Congressional Record, Volume 169 Issue 129 (Wednesday, July 26, 2023)

[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 129 (Wednesday, July 26, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H3976-H4007]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, VETERANS AFFAIRS, AND RELATED AGENCIES
APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2024

General Leave

Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include
extraneous material on H.R. 4366, and that I may include tabular
material on the same.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from Texas?
There was no objection.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 614 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. 4366.
The Chair appoints the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa) to
preside over the Committee of the Whole.

{time} 1415

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. 4366) making appropriations for military construction, the
Department of Veterans Affairs, and related agencies for the fiscal
year ending September 30, 2024, and for other purposes, with Mr. Issa
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.
General debate shall be confined to the bill and shall not exceed 1
hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and the ranking
minority member of the Committee on Appropriations, or their respective
designees.
The gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Granger) and the gentlewoman from
Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz) each will control 30 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Granger).
Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of H.R. 4366, a bill that would
provide funding for military construction and the Department of
Veterans Affairs.
During the last Congress, $3 trillion was spent outside of the normal
appropriations process. As spending soared, so did inflation. There was
damage done to the economy, and the work of the Appropriations
Committee changed significantly over those 2 years. That is why,
earlier this year, I asked subcommittee chairs to evaluate all of the
funding in the pipeline.
When the President's budget finally arrived, I directed them to
review each agency budget line by line. I thank the subcommittee chairs
for their work to identify ways to save hard-earned tax dollars.
These savings have allowed us to reduce overall spending without
shortchanging--which is most important--national defense, homeland
security, and veterans.
The bill before us demonstrates our commitment to reduce overall
spending and still honor our commitment to our veterans. This bill
makes good on that promise by fully funding veterans healthcare. It
will ensure our veterans get the medical treatment and benefits they
deserve.
Specifically, the bill prioritizes our Nation's heroes by providing
critical funding for our military bases and facilities, improving the
quality of life of our servicemembers and their families, and ensuring
our veterans are appropriately honored in our cemeteries and battle
monuments. The bill also prohibits funding to be used for biased and
controversial programs.
Mr. Chair, I thank the Members and staff on both sides of the aisle
for their hard work. This is a strong bill, and I look forward to
supporting it.
Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong opposition to H.R. 4366, with great
respect to both of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle,
Chairwoman Granger and Chairman Carter, who are friends but with whom
we strongly disagree on this legislation.
The FY 2024 military construction, veterans affairs, and related
agencies bill is, sadly, not one that I can support.
Back in May, the subcommittee mark of the MILCON-VA bill cut the Cost
of War Toxic Exposures Fund by $14.7 billion in 2024 and completely
eliminated the toxic exposures fund in 2025, less than a year after we
passed the bipartisan Honoring our PACT Act that promises dedicated
funding for veterans of all wars exposed to Agent Orange, burn pits,
and other toxic substances.
This was in addition to the default on America act introduced in
April by Republicans, which included a $2 billion rescission to
immediately cut critical funding for VA and include no protections for
veterans funding. We pushed back hard on these cuts as Democrats, and
we were successful.
Thankfully, as part of the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023,
President Biden was able to undo that grievous harm by delivering the
promise we all collectively made to our veterans by fully funding the
toxic exposures fund.
However, the problems did not stop there, and Democrats made
significant efforts to right the other major wrongs in this bill, but,
unfortunately, to no avail.
The MILCON-VA bill is traditionally one of the more bipartisan
bills--actually, so often that it is almost indistinguishable who is in
the majority and who wrote those bills.
That is not the case, sadly, this year because it is riddled with
partisan riders, coming out of the full committee on a party-line vote
significantly worse off than where it started. Riders include
preventing VA from implementing its interim final rule that provides
access to abortions for the life or health of the mother and in the
case of rape or incest, as well as abortion counseling to provide
healthcare services for women who desperately need it, and,
importantly, to ensure that veterans have equal access to healthcare
regardless of what State they live in because they get their healthcare
from a Federal agency.

[[Page H3977]]

It includes riders that do everything from prohibiting VA from
implementing diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives as well as
training; prohibiting VA from flying the Pride flag over VA facilities;
creating a license for people and organizations to discriminate against
LGBTQI+ people under the guise of religious liberty and prevents the
Federal Government from adequately responding; and prohibiting access
to gender-affirming care, further disenfranchising veterans from VA.
VA is a place where all veterans should feel welcome, included, and
cared for. All veterans means all veterans, and what this bill does is
shameful.
On the MILCON side, this bill cuts funding for servicemembers and
their families by $1.5 billion compared to the enacted level, compared
to current services.
The Republicans have cut military construction funding by $1.5
billion compared to the current funding. In fact, this bill is $200
million lower after the full committee markup than when it was first
introduced in subcommittee. Even after the agreement with President
Biden was signed into law, this bill cuts even more.
We have a recruitment and retention problem, Mr. Chairman, and this
bill cuts funding for military construction.
We have major quality-of-life issues for our servicemembers, and this
bill cuts funding for military construction and cuts funding for things
like childcare centers, training centers, and airplane hangars that
house and protect our billions of dollars of military equipment.
This bill cuts dedicated funding for PFAS forever chemicals
remediation and cleanup, which is a cut of $200 million from the
current level, and dedicated funding for military installation climate
change and resiliency projects, which is a cut of $90 million from the
current level.
There is an enormous need for funds to clean up PFAS forever
chemicals contamination at BRAC sites as the services are still in the
early stages of dealing with PFAS forever chemicals contamination.
Dedicated PFAS forever chemicals funding has previously been provided
in this bill so we can ensure continued progress in remediating
contamination at closed bases and minimize the impact for those
surrounding communities. This is critical funding needed to fulfill our
commitment to ensure those pieces of land are safe for future use and
for people who live nearby. This is poison that Republicans are
refusing to provide funding to clean up.
Furthermore, neglecting to continue investing in protecting our
installations from climate change is a national security risk. We all
know how extremely costly disaster assistance funding is. I am from
Florida. I certainly know about that better than most.
Last year, we provided DOD with $90 million, a comparatively small
sum of funding now, which will pay huge dividends in the future and
ensure our national security in the face of our changing climate. By
eliminating the dedicated resilience funding this year, this bill would
threaten future military readiness.
Cutting military construction by $1.5 billion slows our historically
bipartisan efforts to reduce the infrastructure backlog to strengthen
our national security and to improve the quality of life of our
servicemembers and their families. We are backtracking on our
commitment to our servicemembers and their families.
To make matters worse, veterans rely on programs throughout the
Federal Government, not just programs in this bill. Instead of honoring
the bipartisan budget agreement that this Chamber voted into law just
last month, the FY 2024 House appropriations bills collectively break
the commitment that was negotiated, agreed to, passed by a majority of
Congress, and signed into law by President Biden to adequately fund
critical domestic investments. Instead, these bills are written to the
same exact number used before negotiations even began.
These drastic cuts diminish access to education, transportation, job
opportunities, and food assistance that veterans and their families
rely on.
Is there no line that Republicans won't cross? Is there no population
that is off-limits?
The MILCON-VA bill is just one piece of the puzzle, Mr. Chairman, and
gutting all the other programs that veterans and their families rely on
throughout the Federal Government breaks our promises to veterans and
pulls the rug out from under those who served our country and whom we
promised to take care of upon their return. I cannot and will not
support it.
The House MILCON-VA bill, as well as all 11 other appropriations
bills, are headed for a collision course with the Senate, which got to
work in a bipartisan manner. By the way, their version of this bill
passed unanimously out of full committee. They got to work in a
bipartisan manner to complete appropriations bills on time, consistent
with the Fiscal Responsibility Act.
These appropriations bills renege on the agreement and risk an
automatic, across-the-board cut with a CR, toward which we are clearly
headed--or, worse, toward a government shutdown.
I will follow, Mr. Chairman, one of the first tenets that I learned
as a legislator many years ago: Your word is your bond. I will stand by
our veterans and our servicemembers by opposing this bill that deprives
them of the services, care, and quality of life that they have earned
and deserve.
Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to oppose this bill, and I reserve
the balance of my time.
Ms. GRANGER. Mr. Chair, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Texas
(Mr. Carter), the chairman of the Subcommittee on Military
Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I am honored to present the fiscal
year 2024 military construction, veterans affairs, and related agencies
appropriations bill to the House today. This bill is special because it
supports our troops and their families and the Nation's veterans.

The bill provides $17.5 billion for military construction and family
housing projects. This is less than the FY23 enacted amount. However,
it is nearly $800 million above the President's request.
We focus this investment in the Pacific to deter China's aggressive
and coercive actions. We also provide significant funding for new
barracks and child development centers.
The bill fully funds veterans programs at the level requested by the
President. It keeps our promises to veterans, and we do more to help
veterans in the Pacific. We also ensure taxpayer funds will be used
appropriately and effectively by increasing oversight of several
programs.
I thank my subcommittee ranking member. Although she disagrees with
this bill, she has been a joy to work with, and our partnership has
been good.
I thank all the people who have worked on this bill and all of their
families and the families of the veterans.
Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 4366.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the
gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), the ranking member of the
House Appropriations Committee.
Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Chair, I rise today in opposition to the military
construction and veterans affairs appropriations bill, which falls
short of our commitments and backtracks on our promises to our
veterans, our servicemembers, and their families.
This bill cuts funding for critical military construction by over
$1.5 billion compared to its current level. It is built on a house of
cards that will crumble as this body and the American people come to
realize the full scope of cuts the majority is pursuing.
This is not the only bill that supports programs and services that
our veterans rely on. Republicans cannot credibly claim to fully fund
veterans programs. The American people can clearly see how veterans are
being treated when they look at the rest of the majority's domestic
funding bills.

{time} 1430

Make no mistake. If it were not for the Democrats, this bill would
have decreased funding for veterans' medical care by $2 billion. In
addition to that, the funding for the Honoring our PACT Act would not
have been there. In 2024, they were going to underfund it. For 2025,
they completely eliminate it.

[[Page H3978]]

We should not be in this position, and the global economy should
never have been used as a bargaining chip to extract cuts to domestic
spending. However, to prevent a catastrophic default, the President
reached a deal with the Republican Speaker to lift the debt ceiling and
to set spending levels. We have a path to fund the United States
Government on time, a path that this Congress agreed to on a bipartisan
basis, and we ought to take that path.
Instead, this bill offers cuts to vital programs our veterans,
servicemembers, and their families depend on. It cuts $200 million in
dedicated funding for PFAS remediation and cleanup. These chemicals do
not easily break down in the environment. They are a source of
groundwater contamination on military bases, which can lead to serious
health problems. Failure to quickly clean up contaminated areas puts
the surrounding communities, including military families and civilians,
at risk.
This bill ignores the national security risk that will directly
affect all of our bases at home and abroad--climate change. Additional
dedicated funding for resilience projects is leaving America's
servicemembers and veterans completely exposed in the line of fire.
Instead of responsibly funding our veterans in a bill palatable to
both sides of the aisle, this bill is loaded up with hateful riders
that have no business in appropriations language. Prohibitions on
equity and inclusion programs and flags demonstrate grossly misplaced
priorities, fighting culture wars, leaving our veterans, hardworking
families, and the economy out to dry.
The bill places the Federal Government in the room with women and
their doctors. By making it harder for veterans to access healthcare,
we take a step closer toward a national abortion ban. Our veterans did
not volunteer to serve this country and defend our freedom to have
their freedom and their autonomy stripped by this Congress.
Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to oppose this bill.
The CHAIR. The gentleman from California (Mr. Valadao) is recognized
and controls the remaining 26 minutes.
Mr. VALADAO. Mr. Chair, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas
(Mr. Arrington), the chairman of the Committee on the Budget, on which
I have the honor of serving with him.
Mr. ARRINGTON. Mr. Chair, I am grateful to my appropriator colleagues
for rightsizing the bureaucracy and reining in the wasteful and
unnecessary spending after this government grew 40 percent during
COVID. The taxpayers deserve fiduciaries who spend their money like it
was our money. That is really the prevailing philosophy we should all
embrace. I, again, commend the appropriators for the painstaking
efforts to rein this in.
I support the bill, but I highlight in an amendment one of the most
egregious and largest wasteful spending categories, and that is
improper payments. The Federal Government wastefully and fraudulently
spends taxpayer money at an alarming rate. In 2021, it was almost $300
billion. Last year, it was $245 billion.
Mr. Chairman, that is money you could spend on a soldier or a sailor
or on a safety net or infrastructure. It is going nowhere. It is larger
than the Departments of Energy, Commerce, and Justice. It is a third of
our defense spending.
The VA is not the only problem. It is pervasive. At the VA, there is
a long-term care category that has an improper payment rate of 47
percent. Think about that. Almost 50 cents on every dollar is wasted in
this program. It is unconscionable, Mr. Chairman.
If you look across the board, the earned income tax credit, 30 cents
on every dollar wasted, $18 billion. The Medicaid program wasted $80
billion last year. The child tax credit wasted $5 billion. The list
goes on. If we are going to rein in spending, if we are going to save
the country from a debt crisis, we have got to get our fiscal house in
order and focus on improper payments. It is not right.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the
gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Lois Frankel), a fierce advocate for our
communities' veterans and a member of the Appropriations Committee.
Ms. LOIS FRANKEL of Florida. Mr. Chair, well, my, my, my, here we go
again. The Republican attacks on access to legal abortion never end.
Today, the target is women veterans, women who left their loved ones,
trained hard, sometimes risked their lives to stand up for our freedom,
and now it is time to stand up for theirs.
All women should have the freedom to make their own personal decision
about when or whether to start or grow a family. This bill would
undermine the current Biden policy that allows VA medical centers to
provide an abortion when the life or the health of the pregnant veteran
is in danger.
Republicans are willing to force women to wait until they are on
death's door to receive the healthcare that they need. Really? This is
how we thank veterans for their service?
Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on this bill.
Mr. VALADAO. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Virginia (Mr. Cline), a member of the Appropriations Committee.
Mr. CLINE. Mr. Chairman, years of out-of-control government spending
has fueled inflation and skyrocketed our Federal debt. It is far past
time we prioritize those most important core functions of government as
intended by our Founders in the Constitution.
The fiscal year 2024 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs bill
does just that. It prioritizes programs for those most important: our
Nation's veterans, and facilities for our men and women defending our
country.

My, my, my, what do we hear from the other side? Complaints about not
being able to fly certain flags at military bases, complaints about not
being able to fund climate change bureaucracies in our veterans'
facilities, complaints about actually not being able to use taxpayer
dollars to fund abortion services.
This bill focuses on core government functions. It fully funds
veterans' healthcare, veterans' benefits and VA programs. It ensures
our veterans get the medical treatment and benefits they deserve. It
provides funds to the agencies that ensure our military and veterans
are appropriately honored in our cemeteries and battle monuments, and
it prioritizes our Nation's Active Duty servicemembers and their
families by providing nearly $800 million above the President's budget
request for military construction and family housing. Let me repeat
that: $800 million above the President's budget request.
We can and we must support our Nation's heroes who have sacrificed so
much to defend our freedoms and protect our homeland. That is why we
must pass this strong legislation and make clear that we stand with our
brave men and women in uniform.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
The gentlemen from Tennessee and California understand what kind of
money really matters here. It is very nice to say that you are $800
million above the President's budget request.
The money that matters is where we are now and what Republicans are
proposing to spend going forward. Republicans are cutting--which, of
course, Mr. Cline neglected to mention--military construction $1.5
billion below what we spend now. That is a cut by anyone's definition.
They can play games with the language and the way they describe things,
but there is no getting around that they are cutting $1.5 billion from
military construction.
What does that mean? That might just sound like, oh, we will build a
few less buildings, it is not going to be that bad. Understand that DOD
has assessed that 30 percent of our military infrastructure around the
world is in fair or poor condition. Many of us have traveled around the
world to inspect military bases, and we talk to our troops and pledge
to our servicemembers how much they mean to us and how we have their
backs. I have had the opportunity to be shown places where our hangar
doors are held together with wax and spit, particularly in places like
Okinawa and other areas where there is a lot of erosion and metal rusts
more quickly. I live in a coastal State, and I have a coastal district,
so I understand what happens there when you are on the coast from the
salt air. I watched a servicemember try to pull closed a hangar door
that was jury-rigged with a coat hanger because they couldn't get the
door closed the way it normally

[[Page H3979]]

should, and we did not provide them funding anywhere in the near future
to ensure that we can keep billions of dollars' worth of military
equipment safe.
Republicans are standing here and saying things that absolutely do
not pass the straight-face test when they are trying to suggest that
they are doing right by our servicemembers.
We have a retention problem in our military. We have people who have
testified to the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related
Agencies Subcommittee who are current servicemembers who talked to us
about how they intended to spend their careers in the service, but
because of the way they and their families felt treated, the decrepit
housing that the military can't seem to get straight when it comes to
dealing with mold and broken items and repairs that are necessary, they
chose a different career path.
If we continue on the path that Republicans have proposed, then what
that means is that we are going to lose servicemembers, like we are
already losing. That is irresponsible and unacceptable.
Mr. Chairman, I will have more to say at a later time. I reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. VALADAO. Mr. Chair, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Mississippi (Mr. Guest), a member of the House Appropriations
Committee.
Mr. GUEST. Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of H.R. 4366, the
Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act for FY 2024.
I am proud that this legislation fully funds programs to care for our
Nation's heroes, and it ensures that our military infrastructure needs
are met to address critical national security priorities. This bill
focuses on the important work of these agencies while also preventing
the radical woke policies of the Biden administration from distracting
these departments from their primary responsibilities.
A recent example of these policies can be seen in my home State of
Mississippi, where a VA facility chose to replace an American flag with
an LGBTQ Pride flag.
The mission of the VA is to fulfill President Lincoln's promise, a
promise to care for those who have served in our Nation's military,
their families, their caregivers, and their survivors. The work and the
message of the VA should not be divisive but, rather, respectful toward
our veterans and consistent with the purpose for which the VA was
created.
I am grateful that language is included in the bill to ensure that
the only flags flown over VA facilities or national cemeteries are
government, military, or POW/MIA flags.
Mr. Chair, I am proud to support this bill. We owe our veterans a
debt of gratitude, not a political message.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the
gentlewoman from Nevada (Ms. Lee), who represents tens of thousands of
military servicemembers as well as veterans and is an incredible
advocate on their behalf.
Ms. LEE of Nevada. Mr. Chairman, I rise today as a Representative
from southern Nevada, where we have Creech Air Force Base, Nellis Air
Force Base, and hundreds of thousands of veterans that call southern
Nevada home. As their Representative, I have extreme disappointment
with this bill that we have before us, the MILCON-VA bill.

{time} 1445

As a member of the Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans
Affairs, and Related Agencies, I take great pride in our work. This
traditionally has been bipartisan and laser-focused on the needs of our
veterans, of our servicemembers, and their families, and on the
military's construction requirements to meet global security challenges
facing our Nation, not just today, but in the future.
Unfortunately, this bill is not a reflection of that MILCON-VA
tradition of putting politics aside and putting our military, our
servicemembers, our veterans, and our Nation first. Instead, this bill
sacrifices our promises to veterans, our military readiness, and our
national security, honestly, in favor of meeting the demands of a few
extremist Republican politicians.
Instead of ensuring our Nation provides for Americans who have
sacrificed to keep our Nation safe, this bill focuses on picking
culture war fights, banning the VA from flying certain flags or banning
them from taking steps to advance equal opportunity and health access
for every veteran.
Instead of focusing on preparing our military to protect U.S.
interests, the bill would prevent the VA from providing lifesaving
reproductive healthcare to female veterans.
As my colleague just said, the mission of the VA should be respectful
to our veterans. I say to every woman veteran who has put her life on
the line for our freedom that we should show them the respect that they
can make their own choice and be free to make their own choice for
their own healthcare.
I want to be clear, as a woman who has undergone a D&C, that abortion
care is healthcare. I will say that again. Abortion care is healthcare.
Women who have put their lives on the line for our country, for our
freedom, should have the ability to make that choice.
The policies that extremist politicians, in addition to that, have
tacked on to this bill prevents the VA from providing that type of
care, even in the case when a pregnancy is the result of rape, incest,
or the life of the mother is at risk.
The CHAIR. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chair, I yield such time as she may
consume to the gentlewoman from Nevada.
Ms. LEE of Nevada. Policies that extremist politicians have tacked on
to this bill are offensive to men and women who serve our country,
including my constituents at Creech and Nellis Air Force bases.
I am especially alarmed at the $1.5 billion in proposed cuts to
military construction. I am supportive of being thoughtful and
responsible with our Federal spending, but at a time when our Nation
faces mounting security challenges across this globe, I cannot
understand how we can stand here today and cut nearly 10 percent of
funding that would ensure that our military bases are fully equipped to
handle global threats.
This bill would increase the backlog of projects at bases likes
Nellis and Creech, where I have heard directly from my airmen and
airwomen working out of temporary, cramped, and outdated, unsafe
facilities; and this, at a time when our military is already struggling
with recruitment and retention.
Full military construction funding is key to enable that our
servicemembers meet National Defense Strategy demands, so we must
invest fully in critical facilities, like Nellis' communication support
center and the Weapons School Campus.
We also need to support the mission-critical Reconnaissance
Operations Training Facility and to repair the base's taxiway at
Creech.
We call on our men and women in our military to make our Nation and
keep our Nation safe, but this bill does not meet the demands of our
servicemembers and, instead, abandons men and women who we should be
supporting most in southern Nevada and beyond.
I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' and, instead, please let's get
back to working together to get servicemembers and our veterans the
resources that they need, that they have earned, and give them the
respect and the freedom that they have fought for.
The CHAIR. The gentleman from Texas (Mr. Carter) is recognized and
controls the time.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman
from Florida (Mr. Rutherford), a member of the Appropriations
Committee.
Mr. RUTHERFORD. I thank the gentleman, the chairman, for yielding.
Mr. Chair, I rise in support of this fiscal year 2024 military
construction and veterans affairs appropriations bill.
Despite some of the allegations from my friends on the other side of
the aisle, this is a good bill. The budget process is not about how
much you cut; it is about where you cut. That is what is important.
This bill is a good bill because it supports our veterans and our
servicemembers. In fact, this bill fully funds President Biden's
request for the VA and even exceeds the administration's request for
military construction.

