[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 19]
[House]
[Pages 26399-26408]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 VETERANS' SMALL BUSINESS ASSISTANCE AND SERVICEMEMBERS PROTECTION ACT 
                                OF 2009

  Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 3949) to amend title 38, United States Code, and the 
Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, to make certain improvements in the 
laws relating to benefits administered by the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs, and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 3949

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

       (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans' 
     Small Business Assistance and Servicemembers Protection Act 
     of 2009''.

[[Page 26400]]

       (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act 
     is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. References to title 38, United States Code.

             TITLE I--SMALL BUSINESS AND EDUCATION MATTERS

Sec. 101. Clarification of responsibility of Secretary of Veterans 
              Affairs to verify small business ownership.
Sec. 102. Reauthorization of Veterans' Advisory Committee on Education.

           TITLE II--SERVICEMEMBERS CIVIL RELIEF ACT MATTERS

Sec. 201. Termination of service contracts.
Sec. 202. Residential and motor vehicle leases.
Sec. 203. Enforcement by the Attorney General and by private right of 
              action.

                   TITLE III--OTHER BENEFITS MATTERS

Sec. 301. Improvement of outreach activities within Department of 
              Veterans Affairs.
Sec. 302. Visual impairment and orientation and mobility professionals 
              education assistance program.
Sec. 303. Interment in national cemeteries of parents of certain 
              deceased veterans.

     SEC. 2. REFERENCES TO TITLE 38, UNITED STATES CODE.

       Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this 
     Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an 
     amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provision, the 
     reference shall be considered to be made to a section or 
     other provision of title 38, United States Code.

             TITLE I--SMALL BUSINESS AND EDUCATION MATTERS

     SEC. 101. CLARIFICATION OF RESPONSIBILITY OF SECRETARY OF 
                   VETERANS AFFAIRS TO VERIFY SMALL BUSINESS 
                   OWNERSHIP.

       (a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the 
     ``Veterans Small Business Verification Act''.
       (b) Clarification of Responsibility of Secretary of 
     Veterans Affairs To Verify Small Business Ownership.--
       (1) Clarification.--Section 8127(f) is amended--
       (A) in paragraph (2)--
       (i) by inserting ``(A)'' before ``To be eligible'';
       (ii) by inserting after ``or the veteran.'' the following 
     new sentence: ``Application for inclusion in the database 
     shall constitute permission under section 552a of title 5 
     (commonly referred to as the Privacy Act) for the Secretary 
     to access such personal information maintained by the 
     Secretary as may be necessary to verify the information 
     contained in the application.''; and
       (iii) by inserting after the sentence added by subparagraph 
     (B) the following new subparagraph:
       ``(B) If the Secretary receives an application for 
     inclusion in the database from an individual whose status as 
     a veteran cannot be verified because the Secretary does not 
     maintain information with respect to the veteran status of 
     the individual, the Secretary may not include the small 
     business concern owned or controlled by the individual in the 
     database maintained by the Secretary until the Secretary 
     receives such information as may be necessary to verify that 
     the individual is a veteran.''; and
       (B) by striking paragraph (4) and inserting the following 
     new paragraph (4):
       ``(4) No small business concern may be listed in the 
     database until the Secretary has verified that--
       ``(A) the small business concern is owned and controlled by 
     veterans; and
       ``(B) in the case of a small business concern for which the 
     person who owns or controls the concern indicates that the 
     person is a veteran with a service-connected disability, that 
     the person is a veteran with a service-connected 
     disability.''.
       (2) Applicability.--In the case of a small business concern 
     included in the database as of the date of the enactment of 
     this Act for which, as of such date, the Secretary of 
     Veterans Affairs has not verified the status of such concern 
     in accordance with paragraph (4) of subsection (f) of section 
     8127 of title 38, United States Code, as amended by 
     subsection (a), not later than 60 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall notify the person 
     who owns or controls the concern that--
       (A) the Secretary is required to verify the status of the 
     concern in accordance with such paragraph;
       (B) verification of such status shall require that the 
     person who owns or controls the concern apply for inclusion 
     in the database in accordance with such subsection, as so 
     amended;
       (C) application for inclusion in the database shall 
     constitute permission under section 552a of title 5, United 
     States Code (commonly referred to as the Privacy Act), for 
     the Secretary to access such personal information maintained 
     by the Secretary as may be necessary to verify the 
     information contained in the application; and
       (D) the person who owns or controls the concern must submit 
     to the Secretary an affirmative acknowledgment of the 
     requirement under paragraph (3) within 90 days of receiving 
     the Secretary's notice of such requirement or the concern 
     shall be removed from the database.

     SEC. 102. REAUTHORIZATION OF VETERANS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON 
                   EDUCATION.

       Section 3692(c) is amended by striking ``December 31, 
     2009'' and inserting ``December 31, 2015''.

           TITLE II--SERVICEMEMBERS CIVIL RELIEF ACT MATTERS

     SEC. 201. TERMINATION OF SERVICE CONTRACTS.

       (a) In General.--Section 305A of the Servicemembers Civil 
     Relief Act (50 U.S.C. App. 535a) is amended to read as 
     follows:

     ``SEC. 305A. TERMINATION OF SERVICE CONTRACTS.

       ``(a) Termination by Servicemember.--A servicemember may 
     terminate a contract described in subsection (c) at any time 
     after the date the servicemember receives military orders--
       ``(1) to deploy with a military unit, or as an individual, 
     in support of a contingency operation for a period of not 
     less than 90 days; or
       ``(2) for a change of permanent station to a location that 
     does not support the contract.
       ``(b) Special Rule for Cellular or Telephone Exchange 
     Service.--In any case in which a contract being terminated 
     under subsection (a) or (d) is for cellular telephone service 
     or telephone exchange service, the servicemember may keep, to 
     the extent practicable and in accordance with applicable law, 
     the telephone number the servicemember has under the contract 
     for a period not to exceed 90 days after the period of 
     deployment or change of permanent station has concluded.
       ``(c) Covered Contracts.--This section applies to a 
     contract for cellular telephone service, telephone exchange 
     service, multichannel video programming service, Internet 
     access service, or residential utility service involving the 
     provision of water, electricity, home heating oil, or natural 
     gas.
       ``(d) Family Plans.--In the case of a contract for cellular 
     telephone service entered into by any individual in which a 
     servicemember is a designated beneficiary of such contract, 
     the individual may terminate such contract--
       ``(1) with respect to the servicemember if the 
     servicemember is eligible to terminate contracts pursuant to 
     subsection (a); and
       ``(2) with respect to all of the designated beneficiaries 
     of such contract if all such beneficiaries accompany the 
     servicemember in a change of permanent station to a location 
     that does not support the contract.
       ``(e) Manner of Termination.--Termination of a contract 
     under subsection (a) or (d) shall be made by delivery of a 
     written notice of such termination and a copy of the 
     servicemember's military orders to the service provider, 
     delivered--
       ``(1) by hand delivery;
       ``(2) by private business carrier;
       ``(3) by facsimile; or
       ``(4) by United States mail, addressed as designated by the 
     service provider, return receipt requested, with sufficient 
     postage.
       ``(f) Date of Contract Termination.--Termination of a 
     contract under subsection (a) or (d) is effective as of the 
     date on which the notice under subsection (e) is delivered.
       ``(g) Other Obligations and Liabilities.--The service 
     provider under the contract may not impose an early 
     termination charge, but any tax or any other obligation or 
     liability of the servicemember that, in accordance with the 
     terms of the contract, is due and unpaid or unperformed at 
     the time of termination of the contract shall be paid or 
     performed by the servicemember. If the servicemember re-
     subscribes to the service provided under a covered contract 
     in the 90-day period after the period of deployment or change 
     of permanent station has concluded, the service provider may 
     not impose a charge for reinstating service, other than a 
     charge to cover any cost of installing or acquiring new 
     equipment that existing customers received, and for which 
     such customers paid a similar charge, during such period.
       ``(h) Return of Advance Payments.--Not later than 60 days 
     after the effective date of the termination of the contract, 
     the service provider shall refund to the servicemember any 
     fee or other amount to the extent paid for a period extending 
     after such date, except for the remainder of the monthly or 
     similar billing period in which the termination occurs if it 
     is not reasonably possible to determine a pro-rata amount for 
     such remainder.
       ``(i) Definitions.--In this section:
       ``(1) The term `cellular telephone service' means 
     commercial mobile service, as that term is defined in section 
     332(d) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 332(d)).
       ``(2) The term `contingency operation' has the meaning 
     given that term by section 101(a)(13) of title 10, United 
     States Code.
       ``(3) The term `Internet access service' has the meaning 
     given that term under section 231(e)(4) of the Communications 
     Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 231(e)(4)).
       ``(4) The term `multichannel video programming service' 
     means video programming service provided by a multichannel 
     video programming distributor, as such term is defined in 
     section 602(13) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 
     522(13)).
       ``(5) The term `telephone exchange service' has the meaning 
     given that term under section 3 of the Communications Act of 
     1934 (47 U.S.C. 153).''.

