON. I yield back the balance of my time.
  The CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman 
from Texas (Mr. Culberson).
  The amendment was agreed to.
  Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, in an effort to expedite consideration 
of this bill and ensure our men and women in uniform get all the help 
they need as soon as possible, I move that the Committee do now rise.
  The motion was agreed to.
  Accordingly, the Committee rose; and the Speaker pro tempore (Mr. 
Runyan) having assumed the chair, Mr. Terry, Chair of the Committee of 
the Whole House on the state of the Union, reported that that 
Committee, having had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2055) making 
appropriations for military construction, the Department of Veterans 
Affairs, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 
2012, and for other purposes, had come to no resolution thereon.

                          ____________________