[[Page H3980]]

On top of that, the VA funding in this bill is $16.5 million more
than the fiscal year 2023 enacted level--the enacted level. Let me
repeat. This bill fully funds veterans' healthcare programs, period.
This includes keeping our promise that we just made to provide care
to our toxic-exposed veterans, as we did last year through the Honoring
our PACT Act.
I am also proud that we robustly funded military construction
projects across the world, focusing on our barracks, our child
development centers, to the tune of almost $800 million more than the
administration's request.
This bill cuts wasteful spending, wasteful spending for programs that
my constituents back home do not support, like critical race theory and
DEI.
Now, they want to say that we have politicized the issue of abortion
within this bill. The fact of the matter is, President Biden's
administration, through rulemaking in DOD, put in this language--that
is why we are taking it out because they put it in--that they were
going to use taxpayer dollars to actually facilitate someone getting an
abortion.

That is not what the taxpayers want. That is not what the Hyde
amendment allows, and the partisanship that they referred to earlier is
their partisanship.
This administration and almost every executive agency in this
government now legislates by fiat. They pass rules, 100-page rules.
Those aren't rules. That is legislation. That is law. We have got to
stop that, and we are doing that in this bill.
I am very proud that in this bill we prohibit the VA from continuing
to implement their abortion policy that they put in; it is nothing more
than this administration's way of circumventing the Dobbs decision.
House Republicans are delivering on our promise to care for the men
and women who have served this Nation.
The CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield an additional 1 minute to the
gentleman from Florida.
Mr. RUTHERFORD. House Republicans, we are simply delivering on our
promise to care for the men and women who serve this Nation.
I commend Chairwoman Granger and Chairman Carter for having put this
bill together in a fiscally responsible manner. Yes, we have made some
cuts, but they were responsible cuts. They were cuts that needed to be
made. We cut the waste so that we could help our men and women who
serve this country in uniform. I urge support of this bill.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the
gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Dean).
Ms. DEAN of Pennsylvania. Mr. Chair, I thank the gentlewoman for
yielding.
I rise in opposition to H.R. 4366.
PFAS contamination is in my district, as in everyone else's district
across this Nation. In my case, it is largely as a result of the legacy
of firefighting foam used at what was Willow Grove Naval Air Base. My
own brother worked there.
PFAS contamination, we know, is extremely dangerous, and I will say
those who produced these chemicals for six decades have known of their
danger and hid it for many, many years.
The brave men and women of our military were disproportionately
highly exposed to rates of PFAS. More than 700 military bases have been
contaminated with PFAS. The servicemembers that call these bases work
or home have been continually exposed to these forever chemicals, as
have their neighbors in the surrounding area.
We are still learning more and more about the health effects from
this level of toxin; decreased fertility, increased risk of cancers,
obesity, thyroid hormone disruption, just to name a few.
Congress and the White House have a responsibility to protect our
current and future servicemembers from these toxins, as well as their
neighbors. That is why the FY23 appropriations bill included an
additional $200 million in dedicated funding for PFAS remediation and
cleanup.
Unfortunately, this bill has no dedicated funding for PFAS and does
not meet the President's funding request. Failing to address this
widespread nationwide PFAS contamination on our military bases and the
surrounding areas is failing our servicemembers.
Our military members stand up for us every single day. Today, we must
stand up for them and all of our citizens by investing in PFAS research
and remediation by rejecting this bill.
The Pennsylvania Constitution, article I, section 29, provides that
we have a right to clean air, clean water, and the preservation of our
natural aesthetic. Let's live up to that right.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman
from Georgia (Mr. Allen).
Mr. ALLEN. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 4366,
the fiscal year 2024 military construction and veteran affairs
appropriations bill, which honors our veterans, supports our national
security, and cuts wasteful government spending. I say again, it cuts
wasteful government spending.
Last November, when the American people entrusted Republicans with
the House majority, we made a commitment to a Nation that is safe.
Today's legislation delivers on that commitment and ensures the
Department of Defense has the resources and facilities it needs to
protect our homeland from foreign adversaries.
H.R. 4366 provides nearly $800 million above the President's budget
for military construction, including $80 million for the first phase of
construction for the U.S. Army Cyber Center of Excellence Signal School
at Fort Gordon.
Building a 21st century military is crucial to fielding threats in
the ever-evolving cyber environment, and that starts with these
critical investments being made at Fort Gordon.
Mr. Chairman, I urge a ``yes'' vote on H.R. 4366.
The CHAIR. The Chair would advise all Members we are in the Committee
of the Whole.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my
time.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman
from Georgia (Ms. Greene).
Ms. GREENE of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, first I would like to
acknowledge all the amazing women that serve in our Nation's military
and the mothers that serve in our Nation's military.
But I will respond to something I heard a few minutes ago here, the
pronouncement, the actual statement that abortion is women's
healthcare.
I state for the record, abortion is not healthcare in any way.
Abortion is the murder of the unborn child in a woman's womb. Abortion
is defined as taking a life. It doesn't save a life. It kills a life.
Abortion methods are brutal, horrific, absolutely some of the worst
things in today's times; ripping the limbs off an unborn baby, ripping
its head off, killing it with chemicals inside of its mother's womb.
This is not something that taxpayers should have to ever pay for.
This is something that honestly should not exist. Abortion is murder,
and it is evil.
We should be supporting mothers in the military. We should be
supporting women's actual healthcare, and that is not abortion.

{time} 1500

Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chair, may I inquire as to the time
remaining.
The Acting CHAIR (Mr. Edwards). The gentlewoman from Florida has 8
minutes remaining. The gentleman from Texas has 15 minutes remaining.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chair, I am prepared to close, and I yield
myself the balance of my time.
Mr. Chair, as the expression goes: Show me your budget, and I will
show you what my values are.
It is very clear with the lollipop tree of culture war riders that
this bill that funds the quality of life and the national readiness and
security of the United States of America and the protection and quality
of life of our military servicemembers, it is clear that because this
bill cuts $1.5 billion below what we are currently funding in military
construction, the Republicans have shown where their values are.
They can put all the lipstick on the pig that they have developed in
this

[[Page H3981]]

bill that they want, but at the end of the day, they are still cutting
$1.5 billion from military construction. That is cutting funding for
airport hangars, for training centers, for childcare centers, for
infrastructure that ensures that we can keep our servicemembers safe
when they are serving overseas, while they are serving in the United
States, and that is something that we have not done in modern times in
this bill.
Why? Because generally the military construction, veterans affairs,
appropriations bill is, on a bipartisan basis, written as a commitment
that we make to take care of our servicemembers while they are serving
in the military on Active Duty and to take care of our veterans when
they transition to retirement and spend the rest of their lives as
veterans.
This committee has a special responsibility. We are the only
committee in the Congress that is responsible for the entire life cycle
of an individual from when they start their service on Active Duty all
the way through Active Duty and through their life as a veteran. We
have a special responsibility to make sure that we are taking care of
them, and cutting $1.5 billion is the opposite of that.
The values that our friends on the other side of the aisle have shown
is very clear. What they were more interested in doing, and the
priority that was at the top of their agenda, included riders that
prevent all veterans from getting equal access to healthcare no matter
where they live. What they want to do in this bill--and you will see in
subsequent amendments that will be offered--is they want to take away
women veterans' right, their ability to make their own reproductive
healthcare decisions.
Furthermore, because veterans get their healthcare from the VA, it is
essential that we do not discriminate against those veterans, those
women veterans, no matter where they live; that they be able to get
that access to healthcare whenever they need it to ensure that they can
make their own reproductive healthcare decisions regardless of the
State they live in.
We spent the bulk of our time in the subcommittee and the full
committee debating riders that do everything from prohibiting VA from
implementing diversity and equity policies so that all veterans, no
matter their religion, their culture, their ethnicity, their sexual
orientation, that all veterans are treated equally; that we can ensure
that no one feels alienated when walking through the doors of the VA
facility.
The Republicans zap any program, any policy related to treating
veterans equally and making everyone feel welcome when they walk in
that door.
It was a top priority for them to prohibit VA facilities from flying
the Pride flag over VA's facilities. If that is one of their top
priorities, it is no wonder that they are cutting a billion-and-a-half
dollars out of military construction, because our friends on the other
side of the aisle have their policies backwards when it comes to taking
care of the people who have served our country and continue to serve
our country.
They have given a license to discriminate against people who are
LGBTQIA+ under the guise of religious liberty. They are preventing the
Federal Government from adequately responding to that and from VA to
provide healthcare services to everyone equally, and they are
prohibiting access to gender-affirming care, which no matter what you
might like to believe on the other side of the aisle, there are people
who have served our country who deserve those services.
All veterans should feel welcomed, included, and cared for. The fact
that they are cutting funding for PFAS forever chemical cleanup means
that we are going to be causing cancer and severe illness--which people
are already getting by being exposed to these forever chemicals. We are
going to ensure, because of the Republican values that are reflected in
this bill, cutting funding for PFAS forever chemicals, we are going to
ensure that more people who served our country and who live nearby
facilities that need to be cleaned up from these chemicals get sick and
eventually die. That is on them.
There is enormous need for more funding to help make sure that we can
do right by our veterans. This bill does the opposite, and I stand in
opposition to it. I urge all Members to join me in voting against this
bill so that we can go back to the drawing board.
We will likely go back to the drawing board, I am quite sure, as this
bill is on a crash course with the Senate bill which does a much better
job at living up to the values that we all should adhere to, and that
is taking care of people who have served our country and are serving
our country nobly now.
Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
The Acting CHAIR. All time for general debate has expired.
Pursuant to the rule, the bill shall be considered for amendment
under the 5-minute rule.
The bill shall be considered as read.
The text of the bill is as follows:

H.R. 4366

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, 2024, and
for other purposes, namely:

TITLE I

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Military Construction, Army

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, $1,517,455,000, to remain available until
September 30, 2028: Provided, That, of this amount, not to
exceed $345,775,000 shall be available for study, planning,
design, architect and engineer services, and host nation
support, as authorized by law, unless the Secretary of the
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 amount made
available under this heading, $162,900,000 shall be for the
projects and activities, and in the amounts, specified in the
table under the heading ``Military Construction, Army'' in
the report accompanying this Act, in addition to amounts
otherwise available for such purposes.

Military Construction, Navy and Marine Corps

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,
$4,477,961,000, to remain available until September 30, 2028:
Provided, That, of this amount, not to exceed $602,625,000
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 amount made available under this heading,
$52,683,000 shall be for the projects and activities, and in
the amounts, specified in the table under the heading
``Military Construction, Navy and Marine Corps'' in the
report accompanying this Act, in addition to amounts
otherwise available for such purposes.

Military Construction, Air Force

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, $2,439,614,000, to
remain available until September 30, 2028: Provided, That,
of this amount, not to exceed $450,614,000 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 amount made available under this heading,
$30,300,000 shall be for the projects and activities, and in
the amounts, specified in the table under the heading
``Military Construction, Air Force'' in the report
accompanying this Act, in addition to amounts otherwise
available for such purposes.

Military Construction, Defense-Wide

(including transfer 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

[[Page H3982]]

military departments), as currently authorized by law,
$2,651,047,000, to remain available until September 30, 2028:
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, not to exceed $304,045,000
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 National Guard

For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilitation,
and conversion of facilities for the training and
administration of the Army National Guard, and contributions
therefor, as authorized by chapter 1803 of title 10, United
States Code, and Military Construction Authorization Acts,
$369,261,000, to remain available until September 30, 2028:
Provided, That, of the amount, not to exceed $42,361,000
shall be available for study, planning, design, and architect
and engineer services, as authorized by law, unless the
Director of the Army National Guard 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 made available under
this heading, $19,075,000 shall be for the projects and
activities, and in the amounts, specified in the table under
the heading ``Military Construction, Army National Guard'' in
the report accompanying this Act, in addition to amounts
otherwise available for such purposes.

Military Construction, Air National Guard

For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilitation,
and conversion of facilities 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,
$189,322,000, to remain available until September 30, 2028:
Provided, That, of the amount, not to exceed $36,200,000
shall be available for study, planning, design, and architect
and engineer services, as authorized by law, unless the
Director of the Air National Guard 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 made available under this
heading, $600,000 shall be for the projects and activities,
and in the amounts, specified in the table under the heading
``Military Construction, Air National Guard'' in the report
accompanying this Act, in addition to amounts otherwise
available for such purposes.

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, $117,076,000, to remain
available until September 30, 2028: Provided, That, of the
amount, not to exceed $23,389,000 shall be available for
study, planning, design, and architect and engineer services,
as authorized by law, unless the Chief of the Army Reserve
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, $61,291,000, to remain available until September 30,
2028: Provided, That, of the amount, not to exceed
$6,495,000 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.

Military Construction, Air Force Reserve

For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilitation,
and conversion of facilities for the training and
administration of the Air Force Reserve as authorized by
chapter 1803 of title 10, United States Code, and Military
Construction Authorization Acts, $330,572,000, to remain
available until September 30, 2028: Provided, That, of the
amount, not to exceed $12,146,000 shall be available for
study, planning, design, and architect and engineer services,
as authorized by law, unless the Chief of the Air Force
Reserve 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 made available under this heading,
$29,000,000 shall be for the projects and activities, and in
the amounts, specified in the table under the heading
``Military Construction, Air Force Reserve'' in the report
accompanying this Act, in addition to amounts otherwise
available for such purposes.

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, $293,434,000, to remain available until
expended.

Department of Defense Base Closure Account

For deposit into the Department of Defense Base Closure
Account, established by section 2906(a) of the Defense Base
Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 (10 U.S.C. 2687 note),
$539,174,000, 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,
$304,895,000, to remain available until September 30, 2028.

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, $395,485,000.

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, $277,142,000, to remain available until September 30,
2028.

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, $373,854,000.

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,
$237,097,000, to remain available until September 30, 2028.

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, $324,386,000.

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, $50,785,000.

Department of Defense

Family Housing Improvement Fund

For the Department of Defense Family Housing Improvement
Fund, $6,611,000, 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.

Department of Defense

Military Unaccompanied Housing Improvement Fund

For the Department of Defense Military Unaccompanied
Housing Improvement Fund, $496,000, to remain available until
expended, for unaccompanied housing initiatives undertaken
pursuant to section 2883 of title 10, United States Code,
providing alternative means of acquiring and improving
military unaccompanied housing and supporting facilities.

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,

[[Page H3983]]

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 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 bordering the
Arabian Gulf, 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 bordering the Arabian Gulf, 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. 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. 115. 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. 116. 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. 117. 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. 118. In addition to any other transfer authority
available to the Department of Defense, amounts may be
transferred from the Department of Defense Base Closure
Account to the fund established by section 1013(d) 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 42 U.S.C.
3374(a)(1)(A). 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. 119. 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 $15,000 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. 120. 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.

(including transfer of funds)

Sec. 121. 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, 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. 122. 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
Department of Defense Financial Management Regulation
7000.14-R, Volume 3, Chapter 7, of March 2011, as in effect
on the date of enactment of this Act.
Sec. 123. None of the funds made available in this title
may be obligated or expended for planning and design and
construction of projects at Arlington National Cemetery.
Sec. 124. For an additional amount for the accounts and in
the amounts specified, to remain available until September
30, 2028:
``Military Construction, Army'', $47,700,000;
``Military Construction, Navy and Marine Corps'',
$689,409,000;
``Military Construction, Air Force'', $148,300,000;
``Military Construction, Defense-Wide'', $280,100,000;
``Military Construction, Army National Guard'',
$26,800,000;
``Military Construction, Air National Guard'',
$126,742,000;
``Military Construction, Army Reserve'', $40,000,000;
``Military Construction, Air Force Reserve'', $8,500,000;
and
``Family Housing Construction, Air Force'', $27,000,000:
Provided, That such funds may only be obligated to carry
out construction projects identified in the respective
military department's unfunded priority list for fiscal year

[[Page H3984]]

2024 submitted to Congress: Provided further, That such
projects are subject to authorization prior to obligation and
expenditure of funds to carry out construction: Provided
further, That not later than 60 days after enactment of this
Act, the Secretary of the military department concerned, or
their designee, shall submit to the Committees on
Appropriations of both Houses of Congress an expenditure plan
for funds provided under this section.
Sec. 125. All amounts appropriated to the ``Department of
Defense--Military Construction, Army'', ``Department of
Defense--Military Construction, Navy and Marine Corps'',
``Department of Defense--Military Construction, Air Force'',
and ``Department of Defense--Military Construction, Defense-
Wide'' accounts pursuant to the authorization of
appropriations in a National Defense Authorization Act
specified for fiscal year 2024 in the funding table in
section 4601 of that Act shall be immediately available and
allotted to contract for the full scope of authorized
projects.
Sec. 126. Notwithstanding section 116 of this Act, funds
made available in this Act or any available unobligated
balances from prior appropriations Acts may be obligated
before October 1, 2025, for fiscal year 2017, 2018, and 2019
military construction projects for which project
authorization has not lapsed or for which authorization is
extended for fiscal year 2024 by a National Defense
Authorization Act: Provided, That no amounts may be
obligated pursuant to this section from amounts that were
designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement
pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.
Sec. 127. For the purposes of this Act, the term
``congressional defense committees'' means the Committees on
Armed Services of the House of Representatives and the
Senate, the Subcommittee on Military Construction and
Veterans Affairs of the Committee on Appropriations of the
Senate, and the Subcommittee on Military Construction and
Veterans Affairs of the Committee on Appropriations of the
House of Representatives.
Sec. 128. For an additional amount for the accounts and in
the amounts specified for planning and design and for
construction improvements to Department of Defense laboratory
facilities, to remain available until September 30, 2028:
``Military Construction, Army'', $30,000,000;
``Military Construction, Navy and Marine Corps'',
$30,000,000; and
``Military Construction, Air Force'', $30,000,000:
Provided, That not later than 60 days after enactment of
this Act, the Secretary of the military department concerned,
or their designee, shall submit to the Committees on
Appropriations of both Houses of Congress an expenditure plan
for funds provided under this section: Provided further,
That the Secretary of the military department concerned may
not obligate or expend any funds prior to approval by the
Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of
the expenditure plan required by this section.
Sec. 129. For an additional amount for ``Military
Construction, Air Force'', $252,000,000, to remain available
until September 30, 2028, for expenses incurred as a result
of natural disasters: Provided, That not later than 60 days
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the
Air Force, or their designee, shall submit to the Committees
on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress an expenditure
plan for funds provided under this section.
Sec. 130. For an additional amount for the accounts and in
the amounts specified for planning and design, for child
development centers, to remain available until September 30,
2028:
``Military Construction, Army'', $25,000,000;
``Military Construction, Navy and Marine Corps'',
$25,000,000; and
``Military Construction, Air Force'', $25,000,000:
Provided, That not later than 60 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the military
department concerned, or their designee, shall submit to the
Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress an
expenditure plan for funds provided under this section.
Sec. 131. For an additional amount for the accounts and
amounts specified for planning and design, for barracks, to
remain available until September 30, 2028:
``Military Construction Army'', $65,000,000;
``Military Construction, Navy and Marine Corps'',
$65,000,000; and
``Military Construction, Air Force'', $65,000,000:
Provided, That not later than 60 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the military
department concerned, or their designee, shall submit to the
Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress an
expenditure plan for funds provided under this section.
Sec. 132. For an additional amount for the accounts and in
the amounts specified for unspecified minor construction for
demolition, to remain available until September 30, 2028:
``Military Construction, Army'', $15,000,000;
``Military Construction, Navy and Marine Corps'',
$15,000,000;
``Military Construction, Air Force'', $15,000,000;
``Military Construction, Army National Guard'',
$15,000,000;
``Military Construction, Air National Guard'', $15,000,000;
``Military Construction, Army Reserve'', $5,000,000;
``Military Construction, Navy Reserve'', $5,000,000; and
``Military Construction, Air Force Reserve'', $5,000,000:
Provided, That not later than 60 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the military
department concerned, or their designee, shall submit to the
Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress an
expenditure plan for funds provided under this section:
Provided further, That the Secretary of the military
department concerned may not obligate or expend any funds
prior to approval by the Committees on Appropriations of both
Houses of Congress of the expenditure plan required by this
section.
Sec. 133. For an additional amount for the accounts and in
the amounts specified, to remain available until September
30, 2028:
``Military Construction, Army'', $122,210,000;
``Military Construction, Air Force'', $90,400,000;
``Military Construction, Army National Guard'',
$134,881,000; and
``Military Construction, Army Reserve'', $23,000,000:
Provided, That funds may only be obligated to carry out
cost to complete projects identified in the respective
military department's unfunded priority list for fiscal year
2024 submitted to Congress: Provided further, That such
projects are subject to authorization prior to obligation and
expenditure funds to carry out construction: Provided
further, That not later than 60 days after enactment of this
Act, the Secretary of the military department concerned, or
their designee, shall submit to the Committees on
Appropriations of both Houses of Congress an expenditure plan
for funds under this section.
Sec. 134. For an additional amount for ``Military
Construction, Navy and Marine Corps'', $50,000,000 to remain
available until September 30, 2028, for planning and design
for Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program
construction: Provided, That not later than 60 days after
the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Navy,
or their designee, shall submit to the Committees on
Appropriations of both Houses of Congress an expenditure plan
for funds provided under this section.
Sec. 135. None of the funds made available by this Act may
be used to carry out the closure or realignment of the United
States Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Sec. 136. (a) None of the funds made available by this Act
for the Department of the Air Force, or any other Department
and Agency, may be obligated or expended for the construction
or modification of facilities for temporary or permanent use
by the United States Space Command for headquarters
operations unless, pursuant to subsection (b), the preferred
location for permanent headquarters of the United States
Space Command is selected or until the required report is
submitted.
(b) In the event a permanent location for the headquarters
is selected other than the preferred location as identified
by the Department of the Air Force in January 2021, the
Secretary of the Air Force shall submit to the congressional
appropriations committees a report on the rationale for the
selection of a permanent location for the headquarters of the
United States Space Command.
(c) Subsection (a) shall not apply to any repair necessary
to maintain facilities to protect personnel or property.