[[Page 26401]]

       (b) Technical Amendment To Conform Heading of Title III to 
     the Contents of the Title.--The heading for title III of such 
     Act is amended by inserting ``, SERVICE CONTRACTS'' after 
     ``LEASES''.
       (c) Clerical Amendments.--The table of contents in section 
     1(b) of such Act is amended--
       (1) by striking the item relating to title III and 
     inserting the following new item:

``TITLE III--RENT, INSTALLMENT CONTRACTS, MORTGAGES, LIENS, ASSIGNMENT, 
                    LEASES, SERVICE CONTRACTS''; and

       (2) by striking the item relating to section 305A and 
     inserting the following new item:

``Sec. 305A. Termination of service contracts.''.

     SEC. 202. RESIDENTIAL AND MOTOR VEHICLE LEASES.

       Subsection (e) of section 305 of the Servicemembers Civil 
     Relief Act (50 U.S.C. App. 535) is amended to read as 
     follows:
       ``(e) Arrearages and Other Obligations and Liabilities.--
       ``(1) Leases of premises.--Rent amounts for a lease 
     described in subsection (b)(1) that are unpaid for the period 
     preceding the effective date of the lease termination shall 
     be paid on a prorated basis. The lessor may not impose an 
     early termination charge, but any taxes, summonses, or other 
     obligations and liabilities of the lessee in accordance with 
     the terms of the lease, including reasonable charges to the 
     lessee for excess wear, that are due and unpaid at the time 
     of termination of the lease shall be paid by the lessee.
       ``(2) Leases of motor vehicles.--Lease amounts for a lease 
     described in subsection (b)(2) that are unpaid for the period 
     preceding the effective date of the lease termination shall 
     be paid on a prorated basis. The lessor may not impose an 
     early termination charge, but any taxes, summonses, title and 
     registration fees, or other obligations and liabilities of 
     the lessee in accordance with the terms of the lease, 
     including reasonable charges to the lessee for excess wear or 
     use and mileage, that are due and unpaid at the time of 
     termination of the lease shall be paid by the lessee.''.

     SEC. 203. ENFORCEMENT BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL AND BY PRIVATE 
                   RIGHT OF ACTION.

       (a) In General.--The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 
     U.S.C. App. 501 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new title:

                     ``TITLE VIII--CIVIL LIABILITY

     ``SEC. 801. ENFORCEMENT BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL.

       ``(a) Civil Action.--The Attorney General may commence a 
     civil action in any appropriate United States district court 
     against any person who--
       ``(1) engages in a pattern or practice of violating this 
     Act; or
       ``(2) engages in a violation of this Act that raises an 
     issue of significant public importance.
       ``(b) Relief.--In a civil action commenced under subsection 
     (a), the court may--
       ``(1) grant any appropriate equitable or declaratory relief 
     with respect to the violation;
       ``(2) award all other appropriate relief, including 
     monetary damages, to any person aggrieved by the violation; 
     and
       ``(3) may, to vindicate the public interest, assess a civil 
     penalty--
       ``(A) in an amount not exceeding $55,000 for a first 
     violation; and
       ``(B) in an amount not exceeding $110,000 for any 
     subsequent violation.
       ``(c) Intervention.--Upon timely application, a person 
     aggrieved by a violation with respect to which the civil 
     action is commenced may intervene in such action, and may 
     obtain such appropriate relief as the person could obtain in 
     a civil action under section 802 with respect to that 
     violation, along with costs and a reasonable attorney fee.

     ``SEC. 802. PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.

       ``(a) In General.--Any person aggrieved by a violation of 
     this Act may in a civil action--
       ``(1) obtain any appropriate equitable or declaratory 
     relief with respect to the violation; and
       ``(2) recover all other appropriate relief, including 
     monetary damages.
       ``(b) Costs and Attorney Fees.--The court may award to a 
     servicemember who prevails in an action brought under 
     subsection (a) the costs of the action, including a 
     reasonable attorney fee.

     ``SEC. 803. PRESERVATION OF REMEDIES.

       ``Nothing in section 801 or 802 shall be construed to 
     preclude or limit any remedy otherwise available under other 
     law, including consequential and punitive damages.''.
       (b) Conforming Amendments.--Such Act is further amended as 
     follows:
       (1) Section 207 (50 U.S.C. App. 527) is amended by striking 
     subsection (f).
       (2) Section 301(c) (50 U.S.C. App. 531(c)) is amended to 
     read as follows:
       ``(c) Misdemeanor.--Except as provided in subsection (a), a 
     person who knowingly takes part in an eviction or distress 
     described in subsection (a), or who knowingly attempts to do 
     so, shall be fined as provided in title 18, United States 
     Code, or imprisoned for not more than one year, or both.''.
       (3) Section 302(b) (50 U.S.C. App. 532(b)) is amended to 
     read as follows:
       ``(b) Misdemeanor.--A person who knowingly resumes 
     possession of property in violation of subsection (a), or in 
     violation of section 107 of this Act, or who knowingly 
     attempts to do so, shall be fined as provided in title 18, 
     United States Code, or imprisoned for not more than one year, 
     or both.''.
       (4) Section 303(d) (50 U.S.C. App. 533(d)) is amended to 
     read as follows:
       ``(d) Misdemeanor.--A person who knowingly makes or causes 
     to be made a sale, foreclosure, or seizure of property that 
     is prohibited by subsection (c), or who knowingly attempts to 
     do so, shall be fined as provided in title 18, United States 
     Code, or imprisoned for not more than one year, or both.''.
       (5) Section 305(h) (50 U.S.C. App. 535(h)) is amended to 
     read as follows:
       ``(h) Misdemeanor.--Any person who knowingly seizes, holds, 
     or detains the personal effects, security deposit, or other 
     property of a servicemember or a servicemember's dependent 
     who lawfully terminates a lease covered by this section, or 
     who knowingly interferes with the removal of such property 
     from premises covered by such lease, for the purpose of 
     subjecting or attempting to subject any of such property to a 
     claim for rent accruing subsequent to the date of termination 
     of such lease, or attempts to do so, shall be fined as 
     provided in title 18, United States Code, or imprisoned for 
     not more than one year, or both.''.
       (6) Section 306(e) (50 U.S.C. App. 536(e)) is amended to 
     read as follows:
       ``(e) Misdemeanor.--A person who knowingly takes an action 
     contrary to this section, or attempts to do so, shall be 
     fined as provided in title 18, United States Code, or 
     imprisoned for not more than one year, or both.''.
       (7) Section 307(c) (50 U.S.C. App. 537(c)) is amended to 
     read as follows:
       ``(c) Misdemeanor.--A person who knowingly takes an action 
     contrary to this section, or attempts to do so, shall be 
     fined as provided in title 18, United States Code, or 
     imprisoned for not more than one year, or both.''.
       (c) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents in section 
     1(b) of such Act is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new items:

                     ``TITLE VIII--CIVIL LIABILITY

``Sec. 801. Enforcement by the Attorney General.
``Sec. 802. Private right of action.
``Sec. 803. Preservation of remedies.''.

