[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 14]
[House]
[Pages 20539-20540]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



   CONVEYANCE OF CERTAIN REAL PROPERTY AT CARL VINSON DEPARTMENT OF 
                    VETERANS AFFAIRS MEDICAL CENTER

  Mr. STUMP. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 5139) to provide for the conveyance of certain real property at 
the Carl Vinson Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Dublin, 
Georgia.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 5139

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. CONVEYANCE OF CERTAIN PROPERTY AT THE CARL VINSON 
                   DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS MEDICAL CENTER, 
                   DUBLIN, GEORGIA.

       (a) Conveyance to State Board of Regents.--The Secretary of 
     Veterans Affairs shall convey, without consideration, to the 
     Board of Regents of the State of Georgia all right, title, 
     and interest of the United States in and to two tracts of 
     real property, including any improvements thereon, at the 
     Carl Vinson Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 
     Dublin, Georgia, consisting of 39 acres, more or less, in 
     Laurens County, Georgia.
       (b) Conveyance to Community Service Board of Middle 
     Georgia.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall convey, 
     without consideration, to the Community Service Board of 
     Middle Georgia all right, title, and interest of the United 
     States in and to three tracts of real property, including any 
     improvements thereon, at the Carl Vinson Department of 
     Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Dublin, Georgia, consisting 
     of 58 acres, more or less, in Laurens County, Georgia.
       (c) Conditions on Conveyance.--The conveyance under 
     subsection (a) shall be subject to the condition that the 
     real property conveyed under that subsection be used in 
     perpetuity solely for education purposes. The conveyance 
     under subsection (b) shall be subject to the condition that 
     the real property conveyed under that subsection be used in 
     perpetuity solely for education and health care purposes.
       (d) Survey.--The exact acreage and legal description of the 
     real property to be conveyed under this section shall be 
     determined by a survey or surveys satisfactory to the 
     Secretary of Veterans Affairs. The cost of any such survey 
     shall not be borne by the Secretary.
       (e) Additional Terms and Conditions.--The Secretary of 
     Veterans Affairs may require such additional terms and 
     conditions in connection with the conveyances under this 
     section as the Secretary considers appropriate to protect the 
     interests of the United States.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Arizona (Mr. Stump) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Stump).


                             General Leave

  Mr. STUMP. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous materials on H.R. 5139.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Arizona?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. STUMP. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 5139 provides for the conveyance of certain real 
property at the Carl Vinson Department of Veterans Affairs Medical 
Center in Dublin, Georgia.

[[Page 20540]]

  Due to changes in the way health care is delivered, the VA has 
consolidated its health care in the central part of this large campus 
in Dublin. However, it continues to spend hundreds of hours and tens of 
thousands of dollars each year to maintain vacant buildings and grounds 
on this campus.
  The State of Georgia has identified two uses for part of this campus. 
One part would be used to expand the Middle Georgia College, a State-
run institution of higher learning. The other would be used by the 
State to expand mental health services to residents in the Dublin area.
  In addition to ridding itself of the annual maintenance costs, the VA 
would receive services for veterans and employees from these State-
sponsored institutions.
  I urge my colleagues to support the passage of H.R. 5139.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5139. The gentleman from 
Georgia (Mr. Norwood) has brought forth a measure that is a good deal 
for the VA, a good deal for veterans, and a great deal for the State of 
Georgia. It will allow the VA to gain the benefit from two parcels of 
land which are no longer needed.
  The first parcel will be conveyed to the State Board of Regents to 
expand Middle Georgia College. The second will go to Middle Georgia's 
Community Service Board to provide mental health services.
  In addition to helping the VA in the cost of maintaining unnecessary 
grounds and obsolete buildings, the State will also assume the cost of 
remediation of hazardous materials. In exchange, the VA will be able to 
provide veterans and its employees with some good new benefits.
  Middle Georgia College will provide free tuition and fees to 
employees, their spouses, and dependents, and to any veteran receiving 
treatment at the Dublin VA Medical Center. It also offers the VA 
priority consideration to offer the Board of Regents maintenance and 
food services. This may allow the VA to develop new funding streams 
that will allow improved health care services for veterans.
  I am pleased to lend my support for this measure, and ask my 
colleagues to join with me in giving it favorable consideration.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. STUMP. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Norwood), the author of the bill, to 
provide further details on H.R. 5139.
  Mr. NORWOOD. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for yielding me the 
time.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to begin my remarks today by thanking my 
colleagues who have been very helpful in bringing this bill to the 
floor on the suspension calendar.
  The gentleman from Arizona (Chairman Stump) and the ranking member, 
the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans), of the Committee on Veterans' 
Affairs, have been very helpful to us on this. I thank them and their 
staffs.
  As has been pointed out, Mr. Speaker, this bill provides for the 
conveyance of property from the Carl Vinson VA Medical Center in 
Dublin, Georgia, to Middle Georgia College and the Community Service 
Board of Middle Georgia.
  There are many benefits with this transfer of land. The VA obviously 
is going to be able to save on the cost of renovating several rundown 
old buildings, as well as the maintenance and upkeep costs on those 
buildings.
  The VA Center employees and patients are going to receive free 
tuition and fees to the Middle Georgia College, and free mental health 
counseling at a mental health facility that will occupy one of these 
buildings that is being transferred.
  Probably one of the most important features of this entire bill is 
that that property that will be transferred to the university system of 
the State of Georgia is going to be used to build a nursing treatment 
facility there.
  Now, in Middle Georgia it is absolutely a wonderful quality of life, 
but it is rural Georgia, and they have a very hard time competing for 
nurses, for example, with the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta and 
Atlanta, Georgia. This is going to give us a nursing facility right 
next to the hospital, which is so desperately needed at this particular 
VA hospital.
  In addition to that, and I am very pleased about this, this is a 
perfect example of the government and private citizens working together 
to improve the quality of life for all of our citizens.
  Part of this property goes to the Community Services Board, and the 
private citizens of Lawrence County, Dublin, Georgia, have raised over 
half a million dollars already to renovate one of the buildings that 
will be used for mental health, which later, after it is finished and 
completed, will be used for our veterans or their employees. Any of 
them that need any of these facilities, it will be made available to 
them.
  So I am proud of the people of Lawrence County because they are going 
to work to do their part to raise the private funds to restore these 
buildings that at the present time are frankly draining the VA 
Treasury, and are not helping one veteran in Dublin, Georgia.
  This move is going to help a great number of veterans by increasing 
our nursing staff, by making facilities available to those veterans.
  So again, let me thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans), the 
gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Stump), and all who have been involved. I 
encourage each of my colleagues to let us please pass this and let 
these folks down in Dublin, Georgia, improve the VA Center and improve 
their mental health and improve their nursing facilities.
  Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. STUMP. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I want to thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans) for his 
concurrence in considering this legislation in such a timely manner. I 
would also like to commend the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Norwood) for 
all his work on this measure, and for pursuing a new and creative use 
of VA property to benefit both veterans and the low-income.

                              {time}  1030

  This is a bipartisan measure, and I urge all Members to support it.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Bass). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Stump) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 5139.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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