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, $4,655,879,000, which shall be in addition to funds
previously appropriated under this heading that become
available on October 1, 2023, to remain available until
expended; and, in addition, $181,390,281,000, which shall
become available on October 1, 2024, to remain available
until expended: Provided, That not to exceed $22,109,000 of
the amount made available for fiscal year 2025 under this
heading shall be reimbursed to ``General Operating Expenses,
Veterans Benefits Administration'', 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.

[[Page H3985]]

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, 41, 51, 53, 55, and 61 of title 38,
United States Code, $11,523,134,000, which shall become
available on October 1, 2024, 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 of title 38, United States
Code, $12,701,000, which shall be in addition to funds
previously appropriated under this heading that become
available on October 1, 2023, to remain available until
expended; and in addition, $135,119,422, which shall become
available on October 1, 2024, 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 2024, 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, $316,742,419.

vocational rehabilitation loans program account

For the cost of direct loans, $78,337, 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
$2,026,000.
In addition, for administrative expenses necessary to carry
out the direct loan program, $460,698, 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, $2,718,546.

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, $3,899,000,000: 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 10 percent shall
remain available until September 30, 2025.

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, bioengineering services, food
services, and salaries and expenses of healthcare employees
hired under title 38, United States Code, assistance and
support services for caregivers as authorized by section
1720G of title 38, United States Code, 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), monthly assistance
allowances authorized by section 322(d) of title 38, United
States Code, grants authorized by section 521A of title 38,
United States Code, and administrative expenses necessary to
carry out sections 322(d) and 521A of title 38, United States
Code, and hospital care and medical services authorized by
section 1787 of title 38, United States Code;
$71,000,000,000, plus reimbursements, shall become available
on October 1, 2024, and shall remain available until
September 30, 2025: Provided, That, of the amount made
available on October 1, 2024, under this heading,
$2,000,000,000 shall remain available until September 30,
2026: 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 the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall ensure that sufficient
amounts appropriated under this heading for medical supplies
and equipment are available for the acquisition of
prosthetics designed specifically for female veterans:
Provided further, That nothing in section 2044(e)(1) of title
38, United States Code, may be construed as limiting amounts
that may be made available under this heading for fiscal
years 2024 and 2025 in this or prior Acts.

medical community care

For necessary expenses for furnishing health care to
individuals pursuant to chapter 17 of title 38, United States
Code, at non-Department facilities, $20,382,000,000, plus
reimbursements, shall become available on October 1, 2024,
and shall remain available until September 30, 2025:
Provided, That, of the amount made available on October 1,
2024, under this heading, $2,000,000,000 shall remain
available until September 30, 2026.

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.), $11,800,000,000, plus reimbursements,
shall become available on October 1, 2024, and shall remain
available until September 30, 2025: Provided, That, of the
amount made available on October 1, 2024, under this heading,
$350,000,000 shall remain available until September 30, 2026.

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; $9,400,000,000, plus
reimbursements, shall become available on October 1, 2024,
and shall remain available until September 30, 2025:
Provided, That, of the amount made available on October 1,
2024, under this heading, $500,000,000 shall remain available
until September 30, 2026.

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, $938,000,000,
plus reimbursements, shall remain available until September
30, 2025: Provided, That the Secretary of Veterans Affairs
shall ensure that sufficient amounts appropriated under this
heading are available for prosthetic research specifically
for female veterans, and for toxic exposure research.

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, $480,000,000, of which not
to exceed 10 percent shall remain available until September
30, 2025.

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, $475,000,000, of
which not to

[[Page H3986]]

exceed 10 percent shall remain available until September 30,
2025: Provided, That funds provided under this heading may
be transferred to ``General Operating Expenses, Veterans
Benefits Administration''.

board of veterans appeals

For necessary operating expenses of the Board of Veterans
Appeals, $287,000,000 of which not to exceed 10 percent shall
remain available until September 30, 2025.

information technology systems

(including transfer of funds)

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, $6,401,000,000, plus reimbursements: Provided,
That $1,606,977,000 shall be for pay and associated costs, of
which not to exceed 3 percent shall remain available until
September 30, 2025: Provided further, That $4,668,373,000
shall be for operations and maintenance, of which not to
exceed 5 percent shall remain available until September 30,
2025: Provided further, That $125,650,000 shall be for
information technology systems development, and shall remain
available until September 30, 2025: Provided further, That
amounts made available for salaries and expenses, operations
and maintenance, and information technology systems
development may be transferred among the three subaccounts
after the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 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 amounts made available for the
``Information Technology Systems'' account for development
may be transferred among projects or to newly defined
projects: Provided further, That no project may be increased
or decreased by more than $3,000,000 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: Provided further, That the funds made available
under this heading for information technology systems
development shall be for the projects, and in the amounts,
specified in the table entitled ``Information Technology
Development Projects'' under this heading in the report
accompanying this Act.

veterans electronic health record

For activities related to implementation, preparation,
development, interface, management, rollout, and maintenance
of a Veterans Electronic Health Record system, including
contractual costs associated with operations authorized by
section 3109 of title 5, United States Code, and salaries and
expenses of employees hired under titles 5 and 38, United
States Code, $1,863,000,000, to remain available until
September 30, 2026: Provided, That the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs shall submit to the Committees on Appropriations of
both Houses of Congress quarterly reports detailing
obligations, expenditures, and deployment implementation by
facility, including any changes from the deployment plan or
schedule: Provided further, That the funds provided in this
account shall only be available to the Office of the Deputy
Secretary, to be administered by that Office: Provided
further, That 25 percent of the funds made available under
this heading shall not be available until July 1, 2024, and
are contingent upon the Secretary of Veterans Affairs--
(1) providing the Committees on Appropriations a report
detailing the status of outstanding issues impacting the
stability and usability of the new electronic health record
system, including those that contributed to the October 13,
2022, deployment delay, along with a timeline and measurable
metrics to resolve issues, no later than 60 days after
enactment of this Act;
(2) certifying and detailing any changes to the full
deployment schedule, no later than 60 days prior to July 1,
2024; and
(3) certifying in writing no later than 30 days prior to
July 1, 2024, the following--
(A) the status of issues included in the report referenced
in paragraph (1), including issues that have not been closed
but have been suitably resolved or mitigated in a manner that
will enhance provider productivity and minimize the potential
for patient harm; and
(B) whether the system is stable, ready, and optimized for
further deployment at VA sites.

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.), $296,000,000, of which not to exceed 10 percent shall
remain available until September 30, 2025.

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 and chapter 81 of title 38, United States
Code, not otherwise provided for, 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,
$881,000,000, of which $373,096,000 shall remain available
until September 30, 2028, and of which $507,904,000 shall
remain available until expended, of which $110,000,000 shall
be available for seismic improvement projects and seismic
program management activities, including for projects that
would otherwise be funded by the Construction, Minor
Projects, Medical Facilities or National Cemetery
Administration accounts: 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 planning, cost
estimating, and design for major medical facility projects
and major medical facility leases and investment strategy
studies funded through the advance planning fund and the
planning and design activities funded through the design
fund, staffing expenses, and funds provided for the purchase,
security, and maintenance 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 that has not been notified to Congress
through the budgetary process or that has not been approved
by the Congress through statute, joint resolution, or in the
explanatory statement accompanying such Act and presented to
the President at the time of enrollment: Provided further,
That such sums as may be necessary shall be available to
reimburse the ``General Administration'' account for payment
of salaries and expenses of all Office of Construction and
Facilities Management employees to support the full range of
capital infrastructure services provided, including minor
construction and leasing services: Provided further, That
funds made available under this heading for fiscal year 2024,
for each approved project shall be obligated: (1) by the
awarding of a construction documents contract by September
30, 2024; and (2) by the awarding of a construction contract
by September 30, 2025: 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: Provided further, That notwithstanding
the requirements of section 8104(a) of title 38, United
States Code, amounts made available under this heading for
seismic improvement projects and seismic program management
activities shall be available for the completion of both new
and existing seismic projects of the Department.

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 and chapter 81 of title 38, United
States Code, not otherwise provided for, 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, $680,000,000, of which $612,000,000 shall remain
available until September 30, 2028, and of which $68,000,000
shall remain available until expended, 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, $164,000,000, to remain available
until expended.

grants for construction of veterans cemeteries

For grants to assist States and tribal organizations in
establishing, expanding, or improving veterans cemeteries as
authorized by section 2408 of title 38, United States Code,
$60,000,000, to remain available until expended.

[[Page H3987]]

Administrative Provisions

(including transfer of funds)

Sec. 201. Any appropriation for fiscal year 2024 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 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 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 2024, in this or any other
Act, under the ``Medical Services'', ``Medical Community
Care'', ``Medical Support and Compliance'', and ``Medical
Facilities'' accounts may be transferred among the accounts:
Provided, That any transfers among the ``Medical Services'',
``Medical Community Care'', 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 among the ``Medical
Services'', ``Medical Community Care'', 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 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 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 2023.
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 2024, 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 2024 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 2024 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 shall be available until
expended.

(including transfer of funds)

Sec. 210. Funds available in this title or funds for
salaries and other administrative expenses shall also be
available to reimburse the Office of Resolution Management,
Diversity and Inclusion, the Office of Employment
Discrimination Complaint Adjudication, and the Alternative
Dispute Resolution function within the Office of Human
Resources and Administration for all services provided at
rates which will recover actual costs but not to exceed
$86,481,000 for the Office of Resolution Management,
Diversity and Inclusion, $6,960,000 for the Office of
Employment Discrimination Complaint Adjudication, and
$7,772,000 for the Alternative Dispute Resolution function
within the Office of Human Resources and Administration:
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 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. 212. 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. 213. 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. 214. Such sums as may be deposited into the Medical
Care Collections Fund pursuant to section 1729A of title 38,
United States Code, may be transferred to the ``Medical
Services'' and ``Medical Community Care'' accounts to remain
available until expended for the purposes of these accounts.
Sec. 215. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may enter into
agreements with Federally Qualified Health Centers in the
State of Alaska and Indian Tribes and Tribal organizations
which are party to the Alaska Native Health Compact with the
Indian Health Service, to provide healthcare, including
behavioral health and dental care, to veterans in rural
Alaska. 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 which are not within
the boundaries of the municipality of Anchorage or the
Fairbanks North Star Borough.

(including transfer of funds)

Sec. 216. Such sums as may be deposited into 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 expended for the purposes of these accounts.
Sec. 217. Not later than 30 days after the end of each
fiscal quarter, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of
Congress a report on the financial status of the Department
of Veterans Affairs for the preceding quarter: Provided,
That, at a minimum, the report shall include the direction
contained in the paragraph entitled ``Quarterly reporting'',
under the heading ``General Administration'' in the joint
explanatory statement accompanying Public Law 114-223.

(including transfer of funds)

Sec. 218. Amounts made available under the ``Medical
Services'', ``Medical Community Care'', ``Medical Support and
Compliance'', ``Medical Facilities'', ``General Operating
Expenses, Veterans Benefits Administration'', ``Board of
Veterans Appeals'', ``General Administration'', and
``National Cemetery Administration'' accounts for fiscal year
2024 may be transferred to or from the ``Information
Technology Systems'' account: Provided, That such transfers
may not

[[Page H3988]]

result in a more than 10 percent aggregate increase in the
total amount made available by this Act for the ``Information
Technology Systems'' account: Provided further, 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. 219. Of the amounts appropriated to the Department of
Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2024 for ``Medical
Services'', ``Medical Community Care'', ``Medical Support and
Compliance'', ``Medical Facilities'', ``Construction, Minor
Projects'', and ``Information Technology Systems'', up to
$430,532,000, 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. 2571) 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: Provided further, That section 220
of title II of division J of Public Law 117-328 is repealed.

(including transfer of funds)

Sec. 220. Of the amounts appropriated to the Department of
Veterans Affairs which become available on October 1, 2024,
for ``Medical Services'', ``Medical Community Care'',
``Medical Support and Compliance'', and ``Medical
Facilities'', up to $456,547,000, 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. 2571) 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. 221. Such sums as may be deposited into the Medical
Care Collections Fund pursuant to section 1729A of title 38,
United States Code, for healthcare 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. 2571); 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): Provided, That, notwithstanding
section 1704(b)(3) of the National Defense Authorization Act
for Fiscal Year 2010 (Public Law 111-84; 123 Stat. 2573),
amounts transferred to the Joint Department of Defense--
Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Demonstration
Fund shall remain available until expended.

(including transfer of funds)

Sec. 222. Of the amounts available in this title for
``Medical Services'', ``Medical Community Care'', ``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 available
until expended, for any purpose authorized by section 8111 of
title 38, United States Code.
Sec. 223. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall notify
the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress
of all bid savings in a major construction project 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 a contract
identifying the programmed amount: Provided further, That
the Secretary shall notify the Committees on Appropriations
of both Houses of Congress 14 days prior to the obligation of
such bid savings and shall describe the anticipated use of
such savings.
Sec. 224. None of the funds made available for
``Construction, Major Projects'' may be used for a project in
excess of the scope specified for that project in the
original justification data provided to the Congress as part
of the request for appropriations unless the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs receives approval from the Committees on
Appropriations of both Houses of Congress.
Sec. 225. Not later than 30 days after the end of each
fiscal quarter, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of
Congress a quarterly report containing performance measures
and data from each Veterans Benefits Administration Regional
Office: Provided, That, at a minimum, the report shall
include the direction contained in the section entitled
``Disability claims backlog'', under the heading ``General
Operating Expenses, Veterans Benefits Administration'' in the
joint explanatory statement accompanying Public Law 114-223:
Provided further, That the report shall also include
information on the number of appeals pending at the Veterans
Benefits Administration as well as the Board of Veterans
Appeals on a quarterly basis.
Sec. 226. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall provide
written notification to the Committees on Appropriations of
both Houses of Congress 15 days prior to organizational
changes which result in the transfer of 25 or more full-time
equivalents from one organizational unit of the Department of
Veterans Affairs to another.
Sec. 227. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall provide
on a quarterly basis to the Committees on Appropriations of
both Houses of Congress notification of any single national
outreach and awareness marketing campaign in which
obligations exceed $1,000,000.

(including transfer of funds)

Sec. 228. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, upon
determination that such action is necessary to address needs
of the Veterans Health Administration, may transfer to the
``Medical Services'' account any discretionary appropriations
made available for fiscal year 2024 in this title (except
appropriations made to the ``General Operating Expenses,
Veterans Benefits Administration'' account) or any
discretionary unobligated balances within the Department of
Veterans Affairs, including those appropriated for fiscal
year 2024, that were provided in advance by appropriations
Acts: Provided, That transfers shall be made only with the
approval of the Office of Management and Budget: Provided
further, That the transfer authority provided in this section
is in addition to any other transfer authority provided by
law: Provided further, That no amounts may be transferred
from amounts that were designated by Congress as an emergency
requirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget
or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of
1985: Provided further, That such authority to transfer may
not be used unless for higher priority items, based on
emergent healthcare requirements, than those for which
originally appropriated and in no case where the item for
which funds are requested has been denied by Congress:
Provided further, That, upon determination that all or part
of the funds transferred from an appropriation are not
necessary, such amounts may be transferred back to that
appropriation and shall be available for the same purposes as
originally appropriated: Provided further, 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
receive approval of that request.

(including transfer of funds)

Sec. 229. Amounts made available for the Department of
Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2024, under the ``Board of
Veterans Appeals'' and the ``General Operating Expenses,
Veterans Benefits Administration'' accounts may be
transferred between such accounts: 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
receive approval of that request.
Sec. 230. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may not
reprogram funds among major construction projects or programs
if such instance of reprogramming will exceed $7,000,000,
unless such reprogramming is approved by the Committees on
Appropriations of both Houses of Congress.
Sec. 231. (a) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
ensure that the toll-free suicide hotline under section
1720F(h) of title 38, United States Code--
(1) provides to individuals who contact the hotline
immediate assistance from a trained professional; and
(2) adheres to all requirements of the American Association
of Suicidology.
(b)(1) None of the funds made available by this Act may be
used to enforce or otherwise carry out any Executive action
that prohibits the Secretary of Veterans Affairs from
appointing an individual to occupy a vacant civil service
position, or establishing a new civil service position, at
the Department of Veterans Affairs with respect to such a
position relating to the hotline specified in subsection (a).
(2) In this subsection--
(A) the term ``civil service'' has the meaning given such
term in section 2101(1) of title 5, United States Code; and
(B) the term ``Executive action'' includes--
(i) any Executive order, Presidential memorandum, or other
action by the President; and
(ii) any agency policy, order, or other directive.
(c)(1) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall conduct a
study on the effectiveness of

[[Page H3989]]

the hotline specified in subsection (a) during the 5-year
period beginning on January 1, 2016, based on an analysis of
national suicide data and data collected from such hotline.
(2) At a minimum, the study required by paragraph (1)
shall--
(A) determine the number of veterans who contact the
hotline specified in subsection (a) and who receive follow up
services from the hotline or mental health services from the
Department of Veterans Affairs thereafter;
(B) determine the number of veterans who contact the
hotline who are not referred to, or do not continue
receiving, mental health care who commit suicide; and
(C) determine the number of veterans described in
subparagraph (A) who commit or attempt suicide.
Sec. 232. Effective during the period beginning on October
1, 2018, and ending on January 1, 2025, none of the funds
made available to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs by this
or any other Act may be obligated or expended in
contravention of the ``Veterans Health Administration
Clinical Preventive Services Guidance Statement on the
Veterans Health Administration's Screening for Breast Cancer
Guidance'' published on May 10, 2017, as issued by the
Veterans Health Administration National Center for Health
Promotion and Disease Prevention.
Sec. 233. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law,
the amounts appropriated or otherwise made available to the
Department of Veterans Affairs for the ``Medical Services''
account may be used to provide--
(1) fertility counseling and treatment using assisted
reproductive technology to a covered veteran or the spouse of
a covered veteran; or
(2) adoption reimbursement to a covered veteran.
(b) In this section:
(1) The term ``service-connected'' has the meaning given
such term in section 101 of title 38, United States Code.
(2) The term ``covered veteran'' means a veteran, as such
term is defined in section 101 of title 38, United States
Code, who has a service-connected disability that results in
the inability of the veteran to procreate without the use of
fertility treatment.
(3) The term ``assisted reproductive technology'' means
benefits relating to reproductive assistance provided to a
member of the Armed Forces who incurs a serious injury or
illness on active duty pursuant to section 1074(c)(4)(A) of
title 10, United States Code, as described in the memorandum
on the subject of ``Policy for Assisted Reproductive Services
for the Benefit of Seriously or Severely Ill/Injured
(Category II or III) Active Duty Service Members'' issued by
the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs on
April 3, 2012, and the guidance issued to implement such
policy, including any limitations on the amount of such
benefits available to such a member except that--
(A) the time periods regarding embryo cryopreservation and
storage set forth in part III(G) and in part IV(H) of such
memorandum shall not apply; and
(B) such term includes embryo cryopreservation and storage
without limitation on the duration of such cryopreservation
and storage.
(4) The term ``adoption reimbursement'' means reimbursement
for the adoption-related expenses for an adoption that is
finalized after the date of the enactment of this Act under
the same terms as apply under the adoption reimbursement
program of the Department of Defense, as authorized in
Department of Defense Instruction 1341.09, including the
reimbursement limits and requirements set forth in such
instruction.
(c) Amounts made available for the purposes specified in
subsection (a) of this section are subject to the
requirements for funds contained in section 508 of division H
of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018 (Public Law 115-
141).
Sec. 234. None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made
available by this Act or any other Act for the Department of
Veterans Affairs may be used in a manner that is inconsistent
with: (1) section 842 of the Transportation, Treasury,
Housing and Urban Development, the Judiciary, the District of
Columbia, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 2006
(Public Law 109-115; 119 Stat. 2506); or (2) section
8110(a)(5) of title 38, United States Code.
Sec. 235. Section 842 of Public Law 109-115 shall not
apply to conversion of an activity or function of the
Veterans Health Administration, Veterans Benefits
Administration, or National Cemetery Administration to
contractor performance by a business concern that is at least
51 percent owned by one or more Indian Tribes as defined in
section 5304(e) of title 25, United States Code, or one or
more Native Hawaiian Organizations as defined in section
637(a)(15) of title 15, United States Code.
Sec. 236. (a) Except as provided in subsection (b), the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in consultation with the
Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Labor, shall
discontinue using Social Security account numbers to identify
individuals in all information systems of the Department of
Veterans Affairs as follows:
(1) For all veterans submitting to the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs new claims for benefits under laws
administered by the Secretary, not later than September 30,
2024.
(2) For all individuals not described in paragraph (1), not
later than March 23, 2026.
(b) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may use a Social
Security account number to identify an individual in an
information system of the Department of Veterans Affairs if
and only if the use of such number is required to obtain
information the Secretary requires from an information system
that is not under the jurisdiction of the Secretary.
(c) The matter in subsections (a) and (b) shall supersede
section 238 of division F of Public Law 116-94.
Sec. 237. For funds provided to the Department of Veterans
Affairs for each of fiscal year 2024 and 2025 for ``Medical
Services'', section 239 of division A of Public Law 114-223
shall apply.
Sec. 238. None of the funds appropriated in this or prior
appropriations Acts or otherwise made available to the
Department of Veterans Affairs may be used to transfer any
amounts from the Filipino Veterans Equity Compensation Fund
to any other account within the Department of Veterans
Affairs.
Sec. 239. Of the funds provided to the Department of
Veterans Affairs for each of fiscal year 2024 and fiscal year
2025 for ``Medical Services'', funds may be used in each year
to carry out and expand the child care program authorized by
section 205 of Public Law 111-163, notwithstanding subsection
(e) of such section.
Sec. 240. None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made
available in this title may be used by the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs to enter into an agreement related to
resolving a dispute or claim with an individual that would
restrict in any way the individual from speaking to members
of Congress or their staff on any topic not otherwise
prohibited from disclosure by Federal law or required by
Executive order to be kept secret in the interest of national
defense or the conduct of foreign affairs.
Sec. 241. For funds provided to the Department of Veterans
Affairs for each of fiscal year 2024 and 2025, section 258 of
division A of Public Law 114-223 shall apply.
Sec. 242. (a) None of the funds appropriated or otherwise
made available by this Act may be used to deny an Inspector
General funded under this Act timely access to any records,
documents, or other materials available to the department or
agency over which that Inspector General has responsibilities
under the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.), or
to prevent or impede the access of the Inspector General to
such records, documents, or other materials, under any
provision of law, except a provision of law that expressly
refers to such Inspector General and expressly limits the
right of access.
(b) A department or agency covered by this section shall
provide its Inspector General access to all records,
documents, and other materials in a timely manner.
(c) Each Inspector General shall ensure compliance with
statutory limitations on disclosure relevant to the
information provided by the establishment over which that
Inspector General has responsibilities under the Inspector
General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.).
(d) Each Inspector General covered by this section shall
report to the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and
the Committee on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives within 5 calendar days of any failure by any
department or agency covered by this section to comply with
this requirement.
Sec. 243. None of the funds made available in this Act may
be used in a manner that would increase wait times for
veterans who seek care at medical facilities of the
Department of Veterans Affairs.
Sec. 244. None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made
available by this Act to the Veterans Health Administration
may be used in fiscal year 2024 to convert any program which
received specific purpose funds in fiscal year 2023 to a
general purpose funded program unless the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs submits written notification of any such
proposal to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses
of Congress at least 30 days prior to any such action and an
approval is issued by the Committees.
Sec. 245. For funds provided to the Department of Veterans
Affairs for each of fiscal year 2024 and 2025, section 248 of
division A of Public Law 114-223 shall apply.
Sec. 246. (a) None of the funds appropriated or otherwise
made available by this Act may be used to conduct research
commencing on or after October 1, 2019, that uses any canine,
feline, or non-human primate unless the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs approves such research specifically and in writing
pursuant to subsection (b).
(b)(1) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may approve the
conduct of research commencing on or after October 1, 2019,
using canines, felines, or non-human primates if the
Secretary determines that--
(A) the scientific objectives of the research can only be
met by using such canines, felines, or non-human primates;
(B) such scientific objectives are directly related to an
illness or injury that is combat-related; and
(C) the research is consistent with the revised Department
of Veterans Affairs canine research policy document dated
December 15, 2017, including any subsequent revisions to such
document.
(2) The Secretary may not delegate the authority under this
subsection.
(c) If the Secretary approves any new research pursuant to
subsection (b), not later than 30 days before the
commencement of such research, the Secretary shall submit to
the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and House of
Representatives a report describing--
(1) the nature of the research to be conducted using
canines, felines, or non-human primates;