                   TITLE III--OTHER BENEFITS MATTERS

     SEC. 301. IMPROVEMENT OF OUTREACH ACTIVITIES WITHIN 
                   DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

       (a) In General.--Chapter 5 is amended by adding at the end 
     the following new subchapter:

                  ``SUBCHAPTER IV--OUTREACH ACTIVITIES

     ``Sec. 561. Outreach activities: coordination of activities 
       within the Department

       ``(a) Coordination Procedures.--The Secretary shall 
     establish and maintain procedures for ensuring the effective 
     coordination of the outreach activities of the Department 
     between and among the following:
       ``(1) The Office of the Secretary.
       ``(2) The Office of Public Affairs.
       ``(3) The Veterans Health Administration.
       ``(4) The Veterans Benefits Administration.
       ``(5) The National Cemetery Administration.
       ``(b) Annual Review of Procedures.--The Secretary shall--
       ``(1) annually review the procedures in effect under 
     subsection (a) for the purpose of ensuring that those 
     procedures meet the requirements of that subsection; and
       ``(2) make such modifications to those procedures as the 
     Secretary considers appropriate in light of such review in 
     order to better achieve that purpose.

     ``Sec. 562. Outreach activities: cooperative activities with 
       States; grants to States for improvement of outreach

       ``(a) Purpose.--It is the purpose of this section to 
     provide for assistance by the Secretary to State and county 
     veterans agencies to carry out programs in locations within 
     the respective jurisdictions of such agencies that offer a 
     high probability of improving outreach and assistance to 
     veterans, and to the spouses, children, and parents of 
     veterans, to ensure that such individuals are fully informed 
     about, and assisted in applying for, any veterans' and 
     veterans-related benefits and programs (including State 
     veterans' programs) for which they may be eligible.
       ``(b) Priority for Areas With High Concentration of 
     Eligible Individuals.--In providing assistance under this 
     section, the Secretary shall give priority to State and 
     county veteran agencies in locations--
       ``(1) that have relatively large concentrations of 
     populations of veterans and other individuals referred to in 
     subsection (a); or
       ``(2) that are experiencing growth in the population of 
     veterans and other individuals referred to in subsection (a).
       ``(c) Contracts for Outreach Services.--The Secretary may 
     enter into a contract with a State or county veterans agency 
     in order to carry out, coordinate, improve, or

[[Page 26402]]

     otherwise enhance outreach by the Department and the State or 
     county (including outreach with respect to a State or county 
     veterans program). As a condition of entering into any such 
     contract, the Secretary shall require the agency to submit 
     annually to the Secretary a three-year plan for the use of 
     any funds provided to the agency pursuant to the contract and 
     to meet the annual outcome measures developed by the 
     Secretary under subsection (d)(4).
       ``(d) Grants.--(1) The Secretary may make a grant to a 
     State or county veterans agency to be used to carry out, 
     coordinate, improve, or otherwise enhance--
       ``(A) outreach activities, including activities carried out 
     pursuant to a contract entered into under subsection (c); and
       ``(B) activities to assist in the development and submittal 
     of claims for veterans and veterans-related benefits, 
     including activities carried out pursuant to a contract 
     entered into under subsection (c).
       ``(2) A State veterans agency that receives a grant under 
     this subsection may award all or a portion of the grant to 
     county veterans agencies within the State to provide outreach 
     services for veterans, on the basis of the number of veterans 
     residing in the jurisdiction of each county.
       ``(3) To be eligible for a grant under this subsection, a 
     State or county veterans agency shall submit to the Secretary 
     an application containing such information and assurances as 
     the Secretary may require. The Secretary shall require a 
     State or county veterans agency to include, as part of the 
     agency's application--
       ``(A) a three-year plan for the use of the grant; and
       ``(B) a description of the programs through which the 
     agency will meet the annual outcome measures developed by the 
     Secretary under paragraph (4).
       ``(4)(A) The Secretary shall develop and provide to the 
     recipient of a grant under this subsection written guidance 
     on annual outcome measures, Department policies, and 
     procedures for applying for grants under this section.
       ``(B) The Secretary shall annually review the performance 
     of each State or county veterans agency that receives a grant 
     under this section.
       ``(C) In the case of a State or county veterans agency that 
     is a recipient of a grant under this subsection that does not 
     meet the annual outcome measures developed by the Secretary, 
     the Secretary shall require the agency to submit a 
     remediation plan under which the agency shall describe how 
     and when it plans to meet such outcome measures. The 
     Secretary must approve such plan before the Secretary may 
     make a subsequent grant to that agency under this subsection.
       ``(5) No portion of any grant awarded under this subsection 
     may be used for the purposes of administering the grant funds 
     or to subsidize the salaries of State or county veterans 
     service officers or other employees of a State or county 
     veterans agency that receives a grant under this subsection.
       ``(6) Federal funds provided to a State or county veterans 
     agency under this subsection may not be used to provide more 
     than 50 percent of the total cost of the State or county 
     government activities described in paragraph (1) and shall be 
     used to expand existing outreach programs and services and 
     not to supplant State and local funding that is otherwise 
     available.
       ``(7) In awarding grants under this subsection, the 
     Secretary shall give priority to State and county veterans 
     agencies that serve the largest populations of veterans.
       ``(8)(A) In a case in which a county government does not 
     have a county veterans agency, the county government may be 
     awarded a grant under this subsection to establish such an 
     agency.
       ``(B) In a case in which a county government does not have 
     a county veterans agency and does not seek to establish such 
     an agency through the use of a grant under this subsection, 
     the State veterans agency for the State in which the county 
     is located may use a grant under this section to provide 
     outreach services for that county.
       ``(C) In the case of a State in which no State or county 
     veterans agency seeks to receive a grant under this 
     subsection, the funds that would otherwise be allocated for 
     that State shall be reallocated to those States in which 
     county veterans agencies exist and have sought grants under 
     this subsection.
       ``(9) A grant under this subsection may be used to provide 
     education and training, including on-the-job training, for 
     State, county, and local government employees who provide (or 
     when trained will provide) veterans outreach services in 
     order for those employees to obtain accreditation in 
     accordance with procedures approved by the Secretary and, for 
     employees so accredited, for purposes of continuing 
     education.
       ``(e) Definitions.--For the purposes of this section:
       ``(1) The term `State veterans agency' means the element of 
     the government of a State that has responsibility for 
     programs and activities of that State government relating to 
     veterans benefits.
       ``(2) The term `county veterans agency' means the element 
     of the government of a county or municipality that has 
     responsibility for programs and activities of that county or 
     municipal government relating to veterans benefits.

     ``Sec. 563. Outreach activities: funding

       ``(a) Separate Account.--Amounts for the outreach 
     activities of the Department under this subchapter shall be 
     budgeted and appropriated through a separate appropriation 
     account.
       ``(b) Separate Statement of Amount.--In the budget 
     justification materials submitted to Congress in support of 
     the Department budget for any fiscal year (as submitted with 
     the budget of the President under section 1105(a) of title 
     31), the Secretary shall include a separate statement of the 
     amount requested to be appropriated for that fiscal year for 
     the account specified in subsection (a).

     ``Sec. 564. Definition of outreach

       ``For purposes of this subchapter, the term `outreach' 
     means the act or process of taking steps in a systematic 
     manner to provide information, services, and benefits 
     counseling to veterans, and the survivors of veterans, who 
     may be eligible to receive benefits under the laws 
     administered by the Secretary to ensure that those 
     individuals are fully informed about, and assisted in 
     applying for, any benefits and programs under such laws for 
     which they may be eligible.

