Text of US HB 8580 (2024)

Union Calendar No. 439 118TH CONGRESS 2ND SESSION H. R. 8580 [Report No. 118–528] Making appropriations for military construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2025, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MAY 28, 2024 Mr. CARTER of Texas, from the Committee on Appropriations reported the following bill; which was committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed A BILL Making appropriations for military construction, the Depart- ment of Veterans Affairs, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2025, and for other purposes. VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 8580 RH Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 That the following sums are appropriated, out of any 3 money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for 4 military construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, 5 and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 6 30, 2025, and for other purposes, namely: 7 TITLE I 8 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 9 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, ARMY 10 For acquisition, construction, installation, and equip- 11 ment of temporary or permanent public works, military 12 installations, facilities, and real property for the Army as 13 currently authorized by law, including personnel in the 14 Army Corps of Engineers and other personal services nec- 15 essary for the purposes of this appropriation, and for con- 16 struction and operation of facilities in support of the func- 17 tions of the Commander in Chief, $2,217,757,000, to re- 18 main available until September 30, 2029: Provided, That, 19 of this amount, not to exceed $334,738,000 shall be avail- 20 able for study, planning, design, architect and engineer 21 services, and host nation support, as authorized by law, 22 unless the Secretary of the Army determines that addi- 23 tional obligations are necessary for such purposes and no- 24 tifies the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 8580 RH of Congress of the determination and the reasons therefor: 1 Provided further, That of the amount made available 2 under this heading, $87,100,000 shall be for the projects 3 and activities, and in the amounts, specified in the table 4 under the heading ‘‘Military Construction, Army’’ in the 5 report accompanying this Act, in addition to amounts oth- 6 erwise available for such purposes. 7 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, NAVY AND MARINE CORPS 8 For acquisition, construction, installation, and equip- 9 ment of temporary or permanent public works, naval in- 10 stallations, facilities, and real property for the Navy and 11 Marine Corps as currently authorized by law, including 12 personnel in the Naval Facilities Engineering Command 13 and other personal services necessary for the purposes of 14 this appropriation, $4,332,414,000, to remain available 15 until September 30, 2029: Provided, That, of this amount, 16 not to exceed $877,946,000 shall be available for study, 17 planning, design, and architect and engineer services, as 18 authorized by law, unless the Secretary of the Navy deter- 19 mines that additional obligations are necessary for such 20 purposes and notifies the Committees on Appropriations 21 of both Houses of Congress of the determination and the 22 reasons therefor: Provided further, That of the amount 23 made available under this heading, $70,480,000 shall be 24 for the projects and activities, and in the amounts, speci- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 8580 RH fied in the table under the heading ‘‘Military Construction, 1 Navy and Marine Corps’’ in the report accompanying this 2 Act, in addition to amounts otherwise available for such 3 purposes. 4 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, AIR FORCE 5 For acquisition, construction, installation, and equip- 6 ment of temporary or permanent public works, military 7 installations, facilities, and real property for the Air Force 8 as currently authorized by law, $3,268,276,000, to remain 9 available until September 30, 2029: Provided, That, of this 10 amount, not to exceed $459,926,000 shall be available for 11 study, planning, design, and architect and engineer serv- 12 ices, as authorized by law, unless the Secretary of the Air 13 Force determines that additional obligations are necessary 14 for such purposes and notifies the Committees on Appro- 15 priations of both Houses of Congress of the determination 16 and the reasons therefor: Provided further, That of the 17 amount made available under this heading, $299,000,000 18 shall be for the projects and activities, and in the amounts, 19 specified in the table under the heading ‘‘Military Con- 20 struction, Air Force’’ in the report accompanying this Act, 21 in addition to amounts otherwise available for such pur- 22 poses. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 8580 RH MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, DEFENSE-WIDE 1 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 2 For acquisition, construction, installation, and equip- 3 ment of temporary or permanent public works, installa- 4 tions, facilities, and real property for activities and agen- 5 cies of the Department of Defense (other than the military 6 departments), as currently authorized by law, 7 $3,500,083,000, to remain available until September 30, 8 2029: Provided, That such amounts of this appropriation 9 as may be determined by the Secretary of Defense may 10 be transferred to such appropriations of the Department 11 of Defense available for military construction or family 12 housing as the Secretary may designate, to be merged with 13 and to be available for the same purposes, and for the 14 same time period, as the appropriation or fund to which 15 transferred: Provided further, That, of the amount, not to 16 exceed $395,131,000 shall be available for study, plan- 17 ning, design, and architect and engineer services, as au- 18 thorized by law, unless the Secretary of Defense deter- 19 mines that additional obligations are necessary for such 20 purposes and notifies the Committees on Appropriations 21 of both Houses of Congress of the determination and the 22 reasons therefor: Provided further, That of the amount 23 made available under this heading, $47,920,000 shall be 24 for the projects and activities, and in the amounts, speci- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 8580 RH fied in the table under the heading ‘‘Military Construction, 1 Defense-Wide’’ in the report accompanying this Act, in ad- 2 dition to amounts otherwise available for such purposes. 3 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, ARMY NATIONAL GUARD 4 For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilita- 5 tion, and conversion of facilities for the training and ad- 6 ministration of the Army National Guard, and contribu- 7 tions therefor, as authorized by chapter 1803 of title 10, 8 United States Code, and Military Construction Authoriza- 9 tion Acts, $367,129,000, to remain available until Sep- 10 tember 30, 2029: Provided, That, of the amount, not to 11 exceed $30,529,000 shall be available for study, planning, 12 design, and architect and engineer services, as authorized 13 by law, unless the Director of the Army National Guard 14 determines that additional obligations are necessary for 15 such purposes and notifies the Committees on Appropria- 16 tions of both Houses of Congress of the determination and 17 the reasons therefor. 18 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, AIR NATIONAL GUARD 19 For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilita- 20 tion, and conversion of facilities for the training and ad- 21 ministration of the Air National Guard, and contributions 22 therefor, as authorized by chapter 1803 of title 10, United 23 States Code, and Military Construction Authorization 24 Acts, $195,792,000, to remain available until September 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 8580 RH 30, 2029: Provided, That, of the amount, not to exceed 1 $15,792,000 shall be available for study, planning, design, 2 and architect and engineer services, as authorized by law, 3 unless the Director of the Air National Guard determines 4 that additional obligations are necessary for such purposes 5 and notifies the Committees on Appropriations of both 6 Houses of Congress of the determination and the reasons 7 therefor. 8 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, ARMY RESERVE 9 For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilita- 10 tion, and conversion of facilities for the training and ad- 11 ministration of the Army Reserve as authorized by chapter 12 1803 of title 10, United States Code, and Military Con- 13 struction Authorization Acts, $265,032,000, to remain 14 available until September 30, 2029: Provided, That, of the 15 amount, not to exceed $41,508,000 shall be available for 16 study, planning, design, and architect and engineer serv- 17 ices, as authorized by law, unless the Chief of the Army 18 Reserve determines that additional obligations are nec- 19 essary for such purposes and notifies the Committees on 20 Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of the deter- 21 mination and the reasons therefor: Provided further, That 22 of the amount made available under this heading, 23 $5,000,000 shall be for the projects and activities, and in 24 the amounts, specified in the table under the heading 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 8580 RH ‘‘Military Construction, Army Reserve’’ in the report ac- 1 companying this Act, in addition to amounts otherwise 2 available for such purposes. 3 MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, NAVY RESERVE 4 For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilita- 5 tion, and conversion of facilities for the training and ad- 6 ministration of the reserve components of the Navy and 7 Marine Corps as authorized by chapter 1803 of title 10, 8 United States Code, and Military Construction Authoriza- 9 tion Acts, $67,329,000, to remain available until Sep- 10 tember 30, 2029: Provided, That, of the amount, not to 11 exceed $3,219,000 shall be available for study, planning, 12 design, and architect and engineer services, as authorized 13 by law, unless the Secretary of the Navy determines that 14 additional obligations are necessary for such purposes and 15 notifies the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses 16 of Congress of the determination and the reasons therefor: 17 Provided further, That, of the amount made available 18 under this heading, $37,500,000 shall be for the projects 19 and activities, and in the amounts, specified in the table 20 under the heading ‘‘Military Construction, Navy Reserve’’ 21 in the report accompanying this Act, in addition to 22 amounts otherwise available for such purposes. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 8580 RH MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, AIR FORCE RESERVE 1 For construction, acquisition, expansion, rehabilita- 2 tion, and conversion of facilities for the training and ad- 3 ministration of the Air Force Reserve as authorized by 4 chapter 1803 of title 10, United States Code, and Military 5 Construction Authorization Acts, $50,499,000, to remain 6 available until September 30, 2029: Provided, That, of the 7 amount, not to exceed $3,798,000 shall be available for 8 study, planning, design, and architect and engineer serv- 9 ices, as authorized by law, unless the Chief of the Air 10 Force Reserve determines that additional obligations are 11 necessary for such purposes and notifies the Committees 12 on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of the de- 13 termination and the reasons therefor. 14 NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION 15 SECURITY INVESTMENT PROGRAM 16 For the United States share of the cost of the North 17 Atlantic Treaty Organization Security Investment Pro- 18 gram for the acquisition and construction of military fa- 19 cilities and installations (including international military 20 headquarters) and for related expenses for the collective 21 defense of the North Atlantic Treaty Area as authorized 22 by section 2806 of title 10, United States Code, and Mili- 23 tary Construction Authorization Acts, $433,864,000, to 24 remain available until expended. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 8580 RH DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE BASE CLOSURE ACCOUNT 1 For deposit into the Department of Defense Base 2 Closure Account, established by section 2906(a) of the De- 3 fense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 (10 4 U.S.C. 2687 note), $547,961,000, to remain available 5 until expended. 6 FAMILY HOUSING CONSTRUCTION, ARMY 7 For expenses of family housing for the Army for con- 8 struction, including acquisition, replacement, addition, ex- 9 pansion, extension, and alteration, as authorized by law, 10 $276,647,000, to remain available until September 30, 11 2029. 12 FAMILY HOUSING OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE, 13 ARMY 14 For expenses of family housing for the Army for op- 15 eration and maintenance, including debt payment, leasing, 16 minor construction, principal and interest charges, and in- 17 surance premiums, as authorized by law, $485,611,000. 18 FAMILY HOUSING CONSTRUCTION, NAVY AND MARINE 19 CORPS 20 For expenses of family housing for the Navy and Ma- 21 rine Corps for construction, including acquisition, replace- 22 ment, addition, expansion, extension, and alteration, as 23 authorized by law, $245,742,000, to remain available until 24 September 30, 2029. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 8580 RH FAMILY HOUSING OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE, 1 NAVY AND MARINE CORPS 2 For expenses of family housing for the Navy and Ma- 3 rine Corps for operation and maintenance, including debt 4 payment, leasing, minor construction, principal and inter- 5 est charges, and insurance premiums, as authorized by 6 law, $387,217,000. 7 FAMILY HOUSING CONSTRUCTION, AIR FORCE 8 For expenses of family housing for the Air Force for 9 construction, including acquisition, replacement, addition, 10 expansion, extension, and alteration, as authorized by law, 11 $221,549,000, to remain available until September 30, 12 2029. 13 FAMILY HOUSING OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE, AIR 14 FORCE 15 For expenses of family housing for the Air Force for 16 operation and maintenance, including debt payment, leas- 17 ing, minor construction, principal and interest charges, 18 and insurance premiums, as authorized by law, 19 $336,250,000. 20 FAMILY HOUSING OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE, 21 DEFENSE-WIDE 22 For expenses of family housing for the activities and 23 agencies of the Department of Defense (other than the 24 military departments) for operation and maintenance, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 8580 RH leasing, and minor construction, as authorized by law, 1 $52,156,000. 2 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 3 FAMILY HOUSING IMPROVEMENT FUND 4 For the Department of Defense Family Housing Im- 5 provement Fund, $8,195,000, to remain available until ex- 6 pended, for family housing initiatives undertaken pursu- 7 ant to section 2883 of title 10, United States Code, pro- 8 viding alternative means of acquiring and improving mili- 9 tary family housing and supporting facilities. 10 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 11 MILITARY UNACCOMPANIED HOUSING IMPROVEMENT 12 FUND 13 For the Department of Defense Military Unaccom- 14 panied Housing Improvement Fund, $497,000, to remain 15 available until expended, for unaccompanied housing ini- 16 tiatives undertaken pursuant to section 2883 of title 10, 17 United States Code, providing alternative means of acquir- 18 ing and improving military unaccompanied housing and 19 supporting facilities. 