[[Page H3990]]

(2) the date on which the Secretary approved the research;
(3) the justification for the determination of the
Secretary that the scientific objectives of such research
could only be met using canines, felines, or non-human
primates;
(4) the frequency and duration of such research; and
(5) the protocols in place to ensure the necessity, safety,
and efficacy of the research.
(d) Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment
of this Act, and biannually thereafter, the Secretary shall
submit to such Committees a report describing--
(1) any research being conducted by the Department of
Veterans Affairs using canines, felines, or non-human
primates as of the date of the submittal of the report;
(2) the circumstances under which such research was
conducted using canines, felines, or non-human primates;
(3) the justification for using canines, felines, or non-
human primates to conduct such research; and
(4) the protocols in place to ensure the necessity, safety,
and efficacy of such research.
(e) The Department shall implement a plan under which the
Secretary will eliminate or reduce the research conducted
using canines, felines, or non-human primates by not later
than 5 years after the date of enactment of Public Law 116-
94.
Sec. 247. (a) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may use
amounts appropriated or otherwise made available in this
title to ensure that the ratio of veterans to full-time
employment equivalents within any program of rehabilitation
conducted under chapter 31 of title 38, United States Code,
does not exceed 125 veterans to one full-time employment
equivalent.
(b) Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment
of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report
on the programs of rehabilitation conducted under chapter 31
of title 38, United States Code, including--
(1) an assessment of the veteran-to-staff ratio for each
such program; and
(2) recommendations for such action as the Secretary
considers necessary to reduce the veteran-to-staff ratio for
each such program.
Sec. 248. Amounts made available for the ``Veterans Health
Administration, Medical Community Care'' account in this or
any other Act for fiscal years 2024 and 2025 may be used for
expenses that would otherwise be payable from the Veterans
Choice Fund established by section 802 of the Veterans
Access, Choice, and Accountability Act, as amended (38 U.S.C.
1701 note).
Sec. 249. Obligations and expenditures applicable to the
``Medical Services'' account in fiscal years 2017 through
2019 for aid to state homes (as authorized by section 1741 of
title 38, United States Code) shall remain in the ``Medical
Community Care'' account for such fiscal years.
Sec. 250. Of the amounts made available for the Department
of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2024, in this or any
other Act, under the ``Veterans Health Administration--
Medical Services'', ``Veterans Health Administration--Medical
Community Care'', ``Veterans Health Administration--Medical
Support and Compliance'', and ``Veterans Health
Administration--Medical Facilities'' accounts, $1,279,096,000
shall be made available for gender-specific care and
programmatic efforts to deliver care for women veterans.
Sec. 251. Notwithstanding any other law, by no later than
September 30, 2023, the Secretary shall commence construction
of the Community Based Outpatient Clinic in Bakersfield,
California in accordance with Lease No.36C10F20L0008.
Sec. 252. None of the funds made available in this Act
shall be expended for monthly payments under Lease No.
VA10112R0032, including section 11 of the lease, that exceed
$223,166.67 unless required for maintenance and repairs or
improvements related to the form, fit, or function of the
facility that directly enhances the safety of veterans or
improves healthcare services.
Sec. 253. Not later than 30 days after the end of each
fiscal quarter, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of
Congress a quarterly report on the status of the ``Veterans
Medical Care and Health Fund'', established to execute
section 8002 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public
Law 117-2): Provided, That, at a minimum, the report shall
include an update on obligations by program, project or
activity and a plan for expending the remaining funds:
Provided further, That the Secretary of Veterans Affairs must
submit notification of any plans to reallocate funds from the
current apportionment categories of ``Medical Services'',
``Medical Support and Compliance'', ``Medical Facilities'',
``Medical Community Care'', or ``Medical and Prosthetic
Research'', including the amount and purpose of each
reallocation to the Committees on Appropriations of both
Houses of Congress and such Committees issue an approval, or
absent a response, a period of 30 days has elapsed.
Sec. 254. Any amounts transferred to the Secretary and
administered by a corporation referred to in section 7364(b)
of title 38, United States Code, between October 1, 2017 and
September 30, 2018 for purposes of carrying out an order
placed with the Department of Veterans Affairs pursuant to
section 1535 of title 31, United States Code, that are
available for obligation pursuant to section 7364(b)(1) of
title 38, United States Code, are to remain available for the
liquidation of valid obligations incurred by such corporation
during the period of performance of such order, provided that
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs determines that such
amounts need to remain available for such liquidation.
Sec. 255. Unobligated balances available under the
headings ``Construction, Major Projects'' and ``Construction,
Minor Projects'' may be obligated by the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs for a facility pursuant to section 2(e)(1)
of the Communities Helping Invest through Property and
Improvements Needed for Veterans Act of 2016 (Public Law 114-
294; 38 U.S.C. 8103 note), as amended, to provide additional
funds or to fund an escalation clause under such section of
such Act: Provided, That before such unobligated balances
are obligated pursuant to this section, the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs shall request from the Committees on
Appropriations of both Houses of Congress the authority to
obligate such unobligated balances and such Committees issue
an approval, or absent a response, a period of 30 days has
elapsed: Provided further, That the request to obligate such
unobligated balances must provide Congress notice that the
entity described in section 2(a)(2) of Public Law 114-294, as
amended, has exhausted available cost containment approaches
as set forth in the agreement under section 2(c) of such
Public Law.
Sec. 256. Of the unobligated balances available to the
Department of Veterans Affairs from prior appropriations
Acts, the following funds are hereby rescinded from the
following accounts in the amounts specified:
``Veterans Health Administration--Medical Services'',
$4,933,113,000;
``Veterans Health Administration--Medical Community Care'',
$1,909,069,000; and
``Veterans Health Administration--Medical Facilities'',
$250,515,000.
Sec. 257. Not later than 30 days after the date the funds
become available, the Secretary shall submit to the
Committees on Appropriations an expenditure plan for funds
made available through the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023
(P.L. 118-5) for the Cost of War Toxic Exposures Fund for
fiscal years 2024 and 2025.
Sec. 258. (a) None of the funds made available in this Act
may be used to implement, administer, or otherwise carry out
the Department of Veterans Affairs interim final rule
published on September 9, 2022, or any successor to such
rule, or to propose, promulgate, or implement any
substantially similar rule or policy.
(b) None of the funds appropriated in this Act shall be
expended for any abortion, including through a medical
benefits package or health benefits program that includes
coverage of abortion.
(c) The limitations established in subsection (b) shall not
apply to an abortion--
(1) if the pregnancy is the result of an act of rape or
incest; or
(2) in the case where a woman suffers from a physical
disorder, physical injury, or physical illness, including a
life-endangering physical condition caused by or arising from
the pregnancy itself, that would, as certified by a
physician, place the woman in danger of death unless an
abortion is performed.
Sec. 259. None of the funds made available by this Act may
be used for surgical procedures or hormone therapies for the
purposes of gender affirming care.
Sec. 260. None of the funds made available by this Act may
be used by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to fly or
display a flag over a facility of the Department of Veterans
Affairs or a national cemetery other than the flag of the
United States, the flag of a State, Territory, or District of
Columbia, the flag of an Indian Tribal government, the flag
of the Department, the flag of an Armed Force, or the POW/MIA
flag.

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
$15,000 for official reception and representation expenses;
and insurance of official motor vehicles in foreign
countries, when required by law of such countries,
$158,630,000, 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,
$47,200,000: Provided, That $3,385,000 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.

[[Page H3991]]

Department of Defense--Civil

Cemeterial Expenses, Army

salaries and expenses

For necessary expenses 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 $2,000 for official
reception and representation expenses, $100,267,000, of which
not to exceed $15,000,000 shall remain available until
September 30, 2026. 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.

construction

For necessary expenses for planning and design and
construction at Arlington National Cemetery and Soldiers' and
Airmen's Home National Cemetery, $88,600,000, to remain
available until expended for planning and design and
construction associated with the Southern Expansion project
at Arlington National Cemetery.

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,
$77,000,000, to remain available until September 30, 2025, of
which $8,940,000 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: Provided, That of the amounts made available
under this heading from funds available in the Armed Forces
Retirement Home Trust Fund, $25,000,000 shall be paid from
the general fund of the Treasury to the Trust Fund.

Administrative Provision

Sec. 301. Amounts deposited into the special account
established under 10 U.S.C. 7727 are appropriated and shall
be available until expended to support activities at the Army
National Military Cemeteries.

TITLE IV

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 401. No part of any appropriation contained in this
Act shall remain available for 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. 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. 404. 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. 405. None of the funds made available in this Act may
be transferred to any department, agency, or instrumentality
of the United States Government except pursuant to a transfer
made by, or transfer authority provided in, this or any other
appropriations Act.
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 Web site 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 30 days.
Sec. 408. (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. 409. None of the funds 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. 410. None of the funds made available 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 No. 12989.
Sec. 411. None of the funds made available by this Act may
be used in contravention of section 101(e)(8) of title 10,
United States Code.
Sec. 412. (a) In General.--None of the funds appropriated
or otherwise made available to the Department of Defense in
this Act may be used to construct, renovate, or expand any
facility in the United States, its territories, or
possessions to house any individual detained at United States
Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for the purposes of
detention or imprisonment in the custody or under the control
of the Department of Defense.
(b) The prohibition in subsection (a) shall not apply to
any modification of facilities at United States Naval
Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
(c) An individual described in this subsection is any
individual who, as of June 24, 2009, is located at United
States Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and who--
(1) is not a citizen of the United States or a member of
the Armed Forces of the United States; and
(2) is--
(A) in the custody or under the effective control of the
Department of Defense; or
(B) otherwise under detention at United States Naval
Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Sec. 413. None of the funds appropriated by this Act may
be used in any way, directly or indirectly, to influence
congressional action on any legislation or appropriation
matter pending before Congress, other than to communicate to
Members of Congress as described in 18 U.S.C. 1913.
Sec. 414. None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made
available by this Act may be made available to implement,
administer, apply, enforce, or carry out Executive Order
13985 of January 20, 2021 (86 Fed. Reg. 7009), Executive
Order 14035 of June 25, 2021 (86 Fed. Reg. 34593), or
Executive Order 14091 of February 16, 2023 (88 Fed. Reg.
10825).
Sec. 415. None of the funds made available by this Act may
be used to carry out any program, project, or activity that
promotes or advances Critical Race Theory or any concept
associated with Critical Race Theory.
Sec. 416. (a) In General.--Notwithstanding section 7 of
title 1, United States Code, section 1738C of title 28,
United States Code, or any other provision of law, none of
the funds provided by this Act, or previous appropriations
Acts, shall be used in whole or in part to take any
discriminatory action against a person, wholly or partially,
on the basis that such person speaks, or acts, in accordance
with a sincerely held religious belief, or moral conviction,
that marriage is, or should be recognized as, a union of one
man and one woman.
(b) Discriminatory action defined.--As used in subsection
(a), a discriminatory action means any action taken by the
Federal Government to--
(1) alter in any way the Federal tax treatment of, or cause
any tax, penalty, or payment to be assessed against, or deny,
delay, or revoke an exemption from taxation under section
501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 of, any person
referred to in subsection (a);
(2) disallow a deduction for Federal tax purposes of any
charitable contribution made to or by such person;
(3) withhold, reduce the amount or funding for, exclude,
terminate, or otherwise make unavailable or deny, any Federal
grant, contract, subcontract, cooperative agreement,
guarantee, loan, scholarship, license, certification,
accreditation, employment, or other similar position or
status from or to such person;
(4) withhold, reduce, exclude, terminate, or otherwise make
unavailable or deny, any entitlement or benefit under a
Federal benefit program, including admission to, equal
treatment in, or eligibility for a degree from an educational
program, from or to such person; or
(5) withhold, reduce, exclude, terminate, or otherwise make
unavailable or deny access or an entitlement to Federal
property, facilities, educational institutions, speech fora
(including traditional, limited, and nonpublic fora), or
charitable fundraising campaigns from or to such person.
(c) Accreditation; Licensure; Certification.--The Federal
Government shall consider accredited, licensed, or certified
for purposes of Federal law any person that would be
accredited, licensed, or certified, respectively, for such
purposes but for a determination against such person wholly
or partially on the basis that the person speaks, or acts, in
accordance with a sincerely held religious belief or moral
conviction described in subsection (a).
Sec. 417. None of the funds made available by this Act may
be used for any office, programs, or activity for the
purposes of diversity, equity, and inclusion training or
implementation.

spending reduction account

Sec. 418. $0.

[[Page H3992]]

This Act may be cited as the ``Military Construction,
Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act,
2024''.

The Acting CHAIR. All points of order against provisions in the bill
are waived.
No amendment to the bill shall be in order except those printed in
House Report 118-158, amendments en bloc described in section 3 of
House Resolution 614, and pro forma amendments described in section 4
of House Resolution 614.
Each amendment printed in House Report 118-158 may be offered only in
the order printed in the report, by the Member designated in the
report, shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for the time
specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent
and an opponent, shall not be subject to the amendment except as
provided by section 4 of House Resolution 614, and shall not be subject
to a demand for division of the question.
It shall be in order at any time for the chair of the Committee on
Appropriations or her designee to offer amendments en bloc consisting
of amendments printed in House Report 118-158 not earlier disposed of.
Amendments en bloc shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for
20 minutes equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking
minority member of the Committee on Appropriations or their respective
designees, shall not be subject to amendment, except as provided by
section 4 of House Resolution 614, and shall not be subject to a demand
for division of the question.
During consideration of the bill for amendment, the chair and ranking
minority member of the Committee on Appropriations or their respective
designees may offer up to 10 pro forma amendments each at any point for
the purpose of debate.

Amendment No. 1 Offered by Mr. Ryan

The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 1
printed in House Report 118-158.
Mr. RYAN. Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:

Page 2, line 18, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $103,000,000) (reduced by $103,000,000)''.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 614, the gentleman
from New York (Mr. Ryan) and a Member opposed each will control 5
minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York.
Mr. RYAN. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Chair, I rise in support of my amendment, which increases Army
construction funding by $103 million to address extensive flood damage
at the United States Military Academy at West Point.
A few weeks ago on July 9, New York's Hudson Valley, along with other
parts of the Northeast, was devastated by a once-in-a-millennium flood
that saw nearly 10 inches of torrential rainfall arrive on the Hudson
Valley in just a few hours, washing away homes of our military
families, devastating roads, businesses in the surrounding community,
and tragically costing the life of a young woman in the surrounding
community just outside West Point.
My alma mater, the United States Military Academy at West Point, was
hit particularly hard. I have been on the ground multiple times seeing
the damage firsthand, along with colleagues from both sides of the
aisle, to assess the extent of the damage. We have decimated roads,
collapsed cliffside routes, compromising damage to barracks, bridges,
and facilities critical to carrying out the vital mission of the United
States Military Academy at West Point. In particular, I draw attention
to the fact that all of the enlisted soldier barracks, serving hundreds
of enlisted soldiers at the garrison have been completely destroyed.
There is nowhere for these soldiers on post to live, causing a
cascading effect and a real housing crunch across the post.
As of this moment, the cost estimates to rebuild are increasing each
day, presently topping out at over $100 million. As we know, West Point
serves a mission-critical role in our Nation's national security--the
world's premier leadership institute, creating leaders and shaping the
future of our Nation's Army. This institution made myself, many of my
colleagues across the aisle, and many others of our Nation, into
leaders. We cannot stand by during this time of need for such a
critical national security resource.
Allowing West Point to be hamstrung by such significant damage
imperils our military readiness, and we must ensure the institution has
the resources it needs to urgently repair and rebuild and get back to
their mission.
Mr. Chair, I urge the support of my colleagues throughout the
Congress, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition,
although I am not opposed.
The Acting CHAIR. Without objection, the gentleman is recognized for
5 minutes.
There was no objection.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I support the amendment, and I urge
its adoption.
Mr. Chair, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman
from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz).
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chair, I strongly support the gentleman's
amendment and commend him for his efforts to address the severe
flooding problems that have occurred in and around West Point.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. RYAN. Mr. Chair, I thank my colleagues for the bipartisan support
of this critical amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.
The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentleman from New York (Mr. Ryan).
The question was taken; and the Acting Chair announced that the noes
appeared to have it.
Mr. RYAN. Mr. Chair, I demand a recorded vote.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, further
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from New York
will be postponed.