     ``Sec. 565. Authorization of appropriations

       ``There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary 
     for each of fiscal years 2011, 2012, and 2013, $25,000,000 to 
     carry out this subchapter, including making grants under 
     section 562(d) of this title.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new items:

                  ``subchapter iv--outreach activities

``561. Outreach activities: coordination of activities within the 
              Department.
``562. Outreach activities: cooperative activities with States; grants 
              to States for improvement of outreach.
``563. Outreach activities: funding.
``564. Definition of outreach.
``565. Authorization of appropriations.''.
       (c) Deadline for Implementation.--The Secretary of Veterans 
     Affairs shall implement the outreach activities required 
     under subchapter IV of chapter 5 of title 38, United States 
     Code, as added by subsection (a), by not later than 120 days 
     after the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 302. VISUAL IMPAIRMENT AND ORIENTATION AND MOBILITY 
                   PROFESSIONALS EDUCATION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.

       (a) Establishment of Program.--Part V is amended by adding 
     at the end the following new chapter:

     ``CHAPTER 80--VISUAL IMPAIRMENT AND ORIENTATION AND MOBILITY 
               PROFESSIONALS EDUCATION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

``Sec.
``8001. Establishment of scholarship program; purpose.
``8002. Application and acceptance.
``8003. Amount of assistance; duration.
``8004. Agreement.
``8005. Repayment for failure to satisfy requirements of agreement.

     ``Sec. 8001. Establishment of scholarship program; purpose

       ``(a) Establishment.--Subject to the availability of 
     appropriations, the Secretary shall establish and carry out a 
     scholarship program to provide financial assistance in 
     accordance with this chapter to an individual--
       ``(1) who is accepted for enrollment or currently enrolled 
     in a program of study leading to a degree or certificate in 
     visual impairment or orientation and mobility, or a dual 
     degree or certification in both such areas, at an accredited 
     (as determined by the Secretary) educational institution that 
     is in a State; and
       ``(2) who enters into an agreement with the Secretary as 
     described in section 8004 of this chapter.
       ``(b) Purpose.--The purpose of the scholarship program 
     established under this chapter is to increase the supply of 
     qualified blind rehabilitation specialists for the Department 
     and the Nation.
       ``(c) Outreach.--The Secretary shall publicize the 
     scholarship program established under this chapter to 
     educational institutions throughout the United States, with 
     an emphasis on disseminating information to such institutions 
     with high numbers of Hispanic students and to Historically 
     Black Colleges and Universities.

     ``Sec. 8002. Application and acceptance

       ``(a) Application.--(1) To apply and participate in the 
     scholarship program under this chapter, an individual shall 
     submit to the Secretary an application for such participation 
     together with an agreement described in section 8004 of this 
     chapter under which the participant agrees to serve a period 
     of obligated service in the Department as provided in the 
     agreement in return for payment of educational assistance as 
     provided in the agreement.
       ``(2) In distributing application forms and agreement forms 
     to individuals desiring to participate in the scholarship 
     program, the Secretary shall include with such forms the 
     following:
       ``(A) A fair summary of the rights and liabilities of an 
     individual whose application

[[Page 26403]]

     is approved (and whose agreement is accepted) by the 
     Secretary.
       ``(B) A full description of the terms and conditions that 
     apply to participation in the scholarship program and service 
     in the Department.
       ``(b) Approval.--(1) Upon the Secretary's approval of an 
     individual's participation in the scholarship program, the 
     Secretary shall, in writing, promptly notify the individual 
     of that acceptance.
       ``(2) An individual becomes a participant in the 
     scholarship program upon such approval by the Secretary.

     ``Sec. 8003. Amount of assistance; duration

       ``(a) Amount of Assistance.--The amount of the financial 
     assistance provided for an individual under this chapter 
     shall be the amount determined by the Secretary as being 
     necessary to pay the tuition and fees of the individual. In 
     the case of an individual enrolled in a program of study 
     leading to a dual degree or certification in both the areas 
     of study described in section 8001(a)(1) of this chapter, the 
     tuition and fees shall not exceed the amounts necessary for 
     the minimum number of credit hours to achieve such dual 
     certification or degree.
       ``(b) Relationship to Other Assistance.--Financial 
     assistance may be provided to an individual under this 
     chapter to supplement other educational assistance to the 
     extent that the total amount of educational assistance 
     received by the individual during an academic year does not 
     exceed the total tuition and fees for such academic year.
       ``(c) Maximum Amount of Assistance.--(1) In no case may the 
     total amount of assistance provided under this chapter for an 
     academic year to an individual who is a full-time student 
     exceed $15,000.
       ``(2) In the case of an individual who is a part-time 
     student, the total amount of assistance provided under this 
     chapter shall bear the same ratio to the amount that would be 
     paid under paragraph (1) if the participant were a full-time 
     student in the program of study being pursued by the 
     individual as the coursework carried by the individual to 
     full-time coursework in that program of study.
       ``(3) In no case may the total amount of assistance 
     provided to an individual under this chapter exceed $45,000.
       ``(d) Maximum Duration of Assistance.--The Secretary may 
     provide financial assistance to an individual under this 
     chapter for not more than six years.

     ``Sec. 8004. Agreement

       ``An agreement between the Secretary and a participant in 
     the scholarship program under this chapter shall be in 
     writing, shall be signed by the participant, and shall 
     include--
       ``(1) the Secretary's agreement to provide the participant 
     with financial assistance as authorized under this chapter;
       ``(2) the participant's agreement--
       ``(A) to accept such financial assistance;
       ``(B) to maintain enrollment and attendance in the program 
     of study described in section 8001(a)(1) of this chapter;
       ``(C) while enrolled in such program, to maintain an 
     acceptable level of academic standing (as determined by the 
     educational institution offering such program under 
     regulations prescribed by the Secretary); and
       ``(D) after completion of the program, to serve as a full-
     time employee in the Department for a period of three years, 
     to be served within the first six years after the participant 
     has completed such program and received a degree or 
     certificate described in section 8001(a)(1) of this chapter; 
     and
       ``(3) any other terms and conditions that the Secretary 
     determines appropriate for carrying out this chapter.

     ``Sec. 8005. Repayment for failure to satisfy requirements of 
       agreement

       ``(a) In General.--An individual who receives educational 
     assistance under this chapter shall repay to the Secretary an 
     amount equal to the unearned portion of such assistance if 
     the individual fails to satisfy the requirements of the 
     agreement entered into under section 8004 of this chapter, 
     except in circumstances authorized by the Secretary.
       ``(b) Amount of Repayment.--The Secretary shall establish, 
     by regulations, procedures for determining the amount of the 
     repayment required under this subsection and the 
     circumstances under which an exception to the required 
     repayment may be granted.
       ``(c) Waiver or Suspension of Compliance.--The Secretary 
     shall prescribe regulations providing for the waiver or 
     suspension of any obligation of an individual for service or 
     payment under this chapter (or an agreement under this 
     chapter) whenever noncompliance by the individual is due to 
     circumstances beyond the control of the individual or 
     whenever the Secretary determines that the waiver or 
     suspension of compliance is in the best interest of the 
     United States.
       ``(d) Obligation as Debt to United States.--An obligation 
     to repay the Secretary under this section is, for all 
     purposes, a debt owed the United States. A discharge in 
     bankruptcy under title 11 does not discharge a person from 
     such debt if the discharge order is entered less than five 
     years after the date of the termination of the agreement or 
     contract on which the debt is based.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendments.--The tables of chapters at the 
     beginning of title 38, United States Code, and of part V of 
     such title, are each amended by inserting after the item 
     relating to chapter 79 the following new item:

``80. Visual Impairment and Orientation and Mobility Professionals 
    Education Assistance Program............................8001''.....

       (c) Effective Date.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
     shall implement chapter 80 of title 38, United States Code, 
     as added by subsection (a), not later than six months after 
     the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 303. INTERMENT IN NATIONAL CEMETERIES OF PARENTS OF 
                   CERTAIN DECEASED VETERANS.