20 ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS 21 SEC. 101. None of the funds made available in this 22 title shall be expended for payments under a cost-plus-a- 23 fixed-fee contract for construction, where cost estimates 24 exceed $25,000, to be performed within the United States, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 13 •HR 8580 RH except Alaska, without the specific approval in writing of 1 the Secretary of Defense setting forth the reasons there- 2 for. 3 SEC. 102. Funds made available in this title for con- 4 struction shall be available for hire of passenger motor ve- 5 hicles. 6 SEC. 103. Funds made available in this title for con- 7 struction may be used for advances to the Federal High- 8 way Administration, Department of Transportation, for 9 the construction of access roads as authorized by section 10 210 of title 23, United States Code, when projects author- 11 ized therein are certified as important to the national de- 12 fense by the Secretary of Defense. 13 SEC. 104. None of the funds made available in this 14 title may be used to begin construction of new bases in 15 the United States for which specific appropriations have 16 not been made. 17 SEC. 105. None of the funds made available in this 18 title shall be used for purchase of land or land easements 19 in excess of 100 percent of the value as determined by 20 the Army Corps of Engineers or the Naval Facilities Engi- 21 neering Command, except: (1) where there is a determina- 22 tion of value by a Federal court; (2) purchases negotiated 23 by the Attorney General or the designee of the Attorney 24 General; (3) where the estimated value is less than 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 14 •HR 8580 RH $25,000; or (4) as otherwise determined by the Secretary 1 of Defense to be in the public interest. 2 SEC. 106. None of the funds made available in this 3 title shall be used to: (1) acquire land; (2) provide for site 4 preparation; or (3) install utilities for any family housing, 5 except housing for which funds have been made available 6 in annual Acts making appropriations for military con- 7 struction. 8 SEC. 107. None of the funds made available in this 9 title for minor construction may be used to transfer or 10 relocate any activity from one base or installation to an- 11 other, without prior notification to the Committees on Ap- 12 propriations of both Houses of Congress. 13 SEC. 108. None of the funds made available in this 14 title may be used for the procurement of steel for any con- 15 struction project or activity for which American steel pro- 16 ducers, fabricators, and manufacturers have been denied 17 the opportunity to compete for such steel procurement. 18 SEC. 109. None of the funds available to the Depart- 19 ment of Defense for military construction or family hous- 20 ing during the current fiscal year may be used to pay real 21 property taxes in any foreign nation. 22 SEC. 110. None of the funds made available in this 23 title may be used to initiate a new installation overseas 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 15 •HR 8580 RH without prior notification to the Committees on Appro- 1 priations of both Houses of Congress. 2 SEC. 111. None of the funds made available in this 3 title may be obligated for architect and engineer contracts 4 estimated by the Government to exceed $500,000 for 5 projects to be accomplished in Japan, in any North Atlan- 6 tic Treaty Organization member country, or in countries 7 bordering the Arabian Gulf, unless such contracts are 8 awarded to United States firms or United States firms 9 in joint venture with host nation firms. 10 SEC. 112. None of the funds made available in this 11 title for military construction in the United States terri- 12 tories and possessions in the Pacific and on Kwajalein 13 Atoll, or in countries bordering the Arabian Gulf, may be 14 used to award any contract estimated by the Government 15 to exceed $1,000,000 to a foreign contractor: Provided, 16 That this section shall not be applicable to contract 17 awards for which the lowest responsive and responsible bid 18 of a United States contractor exceeds the lowest respon- 19 sive and responsible bid of a foreign contractor by greater 20 than 20 percent: Provided further, That this section shall 21 not apply to contract awards for military construction on 22 Kwajalein Atoll for which the lowest responsive and re- 23 sponsible bid is submitted by a Marshallese contractor. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 16 •HR 8580 RH SEC. 113. The Secretary of Defense shall inform the 1 appropriate committees of both Houses of Congress, in- 2 cluding the Committees on Appropriations, of plans and 3 scope of any proposed military exercise involving United 4 States personnel 30 days prior to its occurring, if amounts 5 expended for construction, either temporary or permanent, 6 are anticipated to exceed $100,000. 7 SEC. 114. Funds appropriated to the Department of 8 Defense for construction in prior years shall be available 9 for construction authorized for each such military depart- 10 ment by the authorizations enacted into law during the 11 current session of Congress. 12 SEC. 115. For military construction or family housing 13 projects that are being completed with funds otherwise ex- 14 pired or lapsed for obligation, expired or lapsed funds may 15 be used to pay the cost of associated supervision, inspec- 16 tion, overhead, engineering and design on those projects 17 and on subsequent claims, if any. 18 SEC. 116. Notwithstanding any other provision of 19 law, any funds made available to a military department 20 or defense agency for the construction of military projects 21 may be obligated for a military construction project or 22 contract, or for any portion of such a project or contract, 23 at any time before the end of the fourth fiscal year after 24 the fiscal year for which funds for such project were made 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 17 •HR 8580 RH available, if the funds obligated for such project: (1) are 1 obligated from funds available for military construction 2 projects; and (2) do not exceed the amount appropriated 3 for such project, plus any amount by which the cost of 4 such project is increased pursuant to law. 5 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 6 SEC. 117. Subject to 30 days prior notification, or 7 14 days for a notification provided in an electronic me- 8 dium pursuant to sections 480 and 2883 of title 10, 9 United States Code, to the Committees on Appropriations 10 of both Houses of Congress, such additional amounts as 11 may be determined by the Secretary of Defense may be 12 transferred to: (1) the Department of Defense Family 13 Housing Improvement Fund from amounts appropriated 14 for construction in ‘‘Family Housing’’ accounts, to be 15 merged with and to be available for the same purposes 16 and for the same period of time as amounts appropriated 17 directly to the Fund; or (2) the Department of Defense 18 Military Unaccompanied Housing Improvement Fund 19 from amounts appropriated for construction of military 20 unaccompanied housing in ‘‘Military Construction’’ ac- 21 counts, to be merged with and to be available for the same 22 purposes and for the same period of time as amounts ap- 23 propriated directly to the Fund: Provided, That appropria- 24 tions made available to the Funds shall be available to 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 18 •HR 8580 RH cover the costs, as defined in section 502(5) of the Con- 1 gressional Budget Act of 1974, of direct loans or loan 2 guarantees issued by the Department of Defense pursuant 3 to the provisions of subchapter IV of chapter 169 of title 4 10, United States Code, pertaining to alternative means 5 of acquiring and improving military family housing, mili- 6 tary unaccompanied housing, and supporting facilities. 7 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 8 SEC. 118. In addition to any other transfer authority 9 available to the Department of Defense, amounts may be 10 transferred from the Department of Defense Base Closure 11 Account to the fund established by section 1013(d) of the 12 Demonstration Cities and Metropolitan Development Act 13 of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 3374) to pay for expenses associated 14 with the Homeowners Assistance Program incurred under 15 42 U.S.C. 3374(a)(1)(A). Any amounts transferred shall 16 be merged with and be available for the same purposes 17 and for the same time period as the fund to which trans- 18 ferred. 19 SEC. 119. Notwithstanding any other provision of 20 law, funds made available in this title for operation and 21 maintenance of family housing shall be the exclusive 22 source of funds for repair and maintenance of all family 23 housing units, including general or flag officer quarters: 24 Provided, That not more than $20,000 per unit may be 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 19 •HR 8580 RH spent annually for the maintenance and repair of any gen- 1 eral or flag officer quarters without 30 days prior notifica- 2 tion, or 14 days for a notification provided in an electronic 3 medium pursuant to sections 480 and 2883 of title 10, 4 United States Code, to the Committees on Appropriations 5 of both Houses of Congress, except that an after-the-fact 6 notification shall be submitted if the limitation is exceeded 7 solely due to costs associated with environmental remedi- 8 ation that could not be reasonably anticipated at the time 9 of the budget submission: Provided further, That the 10 Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller) is to report an- 11 nually to the Committees on Appropriations of both 12 Houses of Congress all operation and maintenance ex- 13 penditures for each individual general or flag officer quar- 14 ters for the prior fiscal year. 15 SEC. 120. Amounts contained in the Ford Island Im- 16 provement Account established by subsection (h) of sec- 17 tion 2814 of title 10, United States Code, are appro- 18 priated and shall be available until expended for the pur- 19 poses specified in subsection (i)(1) of such section or until 20 transferred pursuant to subsection (i)(3) of such section. 21 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 22 SEC. 121. During the 5-year period after appropria- 23 tions available in this Act to the Department of Defense 24 for military construction and family housing operation and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 20 •HR 8580 RH maintenance and construction have expired for obligation, 1 upon a determination that such appropriations will not be 2 necessary for the liquidation of obligations or for making 3 authorized adjustments to such appropriations for obliga- 4 tions incurred during the period of availability of such ap- 5 propriations, unobligated balances of such appropriations 6 may be transferred into the appropriation ‘‘Foreign Cur- 7 rency Fluctuations, Construction, Defense’’, to be merged 8 with and to be available for the same time period and for 9 the same purposes as the appropriation to which trans- 10 ferred. 11 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 12 SEC. 122. Amounts appropriated or otherwise made 13 available in an account funded under the headings in this 14 title may be transferred among projects and activities 15 within the account in accordance with the reprogramming 16 guidelines for military construction and family housing 17 construction contained in Department of Defense Finan- 18 cial Management Regulation 7000.14–R, Volume 3, Chap- 19 ter 7, of March 2021, as in effect on the date of enactment 20 of this Act. 21 SEC. 123. None of the funds made available in this 22 title may be obligated or expended for planning and design 23 and construction of projects at Arlington National Ceme- 24 tery. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 21 •HR 8580 RH SEC. 124. For an additional amount for the accounts 1 and in the amounts specified, to remain available until 2 September 30, 2029: 3 ‘‘Military Construction, Army’’, $167,000,000; 4 ‘‘Military Construction, Navy and Marine 5 Corps’’, $45,000,000; 6 ‘‘Military Construction, Air Force’’, 7 $68,000,000; 8 ‘‘Military Construction, Army National Guard’’, 9 $44,000,000; and 10 ‘‘Military Construction, Air National Guard’’, 11 $33,000,000. 12 Provided, That such funds may only be obligated to carry 13 out construction and cost to complete projects identified 14 in the respective military department’s unfunded priority 15 list for fiscal year 2025 submitted to Congress: Provided 16 further, That such projects are subject to authorization 17 prior to obligation and expenditure of funds to carry out 18 construction: Provided further, That not later than 60 19 days after enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the mili- 20 tary department concerned, or their designee, shall submit 21 to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of 22 Congress an expenditure plan for funds provided under 23 this section. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 22 •HR 8580 RH SEC. 125. All amounts appropriated to the ‘‘Depart- 1 ment of Defense—Military Construction, Army’’, ‘‘De- 2 partment of Defense—Military Construction, Navy and 3 Marine Corps’’, ‘‘Department of Defense—Military Con- 4 struction, Air Force’’, and ‘‘Department of Defense—Mili- 5 tary Construction, Defense-Wide’’ accounts pursuant to 6 the authorization of appropriations in a National Defense 7 Authorization Act specified for fiscal year 2025 in the 8 funding table in section 4601 of that Act shall be imme- 9 diately available and allotted to contract for the full scope 10 of authorized projects. 11 SEC. 126. Notwithstanding section 116 of this Act, 12 funds made available in this Act or any available unobli- 13 gated balances from prior appropriations Acts may be obli- 14 gated before October 1, 2026, for fiscal year 2018, 2019, 15 and 2020 military construction projects for which project 16 authorization has not lapsed or for which authorization 17 is extended for fiscal year 2025 by a National Defense 18 Authorization Act: Provided, That no amounts may be ob- 19 ligated pursuant to this section from amounts that were 20 designated by the Congress as an emergency requirement 21 pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the 22 Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 23 1985. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 23 •HR 8580 RH SEC. 127. For the purposes of this Act, the term 1 ‘‘congressional defense committees’’ means the Commit- 2 tees on Armed Services of the House of Representatives 3 and the Senate, the Subcommittee on Military Construc- 4 tion and Veterans Affairs of the Committee on Appropria- 5 tions of the Senate, and the Subcommittee on Military 6 Construction and Veterans Affairs of the Committee on 7 Appropriations of the House of Representatives. 8 SEC. 128. For an additional amount for the accounts 9 and in the amounts specified for planning and design and 10 for construction improvements to Department of Defense 11 laboratory facilities, to remain available until September 12 30, 2029: 13 Military Construction, Army, $15,000,000; 14 ‘‘Military Construction, Navy and Marine 15 Corps’’, $15,000,000; and 16 ‘‘Military Construction, Air Force’’, 17 $15,000,000: 18 Provided, That not later than 60 days after enactment of 19 this Act, the Secretary of the military department con- 20 cerned, or their designee, shall submit to the Committees 21 on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress an expendi- 22 ture plan for funds provided under this section: Provided 23 further, That the Secretary of the military department 24 concerned may not obligate or expend any funds prior to 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 24 •HR 8580 RH approval by the Committees on Appropriations of both 1 Houses of Congress of the expenditure plan required by 2 this section. 3 SEC. 129. For an additional amount for ‘‘Military 4 Construction, Air Force’’, $100,000,000, to remain avail- 5 able until September 30, 2029, for expenses incurred as 6 a result of natural disasters: Provided, That not later than 7 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 8 Secretary of the Air Force, or their designee, shall submit 9 to the Committees on Appropriations of both House of 10 Congress an expenditure plan for funds provided under 11 this section. 