{time} 1515

Amendment No. 2 Offered by Mr. Ogles

The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 2
printed in House Report 118-158.
Mr. OGLES. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:

Page 9, line 24, after the dollar amount, insert ``(reduced
by $3,000,000)''.
Page 92, line 17, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $3,000,000)''.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 614, the gentleman
from Tennessee (Mr. Ogles) and a Member opposed each will control 5
minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Tennessee.
Mr. OGLES. Mr. Chair, as we attempt to cut spending back to top-line
FY 2022 levels, we must address the glaring $32.6 trillion debt.
We must commit in this Congress to significant spending cuts. If we
don't, we will be mortgaging the futures of our children. We will
perpetually hobble long-term economic growth by not only destroying our
future borrowing power but by forcing our Treasury to dedicate much of
its future spending to debt repayment rather than meeting the needs of
the American people.
If we fail to tackle runaway spending now, we are compromising the
well-being of future generations. Is that the legacy we want to leave
behind? We have an obligation, a moral one, to ensure that we leave
this country better off than we found it.
In an appropriations bill that is supposed to be focused on
supporting our veterans and their families, we are sending $293
million--taxpayer dollars--abroad to support NATO. That is an increase
of 33 percent from FY 2023.
There will be some who argue that the $293 million figure is a
commitment that the United States made at the June 2022 NATO summit.
While Congress has largely abdicated its role in foreign affairs to the
executive branch, it was the intent of our Founding Fathers that this
institution provide a robust check on the executive. It is why we have
the power of the purse.
Ultimately, given Congress' massive spending habits, there needs to
come a time when we say enough is enough, and that is the purpose for
offering this amendment today. I am asking all of

[[Page H3993]]

my colleagues if they could spare just a 1 percent cut to NATO's
Security Investment Program. That is just 1 percent.
Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to the
amendment.
The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, the NATO Security Investment Program
is NATO's military construction program. The U.S. contribution supports
projects needed by the alliance and also supports U.S. strategy in the
region. It does not finance other countries' construction costs, and
the cost share is favorable to the United States.
The increase included in the bill this year is needed to reinvest in
infrastructure in the region to deter Russia's aggression. Literally,
this program is a concrete investment in deterrence.
Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment. I yield 2
minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz).
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
I strongly oppose this amendment to cut the NATO Security Investment
Program. It is hard to imagine a worse time for us to be cutting
funding from our international obligations when Russia has illegally
invaded Ukraine and our international obligations and cooperation are
so essential in order to ensure that Ukraine can maintain its
sovereignty and ensure that Russia is not allowed to be successful here
and then repeat the same thing across the globe.
The program, also known as NSIP, is a core part of America's
contribution toward shared territorial defense with its allies.
Moreover, the projects that NSIP funds often are already aligned with
U.S. European Command needs.
Our NSIP contributions often closely align with U.S. requirements,
like projects for safety and runway upgrades at airfields that our
planes use and fuel and dock improvements at ports that our ships use.
The program is experiencing a period of growth as the alliance seeks
to address necessary deferred infrastructure needs. This amendment
would cut funding for the program below the requested level,
shortchanging America's commitment to its allies, and instead move it
to the spending reduction account.
Military construction programs are already funded at $1.5 billion
below the enacted level, as I have talked about, and this amendment is
seeking to cut it further.
The United States contribution to NSIP, as a percentage of the
overall program, is much smaller proportionally than the United States
share of the alliance's gross national income. Simply put, our allies
are more than paying their fair share in the Security Investment
Program.
NSIP funding is necessary for NATO, and it is necessary for American
national security. We should not jeopardize it with this amendment.
Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment.

Mr. OGLES. Mr. Chairman, I have a great deal of respect for my
colleagues, but let's talk about America's contribution. We have
already spent roughly $42 billion on equipment and support for Ukraine
in addition to these moneys.
When you think about NATO, our allies are supposed to hold up their
fair share of the bargain, 2 percent. We are meeting our obligations,
but only seven other countries meet their obligations. Keep in mind, it
is supposed to be 2 percent. Luxembourg is at 0.62; Canada, 1.29;
Turkey, 1.37; Norway, 1.57; Germany, 1.49; and France, 1.89.
Before we start talking about the United States of America doing its
job and having to defend the rest of the world, how about our allies do
their job and uphold their obligations? I am asking for only a 1
percent cut.
Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. OGLES. Mr. Chair, it is hard to justify sending hard-earned
taxpayer dollars to NATO when most of our allies don't uphold their end
of the bargain and when they look to us to be their defender and to
fund their security.
Meanwhile, we have a porous border. Every community in this country
is a border town because of fentanyl overdoses in the streets and
trafficking run amuck. Yet, we are going to spend more money overseas.
How about we secure our country and take care of our country, our
people, our needs, and secure our border?
Mr. Chair, it is just a 1 percent cut. I encourage all of my
colleagues to send a message to NATO and our allies to do their fair
share.
Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Ogles).
The question was taken; and the Acting Chair announced that the ayes
appeared to have it.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chair, I demand a recorded vote.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, further
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Tennessee
will be postponed.

Amendment No. 3 Offered by Ms. Greene of Georgia

The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 3
printed in House Report 118-158.
Ms. GREENE of Georgia. Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:

Page 9, line 24, strike ``$293,434,000'' and insert
``$220,100,000''.
Page 92, line 17, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $73,334,000)''.

The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 614, the gentlewoman
from Georgia (Ms. Greene) and a Member opposed each will control 5
minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Georgia.
Ms. GREENE of Georgia. Mr. Chair, I rise today to ask the House to
support my amendment No. 3, which will cut the $73 million increase in
funding for the NATO Security Investment Program. This is simply
keeping the NATO funding at the same level as last year's
appropriations level. I think this is very important.
The United States overwhelmingly contributes more than our fair share
to NATO for Europe's defense, and it is time for European countries to
pay their dues.
While our own border is overrun by border-crossers and deadly,
poisonous fentanyl daily, we continue to send hundreds of billions of
dollars to NATO to defend Ukraine's democracy, even though they aren't
even a NATO member nation.
Investing in NATO security is an America-last policy. All increases
in funding should be investing in the United States of America's
security and the defense of our own border.
President Trump was exactly right when he called on European nations
to put the required minimum of 2 percent of their GDP toward NATO
defense spending. Most NATO countries still don't meet that
requirement, and the U.S. ends up paying for 70 percent of the
alliance's defenses. This is outrageous. The American people do not
like paying for other countries' defenses when our borders are overrun
daily.
The current 2023 defense expenditure for NATO countries has the
United States at $860 billion. The United States of America's military
is not meant to be the world's police. As we find ourselves funding a
war in Ukraine, when the United States' position should be pushing for
peace, not paying for and not funding war and the death of innocent
people, we should not increase our spending and increase the amount of
funding by $73 million more to the NATO Security Investment Program.
Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition to the
amendment.
The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, my arguments are the same.
The NATO Security Investment Program is NATO's military construction
program. The $73 million increase this year is needed to reinvest in
infrastructure in the region to deter Russian aggression.

[[Page H3994]]

Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment. I yield 2
minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz).
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
I rise in opposition to this grossly irresponsible amendment. This
amendment would take a huge cut, $73 million, from the NATO Security
Investment Program during a time when increased funding is essential
for long-deferred projects.
Cutting funding for the NATO Security Investment Program is not only
shortsighted from a national security perspective, but it isn't even
sound long-term fiscal policy. These investments ensure a robust
American and NATO presence to deter hostile nations and prevent even
greater costs to American taxpayers down the road.
One only has to look at the news to understand that we have hostile
nations that wish to do us and our allies harm. A $73 million cut from
the NATO Security Investment Program would put us in more jeopardy
alongside our allies.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine shows that international cooperation
and strong alliances are as essential as ever. These projects are not
America paying other countries' bills. In fact, America pays a
proportionally small amount to the program compared to the size of our
economy in relation to the rest of NATO.

{time} 1530

Regardless of your stance on overall defense spending levels of
various NATO countries, it is simply not true that the United States is
paying more than its share of this direct contribution program.
These projects are agreed-upon NATO requirements and oftentimes have
a direct benefit to supplement existing U.S. requirements. These sites
include ones directly benefiting U.S. forces through the use of
upgraded ports, airfields, and communications.
Our contributions to NATO represent only a small portion of overall
defense spending, but the strength of the alliance is an outsized and
irreplaceable part of American national security.
This amendment would not even reinvest the funding into other
priorities, it simply cuts funding from the bill, shortchanging the
military construction portion by over $73 million. It is irresponsible.
It is dangerous.
Mr. Chair, I strongly urge my colleagues to oppose the amendment.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman
from Virginia (Mr. Connolly).
Mr. CONNOLLY. Mr. Chair, Americans are not fighting and dying in
Ukraine, Ukrainians are. All they ask of the great country they admire
and they want to emulate is that we help with equipment and training.
Putin benefits from this amendment. Putin, a sociopath, who is
engaged in the most depraved behavior in our lifetime: killing innocent
men and women, targeting hospitals, targeting schools, and showing no
restraint.
This Congress must stand with Ukraine. This Congress can never be
seen as Putin's enabler. That is what this amendment does. That is what
is behind it.
The author of this amendment has already said she wants to give zero
to Ukraine, so we know the motivation behind the amendment. Let's
reject it.
Let's stand with Ukraine and make sure Putin gets that message loud
and strong with a forceful voice here on the floor of the House of
Representatives.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. GREENE of Georgia. Mr. Chair, perhaps my colleagues are confused.
Ukraine is not a member of NATO. Ukraine has not been accepted into
NATO. Why are they using defense of Ukraine for their argument for an
additional $73 million increase for the NATO security investment
program? That makes absolutely no sense.
If you want to talk about national security, Mr. Chair, let's talk
about the American people's national security. My colleague across the
aisle speaks of hostile nations and how they present a clear danger to
America's national security. Well, you have to look no further than the
southern border. The southern border is where hostile nations are
invading our country every single day with poisonous fentanyl, which is
murdering over 300 Americans a day.
If there is going to be an increase in funding for the defense of any
nation, it should be the United States of America's border in defense
of American lives.
Mr. Chair, I would like to add, my position and the position of most
Americans is peace, not funding the murder and death in continued
foreign wars, defending other countries' democracies while completely
ignoring our own.
Mr. Chair, I ask the House to pass my amendment that keeps the
spending level at the same level it was this previous appropriations
bill--the same level. An increase in $73 million is another step
towards funding world war III.
It is another step in United States aggression over a country that is
not even a member of NATO in the name of a NATO security investment
program. This is absolute madness. It is outrageous.
Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
The Acting CHAIR (Mr. Duncan). The gentlewoman from Georgia has the
only time remaining.
Ms. GREENE of Georgia. May I inquire how much time I have remaining?
The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman has 1 minute remaining.
Ms. GREENE of Georgia. Mr. Chair, I will wrap this up. It is very
simple. We are at $32 trillion in debt. There is no need to increase
spending over the level that it was last year. Americans are already
spending $860 billion for NATO for the defense of other nations. There
is no reason to increase it by $73 million.
My amendment is very simple: It is asking to keep the appropriations
level the same as it was this past year.
Mr. Chair, I ask the House to support my amendment, and I yield back
the balance of my time.
The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentlewoman from Georgia (Ms. Greene).
The question was taken; and the Acting Chair announced that the ayes
appeared to have it.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, I demand a recorded vote.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, further
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentlewoman from Georgia
will be postponed.

Amendments En Bloc Offered by Mr. Carter of Texas

Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chair, pursuant to House Resolution 614, I
offer amendments en bloc.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendments en bloc.
Amendments en bloc consisting of amendment Nos. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10,
11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30,
31, 32, and 33, printed in House Report 118-158, offered by Mr. Carter
of Texas:

AMENDMENT NO. 4 OFFERED BY MS. PETTERSEN OF COLORADO

Page 24, line 22, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $25,000,000) (reduced by $25,000,000)''.
Page 24, line 24, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $25,000,000) (reduced by $25,000,000)''.
Page 25, line 2, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $25,000,000) (reduced by $25,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 5 OFFERED BY MS. CARAVEO OF COLORADO

Page 33, line 2, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $2,000,000) (decreased by $2,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 6 OFFERED BY MR. OGLES OF TENNESSEE

Page 33, line 2, after the dollar amount, insert ``(reduced
by $1,000,000) (increased by $1,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 7 OFFERED BY MR. GOTTHEIMER OF NEW JERSEY

Page 34, line 4, after the dollar amount, insert ``(reduced
by $1,000,000) (increased by $1,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 8 OFFERED BY MR. GOTTHEIMER OF NEW JERSEY

Page 34, line 4, after the dollar amount, insert ``(reduced
by $1,000,000) (increased by $1,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 9 OFFERED BY MS. NORTON OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Page 34, line 4, after the dollar amount, insert ``(reduced
by $1,000,000) (increased by $1,000,000)''.

Amendment No. 10 Offered by Ms. Ross of North Carolina

Page 34, line 4, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $10,000,000) (reduced by $10,000,000)''.

[[Page H3995]]

Amendment No. 11 Offered by Mr. Arrington of Texas

Page 35, line 12, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $10,000,000) (increased by $10,000,000)''.

Amendment No. 12 Offered by Mrs. Boebert of Colorado

Page 35, line 12, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $2,000,000) (increased by $2,000,000)''.

Amendment No. 13 Offered by Ms. Caraveo of Colorado

Page 35, line 12, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $10,000,000) (decreased by $10,000,000)''.

Amendment No. 14 Offered by Mr. Carbajal of California

Page 35, line 12, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $5,000,000) (increased by $5,000,000)''.

Amendment No. 15 Offered by Ms. Perez of Washington

Page 35, line 12, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $1,000,000) increased by $1,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 16 OFFERED BY MR. HUDSON OF NORTH CAROLINA

Page 35, line 12, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $10,000,000) (increased by $10,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 17 OFFERED BY MR. MOLINARO OF NEW YORK

Page 35, line 12, after the first dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by 2,000,000) (increased by 2,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 18 OFFERED BY MR. OGLES OF TENNESSEE

Page 35, line 12, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $1,000,000) (increased by $1,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 19 OFFERED BY MS. PETTERSEN OF COLORADO

Page 35, line 12, after the first dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $10,000,000) (increased by $10,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 20 OFFERED BY MS. ROSS OF NORTH CAROLINA

Page 35, line 12, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $1,000,000) (reduced by $1,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 22 OFFERED BY MR. OGLES OF TENNESSEE

Page 36, line 22, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $1,000,000) (increased by $1,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 30 OFFERED BY MR. GOTTHEIMER OF NEW JERSEY

Page 39, line 23, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $1,000,000) (increased by $1,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 31 OFFERED BY MS. TLAIB OF MICHIGAN

Page 39, line 23, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $5,000,000)''.
Page 47, line 22, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $5,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 32 OFFERED BY MR. ZINKE OF MONTANA

Page 40, line 18, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $5,000,000)''.
Page 40, line 19, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $5,000,000)''.
Page 47, line 22, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $5,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 33 OFFERED BY MR. MOLINARO OF NEW YORK

Page 42, line 5, after the dollar amount, insert ``(reduced
by 1,000,000) (increased by 1,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 23 OFFERED BY MS. PEREZ OF WASHINGTON

Page 37, line 12, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $1,000,000) (increased by $1,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 25 OFFERED BY MRS. BOEBERT OF COLORADO

Page 38, line 18, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $3,000,000)''.
Page 39, line 23, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $5,500,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 26 OFFERED BY MRS. BOEBERT OF COLORADO

Page 39, line 9, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $2,000,000)''.
Page 39, line 23, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $3,500,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 27 OFFERED BY MRS. BOEBERT OF COLORADO

Page 39, line 23, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $3,500,000)''.
Page 40, line 5, dollar amount, insert ``(increased by
$2,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 28 OFFERED BY MRS. BOEBERT OF COLORADO

Page 39, line 23, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $3,500,000)''.
Page 48, line 5, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $2,000,000)''.

AMENDMENT NO. 29 OFFERED BY MRS. BOEBERT OF COLORADO

Page 39, line 23, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $3,500,000)''.
Page 47, line 22, after the dollar amount, insert
``(increased by $2,000,000)''.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 614, the gentleman
from Texas (Mr. Carter) and the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman
Schultz) each will control 10 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chairman, these are noncontroversial
amendments and are supported by both sides.
Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of this
amendment. It includes 28 amendments: 2 bipartisan, 14 for Republicans,
and 12 for Democrats. I am glad to see that we can at least come
together around certain aspects of this bill to support our veteran
servicemembers and their families and the leadership of colleagues on
both sides of the aisle.
Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the
gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Perez), who is here as an advocate on
behalf of her constituents serving in the military as well as our
veterans.
Ms. PEREZ. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of the amendments en bloc.
Following recent meetings with veterans in Lewis County, I am deeply
concerned about a number of issues impacting constituent veterans who
receive care through the VA Puget Sound Healthcare System.
First and foremost, veterans in Lewis County have seen their access
to care reduced dramatically in recent years.
The 2021 closure of the Chehalis Community Based Outpatient Clinic
cut many veterans off from nearby care. Travel times went from about 1
hour to more than 2 hours to get to a VA Puget Sound facility. Not just
that, but the wait times are horrific. I am hearing from veterans that
they are waiting at times over 6 hours on the phone for it to be
answered.
In rural communities with sparse specialty and mental health care
options to begin with, the closure of a full CBOC has put lifesaving
care out of reach of our veterans.
I offered two amendments that are included in the amendments en bloc
that will hold the VA accountable for protecting access to care for
veterans in rural areas like mine in east Lewis County.
Amendment No. 15 would require the VA to submit a report to Congress
on their efforts to ensure access to healthcare for veterans residing
in geographic proximity to a Department of Veteran Affairs community-
based outpatient clinic subject to closure.
Amendment No. 23 will require the VA to update Patient Experience
Compare Data published on their public website to break down data by
county. This would give our body and Americans valuable insight about
how the patient experience with a medical center may differ based on
location within the center's jurisdiction, not just the jurisdiction
broadly. We can compare whether it is a rural issue or an issue with
the center itself.
In return for their service to our country, we have made a promise to
our veterans that we must uphold. It is our responsibility to ensure
they have the access to healthcare necessary to lead a full and healthy
life after their time in the armed services has ended.
Mr. Chair, I ask for support for these two amendments that will help
increase transparency and hold the VA accountable for access to care
for my constituents and other vets in rural areas.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the
gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton), who is here to
stand up to make sure that our veterans get access to legal care.
Ms. NORTON. Mr. Chairman, this amendment would allow the U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs to provide support to law school
clinical programs and provide pro bono legal and support services to
veterans, including assistance with disability claims and appeals and
foreclosures. The House passed this amendment last year.
There are already at least 22 law schools that have clinics devoted
to veterans' legal needs, including William and Mary Law School
Veterans Benefits Clinic, which serves as a national model for this
idea and was the first recipient of the ``best practice'' award for the
VA.

[[Page H3996]]

There are many other law schools, such as the University of the
District of Columbia's David A. Clarke School of Law that are
interested in starting their own VA certified clinics. More needs to be
done to sustain and increase the number of these programs.
I was a tenured professor of law and continued to teach a seminar
after being elected to Congress. I saw the expert attention that
clinical programs provide their clients.
Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment, a concrete
measure that would assist our veterans who put their lives on the line
for this country.

Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I support the amendments en
bloc, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my
time.
The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendments en bloc offered
by the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Carter).
The en bloc amendments were agreed to.
The Acting CHAIR. The Chair understands that amendment No. 21 will
not be offered.

Amendment No. 24 Offered by Mr. Bergman

The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 24
printed in House Report 118-158.
Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:

Page 38, line 18, after the dollar amount, insert
``(reduced by $20,000,000) (increased by $20,000,000)''.

The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 614, the gentleman
from Michigan (Mr. Bergman) and a Member opposed each will control 5
minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Michigan.
Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 1 minute.
Mr. Chair, I rise in strong support of my amendment to H.R. 4366.
This amendment will ensure the VA conducts large-scale studies into
the efficacy of drugs with FDA breakthrough therapy status to treat
post-traumatic stress disorder through medication-assisted therapy
trials.

{time} 1545

Every day, roughly 20 veterans take their own life. This number has
stayed high despite our best efforts here in Washington. Fortunately,
new breakthrough therapies have offered significant help.
Under the Trump administration, the FDA granted breakthrough therapy
status for MDMA-assisted therapy to treat PTSD. Since then, privately
funded research has demonstrated clear, positive results in treating
previously untreatable PTSD with little or no risk for patients.
This includes studies in cooperation with the VA, for instance, at
the Bronx VA hospital.
Let me be clear. These trials are conducted with full FDA approval,
under medical supervision, and in safe clinical environments.
The Acting CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Chair, I yield myself an additional 1 minute.
Additionally, Mr. Chair, because these medications are only ever
administered directly in-person and in a clinical setting by medical
professionals, there is no potential for misuse.
It is now time for the VA to do its part to expand research into
these lifesaving therapies and refine best practices for our treatment
for our veterans.
If psychedelic-assisted therapy can help treat a veteran's PTSD or
prevent them from taking their own life, then we owe it to them to take
an active role in researching these potentially lifesaving therapies.
Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CORREA. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition, although I am
not opposed.
The Acting CHAIR. Without objection, the gentleman from California is
recognized for 5 minutes.
There was no objection.
Mr. CORREA. Mr. Chair, I also rise in strong support of the Bergman-
Correa amendment.
This amendment will push the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the
VA, to carry our large-scale studies into drugs like psilocybin, MDMA,
and others which have been designated as breakthrough therapies by the
Food and Drug Administration.
Why? It is because we owe it to our veterans.
Mr. Chair, what you have to do is listen to veterans' testimonies--
veterans who have the invisible scars from the wounds they brought back
from the battlefield--and their challenges, psychological challenges.
Psilocybin promises up to 80 percent success after one treatment of a
veteran's challenge, and, today, as the law stands, these veterans have
to go outside the country to get treatment.
That is no way, Mr. Chair, to treat our veterans.
Let's take care of business. Let's make sure the VA takes these tests
and studies and brings back data so that we can create a program that
takes care of our veterans.
Veterans have fought for our freedom. It is time that we continue and
step up to fulfill our moral obligation to take care of them, as well.
Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to join us in voting ``yes'' on this
amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague and partner, Representative Correa,
for his remarks.
We have both worked long and hard on the commitment to our veterans
in so many different ways. This is just one more example of Congress
doing the right thing for our veterans.
This amendment will unlock potential treatments that have been shown
to actually cure post-traumatic stress disorder, something current
medicine and modern psychology have been unable to do; give our
veterans a chance to live a long, happy life that we all take for
granted.
Mr. Chair, I strongly urge all our Members to vote for our men and
women--our heroes--who have served in uniform and to support the
Bergman-Correa amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.
The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Bergman).
The amendment was agreed to.