       (a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the ``Corey 
     Shea Act''.
       (b) Interment of Parents of Certain Deceased Veterans.--
     Section 2402 is amended--
       (1) In the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
     ``Under such regulations'' and inserting ``(a) Under such 
     regulations'';
       (2) by moving the margins of paragraphs (1) through (8) two 
     ems to the right;
       (3) by inserting after paragraph (8) the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(9)(A) The parent of a person described in subparagraph 
     (B), if the Secretary determines that there is available 
     space at the gravesite where the person described in 
     subparagraph (B) is interred.
       ``(B) A person described in this subparagraph is a person 
     described in paragraph (1) who--
       ``(i) is a hostile casualty or died from a training-related 
     injury;
       ``(ii) is interred in a national cemetery; and
       ``(iii) at the time of the person's parent's death, did not 
     have a spouse, surviving spouse, or child who is buried or 
     who, upon death, may be eligible for burial in a national 
     cemetery pursuant to paragraph (5).''; and
       (4) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
       ``(b) For purposes of subsection (a)(9) of this section:
       ``(1) The term `parent' means a biological father or a 
     biological mother or, in the case of adoption, a father 
     through adoption or a mother through adoption.
       ``(2) The term `hostile casualty' means a person who, as a 
     member of the Armed Forces, dies as the direct result of 
     hostile action with the enemy, while in combat, while going 
     to or returning from a combat mission if the cause of death 
     was directly related to hostile action, or while hospitalized 
     or undergoing treatment at the expense of the United States 
     for injury incurred during combat, and includes a person 
     killed mistakenly or accidentally by friendly fire directed 
     at a hostile force or what is thought to be a hostile force, 
     but does not include a person who dies due to the elements, a 
     self-inflicted wound, combat fatigue, or a friendly force 
     while the person was in an absent-without-leave, deserter, or 
     dropped-from-rolls status or was voluntarily absent from a 
     place of duty.
       ``(3) The term `training-related injury' means an injury 
     incurred by a member of the Armed Forces while performing 
     authorized training activities in preparation for a combat 
     mission.''.
       (c) Guidance Required.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, 
     in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, shall develop 
     guidance under which the parent of a person described in 
     paragraph (9)(B) of subsection (a) of section 2402 of title 
     38, United States Code, may be designated for interment in a 
     national cemetery under that section.
       (d) Conforming Amendments.--
       (1) Cross-reference correction.--Section 107 is amended by 
     striking ``section 2402(8)'' both places it appears and 
     inserting ``section 2402(a)(8)''.
       (2) Cross-reference correction.--Section 2301(e) is amended 
     by striking ``section 2402(6)'' and inserting ``section 
     2402(a)(6)''.
       (3) Cross-reference correction.--Section 2306(a) is 
     amended--
       (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``section 2402(4)'' and 
     inserting ``section 2402(a)(4)''; and
       (B) in paragraph (4), by striking ``section 2402(5)'' and 
     inserting ``section 2402(a)(5)''.
       (e) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall apply with respect to the death, on or after the date 
     of the enactment of this Act, of the parent of a person 
     described in section 2402(a)(9)(B) of title 38, United States 
     Code, as added by subsection (a), who dies on or after 
     October 7, 2001.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Minnesota (Mr. Walz) and the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Stearns) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Minnesota.
  Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume.
  H.R. 3949, as amended, the Veterans' Small Business Assistance and 
Servicemembers Protection Act of 2009, is a necessary cornerstone to 
grant deserving heroes the protections and opportunities to succeed. 
This legislation includes several important provisions and would not be 
possible without the

[[Page 26404]]

hard work of many members of this committee and of Congress as a whole.
  H.R. 3949 addresses the needs of veteran-owned small businesses. A 
provision of the bill will require that all businesses listed in the 
Department of Veterans Affairs VetBiz Vendor Information Pages database 
have been confirmed as veteran-owned small businesses so our veterans 
are furnished the economic benefits that Congress intended them to 
receive through their military service and sacrifice. I would again 
like to thank Congresswoman Herseth Sandlin, chairwoman of the 
Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity, for her continued leadership on 
this issue.
  H.R. 3949 also includes a timely bill, first introduced by one of our 
active committee members, Representative Ann Kirkpatrick of Arizona. 
This provision seeks to reauthorize the Veterans' Advisory Committee on 
Education whose authorization is set to expire at the end of this year. 
Reauthorizing the advisory committee will provide the VA Secretary with 
a group of subject matter experts to help work to ensure our heroes 
have the educational opportunities they've earned.
  Furthermore, this comprehensive bill includes important updates to 
the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. H.R. 3949 will strengthen our 
efforts nationally to support veterans, servicemembers and their 
families during deployment. The bill will allow greater flexibility for 
family cell phone plans, rental leases, and motor vehicle leases when 
servicemembers are deployed or required to change duty stations. The 
bill authorizes the U.S. Attorney General to bring a civil action in 
U.S. district courts to enforce provisions of the Servicemembers Civil 
Relief Act.
  The provisions on the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act included in 
H.R. 3949 are a collaborative effort that includes bills introduced by 
Representatives Brad Miller of North Carolina, Representative Gerald 
Connolly of Virginia and Representative Patrick Murphy of Pennsylvania, 
respectively. Their efforts to protect our deployed servicemembers are 
commendable.
  Another important provision included in this legislation seeks to 
assist in VA's outreach efforts to improve coordination among the key 
offices within the Department of Veterans Affairs. This provision was 
originally introduced by my colleague, Representative Mike McIntyre of 
North Carolina.
  To help the 160,000 legally blind veterans in the United States, a 
provision of this bill would establish a scholarship program for 
students seeking a degree or a certificate in the area of visual 
impairment, orientation and mobility. This would help our blind 
veterans by increasing the number of vision rehabilitation specialists 
with the appropriate education and training. I would like to thank 
Representative Sheila Jackson-Lee of Texas for her continued leadership 
on this issue and her dedication to the needs of our veterans.
  Finally, the legislation honors our fallen American heroes by 
providing an eligible parent of a deceased veteran to be buried in a VA 
national cemetery when the deceased veteran does not have an immediate 
spouse or child. I want to thank Representative Barney Frank of 
Massachusetts for introducing this incredibly important piece of 
legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, this bipartisan legislation will provide needed changes 
for our veterans and their families while addressing the unique needs 
of veterans and servicemembers as they serve the country. I would like 
to thank the committee's ranking member, Representative Steve Buyer of 
Indiana, members of the committee and my colleagues for working in a 
bipartisan manner on H.R. 3949. Again, I would like to thank my 
colleagues who got this final bill here and for helping our veterans.
  With that, Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  It appears this legislation has a lot of wonderful components in it. 
It represents about seven individual bills. It would amend title 38 of 
the United States Code and the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to make 
certain improvements in the laws relating to benefits administered by 
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.
  The bill, H.R. 3949, is designed to continue the Veterans' Advisory 
Committee on Education, improve protections under the Servicemembers 
Civil Relief Act, improve VA outreach programs, establish a VA 
scholarship program, and expand eligibility for burial in a national 
cemetery.
  Public Law 109-461 requires VA to maintain a database of veteran- and 
disabled veteran-owned small businesses and to validate the ownership 
and control any business included in the database. Implementing those 
provisions, VA has allowed any business that applies for inclusion in 
the database to be listed prior to being validated. The bill would 
require VA to list only those businesses that have been validated. This 
will prevent nonveteran-owned businesses from misrepresenting 
themselves as veteran-owned.
  Mr. Speaker, I did want to bring to my colleagues' attention the 
disappointment on this side of the aisle that the amended bill we are 
considering drops section 102 from H.R. 3949, which was unanimously 
reported by the Veterans' Affairs Committee. Section 102 would clarify 
that Congress intends to allow VA contracting officers at the 
Department of Veterans Affairs to award sole source contracts to 
service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses on the same basis as 
so-called 8(a) businesses under the Small Business Act. VA contracting 
officers often interpret the Small Business Act as giving 8(a) firms a 
higher priority than service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses, 
which we do not believe is consistent with congressional intent. All 
this provision would do is to give veterans a level playing field with 
8(a), women- and minority-owned small businesses. So obviously we're 
disappointed. We're not clear why this happened, but we wanted to bring 
that to the attention of my colleagues.
  Furthermore, service-connected disabled veteran small business owners 
have earned and deserve an equal level of priority for VA contracts. 
Unfortunately, the Small Business Committee majority and the Oversight 
and Government Reform Committee majority have asserted jurisdiction and 
are holding up this important provision to help service-disabled 
veteran-owned small business, and this is just a week before Veterans 
Day, I might add.
  Service-disabled veteran-owned small business owners are men and 
women of all races and economic groups from all over the country. In 
these difficult economic times, they need the help section 102 would 
have provided. While I regret that this important provision isn't in 
the bill today, we hope to work with the Small Business Committee and 
the Oversight and Government Reform Committee to ultimately reach an 
agreement on a way to allow service-disabled veteran-owned small 
businesses just simply a fair opportunity to obtain sole source 
contracts from the Veterans Administration. Servicemembers continue to 
experience service contract and lease difficulties that are related to 
permanent change of duty stations and deployments. H.R. 3949 would 
clarify the member's rights and obligations under the Servicemembers 
Civil Relief Act, or SCRA, when terminating a service contract or lease 
due to military orders.
  The bill also contains provisions that would authorize the United 
States Attorney General to initiate action in a U.S. district court on 
behalf of a veteran whose rights under SCRA may have been violated and 
allows courts to provide relief to the member, including monetary 
damages, and assess civil penalties up to $110,000. Unfortunately, 
courts sometimes fail to recognize the individual right of action that 
is implicit in the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. As one hearing 
witness noted, it makes no sense to provide a right and then deny the 
individual the ability to enforce that right. Therefore, the 
legislation would also codify a private right of action to make it 
clear to all courts that an individual has a right to bring legal 
action to protect rights granted under SCRA.