12 SEC. 130. For an additional amount for the accounts 13 and in the amounts specified for planning and design, for 14 child development centers, to remain available until Sep- 15 tember 30, 2029: 16 ‘‘Military Construction, Army’’, $25,000,000; 17 ‘‘Military Construction, Navy and Marine 18 Corps’’, $25,000,000; and 19 ‘‘Military Construction, Air Force’’, 20 $25,000,000: 21 Provided, That not later than 60 days after the date of 22 enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the military de- 23 partment concerned, or their designee, shall submit to the 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 25 •HR 8580 RH Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress 1 an expenditure plan for funds provided under this section. 2 SEC. 131. For an additional amount for the accounts 3 and amounts specified for planning and design, for bar- 4 racks, to remain available until September 30, 2029: 5 ‘‘Military Construction Army’’, $25,000,000; 6 ‘‘Military Construction, Navy and Marine 7 Corps’’, $25,000,000; and 8 ‘‘Military Construction, Air Force’’, 9 $25,000,000: 10 Provided, That not later than 60 days after the date of 11 enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the military de- 12 partment concerned, or their designee, shall submit to the 13 Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress 14 an expenditure plan for funds provided under this section. 15 SEC. 132. For an additional amount for the accounts 16 and in the amounts specified for unspecified minor con- 17 struction for demolition, to remain available until Sep- 18 tember 30, 2029: 19 ‘‘Military Construction, Army’’, $15,000,000; 20 ‘‘Military Construction, Navy and Marine 21 Corps’’, $15,000,000; 22 ‘‘Military Construction, Air Force’’, 23 $15,000,000; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 26 •HR 8580 RH Provided, That not later than 60 days after the date of 1 enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the military de- 2 partment concerned, or their designee, shall submit to the 3 Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress 4 an expenditure plan for funds provided under this section: 5 Provided further, That the Secretary of the military de- 6 partment concerned may not obligate or expend any funds 7 prior to approval by the Committees on Appropriations of 8 both Houses of Congress of the expenditure plan required 9 by this section. 10 SEC. 133. None of the funds made available by this 11 Act may be used to carry out the closure or realignment 12 of the United States Naval Station, Guanta´namo Bay, 13 Cuba. 14 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 27 •HR 8580 RH TITLE II 1 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS 2 VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION 3 COMPENSATION AND PENSIONS 4 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 5 For the payment of compensation benefits to or on 6 behalf of veterans and a pilot program for disability ex- 7 aminations as authorized by section 107 and chapters 11, 8 13, 18, 51, 53, 55, and 61 of title 38, United States Code; 9 pension benefits to or on behalf of veterans as authorized 10 by chapters 15, 51, 53, 55, and 61 of title 38, United 11 States Code; and burial benefits, the Reinstated Entitle- 12 ment Program for Survivors, emergency and other offi- 13 cers’ retirement pay, adjusted-service credits and certifi- 14 cates, payment of premiums due on commercial life insur- 15 ance policies guaranteed under the provisions of title IV 16 of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. App. 17 541 et seq.) and for other benefits as authorized by sec- 18 tions 107, 1312, 1977, and 2106, and chapters 23, 51, 19 53, 55, and 61 of title 38, United States Code, 20 $9,820,699,000, which shall be in addition to funds pre- 21 viously appropriated under this heading that become avail- 22 able on October 1, 2024, to remain available until ex- 23 pended; and, in addition, $204,481,753,000, which shall 24 become available on October 1, 2025, to remain available 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 28 •HR 8580 RH until expended: Provided, That not to exceed $22,816,224 1 of the amount made available for fiscal year 2026 under 2 this heading shall be reimbursed to ‘‘General Operating 3 Expenses, Veterans Benefits Administration’’, and ‘‘Infor- 4 mation Technology Systems’’ for necessary expenses in 5 implementing the provisions of chapters 51, 53, and 55 6 of title 38, United States Code, the funding source for 7 which is specifically provided as the ‘‘Compensation and 8 Pensions’’ appropriation: Provided further, That such 9 sums as may be earned on an actual qualifying patient 10 basis, shall be reimbursed to ‘‘Medical Care Collections 11 Fund’’ to augment the funding of individual medical facili- 12 ties for nursing home care provided to pensioners as au- 13 thorized. 14 READJUSTMENT BENEFITS 15 For the payment of readjustment and rehabilitation 16 benefits to or on behalf of veterans as authorized by chap- 17 ters 21, 30, 31, 33, 34, 35, 36, 39, 41, 51, 53, 55, and 18 61 of title 38, United States Code, $2,657,656,000, which 19 shall be in addition to funds previously appropriated under 20 this heading that became available on October 1, 2024, 21 to remain available until expended; and in addition, 22 $17,614,235,000, which shall become available on October 23 1, 2025, to remain available until expended: Provided, 24 That expenses for rehabilitation program services and as- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 29 •HR 8580 RH sistance which the Secretary is authorized to provide 1 under subsection (a) of section 3104 of title 38, United 2 States Code, other than under paragraphs (1), (2), (5), 3 and (11) of that subsection, shall be charged to this ac- 4 count. 5 VETERANS INSURANCE AND INDEMNITIES 6 For military and naval insurance, national service life 7 insurance, servicemen’s indemnities, service-disabled vet- 8 erans insurance, and veterans mortgage life insurance as 9 authorized by chapters 19 and 21 of title 38, United 10 States Code, $131,518,000, which shall become available 11 on October 1, 2025, to remain available until expended. 12 VETERANS HOUSING BENEFIT PROGRAM FUND 13 For the cost of direct and guaranteed loans, such 14 sums as may be necessary to carry out the program, as 15 authorized by subchapters I through III of chapter 37 of 16 title 38, United States Code: Provided, That such costs, 17 including the cost of modifying such loans, shall be as de- 18 fined in section 502 of the Congressional Budget Act of 19 1974: Provided further, That, during fiscal year 2025, 20 within the resources available, not to exceed $500,000 in 21 gross obligations for direct loans are authorized for spe- 22 cially adapted housing loans. 23 In addition, for administrative expenses to carry out 24 the direct and guaranteed loan programs, $319,596,460. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00029 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 30 •HR 8580 RH VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION LOANS PROGRAM ACCOUNT 1 For the cost of direct loans, $64,431, as authorized 2 by chapter 31 of title 38, United States Code: Provided, 3 That such costs, including the cost of modifying such 4 loans, shall be as defined in section 502 of the Congres- 5 sional Budget Act of 1974: Provided further, That funds 6 made available under this heading are available to sub- 7 sidize gross obligations for the principal amount of direct 8 loans not to exceed $1,563,660. 9 In addition, for administrative expenses necessary to 10 carry out the direct loan program, $493,868, which may 11 be paid to the appropriation for ‘‘General Operating Ex- 12 penses, Veterans Benefits Administration’’. 13 NATIVE AMERICAN VETERAN HOUSING LOAN PROGRAM 14 ACCOUNT 15 For the principal amount of direct loans as author- 16 ized by subchapter V of chapter 37 of title 38, United 17 States Code, $75,000,000, to remain available until ex- 18 pended. 19 In addition for administrative expenses necessary to 20 carry out the direct loan program, $5,845,241. 21 GENERAL OPERATING EXPENSES, VETERANS BENEFITS 22 ADMINISTRATION 23 For necessary operating expenses of the Veterans 24 Benefits Administration, not otherwise provided for, in- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 31 •HR 8580 RH cluding hire of passenger motor vehicles, reimbursement 1 of the General Services Administration for security guard 2 services, and reimbursement of the Department of De- 3 fense for the cost of overseas employee mail, 4 4,035,000,000: Provided, That expenses for services and 5 assistance authorized under paragraphs (1), (2), (5), and 6 (11) of section 3104(a) of title 38, United States Code, 7 that the Secretary of Veterans Affairs determines are nec- 8 essary to enable entitled veterans: (1) to the maximum ex- 9 tent feasible, to become employable and to obtain and 10 maintain suitable employment; or (2) to achieve maximum 11 independence in daily living, shall be charged to this ac- 12 count: Provided further, That, of the funds made available 13 under this heading, not to exceed 10 percent shall remain 14 available until September 30, 2026. 15 VETERANS HEALTH ADMINISTRATION 16 MEDICAL SERVICES 17 For necessary expenses for furnishing, as authorized 18 by law, inpatient and outpatient care and treatment to 19 beneficiaries of the Department of Veterans Affairs and 20 veterans described in section 1705(a) of title 38, United 21 States Code, including care and treatment in facilities not 22 under the jurisdiction of the Department, and including 23 medical supplies and equipment, bioengineering services, 24 food services, and salaries and expenses of healthcare em- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 32 •HR 8580 RH ployees hired under title 38, United States Code, assist- 1 ance and support services for caregivers as authorized by 2 section 1720G of title 38, United States Code, loan repay- 3 ments authorized by section 604 of the Caregivers and 4 Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010 (Public 5 Law 111–163; 124 Stat. 1174; 38 U.S.C. 7681 note), 6 monthly assistance allowances authorized by section 7 322(d) of title 38, United States Code, grants authorized 8 by section 521A of title 38, United States Code, and ad- 9 ministrative expenses necessary to carry out sections 10 322(d) and 521A of title 38, United States Code, and hos- 11 pital care and medical services authorized by section 1787 12 of title 38, United States Code; $75,039,000,000, plus re- 13 imbursements, shall become available on October 1, 2025, 14 and shall remain available until September 30, 2026: Pro- 15 vided, That, of the amount made available on October 1, 16 2025, under this heading, $2,000,000,000 shall remain 17 available until September 30, 2027: Provided further, 18 That, notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Sec- 19 retary of Veterans Affairs shall establish a priority for the 20 provision of medical treatment for veterans who have serv- 21 ice-connected disabilities, lower income, or have special 22 needs: Provided further, That, notwithstanding any other 23 provision of law, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 24 give priority funding for the provision of basic medical 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 33 •HR 8580 RH benefits to veterans in enrollment priority groups 1 1 through 6: Provided further, That, notwithstanding any 2 other provision of law, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 3 may authorize the dispensing of prescription drugs from 4 Veterans Health Administration facilities to enrolled vet- 5 erans with privately written prescriptions based on re- 6 quirements established by the Secretary: Provided further, 7 That the implementation of the program described in the 8 previous proviso shall incur no additional cost to the De- 9 partment of Veterans Affairs: Provided further, That the 10 Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall ensure that sufficient 11 amounts appropriated under this heading for medical sup- 12 plies and equipment are available for the acquisition of 13 prosthetics designed specifically for female veterans: Pro- 14 vided further, That nothing in section 2044(e)(1) of title 15 38, United States Code, may be construed as limiting 16 amounts that may be made available under this heading 17 for fiscal years 2024 and 2025 in this or prior Acts. 18 MEDICAL COMMUNITY CARE 19 For necessary expenses for furnishing health care to 20 individuals pursuant to chapter 17 of title 38, United 21 States Code, at non-Department facilities, 22 $34,000,000,000, plus reimbursements, shall become 23 available on October 1, 2025, and shall remain available 24 until September 30, 2026: Provided, That, of the amount 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00033 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 34 •HR 8580 RH made available on October 1, 2025, under this heading, 1 $2,000,000,000 shall remain available until September 30, 2 2027. 3 MEDICAL SUPPORT AND COMPLIANCE 4 For necessary expenses in the administration of the 5 medical, hospital, nursing home, domiciliary, construction, 6 supply, and research activities, as authorized by law; ad- 7 ministrative expenses in support of capital policy activi- 8 ties; and administrative and legal expenses of the Depart- 9 ment for collecting and recovering amounts owed the De- 10 partment as authorized under chapter 17 of title 38, 11 United States Code, and the Federal Medical Care Recov- 12 ery Act (42 U.S.C. 2651 et seq.), $12,700,000,000, plus 13 reimbursements, shall become available on October 1, 14 2025, and shall remain available until September 30, 15 2026: Provided, That, of the amount made available on 16 October 1, 2025, under this heading, $350,000,000 shall 17 remain available until September 30, 2027. 18 MEDICAL FACILITIES 19 For necessary expenses for the maintenance and op- 20 eration of hospitals, nursing homes, domiciliary facilities, 21 and other necessary facilities of the Veterans Health Ad- 22 ministration; for administrative expenses in support of 23 planning, design, project management, real property ac- 24 quisition and disposition, construction, and renovation of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 35 •HR 8580 RH any facility under the jurisdiction or for the use of the 1 Department; for oversight, engineering, and architectural 2 activities not charged to project costs; for repairing, alter- 3 ing, improving, or providing facilities in the several hos- 4 pitals and homes under the jurisdiction of the Depart- 5 ment, not otherwise provided for, either by contract or by 6 the hire of temporary employees and purchase of mate- 7 rials; for leases of facilities; and for laundry services; 8 $9,700,000,000, plus reimbursements, shall become avail- 9 able on October 1, 2024, and shall remain available until 10 September 30, 2025: Provided, That, of the amount made 11 available on October 1, 2025, under this heading, 12 $500,000,000 shall remain available until September 30, 13 2027. 14 MEDICAL AND PROSTHETIC RESEARCH 15 For necessary expenses in carrying out programs of 16 medical and prosthetic research and development as au- 17 thorized by chapter 73 of title 38, United States Code, 18 $923,514,000, plus reimbursements, shall remain avail- 19 able until September 30, 2026: Provided, That the Sec- 20 retary of Veterans Affairs shall ensure that sufficient 21 amounts appropriated under this heading are available for 22 prosthetic research specifically for female veterans, and 23 for toxic exposure research. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00035 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 36 •HR 8580 RH NATIONAL CEMETERY ADMINISTRATION 1 For necessary expenses of the National Cemetery Ad- 2 ministration for operations and maintenance, not other- 3 wise provided for, including uniforms or allowances there- 4 for; cemeterial expenses as authorized by law; purchase 5 of one passenger motor vehicle for use in cemeterial oper- 6 ations; hire of passenger motor vehicles; and repair, alter- 7 ation or improvement of facilities under the jurisdiction 8 of the National Cemetery Administration, $495,000,000, 9 of which not to exceed 10 percent shall remain available 10 until September 30, 2026. 