Amendment No. 34 Offered by Ms. Greene of Georgia

The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 34
printed in House Report 118-158.
Ms. GREENE of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:

Page 52, beginning on line 18, strike ``the Office of
Resolution Management, Diversity and Inclusion''.
Page 52, line 20, strike the comma.
Page 52, beginning on line 24, strike ``$86,481,000 for the
Office of Resolution Management, Diversity and Inclusion,''.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 614, the gentlewoman
from Georgia (Ms. Greene) and a Member opposed each will control 5
minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman.
Ms. GREENE of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, my amendment asks the House to
support striking the funding for the Office of Resolution Management,
Diversity and Inclusion.
The Office of Resolution Management, Diversity and Inclusion in the
VA is charged with promoting woke DEI initiatives. My amendment would
strike over $86 million of funding for this woke office which provides
training for VA employees to teach them about their implicit bias.
Just for you to understand what implicit bias means, Mr. Chairman,
because it was something I had to look up myself, implicit bias--this
is ACORN--implicit bias refers to a person's unconscious attitudes
about other communities that can affect their behavior to those
members.
Unconscious attitudes? We are funding $86 million for people to be
trained about things they feel that they don't know that they feel?
This makes absolutely no sense for the care of our great veterans.
Instead of spending millions of tax dollars on woke ideology, we
should put that money toward making the VA

[[Page H3997]]

an agency that actually helps our heroes and our great veterans who
served our military and our country and who desperately need good care.
When I am at home in my district and I speak to veterans there, that
is what I hear them talk about to me constantly: is the care that they
want to receive at the VA, but yet they are failed so many times?
Sick and injured veterans suffering with PTSD, depression, and mental
illness and who are on the verge of suicide don't care if VA employees
serving them have checked their White privilege. They just want to get
the treatment that they need.
Just for some examples for the House to hear about the type of
training that happens in this DEI department that is costing the
American taxpayers $86 million, a few examples are managing gender
diversity in the VA, managing implicit bias--remember those are
feelings you don't know you have--valuing workforce diversity in the
workplace inclusion; participating effective diversity and inclusion in
the workplace for managers, supervisors, and team leaders;
understanding micro behaviors in the VA work environment.
It is time to put $86 million to taking care of our veterans'
healthcare needs. That is the right place to spend the money.
Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I claim the time in opposition
to the amendment.
The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman from Florida is recognized for 5
minutes.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to this
amendment.
The VA strives to fairly represent and support the communities that
it serves, and all veterans deserve equitable and fair access to the
healthcare and benefits that they deserve. Diversity and inclusion
foster a healthy workplace environment and promote equal opportunity
through smart outreach, retention, and education.
Our veterans--despite the sponsor's denial of a more greatly diverse
VA--increasingly are diverse themselves, and they deserve that.
The bill already rejected the budget request to fund the Office of
Resolution Management, Diversity and Inclusion at the levels needed to
support the department in 2024 and instead holds the office flat at the
same funding level provided in 2023, and now this amendment seeks to
eliminate the already inadequate funding in the bill entirely.
What is so threatening about the Office of Resolution Management,
Diversity and Inclusion?
This office, among the many things it does, prevents harassment and
discrimination problems.
I can't imagine why we wouldn't want to combat that, why we wouldn't
to make sure that everybody is able to come to work or to be treated at
the VA in an evenhanded and fair way.
It heads off costly legal problems for the VA and saves taxpayer
money in the long term which I thought was something that our friends
on the other side of the aisle are interested in.
I believe the real issue is that our friends on the other side of the
aisle don't like the increasing diversity that is occurring in this
country, and there is an effort underway as a result across all
appropriations bills to excise that word and any policy related to it
and to cut anything related to diversity regardless of the purpose and
need of the office.
Mr. Chairman, this is an inherently discriminatory, unfair, and
bigoted amendment. I urge my colleagues to oppose it, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Ms. GREENE of Georgia. Mr. Chair, the great news for all of us here
today is that the Constitution declared long ago that all of us are
created equal. It is time that we started acknowledging that in all of
our funding, in all of our departments, and all across America, and, as
well, that our veterans are created equal. We don't have to spend $86
million on educating everyone on how different they are. It is time to
start treating everyone equally.
As far as sexual harassment claims, private businesses all across the
country are able to handle these without having special diversity,
equity, and inclusion departments to handle sexual harassment. That is
usually handled in human resources or among managers who can handle the
situation.
Management has always been a problem in the VA. We do not need to
fund $86 million creating a big, woke department that is actually
already created. We should spend $86 million, again, toward helping our
veterans. Our veterans have enough issues they face.
Not too long ago there was a tragic story in Georgia where one of our
veterans committed suicide while waiting for the care in the waiting
office at the VA. This should never ever happen.
This type of funding, $86 million, again, should not go towards
educating people about gender and gender bias, educating people about
their skin color, and educating people about how they think
unconsciously without knowing how they think. These are the type of
woke ideologies that divide and separate Americans and that veterans
could care less about.
They care about the care that they will receive, they care about
having their appointments, they care about their medical treatment, and
they care about one another.
One of the things veterans care most about is the fact that they
suffer with PTSD from all the foreign wars that they have been sent to
and served in.
It is time we take better care of our veterans and stop dividing
America with identity politics.
Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my
time.
Ms. GREENE of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 30 seconds to the
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mast).
Mr. MAST. Mr. Chairman, I would say this: There is an attempt to
divide the military.
We see each other as brothers and sisters in arms. I come from the
military, and I can tell you this, Mr. Chairman: We don't care in the
VA and we didn't care on the battlefield if the person carrying us on
or the person whom we are carrying off is Black or Brown or White. We
do have grooming standards, but I would say otherwise we don't care
about the length of their hair or other things.
The left fundamentally despises, in my opinion, that the military is
this last bastion of best man, best woman for the job that exists in
our country, and they are doing everything that they can in the VA and
in the military alike to insert themselves and create division that
otherwise does not exist there.
Ms. GREENE of Georgia. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my
time.
The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentlewoman from Georgia (Ms. Greene).
The question was taken; and the Acting Chair announced that the ayes
appeared to have it.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Chair, I demand a recorded vote.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, further
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentlewoman from Georgia
will be postponed.

{time} 1600

Amendment No. 35 Offered by Mr. Bost

The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 35
printed in House Report 118-158.
Mr. BOST. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:

At the end of the bill (before the short title) insert the
following:
Sec. 419. None of the funds made available by this Act may
be used by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to report a
determination under section 5502 of title 38, United States
Code, and section 3.353 of title 38 of the Code of Federal
Regulations, to the Department of Justice National Instant
Criminal Background Check System established pursuant to
section 103 of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act (34
U.S.C. 40901).

The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 614, the gentleman
from Illinois (Mr. Bost) and a Member opposed each will control 5
minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Illinois.
Mr. BOST. Madam Chair, I rise today in support of my amendment to
H.R. 4366.
My amendment would prevent any funds under the act from being used to
continue a VA current practice of sending a veteran's name to the FBI
National Instant Criminal Background Check System, or the NICS list.

[[Page H3998]]

According to the VA rules, if a veteran or beneficiary is appointed a
fiduciary to help manage their VA benefits, their name is automatically
sent to the NICS list. VA sends the veteran's name without finding that
veteran a danger to themselves or others, and this is not done in a
court of law, not done by a judge, not done by any person with legal
authority. It is only done by a VA bureaucrat.
A Federal employee currently has the right to take away a
constitutional right of our veterans. The same veterans who protected
our constitutional rights are now losing theirs because they need a bit
of help managing their finances.
I have said this once, and I will say it again: Veterans should not
be treated any differently from any other American citizen.
The mission of the VA is to care for those who have served. To me, it
seems this practice is the opposite of caring for our veterans.
Veterans have told me that this practice is a barrier for them to
seek healthcare. They are so afraid of losing their constitutional
rights that they will not go to the VA for their healthcare or their
benefits.
There were just under 15,000 individuals reported to NICS last fiscal
year from the VA. This fiscal year, over 8,000 veterans have already
been reported to the NICS so far. This practice must stop.
I am proud to have introduced my amendment that would prohibit the
unlawful loss of a constitutional right of our veterans.
Madam Chair, I include in the Record letters of support for my
amendment from The American Legion, Gun Owners of America, National
Rifle Association, National Defense Committee, Vets 4 Vet Leadership,
Veteran Warriors, and Catholic War Veterans.

The American Legion,

July 20, 2023.
Hon. Mike Bost,
House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Representative Bost: On behalf of the more than 1.6 million
members of The American Legion, I am pleased to express
support for amendment to H.R. 4366, the Military
Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act. It is ironic that veterans, a community
in which every member swore to uphold the Constitution of the
United States, requires advocacy to maintain their
constitutional right to bear arms. The American Legion
believes that each veteran, regardless of disability, has the
lawful right to possess firearms, unless deemed unfit by a
judicial authority with the full benefit of due process. Any
constitutional right should be protected with this same
expectation of scrutiny.
The proposed amendment would prohibit the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) from sending information on veterans
who are assisted by a fiduciary to the FBI's National Instant
Criminal Background Check System (NICS), without a judicial
ruling that they are a danger to themselves or others. As
such, this amendment would prevent veterans from losing their
Second Amendment right to purchase or own a firearm because
they receive help managing their VA benefits.
Through American Legion Resolution No. 118: Amend Title 38,
United States Code, to Clarify the Treatment of a Veteran as
Adjudicated Mentally Incompetent for Certain Purposes, The
American Legion urges Congress to pass legislation which
would prohibit VA ``from transmitting in any form, findings
about a veteran's mental status or ability to handle his or
her own funds, to other agencies without the order or finding
of a judge, magistrate, or other judicial authority of
competent jurisdiction.'' The American Legion supports the
proposed amendment. The American Legion sincerely appreciates
your leadership on this issue and looks forward to working
with you to secure the passage of this critical amendment.
For God & Country,
Vincent J. ``Jim'' Troiola,
National Commander.
____

Gun Owners of America,

July 18, 2023.
Hon. Mike Bost,
Chairman, Committee on Veterans' Affairs,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Bost: Gun Owners of America is thankful to
the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs for its focus on the
lost gun rights of a quarter of a million veterans with its
legislative hearing on H.R. 705, the Veterans' 2nd Amendment
Protection Act.
GOA exists to protect the constitutionally recognized right
to keep and bear arms of all Americans. Because our veterans
have taken up arms to defend this country, we strongly
believe that the Department of Veterans Affairs must respect
that right. Yet, since the Clinton Administration and the
invention of the NICS background check system, the VA has
used its ``fiduciary rule'' to disarm veterans as if they had
been ``adjudicated as a mental defective'' by a court and
were now prohibited from possessing firearms under federal
law.
Veterans who have risked life and limb and now suffer from
the psychological consequences related to their service
should receive the best mental health care our nation has to
offer. But VA gun control measures, such as this ``fiduciary
rule'' to arbitrarily report veterans to the NICS database,
pose major barriers to care for gun owning veterans who may
need life-saving mental health treatment.
Sadly, veterans are disproportionately ``adjudicated'' as
mental defectives by the federal government. As of 3 January
2023, 97.8 percent of active 18 U.S.C. Sec. 9221(g)(4)
records in the NICS system submitted by the federal
government are veterans. Of the 266,804 records submitted to
NICS by federal agencies pursuant to 18 U.S.C.
Sec. 922(g)(4), 261,168 records were submitted by the VA.
The procedure of turning a veteran who cannot manage his or
her checkbook into a prohibited person begins when a VA
bureaucrat requires a fiduciary to administer benefit
payments. The VA only notifies the veteran once at the
initiation of the fiduciary appointment process. If the VA
does not receive a response within 60 days of the issuance of
this notification, the VA makes a determination of competency
based only on the evidence of record and the veteran's record
is submitted to the NICS database. Thus, a veteran may lose
the legal right to possess or obtain firearms without
committing any crime, without the constitutional due process
necessary for the deprivation of a right, and sometimes
without the veteran's full knowledge or consent,
It is essential that Congress immediately pass the Veterans
2nd Amendment Protection Act to prohibit the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) from disarming any more veterans with
its unconstitutional ``fiduciary rule'' process. Congress
must also restore the Second Amendment rights of the veterans
currently prohibited from possessing firearms because the VA
has submitted their name to the FBI's background check
system.
GOA fully endorses Chairman Bost's Amendment to H.R. 4366--
to include the Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act to the
Military, Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related
Agencies Appropriations Act, 2024.
In Liberty,
Aidan Johnston,
Director of Federal Affairs.
____

National Rifle Association

of America,

Washington, DC, July 19, 2023.
Dear Chairman Bost: The National Rifle Association (NRA)
applauds your amendment to H.R. 4366, to prevent the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) from stripping veterans'
Second Amendment rights without due process.
For decades, VA has been using an entitlement program as a
pretext to revoke a fundamental constitutional right from
those it vows to serve. Under the current scheme, appointment
of a fiduciary--a bureaucratic decision assessing a
beneficiary's ability to handle personal finances--is treated
as an ``adjudication'' of ``mental defectiveness.'' This
results in the reporting of these veterans to the FBI's
National Instant Criminal Background Check System as
disqualified from firearm ownership and acquisition, even
though that finding does not involve a judge or a hearing to
establish whether the individuals are dangerous to themselves
or others.
No government bureaucrat should have the unilateral and
arbitrary power to strip any American of their gun rights.
Therefore, on behalf of millions of NRA members across the
country--many of whom have served this great nation in
uniform--the NRA fully supports this amendment as well as
your companion legislation, H.R. 705, the Veterans' Second
Amendment Protection Act.
Sincerely,
Randy Kozuch,
Executive Director, NRA-ILA.
____

July 26, 2023.
Hon. Kevin McCarthy,
Speaker of the House.
Hon. Steve Scalise,
Majority Leader of the House.
Hon. Jim McGovern,
Ranking Member, House Committee on Rules.
Hon. Hakeem Jeffries,
Minority Leader of the House.
Hon. Tom Cole,
Chair, House Committee on Rules.
Dear Speaker McCarthy, Leaders Jeffries and Scalise, Chair
Cole, and Representative McGovern: We, the undersigned
veteran and military serving organizations, endorse the
inclusion in the House Committee on Rules' reported Rule on
H.R. 4366, the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and
Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2024, of the Rules
Committee Amendment 23, Version 2--sponsored by
Representative Bost of Illinois--to prohibit ``the VA from
using funds to submit a beneficiary's name to the NICS list
based on VA's appointment of a fiduciary.'' We also endorse
the amendment's adoption by the House into the final House-
passed version of the bill.
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA's) Fiduciary program
is a testament to the threat the unchecked regulatory powers
of the Executive Branch can pose to the inalienable rights of
the People, in this case, to the rights of disabled veterans
to due

[[Page H3999]]

process under the law, and to keep and bear arms. From the
Fiduciary program's placing the burden of proof on the
veteran to prove they are competent (and not on the VA to
prove the veteran is incompetent), to the lack of judicial
oversight to the process (as is provided in similar
incompetency determinations by the Social Security
Administration), to the then Orwellian process by which the
VA tattles to the Department of Justice that the veteran has
problems balancing their checkbook, and therefore now somehow
qualifies as a ``mental defective'' under the Brady Handgun
Violence Prevention Act of 1993 and loses their right to keep
and bear arms, all without any judicial action, this program
is rife with threats to the liberty and property of the very
men and women who sacrificed their physical well being in the
defense of this country.
Furthermore, the National Academies of Science,
Engineering, and Medicine found 55 percent of those Iraq and
Afghanistan veterans needing mental health services did not
seek VA care. The National Academies further stated a
significant reason these veterans are not seeking these
mental health care services is because of the fear they will
lose their firearms, or other legal or administrative actions
will be taken against them for seeking mental health care
such as loss of security clearance, loss of child custody,
and with 35 percent of those interviewed by the National
Academy saying ``the potential of having their personal
firearms taken away as an obstacle to use VA mental health
services.'' And given the rate of increase in veteran
suicides over the last 20 years is almost 240 percent higher
for those veterans not in the VA's mental health care
programs than those in it, such disincentives to seek VA
mental health care, such as the Fiduciary Rule, appear to be
increasing veteran suicide, not decreasing it.
While we believe the entire VA Fiduciary program must be
fundamentally reformed to address the significant civil and
legal right abuses the Fiduciary program itself represents
for America's veterans, given the legislative process that
will require, we believe the Fiscal Year 2024 Military
Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act should
contain this prohibition on any funds being expended by the
VA to involuntarily place any veteran into the Fiduciary
program.
Very Respectfully,
National Defense Committee.
Vets 4 Vet Leadership.
Veteran Warriors.
Catholic War Veterans.

Mr. BOST. Madam Chair, I thank Representatives Rosendale, Hudson,
DesJarlais, Self, Cammack, Higgins, Ogles, Miller, Boebert, Van Orden,
and Kiggans for joining me on this amendment.
Madam Chair, I encourage all of my colleagues to support this
amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I claim the time in opposition to
the amendment.
The Acting CHAIR (Mrs. Miller of West Virginia). The gentlewoman from
Florida is recognized for 5 minutes.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, during the process of applying
for disability benefits, VA determines whether or not a beneficiary can
manage their own financial affairs. If not, VA will assign them a
fiduciary to protect the veteran.
VA will only determine an individual to be unable to manage his or
her financial affairs after receipt of medical documentation or if a
court of competent jurisdiction has already made that determination.
In assigning a fiduciary, VA must also report the beneficiary to the
National Instant Criminal Background Check System, the NICS system, as,
under the law, they are adjudicated as mentally defective. This
reporting prevents the beneficiary under Federal law from purchasing a
firearm.
The program has a full due process system, and veterans can file an
appeal. This is an example of generating a controversy where there is
none.
The process of applying for disability benefits is entirely separate
from the processes by which veterans receive VA healthcare. The
Veterans Health Administration, which handles disability benefits, does
not take away veterans' firearms.
However, by implying that VA bureaucrats are going to take guns away
from veterans, this amendment not only does nothing to increase access
to care but its very introduction seeks to dissuade veterans from even
seeking healthcare that they have earned in the first place.
Moreover, this amendment deals with an authorizing issue and should
not be debated on an appropriations bill. This is policy, not funding.
Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. BOST. Madam Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I am glad that was brought up, the claim that the bureaucrats do not
do this. It is only the bureaucrats that recommend to the NICS list,
and then the Department of Justice does this. They take away a right of
a veteran where any other citizen in this United States would have to
go before a court of law where they would be found to be a danger to
themselves or others.
Yet, our VA, under the interpretation that they have made of an
existing law, has decided that they will have a bureaucrat, without due
process, take away the rights of our veterans. It is as simple as that.
When I came here to this House, I found this out. As a veteran, I was
appalled. What bothers me more than anything is the number of veterans
across the central part of this United States who choose not to seek VA
help for the fear that they would lose that Second Amendment right.
They fought for that right and every other right under this
Constitution.
This needs to be straightened out. It is not gun control. It is not
any issue like that. This is a veterans rights issue.
Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the
gentleman from California (Mr. Takano), the distinguished ranking
member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee.
Mr. TAKANO. Madam Chair, VA is required by law to transmit the names
of the VA beneficiaries to the National Instant Criminal Background
Check System, which prevents them from buying a firearm, but let me
make one thing abundantly clear. Under no circumstances has VA ever
confiscated anyone's firearms.
Seeking mental health care from the Veterans Health Administration
will not result in a veteran's firearms being taken away. VA does not
have legal authority to do so. Only under a discrete set of
circumstances for a very discrete population does the Veterans Health
Administration report veterans to NICS.
Madam Chair, the stigma around seeking mental health care at VA is a
real one. It is also a multifaceted problem we are trying to tackle.
Partisan stunts like this amendment make that fight more difficult
because it leads to misinformation about the fiduciary program, a
program meant to protect vulnerable veterans and beneficiaries.
We had a legislative hearing on Representative Bost's bill on this
topic, and it was abundantly clear that there were problems with that
bill. My colleagues are attempting to go this route, through the
appropriations process, which is harmful because it strips money from
VA for political purposes.
Madam Chair, when we discussed this bill last week in the House
Committee on Veterans' Affairs, we also learned of a great deal of
concern about due process, but let me be clear on this point. There are
already six avenues for review and relief that beneficiaries can use to
challenge VA's determinations and remove their names from the NICS
list. However, those avenues are not widely used.
In fact, I would challenge the chairman to show me where there is any
veteran with standing that would even take this case to the Federal
court to challenge the whole process at VA.
There are six avenues of review and relief. There is due process.
What is the problem that this amendment is really trying to address?
As I said in committee, Madam Chair, no one on our side of the aisle
asserts that the fiduciary program is infallible. No policy or program
is. However, any change to a program or policy must be evidence based
and data driven.
In the case of VA's fiduciary program, a program designed to protect
the most vulnerable veterans from both financial and physical harm, we
must be especially careful not to put more veterans at risk.

Democrats are more than willing to have a debate on the merits of
this program under those parameters, but this amendment is purely a
political exercise that only seeks to put more veterans at risk by
perpetuating stigma around mental health care, and it undermines the
VA's efforts at suicide prevention.
Mr. BOST. Madam Chair, I yield myself the balance of my time.