[[Page 26405]]

  Title 3 of the bill includes an authorization to allow VA to provide 
up to $25 million in grants to State veterans agencies and to allow 
these agencies to provide all or a portion of these grants to county 
veterans service agencies to increase outreach to veterans.

                              {time}  1500

  Such grants carry with them significant responsibility for the VA and 
State and local veterans agencies to ensure simply these funds are 
properly accounted for and to measure the results of this provision.
  One of the least discussed injuries due to the traumatic effects of 
improvised explosive devices is the damage to the body's visual system. 
Unfortunately, these effects may be subtle at first or not occur 
immediately after the event. To accommodate the increasing number of 
visually impaired veterans whose sight has been affected either 
directly by combat or the effects of aging and disease, title III also 
would authorize the VA to grant scholarships to persons in educational 
programs relating to treating visual impairment and mobility issues.
  Now persons receiving such scholarships would be required to commit 
to working within the VA health care system for a requisite number of 
years. The bill also stipulates conditions for repayment of the 
scholarships in the event that the individual fails to fulfill the 
conditions that are specified in this scholarship.
  Finally, my colleagues, the bill would define the conditions under 
which the parents of a deceased veteran could be buried with the 
veteran in a national cemetery.
  I support this bill. I urge my colleagues to support it.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, before I yield time to my chairwoman, I would 
like to say I concur with the gentleman from Florida's assessment on 
section 102. And when we looked at this, one of the things we discussed 
was this was procedural because of the jurisdictional issues. And I 
would sure be willing to work with the gentleman to make sure we do 
bring that back up again. I think the issue here was all of the good in 
this bill would have been held back and we wouldn't have been able to 
move any of it forward as we worked out the jurisdictional issues.
  So I do concur with your assessment that it is an important piece. We 
did vote on it unanimously, and I think down the road here we need to 
get it in.
  Mr. STEARNS. If the gentleman will yield, I thank my colleague for 
his support, and I look forward to working with him.
  Mr. WALZ. At this time I yield 5 minutes to the chairwoman of the 
Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity, Ms. Herseth Sandlin.
  Ms. HERSETH SANDLIN. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  I rise today in strong support of H.R. 3949, the Veterans' Small 
Business Assistance and Servicemembers Protection Act of 2009, which 
the full Veterans' Affairs Committee approved with bipartisan support 
last week and which contains legislation I introduced, along with the 
ranking member of the Economic Opportunities Subcommittee, Mr. Boozman, 
to verify the veteran status of small businesses listed in the VetBiz 
Vendor Information Pages, known as the VIP database.
  I would like to thank full committee Chairman Filner and Ranking 
Member Buyer for their leadership and support for this legislation.
  The overall bill under consideration by the House combines the 
provisions from a number of other bills into strong legislation that 
will assist a broad array of veterans in a variety of ways, and I 
applaud Chairman Filner for moving this legislation forward.
  The bill updates the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act and burial 
regulations for national cemeteries. It creates a scholarship program 
to improve the eye care available to veterans and improves the 
Department of Veterans Affairs' outreach efforts by improving 
coordination among key offices within the VA.
  The Veterans Small Business Verification Act that Mr. Boozman and I 
introduced follows up on legislation Congress passed in 2006 requiring 
the VA to maintain its VIP database and verify that applicants for 
inclusion in the database were veteran-owned small businesses or 
service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses. Once firms register in 
the VIP database, they qualify to receive set-aside or sole-source 
awards.
  The Economic Opportunity Subcommittee learned through hearings and 
meetings with VA staff and the veterans community that the database 
contained firms that didn't qualify because the verification process 
was voluntary. This voluntary process meant that while the VIP database 
included over 16,000 businesses, less than 1,000 had received 
verification of their veteran status or had voluntarily submitted 
information to be verified.
  While I'm pleased that Veterans Affairs Secretary Shinseki has taken 
steps since these hearings over the past 6 months to improve the 
process by which businesses are verified, this bill will ensure our 
veterans are afforded the small business opportunities they're due.
  The Veterans Small Business Verification Act would amend title 
XXXVIII to clarify current law and require the VA to verify that firms 
are veteran-owned small businesses or service-disabled veteran-owned 
small businesses in order to be listed in the VIP database. 
Furthermore, it requires that the VA notify small businesses already 
listed in the database of the need to verify their status.
  In conclusion, H.R. 3949 takes important steps toward providing 
needed assistance in a number of areas to those veterans who have 
bravely served their country. I encourage my colleagues to support H.R. 
3949.
  Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Boozman).
  Mr. BOOZMAN. I thank Mr. Stearns for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, I too rise in support of H.R. 3949, several provisions 
of which originated in the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity. I want 
to especially thank Chairwoman Herseth Sandlin for her leadership in 
moving these provisions, as well as Chairman Filner and Ranking Member 
Buyer for bringing the bill to the floor.
  I did have one major disappointment, and Mr. Stearns alluded to it 
earlier, in the effort to get the ``may'' to ``shall'' provisions, 
business provisions, that merely would have put disabled veteran-owned 
small businesses on an equal footing with 8(a) firms when competing for 
sole-source contracts at the Department of Veterans Affairs. I guess 
that was removed at the request of the Small Business Committee. And I 
know Mr. Walz is concerned and the rest of the committee are all 
concerned about that.
  Hopefully, we can all work together to reach a solution to that 
problem. This is something that literally we have all been working on 
for years, the ``mays'' to ``shalls'' and things. So, again, like I 
said, hopefully we can resolve that problem.
  This is a very, very good bill. I think it's something that all of 
the committee can be very, very proud of. This is the kind of work that 
we want coming out of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, and so I very 
much support it. Again, special thanks to Ms. Herseth Sandlin, Chairman 
Filner, and Ranking Member Buyer.
  Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, at this time I yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Frank), who had an 
important piece of this bill incorporated in.
  Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, this is a sad day for me 
because it is close to the anniversary of the death in Iraq of a very 
brave young man, Corey Shea, whose picture is here.
  He was killed in Iraq just the day after Veterans Day of last year, 
and I went to the funeral, along with my colleague Senator Kerry, to 
the town of Mansfield, Massachusetts. Like I think most Members, I try 
very hard to attend the funeral of every young man

[[Page 26406]]

and woman who is killed in the service of the country. It's the least 
we can do. It's not a great deal, but it's the least we can do to show 
a small piece of the gratitude we feel to those people and our 
obligation to their families.
  Also, it seems to me, anybody in our position who has to vote on 
going to war needs to fully understand the consequences of those votes, 
and going to the funerals of the young people killed in those wars 
ought to be mandatory for any of us who vote. That doesn't mean you 
don't vote for the war. I voted for the war in Afghanistan. I've been 
to funerals of people killed there. But it is an important thing to 
hammer home.
  In this case at the funeral I met an extraordinary woman, Denise 
Anderson, the mother of Corey Shea, who was, in her grief at the loss 
of her wonderful young son, further concerned because he would be 
buried alone.
  His country took him when he was too young to have married or raised 
a family. So under the rules of eligibility for burial at a veterans 
cemetery, he was to be buried alone. His mother said as bad as it was 
for her to lose her son, the thought that he would be alone forever 
added greatly to her pain. So she had asked if she could be buried with 
him, and she was turned down.
  Now, under the rules a member of the military eligible to be buried 
in a national cemetery who has a spouse with children can have up to 
three parts used. So we're not taking anything away from someone. In 
Corey Shea's case, this wonderful young man who lost his life has three 
parts available, and his mother simply asked to be allowed to use one 
of them. She was turned down.
  At that point Senator Kerry and I decided to see what we could do. So 
we filed legislation to alleviate that, and I am enormously grateful to 
all members from both parties in the Committee on Veterans' Affairs for 
the speed with which they acted and the grace they showed to this 
brave, grieving mother. And I am very pleased that the bill which we 
would dare concur in, called the Corey Shea Act, is going to be 
included in this package.
  Mr. Speaker, rather than go further myself, I'm going to read the 
testimony that Denise Anderson, the mother of Corey Shea, presented to 
the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. We obviously exhausted our 
remedies, I should say. She applied. Only after it was clear that only 
legislation would work did we file a bill.
  And, of course, I should point out, as a tribute to Denise Anderson, 
this isn't a bill just for her and her son who lost his life. It's a 
bill for any parent of any young member of the military who will know 
at least that that's available to him or to her.
  So nearly a year after her son was killed in Iraq, she had the 
opportunity to address the committee, and here's what she said:
  ``I stand before you humbly asking you to pass or amend this bill 
number H.R. 761. This would allow me to be interred with my son, who 
was killed in action in Mosul, Iraq on November 12, 2008. He sacrificed 
his life for his country, and I sacrifice every day being without him.
  ``My son, Corey, had a heart as big as the world. He would be the 
first one to volunteer or help someone in need. But he would always 
hesitate to ask for help. He was a lot like me in that way, but today I 
show my passion for this bill by standing in front of you asking for 
your help. If you knew my son, you would understand what kind of person 
he was. He was a very respectful young man who would do anything for 
anybody. He was my heart and soul, and I cannot express the bond 
between us. If you have children, you might understand, but losing a 
child is against nature and he should be burying me.
  ``I was a single parent until Corey was about 8 years old. His 
biological father was not around. In fact, he was in prison. He never 
paid child support, and I worked over 60 hours a week just to support 
him and make sure he had everything he needed. Jeff took over the job 
of stepfather and Corey gladly accepted him. When he came home on 
leave, we would stay up until the sun came up. I did not want to miss a 
minute with him.
  ``My son was killed by an Iraqi soldier. These soldiers are supposed 
to be working with our troops over in Iraq. He was an Iraqi soldier for 
4 years before turning on our soldiers. On that terrible day, he killed 
two soldiers, including my son, and wounded six other American 
soldiers.
  ``I was not home when the Army came to my door, but my 18-year-old 
daughter was there. She is a very intelligent person and knew why they 
were there. She called me, not telling me what was going on, which was 
probably a good thing. But when I arrived home, the Mansfield police 
and the Army vehicle were parked in front of my home. My son had only a 
month left on his first tour, and he would have been home. After 
passing out, the police called the paramedics, who took me to the 
hospital.
  ``The whole town came together for Corey. They were so involved with 
his funeral, and it was very heartfelt. My son was the only and 
hopefully the only soldier who passed away during this war in 
Mansfield. He is a Mansfield hero. I belong to the VFW in Mansfield, 
Massachusetts, and I have spoken to many veterans that are members 
there, and they don't have a problem with me being interred with my 
son. In fact, everyone I spoke with doesn't haven't a problem.
  ``This amendment would not be taking up any other deserving space for 
other veterans. My son has three extra plots, but he was not married 
nor did he have any dependents. He did not have time, since, like I 
said, he was a child himself.
  ``I could speak all day regarding my son and what a wonderful and 
respectful young man he was. But I am here to ask you to amend the bill 
number H.R. 761. If you decide to pass this, it would give me some 
peace in my life to which I can pay more attention to my husband and 
daughter, whom I feel I have been neglecting. I could finally be able 
to move forward in my life just knowing I can spend eternity with my 
son.
  ``Please listen with your hearts and amend this bill. I appreciate 
your time listening to me today. This may be a minimal issue with you, 
but it means everything to me.
  ``Thank you for your attention in this matter.
  ``Denise Anderson, proud mother of Specialist Corey Shea, my warrior 
hero and wonderful son.''
  I would only say the one difference I would have with Mrs. Anderson 
is no one here takes this as a minimal issue. We are grateful to her 
for giving us one more chance to show in a small way how much we honor 
those who have lost their lives.
  I will just repeat one thing I said, Mr. Speaker, in the testimony. I 
cannot think of a greater disproportion than what Denise Anderson gave 
to us, her son, and what she has asked us to give in return. I am 
pleased that at least the House will be doing that today.

                              {time}  1515

  Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to my 
colleague from North Carolina, Mr. Miller.
  Mr. MILLER of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I also rise in support of 
this bill. A portion of this bill began its legislative life as 
separate legislation introduced by Walter Jones, my colleague from 
North Carolina, and by me to improve the Servicemembers Civil Relief 
Act, the SCRA. This legislation now provides real teeth and real remedy 
for the protections of the SCRA.
  Someone who is serving in our military, who is defending our country, 
who is on active service, on active duty, should not have to worry 
about what is happening in court back home. They shouldn't have to 
worry if someone is getting a judgment against them or their home is 
being foreclosed on. Anyone who has a claim against someone who is in 
our military should not lose their claim, but their claim can wait, the 
lawsuit can wait, until the servicemember can come home, come to court 
and defend themselves, assert whatever right they may have, and tell 
their side of the story.
  The law is now not entirely clear about whether a servicemember who 
has had that right violated, that right

[[Page 26407]]

to get a little break while they are on military service, whether they 
can do something about it, and the legislation now makes very clear 
that they can. They can bring their own lawsuit. The Attorney General 
can bring a lawsuit, and the servicemember can join in that, and the 
servicemember can bring a lawsuit of their own.
  A right that does not allow a remedy, a right that cannot be enforced 
is no right at all. This legislation now makes very clear that the 
rights under SCRA are real rights, and our servicemembers can devote 
their whole energy to defense of our country and not worry about what 
is going on in a courthouse back home.
  Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield the balance of our time to the 
gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. McIntyre).
  Mr. McINTYRE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Veterans' 
Small Business Assistance and Servicemembers Protection Act of 2009, 
H.R. 3949, which includes provisions of a bill that I introduced on the 
very first day that this Congress was sworn in this year, the 111th 
Congress, which was H.R. 32, the Veterans Outreach Improvement Act of 
2009. I want to thank Chairman Filner and Ranking Member Buyer for 
their support, as well as the many cosponsors from both sides of the 
aisle who have joined us in this effort to honor those who have put 
their lives on the line for our country, whom we will soon be honoring 
as a Nation on Veterans Day.
  This important legislation, which passed the U.S. House unanimously 
during the last session of Congress, the 110th Congress, by a vote of 
421-0, would improve the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs outreach 
activities by allowing the Department to partner with State and local 
governments to reach out to veterans and their families regarding 
benefits for which they are eligible and to assist them in developing a 
benefits claim package.
  About a quarter of our Nation's population of veterans are 
potentially eligible for VA benefits and services. A quarter of our 
total Nation's population are potentially eligible for veterans 
benefits and services. This legislation will help reach out to those 
who are eligible and ensure the accuracy and completeness of their 
benefit claims. And under this legislation, the Secretary of the VA 
would be authorized to provide grants and assistance to State veterans 
agencies and to our county veterans service officers, those who are on 
the front lines every day working in counties throughout this entire 
Nation, to help that veteran when he or she walks through the door.
  These activities would allow veterans and their families to be able 
to get the assistance they need in the development and the submittal of 
their benefits claims. The Secretary would direct grants to States with 
large and growing populations of veterans in order to increase the 
outreach where it is most needed. Grants could be used for education 
and training of State and county officials to gain accreditation for 
continuing education. The Secretary would also be required to ensure 
that the coordination of outreach activities occurred within the 
Department of the VA.
  This bill would authorize $25 million annually, which is an average 
of $1 per veteran, for fiscal years 2011 through 2013 to improve 
outreach to veterans. That, I believe, is not too much to ask. That is 
something we can certainly afford to do, and it is the least we can do 
to reach out to those who put their very lives on the line for our 
great Nation.
  This legislation is supported by the National Association of County 
Veterans Service Officers, which is officially recognized by the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs for ``the purpose of preparation, 
presentation, and prosecution of claims.''
  This bill has also been endorsed by the American Legion, the Veterans 
of Foreign Wars, the Military Officers Association of America, the 
Paralyzed Veterans Association of America, and the National 
Organization for Veterans Advocacy.
  As Veterans Day approaches in just a few days, it is important that 
we, as a Congress, demonstrate to our Nation's veterans our commitment 
to provide them with the benefits they deserve.
  May God bless those who have served our country.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to applaud the 
actions of the House of Representatives in addressing the unique needs 
of our veterans and armed service members. Whether returning home from 
a tour of duty, or deploying for the first time, it is our 
responsibility to ensure these men and women are cared for when they 
return home. Through extensive educational outreach, additional grants, 
scholarships, and extending protections to today's veterans, we can 
provide these men and women with the tools they need to foster economic 
growth. As a member of the House Armed Services Committee, I strongly 
support H.R. 3949, which further protects our nation's veterans. I urge 
my colleagues to support this important bill.
  Mr. Speaker, our nation's economy was once empowered by our returning 
war heroes whose successful small businesses fueled the country's 
eventual rise as an economic superpower. We are now witnessing the 
emergence of another great generation. It would be careless of us not 
to grant this generation the same opportunities to succeed. This can 
only be done through further investment in small business development.
  This bill would expand contract termination provisions for deployed 
servicemembers, prevent additional fees for early termination, expand 
assistance and outreach to states to inform veterans about benefits and 
programs for which they are eligible.
  I urge my colleagues to help veterans help themselves.
  Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3949, the Veterans' 
Small Business Assistance and Servicemembers Protection Act of 2009, a 
bill which I am pleased to cosponsor.
  Mr. Speaker, this is an omnibus bill that would make improvements in 
several areas of veterans legislation by including provisions from 
bills introduced by Economic Opportunity Subcommittee Chairwoman 
Herseth Sandlin, Ms. Kirkpatrick, Mr. Miller of North Carolina, Mr. 
Connolly, Mr. McIntyre, Ms. Jackson-Lee, and Mr. Frank.
  However, I am very disappointed that due to jurisdictional issues 
raised by the majority side of the Committee on Small Business, a 
provision from my bill, H.R. 3223 was withdrawn from the bill. My 
provision would merely change the word ``may'' to ``shall'' to 
authorize VA contracting officers to award non-competitive contracts 
worth less than $5,000,000 to qualified service disabled veteran-owned 
businesses. Such contracts would also be required to provide the best 
value to the government in the judgment of the contracting officer. 
Changing ``may'' to ``shall'' would merely put service-disabled 
veterans on an equal footing with businesses qualifying as an 8(a) firm 
under the Small Business Act. The word ``shall'' is used when awarding 
noncompetitive contracts to 8(a) firms. The disparity created by using 
``may'' versus ``shall'' has a negative effect on the ability of 
service disabled veteran-owned businesses to obtain contracts with VA. 
It is important that service-disabled veterans are able to compete on a 
level field and I will continue to advocate for changing ``may'' to 
``shall''.
  Mr. Speaker, I am especially proud of the provisions in Public Law 
109-461 passed during the 109th Congress, that improve the competitive 
status of veteran-owned businesses, VOB, and service-disabled veteran-
owned small businesses, SDVOB. We did that by giving Department of 
Veterans Affairs, VA, contracting officers additional tools to award 
contracts to those businesses and by making it plain that Congress 
believed that VOB and SDVOB have priority in VA small business 
contracting. One of those provisions required VA to maintain a database 
of veteran and service-disabled veteran-owned businesses and to verify 
the ownership and control of the businesses listed in the database.
  Unfortunately, VA has been slow to implement the verification process 
and has currently verified only about 2,000 of the 15,000 businesses 
listed in the database. Therefore, I am delighted that Subcommittee 
Chairwoman Herseth Sandlin has clarified Congress' intent on having a 
business included only after verification of ownership and control as a 
means to prevent awarding contracts to businesses which are not 
veteran-owned.
  With the implementation of the new Post 
9/11 GI Bill, it is more important than ever to ensure VA receives up-
to-date advice from schools and State Approving Agencies on issues 
related to veterans education. I congratulate Ms. Kirkpatrick for 
extending the life of the Advisory Committee on Veterans Education 
through 2015.
  I am also especially pleased with H.R. 3949's provisions that would 
strengthen protections for servicemembers under the

[[Page 26408]]

Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, SCRA, by clarifying the rights and 
obligations of servicemembers and providers regarding service contracts 
for cell phone service, residential and automobile leases.
  The bill also makes important changes to SCRA by codifying a 
servicemember's private right of action and authorizing the U.S. 
Attorney General to bring appropriate action in U.S. District Courts. 
The bill also authorizes the Courts to award fines up to $110,000, and 
take other appropriate actions in violations of SCRA.
  Mr. Speaker, in addition to direct injuries to a servicemember's 
eyes, one of the hidden injuries of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is 
the damage to vision done by explosions. Unfortunately, visual injuries 
as a result of one or more concussive injuries may not manifest for an 
extended time beyond the event. When combined with direct eye injuries, 
the number of veterans who will be seeking VA assistance with visual 
impairment will increase and I share Ms. Jackson-Lee's and her 
cosponsor, Mr. Boozman's concern that VA lacks sufficient staff who are 
experts in treating veterans with visual and mobility impairment. I 
congratulate them for the provisions that would create a scholarship 
program for those seeking a degree or certificate in that field.
  Mr. Speaker, I have long been an advocate on behalf of VA's National 
Cemetery System and compassionate treatment of the heroes that are 
buried there and their families. I appreciate Mr. Frank's initiative 
that would allow burial of a parent with a servicemember killed in 
combat or training for combat, as long as the burial would not displace 
another veteran or servicemember and it is limited to servicemembers 
who have no dependents.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Walz) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 3949, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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