11 DEPARTMENTAL ADMINISTRATION 12 GENERAL ADMINISTRATION 13 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 14 For necessary operating expenses of the Department 15 of Veterans Affairs, not otherwise provided for, including 16 administrative expenses in support of Department-wide 17 capital planning, management and policy activities, uni- 18 forms, or allowances therefor; not to exceed $25,000 for 19 official reception and representation expenses; hire of pas- 20 senger motor vehicles; and reimbursement of the General 21 Services Administration for security guard services, 22 $457,000,000, of which not to exceed 10 percent shall re- 23 main available until September 30, 2026: Provided, That 24 funds provided under this heading may be transferred to 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00036 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 37 •HR 8580 RH ‘‘General Operating Expenses, Veterans Benefits Adminis- 1 tration’’. 2 BOARD OF VETERANS APPEALS 3 For necessary operating expenses of the Board of 4 Veterans Appeals, $267,000,000 of which not to exceed 5 10 percent shall remain available until September 30, 6 2026. 7 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SYSTEMS 8 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 9 For necessary expenses for information technology 10 systems and telecommunications support, including devel- 11 opmental information systems and operational information 12 systems; for pay and associated costs; and for the capital 13 asset acquisition of information technology systems, in- 14 cluding management and related contractual costs of said 15 acquisitions, including contractual costs associated with 16 operations authorized by section 3109 of title 5, United 17 States Code, $6,231,680,000, plus reimbursements: Pro- 18 vided, That $1,686,245,270 shall be for pay and associ- 19 ated costs, of which not to exceed 3 percent shall remain 20 available until September 30, 2026: Provided further, That 21 $4,544,475,000 shall be for operations and maintenance, 22 of which not to exceed 5 percent shall remain available 23 until September 30, 2026, and of which $118,900,000 24 shall remain available until September 30, 2028, for the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00037 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 38 •HR 8580 RH purpose of facility activations related to projects funded 1 by the ‘‘Construction, Major Projects’’, ‘‘Construction, 2 Minor Projects’’, ‘‘Medical Facilities’’, ‘‘National Ceme- 3 tery Administration’’, ‘‘General Operating Expenses, Vet- 4 erans Benefit Administration’’, and ‘‘General Administra- 5 tion’’ accounts: Provided further, That $960,000 shall be 6 for information technology systems development, and shall 7 remain available until September 30, 2026: Provided fur- 8 ther, That amounts made available for salaries and ex- 9 penses, operations and maintenance, and information 10 technology systems development may be transferred 11 among the three subaccounts after the Secretary of Vet- 12 erans Affairs requests from the Committees on Appropria- 13 tions of both Houses of Congress the authority to make 14 the transfer and an approval is issued: Provided further, 15 That amounts made available for the ‘‘Information Tech- 16 nology Systems’’ account for development may be trans- 17 ferred among projects or to newly defined projects: Pro- 18 vided further, That no project may be increased or de- 19 creased by more than $3,000,000 of cost prior to submit- 20 ting a request to the Committees on Appropriations of 21 both Houses of Congress to make the transfer and an ap- 22 proval is issued, or absent a response, a period of 30 days 23 has elapsed: Provided further, That the funds made avail- 24 able under this heading for information technology sys- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00038 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 39 •HR 8580 RH tems development shall be for the projects, and in the 1 amounts, specified in the table entitled ‘‘Information 2 Technology Development Projects’’ under this heading in 3 the report accompanying this Act. 4 VETERANS ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORD 5 For activities related to implementation, preparation, 6 development, interface, management, rollout, and mainte- 7 nance of a Veterans Electronic Health Record system, in- 8 cluding contractual costs associated with operations au- 9 thorized by section 3109 of title 5, United States Code, 10 and salaries and expenses of employees hired under titles 11 5 and 38, United States Code, $894,000,000, to remain 12 available until September 30, 2026: Provided, That the 13 Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the Commit- 14 tees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress quar- 15 terly reports detailing obligations, expenditures, and de- 16 ployment implementation by facility, including any 17 changes from the deployment plan or schedule: Provided 18 further, That the funds provided in this account shall only 19 be available to the Office of the Deputy Secretary, to be 20 administered by that Office: Provided further, That 25 21 percent of the funds made available under this heading 22 shall not be available until July 1, 2025, and are contin- 23 gent upon the Secretary of Veterans Affairs— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00039 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 40 •HR 8580 RH (1) providing the Committees on Appropriations 1 a report detailing the status of outstanding issues 2 impacting the stability and usability of the new elec- 3 tronic health record system, including those that 4 contributed to the October 13, 2022, deployment 5 delay, along with a timeline and measurable metrics 6 to resolve issues, no later than 60 days after enact- 7 ment of this Act; 8 (2) certifying and detailing any changes to the 9 full deployment schedule, no later than 60 days prior 10 to July 1, 2025; and 11 (3) certifying in writing no later than 30 days 12 prior to July 1, 2025, the following— 13 (A) the status of issues included in the re- 14 port referenced in paragraph (1), including 15 issues that have not been closed but have been 16 suitably resolved or mitigated in a manner that 17 will enhance provider productivity and minimize 18 the potential for patient harm; and 19 (B) whether the system is stable, ready, 20 and optimized for further deployment at VA 21 sites. 22 OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL 23 For necessary expenses of the Office of Inspector 24 General, to include information technology, in carrying out 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00040 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 41 •HR 8580 RH the provisions of the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 1 U.S.C. App.), $296,000,000, of which not to exceed 10 2 percent shall remain available until September 30, 2026. 3 CONSTRUCTION, MAJOR PROJECTS 4 For constructing, altering, extending, and improving 5 any of the facilities, including parking projects, under the 6 jurisdiction or for the use of the Department of Veterans 7 Affairs, or for any of the purposes set forth in sections 8 316, 2404, 2406 and chapter 81 of title 38, United States 9 Code, not otherwise provided for, including planning, ar- 10 chitectural and engineering services, construction manage- 11 ment services, maintenance or guarantee period services 12 costs associated with equipment guarantees provided 13 under the project, services of claims analysts, offsite utility 14 and storm drainage system construction costs, and site ac- 15 quisition, where the estimated cost of a project is more 16 than the amount set forth in section 8104(a)(3)(A) of title 17 38, United States Code, or where funds for a project were 18 made available in a previous major project appropriation, 19 $2,069,000,000, of which $1,265,000,000 shall remain 20 available until September 30, 2029, and of which 21 $803,700,000 shall remain available until expended: Pro- 22 vided, That except for advance planning activities, includ- 23 ing needs assessments which may or may not lead to cap- 24 ital investments, and other capital asset management re- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00041 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 42 •HR 8580 RH lated activities, including portfolio development and man- 1 agement activities, and planning, cost estimating, and de- 2 sign for major medical facility projects and major medical 3 facility leases and investment strategy studies funded 4 through the advance planning fund and the planning and 5 design activities funded through the design fund, staffing 6 expenses, and funds provided for the purchase, security, 7 and maintenance of land for the National Cemetery Ad- 8 ministration and the Veterans Health Administration 9 through the land acquisition line item, none of the funds 10 made available under this heading shall be used for any 11 project that has not been notified to Congress through the 12 budgetary process or that has not been approved by the 13 Congress through statute, joint resolution, or in the ex- 14 planatory statement accompanying such Act and pre- 15 sented to the President at the time of enrollment: Provided 16 further, That funds provided for the Veterans Health Ad- 17 ministration through the land acquisition line item shall 18 only be for projects included on the five year development 19 plan notified to Congress through the budgetary process: 20 Provided further, That such sums as may be necessary 21 shall be available to reimburse the ‘‘General Administra- 22 tion’’ account for payment of salaries and expenses of all 23 Office of Construction and Facilities Management employ- 24 ees to support the full range of capital infrastructure serv- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00042 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 43 •HR 8580 RH ices provided, including minor construction and leasing 1 services: Provided further, That funds made available 2 under this heading for fiscal year 2025, for each approved 3 project shall be obligated: (1) by the awarding of a con- 4 struction documents contract by September 30, 2025; and 5 (2) by the awarding of a construction contract by Sep- 6 tember 30, 2026: Provided further, That the Secretary of 7 Veterans Affairs shall promptly submit to the Committees 8 on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress a written 9 report on any approved major construction project for 10 which obligations are not incurred within the time limita- 11 tions established above. 12 CONSTRUCTION, MINOR PROJECTS 13 For constructing, altering, extending, and improving 14 any of the facilities, including parking projects, under the 15 jurisdiction or for the use of the Department of Veterans 16 Affairs, including planning and assessments of needs 17 which may lead to capital investments, architectural and 18 engineering services, maintenance or guarantee period 19 services costs associated with equipment guarantees pro- 20 vided under the project, services of claims analysts, offsite 21 utility and storm drainage system construction costs, and 22 site acquisition, or for any of the purposes set forth in 23 sections 316, 2404, 2406 and chapter 81 of title 38, 24 United States Code, not otherwise provided for, where the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00043 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 44 •HR 8580 RH estimated cost of a project is equal to or less than the 1 amount set forth in section 8104(a)(3)(A) of title 38, 2 United States Code, $380,453,000, of which 3 $342,408,000 shall remain available until September 30, 4 2029, and of which $38,045,000 shall remain available 5 until expended, along with unobligated balances of pre- 6 vious ‘‘Construction, Minor Projects’’ appropriations 7 which are hereby made available for any project where the 8 estimated cost is equal to or less than the amount set forth 9 in such section: Provided, That funds made available 10 under this heading shall be for: (1) repairs to any of the 11 nonmedical facilities under the jurisdiction or for the use 12 of the Department which are necessary because of loss or 13 damage caused by any natural disaster or catastrophe; 14 and (2) temporary measures necessary to prevent or to 15 minimize further loss by such causes. 16 GRANTS FOR CONSTRUCTION OF STATE EXTENDED CARE 17 FACILITIES 18 For grants to assist States to acquire or construct 19 State nursing home and domiciliary facilities and to re- 20 model, modify, or alter existing hospital, nursing home, 21 and domiciliary facilities in State homes, for furnishing 22 care to veterans as authorized by sections 8131 through 23 8137 of title 38, United States Code, $156,000,000, to 24 remain available until expended. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00044 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 45 •HR 8580 RH GRANTS FOR CONSTRUCTION OF VETERANS CEMETERIES 1 For grants to assist States and tribal organizations 2 in establishing, expanding, or improving veterans ceme- 3 teries as authorized by section 2408 of title 38, United 4 States Code, $60,000,000, to remain available until ex- 5 pended. 6 COST OF WAR TOXIC EXPOSURES FUND 7 For investment in the delivery of veterans’ health 8 care associated with exposure to environmental hazards, 9 the expenses incident to the delivery of veterans’ health 10 care and benefits associated with exposure to environ- 11 mental hazards, and medical and other research relating 12 to exposure to environmental hazards, as authorized by 13 section 324 of title 38, United States Code, and in addi- 14 tion to the amounts otherwise available for such purposes 15 in the appropriations provided in this or prior Acts, 16 $22,800,000,000, which shall become available on October 17 1, 2025, and shall remain available until expended. 18 ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS 19 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 20 SEC. 201. Any appropriation for fiscal year 2025 for 21 ‘‘Compensation and Pensions’’, ‘‘Readjustment Benefits’’, 22 and ‘‘Veterans Insurance and Indemnities’’ may be trans- 23 ferred as necessary to any other of the mentioned appro- 24 priations: Provided, That, before a transfer may take 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00045 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 46 •HR 8580 RH place, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall request from 1 the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Con- 2 gress the authority to make the transfer and such Com- 3 mittees issue an approval, or absent a response, a period 4 of 30 days has elapsed. 5 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 6 SEC. 202. Amounts made available for the Depart- 7 ment of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2025, in this or 8 any other Act, under the ‘‘Medical Services’’, ‘‘Medical 9 Community Care’’, ‘‘Medical Support and Compliance’’, 10 and ‘‘Medical Facilities’’ accounts may be transferred 11 among the accounts: Provided, That any transfers among 12 the ‘‘Medical Services’’, ‘‘Medical Community Care’’, and 13 ‘‘Medical Support and Compliance’’ accounts of 1 percent 14 or less of the total amount appropriated to the account 15 in this or any other Act may take place subject to notifica- 16 tion from the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to the Com- 17 mittees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress of 18 the amount and purpose of the transfer: Provided further, 19 That any transfers among the ‘‘Medical Services’’, ‘‘Med- 20 ical Community Care’’, and ‘‘Medical Support and Compli- 21 ance’’ accounts in excess of 1 percent, or exceeding the 22 cumulative 1 percent for the fiscal year, may take place 23 only after the Secretary requests from the Committees on 24 Appropriations of both Houses of Congress the authority 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00046 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 47 •HR 8580 RH to make the transfer and an approval is issued: Provided 1 further, That any transfers to or from the ‘‘Medical Facili- 2 ties’’ account may take place only after the Secretary re- 3 quests from the Committees on Appropriations of both 4 Houses of Congress the authority to make the transfer 5 and an approval is issued. 