[[Page H4000]]

Madam Chair, I will answer two quick questions.
The fact is that, no, the VA employee does not take the Second
Amendment right and possess the guns. The Department of Justice does.
They give the name to the Department of Justice.
Two, when the statement was made that I have a bill to try to deal
with this, the ranking member was totally correct. I do because I am
going to do everything I can to make sure that the rights of our
veterans are not taken away.
It is time for us to stand up for our veterans and protect the
constitutional rights that they fought to protect. No veteran should
lose their Second Amendment right without due process of law.
Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to join me in support of this
amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, may I inquire as to how much time
is remaining.
The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman from Florida has 1 minute
remaining.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, let me make clear that the
Department of Veterans Affairs has robust due process policies and
regulations in place for incompetency determinations and remind our
colleagues that one of the three ways in which someone is denied an
opportunity to possess a firearm is when they have been declared
mentally incompetent.
There are very robust provisions in the processes at the VA to ensure
that there is due process in place. On top of that, the VA has the
ability to grant relief from disability in the event that clear and
convincing evidence is presented that affirmatively, substantially, and
specifically shows that the beneficiary is not likely to act in a
manner dangerous to the public and that granting relief will not be
contrary to the public interest.
That is the kind of safety measure that we want, to make sure that
when a veteran has been declared mentally incompetent, Madam Chair,
that they are not able to get access to a firearm.
Due process is important. Protecting the public and the individual is
important, as well.
Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Bost).
The question was taken; and the Acting Chair announced that the ayes
appeared to have it.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I demand a recorded vote.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, further
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Illinois
will be postponed.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Madam Chair, I rise as the designee of the
gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Granger).
Madam Chair, I move to strike the last word.
The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Madam Chair, I yield to the gentlewoman from
Colorado (Mrs. Boebert).
Mrs. BOEBERT. Madam Chair, I rise in favor of the en bloc amendment
package, which includes six of my amendments that redirect funds from
Biden's bloated bureaucracy to actually help our Nation's veterans.
Our men and women in uniform and our Nation's veterans put everything
on the line to defend this great country and our freedoms. They deserve
the best care that America has to offer.
Caring for our veterans should be a priority in our annual funding
bills. That is why I drafted these amendments that transfer dollars
from the Federal bureaucracy to provide additional resources for
veterans, including veteran mental health programs, medical and
prosthetic research, the Board of Veterans' Appeals to help reduce its
backlog and process veterans claims more quickly, gravesites for
veterans in areas where a veteran cannot be buried in a VA national
cemetery, construction of State extended care facilities, the Staff
Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program, and
veterans telehealth and rural health.
Don't believe the lies on the other side of the aisle. The Republican
majority is committed to fully funding our veterans healthcare programs
and funding veterans benefits and VA programs.
Earlier this year, they falsely claimed that the Limit, Save, Grow
Act would cut veterans benefits, even though it didn't even mention
veterans in the bill.
The White House and the leftists falsely tried to claim that this
bill cut veterans benefits before it was even released. We didn't even
have the text yet.
Let me say this again: This bill fully funds our veterans and even
provides an increase of $1.5 billion above the discretionary funding
level contained in the fiscal year 2023 bill drafted by Democrats.
The only thing this bill cuts is wasteful spending, and it ensures
the Department can no longer be politicized by putting veterans and
their needs above a rainbow flag or pronouns.
My support for our servicemembers does not end when their service is
complete. I am committed to ensuring that our Nation's most precious
resource, its sons and daughters and mothers and fathers who answered
the call to serve in uniform receive the essential healthcare and
benefits they have earned.
I applaud the committee for taking on this difficult task of
prioritizing limited resources for our veterans.
Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of my amendments,
as well as the underlying bill, which fully funds our veterans.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my
time.

{time} 1615

Amendment No. 36 Offered by Mr. Mast

The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 36
printed in House Report 118-158.
Mr. MAST. Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:

At the end of the bill (before the short title) insert the
following:
Sec. 419. None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made
available to the Department of Veterans Affairs in this Act
may be used to enforce Veterans Health Directive 1315 as it
relates to--
(1) the policy stating that ``VHA providers are prohibited
from completing forms or registering Veterans for
participation in a State-approved marijuana program'';
(2) the directive for the ``Deputy Under Secretary for
Health for Operations and Management'' to ensure that
``medical facility Directors are aware that it is VHA policy
for providers to assess Veteran use of marijuana but
providers are prohibited from recommending, making referrals
to or completing paperwork for Veteran participation in State
marijuana programs''; and
(3) the directive for the ``VA Medical Facility Director''
to ensure that ``VA facility staff are aware of the
following'' ``[t]he prohibition on recommending, making
referrals to or completing forms and registering Veterans for
participation in State-approved marijuana programs''.

The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 614, the gentleman
from Florida (Mr. Mast) and a Member opposed each will control 5
minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida.
Mr. MAST. Madam Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I rise today in support of a bipartisan amendment to do something
simple: give veterans access to every possible tool when it comes to
the wounds of war, of which I am innately familiar.
The amendment is quite simple. It allows VA doctors in States with
legal medical cannabis programs to discuss cannabis as a treatment
option with their patients. I say this as clearly as I can: I have
friends who are Rangers, Green Berets, and SEALs. I have seen pilots
and every other job in the military sometimes find relief from the
drugs, the narcotics that they have been prescribed in the VA or in the
hospital. They find relief from both mental and physical wounds that
they face.
However, what they face as well is a Department of Veterans Affairs
that does not allow their primary care physicians, their post-
deployment clinics to discuss the medical treatment options and work
with them through the paperwork for those medical treatment options
that are actually available in their States. If they are not working
with their doctors to do that, then you have to ask yourself, who is it
that they would be working with to do that for medical treatment that
is legal in their State?

[[Page H4001]]

This amendment, again, would change that and make it the case that
the Department of Veterans Affairs can assist those veterans for whom
it is appropriate and recommended by their doctors that medical
cannabis be a treatment option.
Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Madam Chair, I rise in opposition to this
amendment.
The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Madam Chair, I understand the intent and that
some States permit the use of marijuana. However, the VA doctors are
required to comply with Federal law. This amendment does not address
that. I don't want to put them in legal jeopardy. I believe this should
be handled by the authorizing committee.
Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. MAST. Madam Chair, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Oregon
(Mr. Blumenauer).
Mr. BLUMENAUER. Madam Chair, I appreciate the gentleman's courtesy
and his leadership.
I am proud to lead this amendment with the gentleman from Florida
(Mr. Mast), the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Joyce), and the gentlewoman
from California (Ms. Lee) to inject some sanity into our medical
marijuana approach.
Veterans in Oregon and across the country have shared powerful
stories with me about how medical cannabis has saved their lives and
given them relief from wounds of war seen and unseen. These veterans
have also shared their fear about what would happen if they worked with
the VA doctors to incorporate their cannabis use into their treatment
plans.
The VA denies veterans access to this care option by preventing
providers from completing forms in compliance with State medical
marijuana programs. This is a shameful disservice to the men and women
who put their lives on the line. The VA is forcing veterans to seek
care outside the VA or self-medicate.
Our veterans are paying the price for Congress' failure to act. That
is why I am proud to join Representative Mast in leading the Veterans
Equal Access Act and why I call on my colleagues to support this
amendment. Simple justice for our veterans.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Madam Chair, I yield such time as she may
consume to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz).
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I think it is important to make
clear that this debate is not about whether veterans in a State where
it is legal can get access to marijuana. It is not even about whether
doctors at the VA can communicate about those options with their
patients because they can. VA already does that. We allowed that
several years ago.
What it does do and what this debate is about is to ensure that
because marijuana is still an illegal substance under Federal law, if
we allow this amendment to pass, it would potentially put VA employees,
healthcare providers and other VA employees at risk of DEA enforcement
actions. That is not something that we can change with this amendment,
no matter how much you might want to have this amendment move forward.
While some States might have legalized marijuana for medical purposes
and allow physicians to prescribe it to patients, VA providers are
still subject to Federal enforcement actions through the Drug
Enforcement Administration. The VA has policies in place prohibiting
physicians from completing forms, not from communicating with their
patients, and they can't register veterans in a State medical marijuana
program themselves. However, veterans certainly can register themselves
to do that.

There is a concern that if legislation forced the VA to change or
stop enforcing its policies, as this amendment is proposing, in the
absence of systemic changes to Federal drug policy outside the VA that
providers could be at risk of penalties or other legal action.
The proper place for this discussion, Madam Chair, is in the
authorizing committee, which my colleague, the sponsor of the amendment
serves on. Have a discussion and a debate over policy to change the
Federal enforcement action risk that we would be placing VA employees
in if this amendment moved forward. Move it to the Commerce, Justice,
Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee and prohibit
DEA enforcement action.
This debate is happening in the wrong bill on the wrong topic. I
oppose the amendment for that reason, while separately not opposing the
idea that there are legal ways that veterans are able to get access to
cannabis and marijuana. However, we do have to make sure we can
continue to allow VA employees to be protected from prosecution as a
result of the potential impact that this amendment would have.
Mr. MAST. Madam Chair, may I inquire how much time I have remaining?
The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman has 2 minutes remaining.
Mr. MAST. Madam Chair, I yield myself 1 minute, just to point out
that my colleague from Florida from the other side is quite literally
wrong.
VHA Directive 1315 says this plainly: VHA providers are prohibited
from completing forms or registering veterans for participation in
State-approved marijuana programs. It says it very literally.
My colleague is saying that, no, doctors can talk to them about this,
and they can deal with it. No, if a doctor can't help them with the
forms and help them with registering and help them with the dosages and
the amounts and everything that goes on with a very specific medical
policy, then that is a pretty confusing conversation for somebody to
have if they can't take it to that level.
Madam Chair, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Joyce).
Mr. JOYCE of Ohio. Madam Chair, I am proud to join my colleagues in
leading this commonsense effort to help our country's veterans access
medical treatment.
Research has shown that medical cannabis can be a safe and effective
treatment in targeted pain management for PTSD which, unfortunately,
impacts many of our veterans. Despite their efficiency, bureaucratic
red tape continues to deny veterans these life-altering treatments. In
States like Ohio and 37 others where it is legal, the Federal
Government should not prevent a VA doctor from recommending medical
cannabis as a viable treatment option if they believe it will help
their patient.
As the son of a WWII veteran who was wounded and left for dead on the
battlefield, I have seen firsthand the many challenges our Nation's
heroes face when they return home. We should all resolve to help expand
access to treatments for the medical challenges, both mental and
physical, our veterans experience.
That is why I ask my colleagues to support this amendment to help
eliminate barriers for alternative treatments and provide our veterans
with the care they need to overcome the wounds of war.
Mr. MAST. Madam Chair, I yield myself the balance of my time to
close.
Again, I point out the merits of this: It is fact in the VA right now
the cannabis policy is extremely confusing. It does very literally say
VHA providers are prohibited from completing forms or registering
veterans for participation in State-approved marijuana programs.
Those are conversations that you need to have with your primary care
physician, nurse practitioners, and others. This is the reason that
that policy needs to be changed. I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my
time.
Ms. LEE of California. Madam Chair, as Co-chair of the Congressional
Cannabis Caucus, I rise in strong support of this bipartisan amendment
No. 36, to the Fiscal Year 2024 Military Construction, Veterans
Affairs, and Related Agencies bill. This amendment would help veterans
participate in a legal state medical cannabis program, ensure services
are not denied, or limit health care providers' ability to make
appropriate recommendations of this treatment option for veterans.
Currently, VA physicians aren't allowed to complete medical forms
relating to their patients' cannabis usage nor can they assist their
patients in enrolling in medical cannabis programs.
This amendment would authorize VA physicians and other health care
providers to provide recommendations and opinions regarding

[[Page H4002]]

the use of medical cannabis to veterans who live in states with
existing medical programs.
Millions of American veterans suffer from post-traumatic stress and
depression. Moreover, of the nearly one million veterans who receive
opioids to treat painful conditions, more than half continue to consume
beyond 90 days.
Time after time, data has revealed that the mortality rate from
opiate overdoses among VA patients is nearly double the national
average. In states where patients can legally access medical cannabis
to treat painful conditions, often as a less addictive alternative, the
hands of VA physicians should not be tied.
Cannabis is currently legal in most states and territories for
medicinal or adult use and the VA health system must keep up. I am
proud to co-lead this amendment and want to give a special thanks to my
Cannabis Caucus Co-chairs, Representatives Mast, Blumenauer and Joyce,
for their partnership on enacting comprehensive cannabis reform.
I urge my colleagues to vote and support this bipartisan, common-
sense amendment that would benefit our armed service members.
The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mast).
The amendment was agreed to.

Amendment No. 37 Offered by Mr. Rosendale

The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 37
printed in House Report 118-158.
Mr. ROSENDALE. Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:

Add at the end of the bill (before the spending reduction
account) the following new section:

Sec. ___. None of the funds made available by this Act may
be used to enforce any COVID-19 mask mandates.

The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 614, the gentleman
from Montana (Mr. Rosendale) and a Member opposed each will control 5
minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Montana.
Mr. ROSENDALE. Madam Chair, I rise today in support of my amendment,
amendment No. 37, which would prohibit the use of funds made available
by this act from being used to enforce any COVID-19 mask mandates.
Our country sends young men and women overseas for long periods of
time, away from their family and friends at great risk to their
physical safety. When they come home and become veterans, sometimes the
VA refuses them the care that they have earned and that they deserve.
This is unacceptable.
I have heard from numerous veterans in my district who have been
denied care over their unwillingness to wear a mask to protect them
from a pandemic that has long been declared over, using a method that
has long since been refuted.
Denying a veteran medical care over a personal decision is
outrageous. We owe it to care for our Nation's heroes and to provide
them with the best possible care, not stigmatize them over masking
decisions.
The COVID-19 mask mandates are also unfair to the employees of the
VA. Most employees want to provide veterans with world-class
healthcare, not enforce arbitrary, unscientific rules. The VA did
loosen its COVID-19 mask requirements recently. However, they left too
much discretion to unelected bureaucrats. Again, the pandemic has long
been over, and it is time to end all of the COVID-19 mandates.
Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I claim the time in opposition to
the gentleman's amendment.
The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman from Florida is recognized for 5
minutes.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, this amendment would prohibit the
enforcement of any COVID-19 mask mandates. However, the VA has already
relaxed mask mandates except in high-risk areas where patients could be
put in danger by someone who has a respiratory infection.
For example, the VA continues to require masks near chemotherapy
units, transplant units, and emergency rooms. In other words, this
amendment would override safety precautions put in place for the VA's
most at-risk patients.
It would block masking requirements near chemotherapy patients, whose
immune systems have been brutally weakened by treatments to fight
cancer. It would block masking requirements in the vicinity of surgery
patients, where a dangerous respiratory virus could be deadly. It would
block masking requirements near intensive care units filled with
patients with severe, life-threatening illnesses.
This amendment is reckless, and it would endanger the lives of our
most vulnerable patients at the VA. This amendment is not about a mask
mandate at the office, it is not about a mask mandate at the grocery
store. This amendment would block mask requirements at VA hospitals and
healthcare facilities. How ludicrous could anything be?

{time} 1630

It is astonishing that the gentleman would suggest that, in a
hospital setting, around vulnerable individuals, particularly those
that are extremely vulnerable, that we would be prohibiting a hospital
from requiring people to wear masks so that people don't die of an
illness contracted as a result of being exposed to someone who might be
carrying germs that they are not aware of.
Our veterans have sacrificed so much for this country. It is our
responsibility to protect their health, not to risk their lives for a
political stunt.
Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to oppose the amendment, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ROSENDALE. Madam Chair, unfortunately the Representative is
either mistaken or intentionally spreading false information. Any parts
or portions of the facility that previously had mask mandates for
immune deficiencies or any other reasons would not be impacted by this
mandate. Only mandates that are a direct result of COVID-19 are
prohibited.
Madam Chair, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Texas, (Mr.
Self).
Mr. SELF. Madam Chair, I rise today in support of Mr. Rosendale's
amendment to remove mask mandates from our Veterans Affairs facilities.
Last April, President Joe Biden signed the Pandemic Is Over Act into
law to decisively end the COVID-19 national emergency. Accordingly,
hospitals and clinics across the country have rescinded their policies
requiring visitors and patients to wear a mask.
However, VA clinics continue to enforce the so-called sensitive areas
policy where patients must wear a mask while sitting in a meeting room
waiting on his or her doctor. There is no reason for the VA to continue
with this frivolous charade. Enough of the drama.
I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ROSENDALE. Madam Chair, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Madam Chair, the medical center leadership, the leadership, will
determine when it is appropriate to transition from standard to
enhanced safety practices. This is the problem.
Bureaucrats are continuing to make decisions, not about sensitive
areas, not about areas where we are prone to have immune deficiencies,
but simply sensitive areas, and recommended national response by a team
of subject matter experts due to future COVID-19 variants that threaten
veteran staff and safety. This is not acceptable.
Again, COVID-19 is over. These mask mandates as a result of COVID-19
need to be eliminated.
Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I am prepared to close. I reserve
the balance my time.
Mr. ROSENDALE. Madam Chair, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Madam Chair, this amendment simply eliminates use of funds by the VA
for the implementation of any COVID-19 mandates and is long overdue. I
ask my colleagues to support this amendment and restore the proper
treatment of our veterans.
Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I yield myself the balance of my
time.
Extreme MAGA Republicans are once again trying to prevent people--
trying to make sure that we have more people get sick rather than
fewer.

[[Page H4003]]

In a hospital setting, with medical experts, neither of whom have
spoken on this amendment today, it is imperative that we listen to
medical experts.
When you are in an intensive care unit, when you are receiving
chemotherapy, when you are in a medically risky situation, ensuring
that the people around you that come in from the outside don't get you
sick and potentially risk you severe illness and death, that is a
responsible medical policy.
What Republicans are proposing is to make sure that the VA can't keep
its patients safe. That is irresponsible, in the name of the extreme
MAGA opposition to doing anything to ensure that people don't get
COVID. The stunning irresponsibility is surprising, even for them.
Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to oppose the amendment, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Montana (Mr. Rosendale).
The question was taken; and the Acting Chair announced that the ayes
appeared to have it.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I demand a recorded vote.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, further
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Montana will
be postponed.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Madam Chair, as the designee of the gentlewoman
from Texas (Ms. Granger), I move to strike the last word.
The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Madam Chair, I yield to the gentleman from New
York (Mr. Molinaro).
Mr. MOLINARO. Madam Chair, I will speak briefly to two amendments
that were included in the MILCON appropriations bill.
Specifically, one, amendment 24 ensures the funding for Veterans
Health Administration, it ensures that we are dedicated to assisting
veterans with disabilities and those with mental health and substance
abuse challenges. Of course, as a Nation, we owe a great deal of
gratitude to these men and women, and regardless of whether these are
emotional or physical scars, this amendment ensures that we continue to
provide appropriate access.
Additionally, amendment 25 ensures funding for the VA electronic
health records which, of course, is critically important to our
veterans, that we continue to modernize the system to help
transitioning veterans access and receive top-quality care at VA
facilities.
At the same time, we need to ensure the safety and effectiveness of
updating this program. The VA and Congress must work in lockstep to
create a system that better serves our veterans and taxpayers.
Madam Chair, I thank my colleagues for consideration of these
amendments.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my
time.

Amendment No. 38 Offered by Mr. Roy

The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 38
printed in of House Report 118-158.
Mr. ROY. Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:

At the end of the bill (before the short title) insert the
following:
Sec. 419. None of the funds made available by this Act may
be used to carry out VHA Directive 1193.01, ``Coronavirus
Disease 2019 Vaccination Program for Veterans Health
Administration Health Care Personnel''.

The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 614, the gentleman
from Texas (Mr. Roy) and a Member opposed each will control 5 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.
Mr. ROY. Madam Chair, this amendment that I am offering prohibits any
of the funding in the MILCON-VA appropriations bill from being used to
carry out what I believe are unnecessary and unscientific COVID-19
vaccine mandates at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Now, there has been some confusion about this. Some people have said,
oh, well, that is not really still going on. Well, I just got an email
from the VA today saying, yes, it is.
There still are vaccine mandates that are being carried out at the VA
and, to the best of my knowledge, it is the last remaining Federal
vaccine mandate, and it needs to end.
Most Federal vaccine mandates ended in May of 2023, with the end of
the public health emergency. The VA, though, was one of the few
agencies to leave the mandate in place.
VHA Directive 1193.01, COVID-19 Vaccination Program for VHA
Healthcare Personnel, outlines the policy and guidance for mandatory
COVID-19 vaccination for Veterans Health Administration healthcare
personnel is still in effect.
The mandate applies to EMS personnel, nurses, nursing assistants,
physicians, technicians, therapists, phlebotomists, pharmacists, health
professions trainees, clerical, dietary, environmental services,
laundry, security, maintenance, engineering and facilities management,
administrative, billing, and even volunteers.
If you want to volunteer at the VA, you better get a jab.
The COVID vax mandate is unnecessary. It hurts healthcare workers. I
believe it hurts healthcare being provided to our veterans.
As of July 15, 2022, the VA had disciplined some 74 workers that we
know of, some of whom were fired.
I do not believe the mandate is necessary to keep our veterans or the
VA staff safe. The former CDC director has said that the vaccines can't
do anything to prevent transmission.
This amendment is about ending COVID madness once and for all at the
VA and making sure that anyone who wants to provide medical care to our
great veterans can do so.
Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I rise in opposition to the
gentleman's amendment.
The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman from Florida is recognized for 5
minutes.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I really can't believe I have to
say this out loud, but vaccines have been essential in reducing the
severity of COVID.
I would note that VA's vaccine requirement currently applies
specifically to healthcare personnel, who are the people most in danger
of not only contracting, but spreading this disease, especially to the
vulnerable patients that VA serves, many of whom are at high risk for
the long-term effects of COVID.
Additionally, at its highest point during the pandemic, VA had over
15,000 staff unable to work due to either infection or exposure, with
over 9,000 of those clinical staff. That has a significant impact on
patient care, and I think we should all agree that no veteran should be
turned away from care because there wasn't a provider available to
treat them.
VA took extremely reasonable steps to protect its patients and its
workforce, and we shouldn't be tying VA's hands when it comes to
managing their workforce and pursuing workplace safety and protecting
its patients.
It was a responsible decision to limit the vaccine requirement to
care providers in clinical settings, and this amendment, if it passes,
will ensure that more VA employees get sick, more of their patients
will get sick, and there is a certainty that more people will die if we
don't ensure that VA employees who treat patients are vaccinated. That
is just common sense and should be understood based on the experience
of the time we all spent battling the pandemic.
Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to oppose the amendment, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ROY. Madam Chair, I would only respond to the gentlewoman from
Florida when she said it only applies to healthcare personnel. I just
rattled off an entire list of virtually every known possible human
being and job that could apply at the VA, and a whole lot of them
aren't, in fact, healthcare personnel.
I went through an entire list, including laundry, security,
maintenance, engineering and facilities management, administrative,
billing, even volunteers.
Instead, some of my colleagues have said, this doesn't apply to the
VA. Like I said, we reached out to the VA and, sure enough, they
replied today, yes, the vaccine mandate still applies.

[[Page H4004]]

Nevertheless, we get rid of the Medicaid. We get rid of the Medicare
mandates. The private sector is out there. They can do what they want
to do. The vaccine mandate has come and gone in terms of something that
the American people believe we should tolerate.
They want to be able to move about without having the fear of losing
their job, and we have people at the VA losing their job.
We have nurses that have given up their ability to practice. We have
got it throughout our entire--we have members of our military that have
been held up from being promoted and being able to advance. We have
people at the VA. I have met with people who worked at the VA, some of
whom who were facing losing their job. This should end. This madness
should end.
That is what this amendment would do. It would ensure that no funding
goes to continuing and perpetuating that mandate.
Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I think it is important to point
out that it is not just healthcare providers that work in VA healthcare
facilities. Maintenance workers work in VA healthcare facilities and
interact with patients and they move back and forth throughout the
facility.
Cafeteria workers, other people who are not healthcare professionals
work in VA facilities in and around the most sensitive patients being
provided with care in the most intense healthcare environments. They
can infect people with COVID. They can infect healthcare providers who
work at the VA who interact with patients even more closely, and they
can infect patients directly.
It is a responsible policy to ensure that where there is a severely
ill patient or someone who is extremely vulnerable and has their
immunity lowered--as a breast cancer survivor, I can tell you that when
you go through chemotherapy, which I did not, but I have obviously
spent a lot of time on understanding what breast cancer patients and
people who go through chemotherapy experience, your immunity is knocked
out.
So we are going to prohibit people who work in VA healthcare
facilities from wearing masks to ensure that someone who has had their
immunity system knocked out from being protected from an individual who
might have COVID, while they are at work? That is grossly
irresponsible, and it would result, potentially, in people getting sick
and dying from something other than what they are being treated for at
the VA.

{time} 1645

That is the height of irresponsibility, and I can't believe that our
friends on the other side of the aisle would be willing to risk the
life and health of VA patients with this irresponsible policy.
We have to make sure in a healthcare setting that people who interact
with patients in any way are protecting the patients from getting sick,
and that is why this amendment should be defeated.
Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy).
The question was taken; and the Acting Chair announced that the ayes
appeared to have it.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I demand a recorded vote.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, further
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Texas will
be postponed.

Amendment No. 39 Offered by Mr. Roy

The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 39
printed in House Report 118-158.
Mr. ROY. Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:
At the end of the bill (before the short title) insert the
following:

Sec. 419. None of the funds made available by this Act may
be used to modify or remove any display of the Department of
Veterans Affairs that bears the mission statement ``To
fulfill President Lincoln's promise `to care for him who
shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his
orphan' by serving and honoring the men and women who are
America's veterans.' ''
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 614, the gentleman
from Texas (Mr. Roy) and a Member opposed each will control 5 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.
Mr. ROY. Madam Chair, I have an amendment that prohibits any of the
MILCON-VA funding appropriated from being used to modify or remove any
VA display of the original mission statement.
Now, just a quick second before I go there. I didn't reserve my time
because I thought we were trying to move things along. I am going to
say, as a cancer survivor, as someone who did have chemo, and as
someone who was on Neulasta to deal with a weakened immune system, I
was in a hospital, and I wasn't being forced to wear masks and wasn't
being forced to take any shots. If I wanted to take the flu shot, I
could.
We have a CDC Director who said that this vaccine doesn't do anything
to help the spread from other people to you. That is the whole point.
We should get rid of the vaccine mandates, but on another note of
craziness from this administration, on March 16, 2023, earlier this
year, the VA announced it updated the 1959 mission statement from: ``To
fulfill President Lincoln's promise: `To care for him who shall have
borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan' by serving and
honoring the men and women who are America's veterans.''
Now, it is a gender-neutral version: ``To fulfill President Lincoln's
promise to care for those who have served in our Nation's military and
for their families, caregivers, and survivors.''
That is, it upends the quote that is directly from President Lincoln.
The original mission statement is posted in roughly 50 percent of the
VA's facilities. The VA has been working through replacing them over
the last couple of months by a directive. It is unclear how many
displays are left.
The Trump administration resisted calls to change the motto and put
an additional 140 plaques at national cemeteries bearing Lincoln's
quote because it is a good quote. It is a historic quote.
The fact is, we should not use taxpayer dollars to allow this
administration to unilaterally change the VA's historic motto and erase
the words of President Lincoln in order to appease the radical left in
advancing yet another one of their cultural revisionist efforts.
The VA's mission statement, established in 1959, appropriately used
the words of President Lincoln in his Second Inaugural Address
delivered on March 4, 1865: ``With malice toward none; with charity for
all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let
us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the Nation's
wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his
widow, and his orphan.''
That quote obviously came from the timeframe in which we were
concluding the Civil War, and it came a mere month, from my
recollection of history, from when Abraham Lincoln was, in fact,
assassinated.
The speech was in part the basis of the Department of Veterans
Affairs' creation and declared mission.
The Department wants to continue to waste hard-earned taxpayer
dollars to erase history and expunge Lincoln's words by replacing the
VA's mission statement, all in an attempt to earn woke brownie points.
I am thankful, of course, for the millions of men and women who have
served valiantly in our Armed Forces, but changing the VA motto is just
virtue signaling. We should be focused on providing the quality care
and benefits veterans have earned in a timely manner.
The average wait time for new primary care appointments within the 13
South Texas Veterans Health System facilities was 50 days; veterans
seeking their first appointment locally at the new Pecan Valley clinic,
an average of 98 days; the VA clinic in the district I represent,
Kerrville, 23 days, and that is the shortest.
This amendment, like my other amendments, is about restoring VA
focus, not advancing a political agenda out of step with the majority
of Americans.

[[Page H4005]]

Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I claim the time in opposition to
the amendment.
The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman from Florida is recognized for 5
minutes.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, in March of this year, VA
announced it is updating its 1959 mission statement: ``To fulfill
President Lincoln's promise to care for those who have served in our
Nation's military and for their families, caregivers, and survivors,''
and that was a way to make VA a more inclusive and inviting place.
VA's previous mission statement read: ``To fulfill President
Lincoln's promise: `To care for him who shall have borne the battle,
and for his widow, and his orphan.' ''
The VA is a place where all veterans should feel welcomed, included,
and cared for, and the previous mission statement did not adequately
reflect the true veteran population. Only men were really reflected in
the statement.
Today, women are the fastest growing group of veterans, and it is
about time that we are reflected in VA's mission statement.
I am pleased the VA made this important and monumental change,
honoring the past by making sure that we continue to make reference to
President Lincoln's words and honoring the spirit of President
Lincoln's intent, but also making sure that we truly honor all of our
Nation's veterans, not just the men who have served our country.
Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to oppose the amendment because
this is exclusionary, and we want to make sure that the VA continues to
be a more inclusive place and recognizes all veterans who serve, not
just those who are men.
Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ROY. Madam Chair, I will reiterate the extent to which this motto
came directly from a quote from President Lincoln at his Second
Inaugural Address at a particularly important and historic moment in
our Nation's history. That was the point.

The literal culmination of the Civil War had occurred almost around
that exact date or was occurring shortly thereafter and shortly before
the President was to be assassinated, I believe in April, a month after
this speech. To go back and edit this and then go around changing the
VA to pull out a quote directly from Lincoln just, again, shows a lack
of focus on what the VA should be focused on.
That is the point of the amendment. Can we just get back to trying to
figure out how to provide care and do what we said we are going to do
for millions of veterans who are tired of waiting and having
technological systems that aren't working properly so they have trouble
getting in and out of care and being able to use care in the private
sector? There are lots of things we need to be fixing at the VA, and
this is certainly not one of them.
Madam Chair, I think that I have made the point. I think the
amendment should be supported. I think we should get the VA focused on
what the people of this country want us to focus on, supporting the
care for veterans.
Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I think it is important to point
out that the new motto still is reflective of President Lincoln's
beliefs, and his promise is one that was developed after surveying
veterans who receive care from the VA and their employees.
Perhaps we should listen to the veterans who are served by the VA and
the people who work with them every single day about the need for a
more inclusive motto. The more inclusive motto says, ``To fulfill
President Lincoln's promise to care for those who have served in our
Nation's military and for their families, caregivers, and survivors,''
making sure that the motto of the VA ensures that all patients who are
served there, all employees who work there, all the surviving families
who interact with the VA every single day understand that the motto
applies to them and the more outdated motto that dates back to
President Lincoln's time is no longer reflective of who is served at
the VA.
This is 2023. It is hard to imagine that we are actually debating a
motto on the floor of the House of Representatives and have a Member of
Congress suggesting that that motto should remain exclusive of women
instead of ensuring, as the motto voted on as a result of the surveys
of VA employees and VA patients, is more reflective of who the VA
treats today.
Madam Chair, I urge opposition to the gentleman's amendment, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy).
The question was taken; and the Acting Chair announced that the ayes
appeared to have it.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I demand a recorded vote.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, further
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Texas will
be postponed.

Amendment No. 40 Offered by Mr. Roy

The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 40
printed in House Report 118-158.
Mr. ROY. Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:
At the end of the bill (before the short title) insert the
following:
Sec. __. None of the funds appropriated by this Act may be
used to implement any of the following executive orders:
(1) Executive Order 13990, relating to Protecting Public
Health and the Environment and Restoring Science To Tackle
the Climate Crisis.
(2) Executive Order 14008, relating to Tackling the Climate
Crisis at Home and Abroad.
(3) Section 6 of Executive Order 14013, relating to
Rebuilding and Enhancing Programs To Resettle Refugees and
Planning for the Impact of Climate Change on Migration.
(4) Executive Order 14030, relating to Climate-Related
Financial Risk.
(5) Executive Order 14057, relating to Catalyzing Clean
Energy Industries and Jobs Through Federal Sustainability.
(6) Executive Order 14082, relating to Implementation of
the Energy and Infrastructure Provisions of the Inflation
Reduction Act of 2022.
(7) Executive Order 14096, relating to Revitalizing Our
Nation's Commitment to Environmental Justice for All.

[[Page H4006]]

Instead, we are putting all of our eggs in the unreliable energy
basket, which makes us beholden to China, the Chinese Communist Party,
and our enemies around the globe rather than exporting liquefied
natural gas and making us stronger.
Again, the Veterans Administration ought to reflect the American
people and our strength by focusing on its core mission--providing
healthcare and benefits that are necessary for those who have served to
defend our country.

{time} 1700

My Democratic colleagues apparently think you can power a VA hospital
on wind and solar alone. Of course, you cannot. It is not possible.
Anybody who looks at it looks at the data and sees on a windless,
cloudy day, how are you powering a VA hospital? You are powering it
with fossil fuels. You are powering it with what little nuclear power
we have, given that we have been unable to build a nuclear plant, by
far the most reliable non-CO2-producing energy in the world.
We haven't been able to do it since the 1970s because of the regulatory
infrastructure in this country. It is absurd.
My colleagues on the other side of the aisle go around ballyhooing
about carbon dioxide, and the one reliable energy that you can do has
been prevented by regulatory morass through the better part of my
lifetime of 50 years.
Instead, they go around producing wind and solar, which as more
information comes out about how horrific it has been for the planet,
how horrific it is for children throughout this world mining those
minerals, how empowering it is for our enemies, and here we are trying
to turn the VA into essentially a promotion of the climate agenda for
the radical left.
Madam Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I claim the time in opposition.
The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman from Florida is recognized for 5
minutes.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I rise in opposition to the
gentleman's amendment.
Despite the wildfires, smoke-covered skies, life-threatening heat
waves, and extreme weather we now face nearly every day in the United
States, this amendment would hamstring our ability to address the
accelerating threat of climate change.
The scientific consensus is clear, and we need to get serious about
preventing further damage by transitioning to clean energy sources
while also working to mitigate the costs we already bear today.
The Department of Defense has repeatedly recognized that climate
change is a direct threat to the U.S. military's readiness, mission
effectiveness, and resilience. From rising sea levels that can flood
coastal installations to more frequent extreme weather events that can
damage our military infrastructure, these climate-related effects put
our security at risk.
Don't take my word for it. Just look at the news. Just yesterday, the
news reported that the ocean temperature in south Florida was more than
100 degrees yesterday, 101.1 degrees to be specific, in Everglades
National Park in Manatee Bay.
Do you know what happens at temperatures like that? At temperatures
like that, we start seeing massive coral bleaching. Coral bleaching,
high temperatures, sea level rise are not someday things in Florida.
They are right now things.
In 2018, a Category 5 hurricane devastated Tyndall Air Force Base in
Florida, necessitating billions of dollars to repair and rebuild. We
can only mitigate against those costly scenarios if we can acknowledge
that the changing climate and increasing extremes we must adapt to are
real.
Further, climate change directly impacts the health of our most
vulnerable veterans. Increases in extreme heat, extreme weather events,
and disease pose a threat to those who have served, particularly those
who are older or who have preexisting conditions and those who have
respiratory conditions, which often older veterans do.
The policies targeted in this amendment provide a path to help us
future-proof our military, incorporate climate risk analysis into
military planning, enhance our energy security, address the health
effects of climate change, and reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.
The gentleman from Texas might want to wish away or amend away global
warming and climate change and its effects, but that simply isn't
possible. This amendment would result in leaving our military woefully
unprepared and our Nation on a path toward climate catastrophe in
decades to come.
Madam Chair, I urge opposition to the amendment, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. ROY. Madam Chair, I just reiterate the extent to which we are
turning over our national security to our enemies. Eighty percent of
the solar panels installed in the United States come from Chinese
firms. Seven of the top 10 wind technology turbine manufacturers are
Chinese firms. China controls 77 percent of EV battery manufacturing.
The fact is, our national security is dependent upon our ability to
produce and export liquefied natural gas and being able to use the God-
given minerals that we have in this country, oil and gas, to be able to
power the world.
There are almost a billion people on this planet who really have no
access to electricity, some 3 billion who don't have access to reliable
electricity and energy, and all we are doing is constraining the
ability of the world to produce the energy necessary for human
flourishing.
We are all committed to trying to help improve the environment.
Governor DeSantis in Florida has made enormous strides in improving the
Everglades in Florida and received notoriety for doing so.
In Texas, we have the most wind production of any State in the
country, but you have to beg the question as to whether that is a good
thing or a bad thing if you don't have enough fossil fuels to back up
the wind and the solar.
My colleagues on the other side of the aisle want to live in unicorn
land and pretend that you don't need energy to power up the buildings
in which we live in order to make us able to exist on this planet and
actually have human flourishing in the face of weather and the
conditions that we have to live through.
Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, it is astonishing to me that our
friends on the other side of the aisle are fossil fuel warriors. I
mean, that is what this is all about. This is about Big Oil and fossil
fuel supporters and making sure that the coffers continue to be filled.
It is absolutely irresponsible. It is essential that we make sure
that we are preparing and aggressively pursuing and making sure that we
can stave off and mitigate the effects of global warming and climate
change. These are not risks that are somewhere in the distant future.
They are happening right now.
Madam Chair, in my own district, in neighborhoods in south Florida,
during the king tides in particular, you have sunny day flooding
because the sea level rise is nearly unstoppable at this point. That is
costing us precious resources that we should be spending on other
quality-of-life issues. Yet, the gentleman's amendment would further
prevent us from being able to mitigate the effects of global warming
and climate change. It is dangerous.
In particular, as it relates to our military, it puts our national
security at risk and the health of our servicemembers at risk. We need
to make sure that we can continue to aggressively pursue protecting our
national security interests, which is why, on both sides, no matter who
is in charge of the Department of Defense, the Department continues to
pursue policies that will ensure that we can mitigate against global
warming and climate change. They understand the risk to our
servicemembers and to our safety.
Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Roy).
The question was taken; and the Acting Chair announced that the ayes
appeared to have it.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I demand a recorded vote.

[[Page H4007]]

The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, further
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Texas will
be postponed.

Amendment No. 41 Offered by Mr. Zinke

The Acting CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 41
printed in House Report 118-158.
Mr. ZINKE. Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:
At the end of the bill (before the spending reduction
account), insert the following:
Sec. ___. None of the funds made available by this Act may
be used to administer, implement, or enforce Executive Order
14057 (dated December 8, 2021).
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 614, the gentleman
from Montana (Mr. Zinke) and a Member opposed each will control 5
minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Montana.
Mr. ZINKE. Madam Chair, I rise today to ask my colleagues to support
my amendment to ensure the Department of Defense has the flexibility
and authority to supply adequate power to defend this country and win
in battle.
It is ironic that we are here today, and I can't believe we are
talking about it, but we are. The latest rule by the Biden
administration to force the DOD to only use electricity for power and
heating without backup, without any regard to situation, terrain,
technology, or supply chain, is absurd.
Let's talk about energy security and what it looks like. The first 2
years of the Trump administration, we went from 8.7 million barrels a
day to 12.5 million barrels a day. We went from being energy vulnerable
and dependent upon our allies and potential adversaries to being energy
independent and, in some places, dominant.
By the way, we lowered emissions. Do you know why? Because America
does energy better, cleaner, and more efficient than any other country
on the face of this planet.
Let's talk about the Biden administration and what this does. It puts
our national security at risk.
First, let's talk about supply chains. In the EV world, where are the
minerals mined? Who controls the minerals, the processing, the
manufacturing? Who controls the solar cells, the components that make
up the EV world? China.
It is ironic that the moment we become energy independent, we are now
moving to more dependency on our allies and what could be our
adversaries.
Secondly, let's look at the cost. How much does it cost in the world
we live in? We are looking at budgets and savings and the future. What
this does is it raises the cost of construction, and there is no answer
to the supply chain. Just on mining critical minerals alone, it would
take a 2,000 percent increase for 20 years to meet the energy demands
of batteries today. Yet, this administration puts this rule in, and by
the way, good luck mining in the United States. The only thing this
administration is approving is gravel pits.
Let's talk about the environment and disposal. Where do 90 percent of
the solar cells go today? To landfills across this great Nation. How
about the turbine blades? How about the batteries? Where are the
batteries going? How do we remove the toxins? Do you know what? There
is no answer. There is no answer for the supply chain in the processing
and manufacturing, and there is no answer for the disposal.
Madam Chair, I agree with the gentlewoman from Florida that our
oceans are precious, absolutely precious. Ninety percent of the
plastics in the ocean come from four rivers in China. I can go over a
list of the environmental atrocities in China.
Madam Chair, I ask my colleagues to vote for America, vote for
American energy, and stop this absurdity that is going to cost lives
because we won't be able to power this country.
Do you think we are having problems now? Ask the United States Navy,
which had to pull the fleet out of San Diego. Do you know why? They
don't have shore power because the grid is not set up for it. We are
dangerously moving toward vulnerability.
Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I claim the time in opposition to
this amendment.
The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman from Florida is recognized for 5
minutes.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, this executive order is a whole-
of-government approach for addressing climate change by reducing
greenhouse gas emissions and transitioning to clean energy and
sustainable technologies. It ensures that we set responsible targets
for how we invest our Federal dollars to incentivize the private sector
to expand on these technologies, and it creates unionized jobs.
We cannot turn a blind eye to the extreme heat, flooding, and
wildfires across this Nation. We are seeing the impacts of climate
change in real time.
In south Florida, like I mentioned earlier, yesterday, we had a
101.1-degree registered temperature in the ocean around south Florida.
From California to Vermont and across Republican and Democratic
districts, if we want to leave our planet better for our children and
our grandchildren, then we must strategically invest in products that
improve energy and water efficiency, reduce emissions, and generate
clean energy.
We need a coordinated, governmentwide approach to ensure that there
is no duplication of effort or unnecessary red tape that
disincentivizes public-private partnerships. This amendment prevents
that.
The focus on elevating fossil fuels and thwarting the advancement of
clean energy will not help this Nation build a strong economy for the
future.
Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to defeat the amendment, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
The Acting CHAIR. The gentlewoman has the only time remaining.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, at the appropriate time, I will
offer a motion to recommit this bill back to committee. If the House
rules permitted, I would have offered the motion with an important
amendment to this bill.
My amendment strikes section 258, which prohibits funding for
abortions and the implementation of the VA's interim final rule on
access to reproductive healthcare. My Republican colleagues want to
make abortion illegal nationwide.

{time} 1715

Section 258 of this bill furthers that mission, putting women at risk
and making it harder for veterans to access healthcare. Let's ensure
that doesn't happen.
Madam Chair, I include in the Record the text of my amendment.
Ms. Wasserman Schultz of Florida moves to recommit the bill
H.R. 4366 to the Committee on Appropriations with the
following amendment:
Strike section 258.

Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I hope my colleagues will join me
in voting for the motion to recommit, and I yield back the balance of
my time.
The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Montana (Mr. Zinke).
The question was taken; and the Acting Chair announced that the ayes
appeared to have it.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Madam Chair, I demand a recorded vote.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII, further
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Montana will
be postponed.
Mr. CARTER of Texas. Madam Chair, I move that the Committee do now
rise.
The motion was agreed to.
Accordingly, the Committee rose; and the Speaker pro tempore (Mr.
Zinke) having assumed the chair, Mrs. Miller of West Virginia, Acting
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. 4366) making appropriations for military construction, the
Department of Veterans Affairs, and related agencies for the fiscal
year ending September 30, 2024, and for other purposes, had come to no
resolution thereon.

____________________