6 SEC. 203. Appropriations available in this title for 7 salaries and expenses shall be available for services au- 8 thorized by section 3109 of title 5, United States Code; 9 hire of passenger motor vehicles; lease of a facility or land 10 or both; and uniforms or allowances therefore, as author- 11 ized by sections 5901 through 5902 of title 5, United 12 States Code. 13 SEC. 204. No appropriations in this title (except the 14 appropriations for ‘‘Construction, Major Projects’’, and 15 ‘‘Construction, Minor Projects’’) shall be available for the 16 purchase of any site for or toward the construction of any 17 new hospital or home. 18 SEC. 205. No appropriations in this title shall be 19 available for hospitalization or examination of any persons 20 (except beneficiaries entitled to such hospitalization or ex- 21 amination under the laws providing such benefits to vet- 22 erans, and persons receiving such treatment under sec- 23 tions 7901 through 7904 of title 5, United States Code, 24 or the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00047 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 48 •HR 8580 RH Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.)), unless reim- 1 bursement of the cost of such hospitalization or examina- 2 tion is made to the ‘‘Medical Services’’ account at such 3 rates as may be fixed by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. 4 SEC. 206. Appropriations available in this title for 5 ‘‘Compensation and Pensions’’, ‘‘Readjustment Benefits’’, 6 and ‘‘Veterans Insurance and Indemnities’’ shall be avail- 7 able for payment of prior year accrued obligations re- 8 quired to be recorded by law against the corresponding 9 prior year accounts within the last quarter of fiscal year 10 2024. 11 SEC. 207. Appropriations available in this title shall 12 be available to pay prior year obligations of corresponding 13 prior year appropriations accounts resulting from sections 14 3328(a), 3334, and 3712(a) of title 31, United States 15 Code, except that if such obligations are from trust fund 16 accounts they shall be payable only from ‘‘Compensation 17 and Pensions’’. 18 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 19 SEC. 208. Notwithstanding any other provision of 20 law, during fiscal year 2025, the Secretary of Veterans 21 Affairs shall, from the National Service Life Insurance 22 Fund under section 1920 of title 38, United States Code, 23 the Veterans’ Special Life Insurance Fund under section 24 1923 of title 38, United States Code, and the United 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00048 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 49 •HR 8580 RH States Government Life Insurance Fund under section 1 1955 of title 38, United States Code, reimburse the ‘‘Gen- 2 eral Operating Expenses, Veterans Benefits Administra- 3 tion’’ and ‘‘Information Technology Systems’’ accounts for 4 the cost of administration of the insurance programs fi- 5 nanced through those accounts: Provided, That reimburse- 6 ment shall be made only from the surplus earnings accu- 7 mulated in such an insurance program during fiscal year 8 2025 that are available for dividends in that program after 9 claims have been paid and actuarially determined reserves 10 have been set aside: Provided further, That if the cost of 11 administration of such an insurance program exceeds the 12 amount of surplus earnings accumulated in that program, 13 reimbursement shall be made only to the extent of such 14 surplus earnings: Provided further, That the Secretary 15 shall determine the cost of administration for fiscal year 16 2025 which is properly allocable to the provision of each 17 such insurance program and to the provision of any total 18 disability income insurance included in that insurance pro- 19 gram. 20 SEC. 209. Amounts deducted from enhanced-use 21 lease proceeds to reimburse an account for expenses in- 22 curred by that account during a prior fiscal year for pro- 23 viding enhanced-use lease services shall be available until 24 expended. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00049 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 50 •HR 8580 RH (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 1 SEC. 210. Funds available in this title or funds for 2 salaries and other administrative expenses shall also be 3 available to reimburse the Office of Resolution Manage- 4 ment, Diversity and Inclusion, the Office of Employment 5 Discrimination Complaint Adjudication, and the Alter- 6 native Dispute Resolution function within the Office of 7 Human Resources and Administration for all services pro- 8 vided at rates which will recover actual costs but not to 9 exceed $133,363,000 for the Office of Resolution Manage- 10 ment, Diversity and Inclusion, $9,606,581 for the Office 11 of Employment Discrimination Complaint Adjudication, 12 and $7,686,000 for the Alternative Dispute Resolution 13 function within the Office of Human Resources and Ad- 14 ministration: Provided, That payments may be made in 15 advance for services to be furnished based on estimated 16 costs: Provided further, That amounts received shall be 17 credited to the ‘‘General Administration’’ and ‘‘Informa- 18 tion Technology Systems’’ accounts for use by the office 19 that provided the service. 20 SEC. 211. No funds of the Department of Veterans 21 Affairs shall be available for hospital care, nursing home 22 care, or medical services provided to any person under 23 chapter 17 of title 38, United States Code, for a non-serv- 24 ice-connected disability described in section 1729(a)(2) of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00050 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 51 •HR 8580 RH such title, unless that person has disclosed to the Sec- 1 retary of Veterans Affairs, in such form as the Secretary 2 may require, current, accurate third-party reimbursement 3 information for purposes of section 1729 of such title: Pro- 4 vided, That the Secretary may recover, in the same man- 5 ner as any other debt due the United States, the reason- 6 able charges for such care or services from any person who 7 does not make such disclosure as required: Provided fur- 8 ther, That any amounts so recovered for care or services 9 provided in a prior fiscal year may be obligated by the 10 Secretary during the fiscal year in which amounts are re- 11 ceived. 12 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 13 SEC. 212. Notwithstanding any other provision of 14 law, proceeds or revenues derived from enhanced-use leas- 15 ing activities (including disposal) may be deposited into 16 the ‘‘Construction, Major Projects’’ and ‘‘Construction, 17 Minor Projects’’ accounts and be used for construction 18 (including site acquisition and disposition), alterations, 19 and improvements of any medical facility under the juris- 20 diction or for the use of the Department of Veterans Af- 21 fairs. Such sums as realized are in addition to the amount 22 provided for in ‘‘Construction, Major Projects’’ and ‘‘Con- 23 struction, Minor Projects’’. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00051 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 52 •HR 8580 RH SEC. 213. Amounts made available under ‘‘Medical 1 Services’’ are available— 2 (1) for furnishing recreational facilities, sup- 3 plies, and equipment; and 4 (2) for funeral expenses, burial expenses, and 5 other expenses incidental to funerals and burials for 6 beneficiaries receiving care in the Department. 7 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 8 SEC. 214. Such sums as may be deposited into the 9 Medical Care Collections Fund pursuant to section 1729A 10 of title 38, United States Code, may be transferred to the 11 ‘‘Medical Services’’ and ‘‘Medical Community Care’’ ac- 12 counts to remain available until expended for the purposes 13 of these accounts. 14 SEC. 215. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may 15 enter into agreements with Federally Qualified Health 16 Centers in the State of Alaska and Indian Tribes and 17 Tribal organizations which are party to the Alaska Native 18 Health Compact with the Indian Health Service, to pro- 19 vide healthcare, including behavioral health and dental 20 care, to veterans in rural Alaska. The Secretary shall re- 21 quire participating veterans and facilities to comply with 22 all appropriate rules and regulations, as established by the 23 Secretary. The term ‘‘rural Alaska’’ shall mean those 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00052 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 53 •HR 8580 RH lands which are not within the boundaries of the munici- 1 pality of Anchorage or the Fairbanks North Star Borough. 2 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 3 SEC. 216. Such sums as may be deposited into the 4 Department of Veterans Affairs Capital Asset Fund pur- 5 suant to section 8118 of title 38, United States Code, may 6 be transferred to the ‘‘Construction, Major Projects’’ and 7 ‘‘Construction, Minor Projects’’ accounts, to remain avail- 8 able until expended for the purposes of these accounts. 9 SEC. 217. Not later than 30 days after the end of 10 each fiscal quarter, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 11 submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both 12 Houses of Congress a report on the financial status of the 13 Department of Veterans Affairs for the preceding quarter: 14 Provided, That, at a minimum, the report shall include 15 the direction contained in the paragraph entitled ‘‘Quar- 16 terly reporting’’, under the heading ‘‘General Administra- 17 tion’’ in the joint explanatory statement accompanying 18 Public Law 114–223. 19 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 20 SEC. 218. Amounts made available under the ‘‘Med- 21 ical Services’’, ‘‘Medical Community Care’’, ‘‘Medical Sup- 22 port and Compliance’’, ‘‘Medical Facilities’’, ‘‘General Op- 23 erating Expenses, Veterans Benefits Administration’’, 24 ‘‘Board of Veterans Appeals’’, ‘‘General Administration’’, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00053 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 54 •HR 8580 RH and ‘‘National Cemetery Administration’’ accounts for fis- 1 cal year 2025 may be transferred to or from the ‘‘Informa- 2 tion Technology Systems’’ account: Provided, That such 3 transfers may not result in a more than 10 percent aggre- 4 gate increase in the total amount made available by this 5 Act for the ‘‘Information Technology Systems’’ account: 6 Provided further, That, before a transfer may take place, 7 the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall request from the 8 Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress 9 the authority to make the transfer and an approval is 10 issued. 11 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 12 SEC. 219. Of the amounts appropriated to the De- 13 partment of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2025 for 14 ‘‘Medical Services’’, ‘‘Medical Community Care’’, ‘‘Medical 15 Support and Compliance’’, ‘‘Medical Facilities’’, ‘‘Con- 16 struction, Minor Projects’’, and ‘‘Information Technology 17 Systems’’, up to $594,828,000, plus reimbursements, may 18 be transferred to the Joint Department of Defense—De- 19 partment of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Demonstra- 20 tion Fund, established by section 1704 of the National De- 21 fense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 (Public Law 22 111–84; 123 Stat. 2571) and may be used for operation 23 of the facilities designated as combined Federal medical 24 facilities as described by section 706 of the Duncan Hun- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00054 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 55 •HR 8580 RH ter National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1 2009 (Public Law 110–417; 122 Stat. 4500): Provided, 2 That additional funds may be transferred from accounts 3 designated in this section to the Joint Department of De- 4 fense—Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility 5 Demonstration Fund upon written notification by the Sec- 6 retary of Veterans Affairs to the Committees on Appro- 7 priations of both Houses of Congress: Provided further, 8 That section 220 of title II of division J of Public Law 9 117–328 is repealed. 10 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 11 SEC. 220. Of the amounts appropriated to the De- 12 partment of Veterans Affairs which become available on 13 October 1, 2025, for ‘‘Medical Services’’, ‘‘Medical Com- 14 munity Care’’, ‘‘Medical Support and Compliance’’, and 15 ‘‘Medical Facilities’’, up to $664,625,000, plus reimburse- 16 ments, may be transferred to the Joint Department of De- 17 fense—Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility 18 Demonstration Fund, established by section 1704 of the 19 National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 20 (Public Law 111–84; 123 Stat. 2571) and may be used 21 for operation of the facilities designated as combined Fed- 22 eral medical facilities as described by section 706 of the 23 Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization Act for 24 Fiscal Year 2009 (Public Law 110–417; 122 Stat. 4500): 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00055 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 56 •HR 8580 RH Provided, That additional funds may be transferred from 1 accounts designated in this section to the Joint Depart- 2 ment of Defense—Department of Veterans Affairs Med- 3 ical Facility Demonstration Fund upon written notifica- 4 tion by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to the Commit- 5 tees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress. 6 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 7 SEC. 221. Such sums as may be deposited into the 8 Medical Care Collections Fund pursuant to section 1729A 9 of title 38, United States Code, for healthcare provided 10 at facilities designated as combined Federal medical facili- 11 ties as described by section 706 of the Duncan Hunter 12 National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 13 (Public Law 110–417; 122 Stat. 4500) shall also be avail- 14 able: (1) for transfer to the Joint Department of De- 15 fense—Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility 16 Demonstration Fund, established by section 1704 of the 17 National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 18 (Public Law 111–84; 123 Stat. 2571); and (2) for oper- 19 ations of the facilities designated as combined Federal 20 medical facilities as described by section 706 of the Dun- 21 can Hunter National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 22 Year 2009 (Public Law 110–417; 122 Stat. 4500): Pro- 23 vided, That, notwithstanding section 1704(b)(3) of the 24 National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00056 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 57 •HR 8580 RH (Public Law 111–84; 123 Stat. 2573), amounts trans- 1 ferred to the Joint Department of Defense—Department 2 of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Demonstration Fund 3 shall remain available until expended. 4 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 5 SEC. 222. Of the amounts available in this title for 6 ‘‘Medical Services’’, ‘‘Medical Community Care’’, ‘‘Medical 7 Support and Compliance’’, and ‘‘Medical Facilities’’, a 8 minimum of $15,000,000 shall be transferred to the 9 DOD–VA Health Care Sharing Incentive Fund, as au- 10 thorized by section 8111(d) of title 38, United States 11 Code, to remain available until expended, for any purpose 12 authorized by section 8111 of title 38, United States Code. 13 SEC. 223. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall no- 14 tify the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of 15 Congress of all bid savings in a major construction project 16 that total at least $5,000,000, or 5 percent of the pro- 17 grammed amount of the project, whichever is less: Pro- 18 vided, That such notification shall occur within 14 days 19 of a contract identifying the programmed amount: Pro- 20 vided further, That the Secretary shall notify the Commit- 21 tees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress 14 22 days prior to the obligation of such bid savings and shall 23 describe the anticipated use of such savings. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00057 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 58 •HR 8580 RH SEC. 224. None of the funds made available for 1 ‘‘Construction, Major Projects’’ may be used for a project 2 in excess of the scope specified for that project in the origi- 3 nal justification data provided to the Congress as part of 4 the request for appropriations unless the Secretary of Vet- 5 erans Affairs receives approval from the Committees on 6 Appropriations of both Houses of Congress. 7 SEC. 225. Not later than 30 days after the end of 8 each fiscal quarter, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 9 submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both 10 Houses of Congress a quarterly report containing perform- 11 ance measures and data from each Veterans Benefits Ad- 12 ministration Regional Office: Provided, That, at a min- 13 imum, the report shall include the direction contained in 14 the section entitled ‘‘Disability claims backlog’’, under the 15 heading ‘‘General Operating Expenses, Veterans Benefits 16 Administration’’ in the joint explanatory statement accom- 17 panying Public Law 114–223: Provided further, That the 18 report shall also include information on the number of ap- 19 peals pending at the Veterans Benefits Administration as 20 well as the Board of Veterans Appeals on a quarterly 21 basis. 22 SEC. 226. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 23 provide written notification to the Committees on Appro- 24 priations of both Houses of Congress 15 days prior to or- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00058 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 59 •HR 8580 RH ganizational changes which result in the transfer of 25 or 1 more full-time equivalents from one organizational unit of 2 the Department of Veterans Affairs to another. 3 SEC. 227. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 4 provide on a quarterly basis to the Committees on Appro- 5 priations of both Houses of Congress notification of any 6 single national outreach and awareness marketing cam- 7 paign in which obligations exceed $1,000,000. 8 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 9 SEC. 228. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, upon 10 determination that such action is necessary to address 11 needs of the Veterans Health Administration, may trans- 12 fer to the ‘‘Medical Services’’ account any discretionary 13 appropriations made available for fiscal year 2025 in this 14 title (except appropriations made to the ‘‘General Oper- 15 ating Expenses, Veterans Benefits Administration’’ ac- 16 count) or any discretionary unobligated balances within 17 the Department of Veterans Affairs, including those ap- 18 propriated for fiscal year 2025, that were provided in ad- 19 vance by appropriations Acts: Provided, That transfers 20 shall be made only with the approval of the Office of Man- 21 agement and Budget: Provided further, That the transfer 22 authority provided in this section is in addition to any 23 other transfer authority provided by law: Provided further, 24 That no amounts may be transferred from amounts that 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00059 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 60 •HR 8580 RH were designated by Congress as an emergency requirement 1 pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the budget or the 2 Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 3 1985: Provided further, That such authority to transfer 4 may not be used unless for higher priority items, based 5 on emergent healthcare requirements, than those for 6 which originally appropriated and in no case where the 7 item for which funds are requested has been denied by 8 Congress: Provided further, That, upon determination that 9 all or part of the funds transferred from an appropriation 10 are not necessary, such amounts may be transferred back 11 to that appropriation and shall be available for the same 12 purposes as originally appropriated: Provided further, 13 That before a transfer may take place, the Secretary of 14 Veterans Affairs shall request from the Committees on 15 Appropriations of both Houses of Congress the authority 16 to make the transfer and receive approval of that request. 17 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 18 SEC. 229. Amounts made available for the Depart- 19 ment of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2025, under the 20 ‘‘Board of Veterans Appeals’’ and the ‘‘General Operating 21 Expenses, Veterans Benefits Administration’’ accounts 22 may be transferred between such accounts: Provided, That 23 before a transfer may take place, the Secretary of Vet- 24 erans Affairs shall request from the Committees on Appro- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00060 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 61 •HR 8580 RH priations of both Houses of Congress the authority to 1 make the transfer and receive approval of that request. 2 SEC. 230. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may not 3 reprogram funds among major construction projects or 4 programs if such instance of reprogramming will exceed 5 $7,000,000, unless such reprogramming is approved by 6 the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Con- 7 gress. 8 SEC. 231. (a) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 9 ensure that the toll-free suicide hotline under section 10 1720F(h) of title 38, United States Code— 11 (1) provides to individuals who contact the hot- 12 line immediate assistance from a trained profes- 13 sional; and 14 (2) adheres to all requirements of the American 15 Association of Suicidology. 16 (b)(1) None of the funds made available by this Act 17 may be used to enforce or otherwise carry out any Execu- 18 tive action that prohibits the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 19 from appointing an individual to occupy a vacant civil 20 service position, or establishing a new civil service position, 21 at the Department of Veterans Affairs with respect to 22 such a position relating to the hotline specified in sub- 23 section (a). 24 (2) In this subsection— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00061 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 62 •HR 8580 RH (A) the term ‘‘civil service’’ has the meaning 1 given such term in section 2101(1) of title 5, United 2 States Code; and 3 (B) the term ‘‘Executive action’’ includes— 4 (i) any Executive order, Presidential 5 memorandum, or other action by the President; 6 and 7 (ii) any agency policy, order, or other di- 8 rective. 9 (c)(1) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall con- 10 duct a study on the effectiveness of the hotline specified 11 in subsection (a) during the 5-year period beginning on 12 January 1, 2016, based on an analysis of national suicide 13 data and data collected from such hotline. 14 (2) At a minimum, the study required by paragraph 15 (1) shall— 16 (A) determine the number of veterans who con- 17 tact the hotline specified in subsection (a) and who 18 receive follow up services from the hotline or mental 19 health services from the Department of Veterans Af- 20 fairs thereafter; 21 (B) determine the number of veterans who con- 22 tact the hotline who are not referred to, or do not 23 continue receiving, mental health care who commit 24 suicide; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00062 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 63 •HR 8580 RH (C) determine the number of veterans described 1 in subparagraph (A) who commit or attempt suicide. 2 SEC. 232. Effective during the period beginning on 3 October 1, 2018, and ending on January 1, 2026, none 4 of the funds made available to the Secretary of Veterans 5 Affairs by this or any other Act may be obligated or ex- 6 pended in contravention of the ‘‘Veterans Health Adminis- 7 tration Clinical Preventive Services Guidance Statement 8 on the Veterans Health Administration’s Screening for 9 Breast Cancer Guidance’’ published on May 10, 2017, as 10 issued by the Veterans Health Administration National 11 Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention. 12 SEC. 233. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision 13 of law, the amounts appropriated or otherwise made avail- 14 able to the Department of Veterans Affairs for the ‘‘Med- 15 ical Services’’ account may be used to provide— 16 (1) fertility counseling and treatment using as- 17 sisted reproductive technology to a covered veteran 18 or the spouse of a covered veteran; or 19 (2) adoption reimbursement to a covered vet- 20 eran. 21 (b) In this section: 22 (1) The term ‘‘service-connected’’ has the 23 meaning given such term in section 101 of title 38, 24 United States Code. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00063 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 64 •HR 8580 RH (2) The term ‘‘covered veteran’’ means a vet- 1 eran, as such term is defined in section 101 of title 2 38, United States Code, who has a service-connected 3 disability that results in the inability of the veteran 4 to procreate without the use of fertility treatment. 5 (3) The term ‘‘assisted reproductive tech- 6 nology’’ means benefits relating to reproductive as- 7 sistance provided to a member of the Armed Forces 8 who incurs a serious injury or illness on active duty 9 pursuant to section 1074(c)(4)(A) of title 10, United 10 States Code, as described in the memorandum on 11 the subject of ‘‘Policy for Assisted Reproductive 12 Services for the Benefit of Seriously or Severely Ill/ 13 Injured (Category II or III) Active Duty Service 14 Members’’ issued by the Assistant Secretary of De- 15 fense for Health Affairs on April 3, 2012, and the 16 guidance issued to implement such policy, including 17 any limitations on the amount of such benefits avail- 18 able to such a member except that— 19 (A) the time periods regarding embryo 20 cryopreservation and storage set forth in part 21 III(G) and in part IV(H) of such memorandum 22 shall not apply; and 23 (B) such term includes embryo 24 cryopreservation and storage without limitation 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00064 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 65 •HR 8580 RH on the duration of such cryopreservation and 1 storage. 2 (4) The term ‘‘adoption reimbursement’’ means 3 reimbursement for the adoption-related expenses for 4 an adoption that is finalized after the date of the en- 5 actment of this Act under the same terms as apply 6 under the adoption reimbursement program of the 7 Department of Defense, as authorized in Depart- 8 ment of Defense Instruction 1341.09, including the 9 reimbursement limits and requirements set forth in 10 such instruction. 11 (c) Amounts made available for the purposes speci- 12 fied in subsection (a) of this section are subject to the 13 requirements for funds contained in section 508 of division 14 H of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018 (Public 15 Law 115–141). 16 SEC. 234. None of the funds appropriated or other- 17 wise made available by this Act or any other Act for the 18 Department of Veterans Affairs may be used in a manner 19 that is inconsistent with: (1) section 842 of the Transpor- 20 tation, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, the 21 Judiciary, the District of Columbia, and Independent 22 Agencies Appropriations Act, 2006 (Public Law 109–115; 23 119 Stat. 2506); or (2) section 8110(a)(5) of title 38, 24 United States Code. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00065 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 66 •HR 8580 RH SEC. 235. Section 842 of Public Law 109–115 shall 1 not apply to conversion of an activity or function of the 2 Veterans Health Administration, Veterans Benefits Ad- 3 ministration, or National Cemetery Administration to con- 4 tractor performance by a business concern that is at least 5 51 percent owned by one or more Indian Tribes as defined 6 in section 5304(e) of title 25, United States Code, or one 7 or more Native Hawaiian Organizations as defined in sec- 8 tion 637(a)(15) of title 15, United States Code. 9 SEC. 236. (a) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in 10 consultation with the Secretary of Defense and the Sec- 11 retary of Labor, shall discontinue using Social Security 12 account numbers to authenticate individuals in all infor- 13 mation systems of the Department of Veterans Affairs for 14 all individuals not later than September 30, 2024: 15 (b) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may collect and 16 use a Social Security account number to identify an indi- 17 vidual, in accordance with section 552a of title 5, United 18 States Code, in an information system of the Department 19 of Veterans Affairs if and only if the use of such number 20 is necessary to: 21 (1) obtain or provide information the Secretary 22 requires from an information system that is not 23 under the jurisdiction of the Secretary; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00066 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 67 •HR 8580 RH (2) comply with a law, regulation, or court 1 order; 2 (3) perform anti-fraud activities; or 3 (4) identify a specific individual where no ade- 4 quate substitute is available. 5 (c) The matter in subsections (a) and (b) shall super- 6 sede section 237 of division J of Public Law 117–328. 7 SEC. 237. For funds provided to the Department of 8 Veterans Affairs for each of fiscal year 2025 and 2026 9 for ‘‘Medical Services’’, section 239 of division A of Public 10 Law 114–223 shall apply. 11 SEC. 238. None of the funds appropriated in this or 12 prior appropriations Acts or otherwise made available to 13 the Department of Veterans Affairs may be used to trans- 14 fer any amounts from the Filipino Veterans Equity Com- 15 pensation Fund to any other account within the Depart- 16 ment of Veterans Affairs. 17 SEC. 239. Of the funds provided to the Department 18 of Veterans Affairs for each of fiscal year 2025 and fiscal 19 year 2026 for ‘‘Medical Services’’, funds may be used in 20 each year to carry out and expand the child care program 21 authorized by section 205 of Public Law 111–163, not- 22 withstanding subsection (e) of such section. 23 SEC. 240. None of the funds appropriated or other- 24 wise made available in this title may be used by the Sec- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00067 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 68 •HR 8580 RH retary of Veterans Affairs to enter into an agreement re- 1 lated to resolving a dispute or claim with an individual 2 that would restrict in any way the individual from speak- 3 ing to members of Congress or their staff on any topic 4 not otherwise prohibited from disclosure by Federal law 5 or required by Executive order to be kept secret in the 6 interest of national defense or the conduct of foreign af- 7 fairs. 8 SEC. 241. For funds provided to the Department of 9 Veterans Affairs for each of fiscal year 2025 and 2026, 10 section 258 of division A of Public Law 114–223 shall 11 apply. 12 SEC. 242. (a) None of the funds appropriated or oth- 13 erwise made available by this Act may be used to deny 14 an Inspector General funded under this Act timely access 15 to any records, documents, or other materials available to 16 the department or agency over which that Inspector Gen- 17 eral has responsibilities under the Inspector General Act 18 of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.), or to prevent or impede the ac- 19 cess of the Inspector General to such records, documents, 20 or other materials, under any provision of law, except a 21 provision of law that expressly refers to such Inspector 22 General and expressly limits the right of access. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00068 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 69 •HR 8580 RH (b) A department or agency covered by this section 1 shall provide its Inspector General access to all records, 2 documents, and other materials in a timely manner. 3 (c) Each Inspector General shall ensure compliance 4 with statutory limitations on disclosure relevant to the in- 5 formation provided by the establishment over which that 6 Inspector General has responsibilities under the Inspector 7 General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.). 8 (d) Each Inspector General covered by this section 9 shall report to the Committee on Appropriations of the 10 Senate and the Committee on Appropriations of the House 11 of Representatives within 5 calendar days of any failure 12 by any department or agency covered by this section to 13 comply with this requirement. 14 SEC. 243. None of the funds made available in this 15 Act may be used in a manner that would increase wait 16 times for veterans who seek care at medical facilities of 17 the Department of Veterans Affairs. 18 SEC. 244. None of the funds appropriated or other- 19 wise made available by this Act to the Veterans Health 20 Administration may be used in fiscal year 2025 to convert 21 any program which received specific purpose funds in fis- 22 cal year 2024 to a general purpose funded program unless 23 the Secretary of Veterans Affairs submits written notifica- 24 tion of any such proposal to the Committees on Appropria- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00069 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 70 •HR 8580 RH tions of both Houses of Congress at least 30 days prior 1 to any such action and an approval is issued by the Com- 2 mittees. 3 SEC. 245. For funds provided to the Department of 4 Veterans Affairs for each of fiscal year 2025 and 2026, 5 section 248 of division A of Public Law 114–223 shall 6 apply. 7 SEC. 246. (a) None of the funds appropriated or oth- 8 erwise made available by this Act may be used to conduct 9 research commencing on or after March 9, 2024, that uses 10 any canine, feline, or non-human primate unless the Sec- 11 retary of Veterans Affairs approves such research specifi- 12 cally and in writing pursuant to subsection (b). 13 (b)(1) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may approve 14 the conduct of research commencing on or after March 15 9, 2024, using canines, felines, or non-human primates if 16 the Secretary certifies that— 17 (A) the scientific objectives of the research can 18 only be met by using such canines, felines, or non- 19 human primates and cannot be met using other ani- 20 mal models, in vitro models, computational models, 21 human clinical studies, or other research alter- 22 natives; 23 (B) such scientific objectives are necessary to 24 advance research benefiting veterans and are directly 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00070 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 71 •HR 8580 RH related to an illness or injury that is combat-related 1 as defined by 10 U.S.C. 1413(e); 2 (C) the research is consistent with the revised 3 Department of Veterans Affairs canine research pol- 4 icy document dated December 15, 2017, including 5 any subsequent revisions to such document; and 6 (D) ethical considerations regarding minimizing 7 the harm experienced by canines, felines, or non- 8 human primates are included in evaluating the sci- 9 entific necessity of the research. 10 (2) The Secretary may not delegate the authority 11 under this subsection. 12 (c) If the Secretary approves any new research pursu- 13 ant to subsection (b), not later than 30 days before the 14 commencement of such research, the Secretary shall sub- 15 mit to the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate 16 and House of Representatives a report describing— 17 (1) the nature of the research to be conducted 18 using canines, felines, or nun-human primates; 19 (2) the date on which the Secretary approved 20 the research 21 (3) the USDA pain category on the approved 22 use 23 (4) the justification for the determination of the 24 Secretary that the scientific objectives of such re- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00071 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 72 •HR 8580 RH search could only be met using canines, felines, or 1 nun-hman primates, and methods used to make such 2 determination; 3 (5) the frequency and duration of such re- 4 search; and 5 (6) the protocols in place to ensure the neces- 6 sity, safety, and efficacy of the research, and animal 7 welfare. 8 (d) Not later than September 9, 2024, and biannually 9 thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to such Committees 10 a report describing— 11 (1) any research being conducted by the De- 12 partment of Veterans Affairs using canines, felines, 13 or non-human primates as of the date of the sub- 14 mittal of the report; 15 (2) the circumstances under which such re- 16 search was conducted using canines, felines, or non- 17 human primates; 18 (3) the justification for using canines, felines, 19 or non-human primates to conduct such research; 20 (4) the protocols in place to ensure the neces- 21 sity, safety, and efficacy of such research; and 22 (5) the development and adoption of alter- 23 natives to canines, felines, or non-human primates 24 research. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00072 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 73 •HR 8580 RH (e) Not later than September 9, 2024, and annually 1 thereafter, the Department of Veterans Affairs must sub- 2 mit to voluntary U.S. Department of Agriculture inspec- 3 tions of canine, feline, and non-human primate research 4 facilities. 5 (f) Not later than September 9, 2024, and annually 6 thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to such Committees 7 a report describing — 8 (1) any violations of the Animal Welfare Act, 9 the Public Health Service Policy on Humane Care 10 and Use of Laboratory Animals, or other Depart- 11 ment of Veterans Affairs policies related to oversight 12 of animal research found during that quarter in VA 13 research facilities; 14 (2) immediate corrective actions taken; and 15 (3) specific actions taken to prevent their recur- 16 rence. 17 (g) The Department shall implement a plan under 18 which the Secretary will eliminate the research conducted 19 using canines, felines, or non-human primates by not later 20 than March 9, 2026. 21 SEC. 247. (a) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may 22 use amounts appropriated or otherwise made available in 23 this title to ensure that the ratio of veterans to full-time 24 employment equivalents within any program of rehabilita- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00073 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 74 •HR 8580 RH tion conducted under chapter 31 of title 38, United States 1 Code, does not exceed 125 veterans to one full-time em- 2 ployment equivalent. 3 (b) Not later than 180 days after the date of the en- 4 actment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to Con- 5 gress a report on the programs of rehabilitation conducted 6 under chapter 31 of title 38, United States Code, includ- 7 ing— 8 (1) an assessment of the veteran-to-staff ratio 9 for each such program; and 10 (2) recommendations for such action as the 11 Secretary considers necessary to reduce the veteran- 12 to-staff ratio for each such program. 13 SEC. 248. Amounts made available for the ‘‘Veterans 14 Health Administration, Medical Community Care’’ ac- 15 count in this or any other Act for fiscal years 2025 and 16 2026 may be used for expenses that would otherwise be 17 payable from the Veterans Choice Fund established by 18 section 802 of the Veterans Access, Choice, and Account- 19 ability Act, as amended (38 U.S.C. 1701 note). 20 SEC. 249. Obligations and expenditures applicable to 21 the ‘‘Medical Services’’ account in fiscal years 2017 22 through 2019 for aid to state homes (as authorized by 23 section 1741 of title 38, United States Code) shall remain 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00074 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 75 •HR 8580 RH in the ‘‘Medical Community Care’’ account for such fiscal 1 years. 2 SEC. 250. Of the amounts made available for the De- 3 partment of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2024, in this 4 or any other Act, under the ‘‘Veterans Health Administra- 5 tion—Medical Services’’, ‘‘Veterans Health Administra- 6 tion—Medical Community Care’’, ‘‘Veterans Health Ad- 7 ministration—Medical Support and Compliance’’, and 8 ‘‘Veterans Health Administration—Medical Facilities’’ ac- 9 counts, $1,323,444,000 shall be made available for gen- 10 der-specific care and programmatic efforts to deliver care 11 for women veterans. 12 SEC. 251. Notwithstanding any other law, unless pre- 13 vented by an order issued by a federal or state court, by 14 no later than September 30, 2025, the Secretary shall 15 commence construction of the Community Based Out- 16 patient Clinic in Bakersfield, California authorized in sec- 17 tion 1(a)(3) of Public Law 111-82 and in accordance with 18 Lease No.36C10F20L0008 or successor lease. 19 SEC. 252. Not later than 30 days after the end of 20 each fiscal quarter, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 21 submit to the Committees on Appropriations of both 22 Houses of Congress a quarterly report on the status of 23 the ‘‘Veterans Medical Care and Health Fund’’, estab- 24 lished to execute section 8002 of the American Rescue 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00075 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 76 •HR 8580 RH Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117–2): Provided, That, 1 at a minimum, the report shall include an update on obli- 2 gations by program, project or activity and a plan for ex- 3 pending the remaining funds. 4 SEC. 253. Any amounts transferred to the Secretary 5 and administered by a corporation referred to in section 6 7364(b) of title 38, United States Code, between October 7 1, 2018 and September 30, 2019 for purposes of carrying 8 out an order placed with the Department of Veterans Af- 9 fairs pursuant to section 1535 of title 31, United States 10 Code, that are available for obligation pursuant to section 11 7364(b)(1) of title 38, United States Code, are to remain 12 available for the liquidation of valid obligations incurred 13 by such corporation during the period of performance of 14 such order, provided that the Secretary of Veterans Af- 15 fairs determines that such amounts need to remain avail- 16 able for such liquidation. 17 SEC. 254. Unobligated balances available under the 18 headings ‘‘Construction, Major Projects’’ and ‘‘Construc- 19 tion, Minor Projects’’ may be obligated by the Secretary 20 of Veterans Affairs for a facility pursuant to section 21 2(e)(1) of the Communities Helping Invest through Prop- 22 erty and Improvements Needed for Veterans Act of 2016 23 (Public Law 114–294; 38 U.S.C. 8103 note), as amended, 24 to provide additional funds or to fund an escalation clause 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00076 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 77 •HR 8580 RH under such section of such Act: Provided, That before such 1 unobligated balances are obligated pursuant to this sec- 2 tion, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall request from 3 the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Con- 4 gress the authority to obligate such unobligated balances 5 and such Committees issue an approval, or absent a re- 6 sponse, a period of 30 days has elapsed: Provided further, 7 That the request to obligate such unobligated balances 8 must provide Congress notice that the entity described in 9 section 2(a)(2) of Public Law 114–294, as amended, has 10 exhausted available cost containment approaches as set 11 forth in the agreement under section 2(c) of such Public 12 Law. 13 SEC. 255. (a) None of the funds made available in 14 this Act may be used to implement, administer, or other- 15 wise carry out the Department of Veterans Affairs interim 16 final rule published on September 9, 2022, or any suc- 17 cessor to such rule, or to propose, promulgate, or imple- 18 ment any substantially similar rule or policy. 19 (b) None of the funds appropriated in this Act shall 20 be expended for any abortion, including through a medical 21 benefits package or health benefits program that includes 22 coverage of abortion. 23 (c) The limitations established in subsection (b) shall 24 not apply to an abortion— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00077 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 78 •HR 8580 RH (1) if the pregnancy is the result of an act of 1 rape or incest; or 2 (2) in the case where a woman suffers from a 3 physical disorder, physical injury, or physical illness, 4 including a life-endangering physical condition 5 caused by or arising from the pregnancy itself, that 6 would, as certified by a physician, place the woman 7 in danger of death unless an abortion is performed. 8 SEC. 256. None of the funds made available by this 9 Act may be used for surgical procedures or hormone thera- 10 pies for the purposes of gender affirming care. 11 SEC. 257. None of the funds made available by this 12 Act may be used by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to 13 fly or display a flag over a facility of the Department of 14 Veterans Affairs or a national cemetery other than the 15 flag of the United States, the flag of a State, Territory, 16 or District of Columbia, the flag of an Indian Tribal gov- 17 ernment, the flag of the Department, the flag of an Armed 18 Force, or the POW/MIA flag. 19 SEC. 258. During the period beginning on October 20 1, 2024 and ending on September 30, 2025, none of the 21 funds made available by this Act may be used to admin- 22 ister, implement, or enforce the final rule issued by the 23 Secretary of Veterans Affairs relating to ‘‘Change in Rates 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00078 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 79 •HR 8580 RH VA Pays for Special Modes of Transportation’’ (88 Fed. 1 Reg. 10032) and published on February 16, 2023. 2 SEC. 259. None of the funds made available by this 3 Act may be used to carry out VHA Directive 1193.01, 4 ‘‘Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination Program for Vet- 5 erans Health Administration Health Care Personnel’’. 6 SEC. 260. None of the funds made available by this 7 Act may be used to provide any services to any individual 8 unlawfully present in the United States who is not eligible 9 for health care under the laws administered by the Sec- 10 retary of Veterans Affairs. 11 SEC. 261. None of the funds made available by this 12 Act may be used by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 13 under section 5502 of title 38, United States Code, in any 14 case arising out of the administration by the Secretary of 15 laws and benefits under such title, to report a person who 16 is deemed mentally incapacitated, mentally incompetent, 17 or to be experiencing an extended loss of consciousness 18 as a person who has been adjudicated as a mental defec- 19 tive under subjection (d)(4) or (g)(4) of section 922 of 20 title 18, United States Code, without the order or finding 21 a judge, magistrate, or other judicial authority of com- 22 petent jurisdiction that such person is a danger to himself 23 or herself or others. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00079 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 80 •HR 8580 RH TITLE III 1 RELATED AGENCIES 2 AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMISSION 3 SALARIES AND EXPENSES 4 For necessary expenses, not otherwise provided for, 5 of the American Battle Monuments Commission, including 6 the acquisition of land or interest in land in foreign coun- 7 tries; purchases and repair of uniforms for caretakers of 8 national cemeteries and monuments outside of the United 9 States and its territories and possessions; rent of office 10 and garage space in foreign countries; purchase (one-for- 11 one replacement basis only) and hire of passenger motor 12 vehicles; not to exceed $15,000 for official reception and 13 representation expenses; and insurance of official motor 14 vehicles in foreign countries, when required by law of such 15 countries, $90,020,000, to remain available until ex- 16 pended. 17 FOREIGN CURRENCY FLUCTUATIONS ACCOUNT 18 For necessary expenses, not otherwise provided for, 19 of the American Battle Monuments Commission, such 20 sums as may be necessary, to remain available until ex- 21 pended, for purposes authorized by section 2109 of title 22 36, United States Code. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00080 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 81 •HR 8580 RH UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR VETERANS 1 CLAIMS 2 SALARIES AND EXPENSES 3 For necessary expenses for the operation of the 4 United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims as 5 authorized by sections 7251 through 7298 of title 38, 6 United States Code, $47,200,000: Provided, That 7 $3,800,000 shall be available for the purpose of providing 8 financial assistance as described and in accordance with 9 the process and reporting procedures set forth under this 10 heading in Public Law 102–229. 11 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE—CIVIL 12 CEMETERIAL EXPENSES, ARMY 13 SALARIES AND EXPENSES 14 For necessary expenses for maintenance, operation, 15 and improvement of Arlington National Cemetery and Sol- 16 diers’ and Airmen’s Home National Cemetery, including 17 the purchase or lease of passenger motor vehicles for re- 18 placement on a one-for-one basis only, and not to exceed 19 $2,000 for official reception and representation expenses, 20 $105,514,000, of which not to exceed $15,000,000 shall 21 remain available until September 30, 2027. In addition, 22 such sums as may be necessary for parking maintenance, 23 repairs and replacement, to be derived from the ‘‘Lease 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00081 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 82 •HR 8580 RH of Department of Defense Real Property for Defense 1 Agencies’’ account. 2 CONSTRUCTION 3 For necessary expenses for planning and design and 4 construction at Arlington National Cemetery and Soldiers’ 5 and Airmen’s Home National Cemetery, $42,000,000, to 6 remain available until expended for planning and design 7 and construction associated with the Southern Expansion 8 project at Arlington National Cemetery. 9 ARMED FORCES RETIREMENT HOME 10 TRUST FUND 11 For expenses necessary for the Armed Forces Retire- 12 ment Home to operate and maintain the Armed Forces 13 Retirement Home—Washington, District of Columbia, 14 and the Armed Forces Retirement Home—Gulfport, Mis- 15 sissippi, to be paid from funds available in the Armed 16 Forces Retirement Home Trust Fund, $69,520,000, to re- 17 main available until September 30, 2026, of which 18 $1,000,000 shall remain available until expended for con- 19 struction and renovation of the physical plants at the 20 Armed Forces Retirement Home—Washington, District of 21 Columbia, and the Armed Forces Retirement Home— 22 Gulfport, Mississippi: Provided, That of the amounts made 23 available under this heading from funds available in the 24 Armed Forces Retirement Home Trust Fund, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00082 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 83 •HR 8580 RH $25,000,000 shall be paid from the general fund of the 1 Treasury to the Trust Fund. 2 MAJOR CONSTRUCTION 3 For expenses necessary to support efforts to complete 4 the renovation of the Sheridan Building at the Armed 5 Forces Retirement Home—Washington, District of Co- 6 lumbia, $31,000,000, to remain available until expended, 7 shall be paid from the general fund of the Treasury to 8 the Armed Forces Retirement Home Trust Fund. 9 ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISION 10 SEC. 301. Amounts deposited into the special account 11 established under 10 U.S.C. 7727 are appropriated and 12 shall be available until expended to support activities at 13 the Army National Military Cemeteries. 14 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00083 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 84 •HR 8580 RH TITLE IV 1 GENERAL PROVISIONS 2 SEC. 401. No part of any appropriation contained in 3 this Act shall remain available for obligation beyond the 4 current fiscal year unless expressly so provided herein. 5 SEC. 402. None of the funds made available in this 6 Act may be used for any program, project, or activity, 7 when it is made known to the Federal entity or official 8 to which the funds are made available that the program, 9 project, or activity is not in compliance with any Federal 10 law relating to risk assessment, the protection of private 11 property rights, or unfunded mandates. 12 SEC. 403. All departments and agencies funded under 13 this Act are encouraged, within the limits of the existing 14 statutory authorities and funding, to expand their use of 15 ‘‘E-Commerce’’ technologies and procedures in the con- 16 duct of their business practices and public service activi- 17 ties. 18 SEC. 404. Unless stated otherwise, all reports and no- 19 tifications required by this Act shall be submitted to the 20 Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Af- 21 fairs, and Related Agencies of the Committee on Appro- 22 priations of the House of Representatives and the Sub- 23 committee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00084 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 85 •HR 8580 RH and Related Agencies of the Committee on Appropriations 1 of the Senate. 2 SEC. 405. None of the funds made available in this 3 Act may be transferred to any department, agency, or in- 4 strumentality of the United States Government except 5 pursuant to a transfer made by, or transfer authority pro- 6 vided in, this or any other appropriations Act. 7 SEC. 406. None of the funds made available in this 8 Act may be used for a project or program named for an 9 individual serving as a Member, Delegate, or Resident 10 Commissioner of the United States House of Representa- 11 tives. 12 SEC. 407. (a) Any agency receiving funds made avail- 13 able in this Act, shall, subject to subsections (b) and (c), 14 post on the public Web site of that agency any report re- 15 quired to be submitted by the Congress in this or any 16 other Act, upon the determination by the head of the agen- 17 cy that it shall serve the national interest. 18 (b) Subsection (a) shall not apply to a report if— 19 (1) the public posting of the report com- 20 promises national security; or 21 (2) the report contains confidential or propri- 22 etary information. 23 (c) The head of the agency posting such report shall 24 do so only after such report has been made available to 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00085 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 86 •HR 8580 RH the requesting Committee or Committees of Congress for 1 no less than 30days. 2 SEC. 408. (a) None of the funds made available in 3 this Act may be used to maintain or establish a computer 4 network unless such network blocks the viewing, 5 downloading, and exchanging of pornography. 6 (b) Nothing in subsection (a) shall limit the use of 7 funds necessary for any Federal, State, tribal, or local law 8 enforcement agency or any other entity carrying out crimi- 9 nal investigations, prosecution, or adjudication activities. 10 SEC. 409. None of the funds made available in this 11 Act may be used by an agency of the executive branch 12 to pay for first-class travel by an employee of the agency 13 in contravention of sections 301–10.122 through 301– 14 10.124 of title 41, Code of Federal Regulations. 15 SEC. 410. None of the funds made available in this 16 Act may be used to execute a contract for goods or serv- 17 ices, including construction services, where the contractor 18 has not complied with Executive Order No. 12989. 19 SEC. 411. None of the funds made available by this 20 Act may be used in contravention of section 101(e)(8) of 21 title 10, United States Code. 22 SEC. 412. (a) IN GENERAL.—None of the funds ap- 23 propriated or otherwise made available to the Department 24 of Defense in this Act may be used to construct, renovate, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00086 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 87 •HR 8580 RH or expand any facility in the United States, its territories, 1 or possessions to house any individual detained at United 2 States Naval Station, Guanta´namo Bay, Cuba, for the 3 purposes of detention or imprisonment in the custody or 4 under the control of the Department of Defense. 5 (b) The prohibition in subsection (a) shall not apply 6 to any modification of facilities at United States Naval 7 Station, Guanta´namo Bay, Cuba. 8 (c) An individual described in this subsection is any 9 individual who, as of June 24, 2009, is located at United 10 States Naval Station, Guanta´namo Bay, Cuba, and who— 11 (1) is not a citizen of the United States or a 12 member of the Armed Forces of the United States; 13 and 14 (2) is— 15 (A) in the custody or under the effective 16 control of the Department of Defense; or 17 (B) otherwise under detention at United 18 States Naval Station, Guanta´namo Bay, Cuba. 19 SEC. 413. None of the funds appropriated by this Act 20 may be used in any way, directly or indirectly, to influence 21 congressional action on any legislation or appropriation 22 matter pending before Congress, other than to commu- 23 nicate to Members of Congress as described in 18 U.S.C. 24 1913. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00087 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 88 •HR 8580 RH SEC. 414. None of the funds appropriated or other- 1 wise made available by this Act may be made available 2 to implement, administer, apply, enforce, or carry out Ex- 3 ecutive Order 13985 of January 20, 2021 (86 Fed. Reg. 4 7009), Executive Order 14035 of June 25, 2021 (86 Fed. 5 Reg. 34593), or Executive Order 14091 of February 16, 6 2023 (88 Fed. Reg. 10825). 7 SEC. 415. None of the funds made available by this 8 Act may be used to carry out any program, project, or 9 activity that promotes or advances Critical Race Theory 10 or any concept associated with Critical Race Theory. 11 SEC. 416. (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sec- 12 tion 7 of title 1, United States Code, section 1738C of 13 title 28, United States Code, or any other provision of law, 14 none of the funds provided by this Act, or previous appro- 15 priations Acts, shall be used in whole or in part to take 16 any discriminatory action against a person, wholly or par- 17 tially, on the basis that such person speaks, or acts, in 18 accordance with a sincerely held religious belief, or moral 19 conviction, that marriage is, or should be recognized as, 20 a union of one man and one woman. 21 (b) Discriminatory action defined.—As used in sub- 22 section (a), a discriminatory action means any action 23 taken by the Federal Government to— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00088 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 89 •HR 8580 RH (1) alter in any way the Federal tax treatment 1 of, or cause any tax, penalty, or payment to be as- 2 sessed against, or deny, delay, or revoke an exemp- 3 tion from taxation under section 501(a) of the Inter- 4 nal Revenue Code of 1986 of, any person referred to 5 in subsection (a); 6 (2) disallow a deduction for Federal tax pur- 7 poses of any charitable contribution made to or by 8 such person; 9 (3) withhold, reduce the amount or funding for, 10 exclude, terminate, or otherwise make unavailable or 11 deny, any Federal grant, contract, subcontract, co- 12 operative agreement, guarantee, loan, scholarship, li- 13 cense, certification, accreditation, employment, or 14 other similar position or status from or to such per- 15 son; 16 (4) withhold, reduce, exclude, terminate, or oth- 17 erwise make unavailable or deny, any entitlement or 18 benefit under a Federal benefit program, including 19 admission to, equal treatment in, or eligibility for a 20 degree from an educational program, from or to 21 such person; or 22 (5) withhold, reduce, exclude, terminate, or oth- 23 erwise make unavailable or deny access or an entitle- 24 ment to Federal property, facilities, educational in- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00089 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 90 •HR 8580 RH stitutions, speech fora (including traditional, limited, 1 and nonpublic fora), or charitable fundraising cam- 2 paigns from or to such person. 3 (c) Accreditation; Licensure; Certification.—The 4 Federal Government shall consider accredited, licensed, or 5 certified for purposes of Federal law any person that 6 would be accredited, licensed, or certified, respectively, for 7 such purposes but for a determination against such person 8 wholly or partially on the basis that the person speaks, 9 or acts, in accordance with a sincerely held religious belief 10 or moral conviction described in subsection (a). 11 SEC. 417. None of the funds made available by this 12 Act may be used for any office, programs, or activity for 13 the purposes of diversity, equity, and inclusion training 14 or implementation. 15 SEC. 418. None of the funds made available by this 16 Act may be used to enforce COVID-19 mask mandates. 17 SEC. 419. None of the funds made available by this 18 Act may be used to administer, implement, or enforce Ex- 19 ecutive Order No. 14057 of December 8, 2021. 20 SEC. 420. None of the funds appropriated by this Act 21 may be used to implement any of the following executive 22 orders: 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00090 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 91 •HR 8580 RH (1) Executive Order No. 13990, relating to 1 Protecting Public Health and the Environment and 2 Restoring Science To Tackle the Climate Crisis. 3 (2) Executive Order No. 14008, relating to 4 Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad. 5 (3) Section 6 of Executive Order No. 14013, re- 6 lating to Rebuilding and Enhancing Programs To 7 Resettle Refugees and Planning for the Impact of 8 Climate Change on Migration. 9 (4) Executive Order No. 14030, relating to Cli- 10 mate-Related Financial Risk. 11 (5) Executive Order No. 14057, relating to 12 Catalyzing Clean Energy Industries and Jobs 13 Through Federal Sustainability. 14 (6) Executive Order No. 14082, relating to Im- 15 plementation of the Energy and Infrastructure Pro- 16 visions of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. 17 (7) Executive Order No. 14096, relating to Re- 18 vitalizing Our Nation’s Commitment to Environ- 19 mental Justice for All. 20 SEC. 421. (a) IN GENERAL.—None of the funds ap- 21 propriated by this Act or otherwise made available for Fis- 22 cal Year 2025 for the Department of Veterans Affairs may 23 be obligated or expended to procure or purchase com- 24 puters, printers, software, or hardware needed for an of- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00091 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS 92 •HR 8580 RH fice environment in which the manufacturer, bidder, or of- 1 feror, or any subsidy or parent company of an entity— 2 (1) in which the People’s Republic of China has 3 any ownership stake; or 4 (2) that contributes to the defense industry of 5 the Chinese Communist Party. 6 (b) APPLICABILITY TO THIRD PARTIES.— 7 The prohibition in subsection (a) also applies in cases in 8 which the Secretary has contracted with a third party for 9 the procurement, purchase, or expenditure of funds on any 10 of the equipment and software described in such sub- 11 section. 12 SPENDING REDUCTION ACCOUNT 13 SEC. 422. $0. 14 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Military Construction, 15 Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations 16 Act, 2025’’. 17 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00092 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00093 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS Union Calendar No. 439 118TH CONGRESS 2ND SESSION H. R. 8580 [Report No. 118–528] A BILL Making appropriations for military construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2025, and for other purposes. MAY 28, 2024 Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 May 28, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00094 Fmt 6651 Sfmt 6651 E:\BILLS\H8580.RH H8580 ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS