
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document affected by Public Law 107-14 Section 6(a)]
[Document affected by Public Law 107-103 Section 509(e)]
[Document affected by Public Law 107-14 Section 8(c)]
[Document affected by Public Law 107-95 Section 5(e)(2)]
[Document affected by Public Law 107-95 Section 5(e)(1)]
[CITE: 38USC7721]

 
                      TITLE 38--VETERANS' BENEFITS
 
              PART V--BOARDS, ADMINISTRATIONS, AND SERVICES
 
              CHAPTER 77--VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION
 
            SUBCHAPTER II--VETERANS OUTREACH SERVICES PROGRAM
 
Sec. 7721. Purpose; definitions

    (a) The Congress declares that the outreach services program 
authorized by this subchapter is for the purpose of ensuring that all 
veterans (especially those who have been recently discharged or released 
from active military, naval, or air service and those who are eligible 
for readjustment or other benefits and services under laws administered 
by the Department) are provided timely and appropriate assistance to aid 
and encourage them in applying for and obtaining such benefits and 
services in order that they may achieve a rapid social and economic 
readjustment to civilian life and obtain a higher standard of living for 
themselves and their dependents. The Congress further declares that the 
outreach services program authorized by this subchapter is for the 
purpose of charging the Department with the affirmative duty of seeking 
out eligible veterans and eligible dependents and providing them with 
such services.
    (b) For the purposes of this subchapter--
        (1) the term ``other governmental programs'' includes all 
    programs under State or local laws as well as all programs under 
    Federal law other than those authorized by this title; and
        (2) the term ``eligible dependent'' means an ``eligible person'' 
    as defined in section 3501(a)(1) of this title.

(Added Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 2(b), Aug. 6, 1991, 105 Stat. 400.)


                            Prior Provisions

    Provisions similar to those in this section were contained in 
section 240 of this title prior to repeal by Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 2(a).


   Reports on Activities of Department of Veterans Affairs To Assist 
                            Homeless Veterans

    Pub. L. 103-446, title X, Sec. 1001(a), (b), Nov. 2, 1994, 108 Stat. 
4678, 4679, as amended by Pub. L. 105-114, title II, Sec. 204, Nov. 21, 
1997, 111 Stat. 2288, provided that:
    ``(a) Annual Report.--(1) Not later than April 15 of each year, the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the Committees on 
Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives a report on 
the activities of the Department of Veterans Affairs during the year 
preceding the report under programs of the Department for the provision 
of assistance to homeless veterans.
    ``(2) The report shall--
        ``(A) set forth the number of homeless veterans provided 
    assistance under those programs;
        ``(B) describe the cost to the Department of providing such 
    assistance under those programs;
        ``(C) provide any other information on those programs and on the 
    provision of such assistance that the Secretary considers 
    appropriate; and
        ``(D) evaluate the effectiveness of the programs of the 
    Department (including residential work-therapy programs, programs 
    combining outreach, community-based residential treatment, and case-
    management, and contract care programs for alcohol and drug-
    dependence or abuse disabilities) in providing assistance to 
    homeless veterans; and
        ``(E) evaluate the effectiveness of programs established by 
    recipients of grants under section 3 of the Homeless Veterans 
    Comprehensive Service Programs Act of 1992 [Pub. L. 102-590] (38 
    U.S.C. 7721 note), and describe the experience of such recipients in 
    applying for and receiving grants from the Secretary of Housing and 
    Urban Development to serve primarily homeless persons who are 
    veterans.
    ``[(b) Repealed. Pub. L. 105-114, title II, Sec. 204(2), Nov. 21, 
1997, 111 Stat. 2288.]''


            Homeless Veterans Comprehensive Service Programs

    Pub. L. 102-590, Secs. 2-4, Nov. 10, 1992, 106 Stat. 5136-5139, as 
amended by Pub. L. 103-446, title X, Sec. 1003, Nov. 2, 1994, 108 Stat. 
4679; Pub. L. 104-110, title I, Sec. 102(c)(1), (2), Feb. 13, 1996, 110 
Stat. 769; Pub. L. 105-114, title II, Secs. 202(c)(3), 203(b), Nov. 21, 
1997, 111 Stat. 2287, 2288; Pub. L. 106-117, title IX, Sec. 903(1)-(3), 
Nov. 30, 1999, 113 Stat. 1587, provided that:
``[SEC. 2. Repealed. Pub. L. 105-114, title II, Sec. 202(c)(3), Nov. 21, 
        1997, 111 Stat. 2287.]
``SEC. 3. GRANTS.
    ``(a) Authority To Make Grants.--(1) Subject to the availability of 
appropriations provided for under section 12 [set out below], the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs, during [sic] shall make grants to assist 
eligible entities in establishing new programs to furnish, and expanding 
existing programs for furnishing, outreach, rehabilitative services, 
vocational counseling and training, and transitional housing assistance 
to homeless veterans.
    ``(2) The authority of the Secretary to make grants under this 
section expires on September 30, 2003.
    ``(b) Criteria for Award of Grants.--The Secretary shall establish 
criteria and requirements for the award of a grant under this section, 
including criteria for entities eligible to receive such grants. The 
Secretary shall publish such criteria and requirements in the Federal 
Register not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this 
Act [Nov. 10, 1992]. In developing such criteria and requirements, the 
Secretary shall consult with organizations with experience in the area 
of providing service to homeless veterans and to the maximum extent 
possible shall take into account the findings of the assessment of the 
Secretary under section 107 of the Veterans' Medical Programs Amendments 
of 1992 [Pub. L. 102-405, 38 U.S.C. 527 note]. The criteria established 
under this section shall include the following:
        ``(1) Specification as to the kinds of projects for which such 
    grant support is available, which shall include (A) expansion, 
    remodeling, or alteration of existing buildings, or acquisition of 
    facilities, for use as service centers, transitional housing, or 
    other facilities to serve homeless veterans, and (B) procurement of 
    vans for use in outreach to, and transportation for, homeless 
    veterans to carry out the purposes set forth in subsection (a).
        ``(2) Specification as to the number of projects for which grant 
    support is available, which shall include provision for no more than 
    25 service centers.
        ``(3) Appropriate criteria for the staffing for the provision of 
    the services for which a grant under this section is furnished.
        ``(4) Provisions to ensure that the award of grants under this 
    section (A) shall not result in duplication of ongoing services, and 
    (B) to the maximum extent practicable, shall reflect appropriate 
    geographic dispersion and an appropriate balance between urban and 
    nonurban locations.
        ``(5) Provisions to ensure that an entity receiving a grant 
    shall meet fire and safety requirements established by the 
    Secretary, which shall include such State and community requirements 
    that may apply, but fire and safety requirements applicable to 
    buildings of the Federal Government shall not apply to real property 
    to be used by a grantee in carrying out the grant.
        ``(6) Specifications as to the means by which an entity 
    receiving a grant may contribute in-kind services to the start-up 
    costs of any project for which support is sought and the methodology 
    for assigning a cost to that contribution for purposes of subsection 
    (c).
    ``(c) Funding Limitations.--A grant under this section may not be 
used to support operational costs. The amount of a grant under this 
section may not exceed 65 percent of the estimated cost of the 
expansion, remodeling, alteration, acquisition, or procurement provided 
for under this section.
    ``(d) Eligible Entities.--The Secretary may not make a grant under 
this section unless the applicant for the grant--
        ``(1) is a public or nonprofit private entity with the capacity 
    (as determined by the Secretary) to effectively administer a grant 
    under this section;
        ``(2) has demonstrated that adequate financial support will be 
    available to carry out the project for which the grant has been 
    sought consistent with the plans, specifications, and schedule 
    submitted by the applicant; and
        ``(3) has agreed to meet the applicable criteria and 
    requirements established under subsection (b) (and the Secretary has 
    determined that the applicant has demonstrated the capacity to meet 
    those criteria and requirements).
    ``(e) Application Requirement.--An entity described in subsection 
(d) desiring to receive assistance under this section shall submit to 
the Secretary an application. The application shall set forth--
        ``(1) the amount of the grant requested with respect to a 
    project;
        ``(2) a description of the site for such project;
        ``(3) plans, specifications, and the schedule for implementation 
    of such project in accordance with requirements prescribed by the 
    Secretary under subsection (b); and
        ``(4) reasonable assurance that upon completion of the work for 
    which assistance is sought, the program will become operational and 
    the facilities will be used principally to provide to veterans the 
    services for which the project was designed, and that not more than 
    25 percent of the services provided will serve clients who are not 
    receiving such services as veterans.
    ``(f) Program Requirements.--The Secretary may not make a grant to 
an applicant under this section unless the applicant, in the application 
for the grant, agrees to each of the following requirements:
        ``(1) To provide the services for which the grant is furnished 
    at locations accessible to homeless veterans.
        ``(2) To maintain referral networks for, and aid homeless 
    veterans in, establishing eligibility for assistance, and obtaining 
    services, under available entitlement and assistance programs.
        ``(3) To ensure the confidentiality of records maintained on 
    homeless veterans receiving services under the grant.
        ``(4) To establish such procedures for fiscal control and fund 
    accounting as may be necessary to ensure proper disbursement and 
    accounting with respect to the grant and to such payments as may be 
    made under section 4.
        ``(5) To seek to employ homeless veterans and formerly homeless 
    veterans in positions created for purposes of the grant for which 
    those veterans are qualified.
    ``(g) Service Center Requirements.--In addition to criteria 
established under subsection (b), the Secretary shall, in the case of an 
application for a grant for a service center for homeless veterans, 
require that--
        ``(1) such center shall provide services to homeless veterans 
    during such hours as the Secretary may specify and shall be open to 
    such veterans on an as-needed, unscheduled basis;
        ``(2) space at such center will be made available, as mutually 
    agreeable, for use by staff of the Department of Veterans Affairs, 
    the Department of Labor, and other appropriate agencies and 
    organizations in assisting homeless veterans served by such center;
        ``(3) such center shall be equipped and staffed to provide, or 
    to assist in providing, health care, mental health services, hygiene 
    facilities, benefits and employment counseling, meals, 
    transportation assistance, and such other services as the Secretary 
    determines necessary; and
        ``(4) such center may be equipped and staffed to provide, or to 
    assist in providing, job training and job placement services 
    (including job readiness, job counseling, and literacy and skills 
    training), as well as any outreach and case management services that 
    may be necessary to carry out this paragraph.
``SEC. 4. PER DIEM PAYMENTS.
    ``(a) Per Diem Payments for Furnishing Services To Homeless 
Veterans.--Subject to the availability of appropriations provided for 
under section 12 [set out below], the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, 
pursuant to such criteria as the Secretary shall prescribe, shall 
provide to a recipient of a grant under section 3 (or an entity eligible 
to receive a grant under section 3 which after the date of enactment of 
this Act [Nov. 10, 1992] establishes a program which the Secretary 
determines carries out the purposes described in section 3) per diem 
payments at such rates as the Secretary shall prescribe by regulation 
for services furnished to any homeless veteran--
        ``(1) whom the Secretary has referred to the grant recipient (or 
    entity eligible for such a grant); or
        ``(2) for whom the Secretary has authorized the provision of 
    services.
In a case in which the Secretary has authorized the provision of 
services, per diem payments may be paid retroactively for services 
provided not more than 3 days before the authorization was provided.
    ``(b) Limitation.--The amount of per diem payments made with respect 
to a veteran under this section may not exceed one-half of the cost to 
the grant recipient (or other eligible entity) of providing such 
service.
    ``(c) In-Kind Assistance.--In lieu of per diem payments under this 
section, the Secretary may, with the approval of the grant recipient, 
provide in-kind assistance (through the services of Department employees 
and the use of other Department resources) to a grant recipient (or 
entity eligible for such a grant) under section 3.
    ``(d) Inspections.--The Secretary may inspect any facility of an 
entity eligible for payments under subsection (a) at such times as the 
Secretary considers necessary. No per diem payment may be made to an 
entity under this section unless the facilities of that entity meet such 
standards as the Secretary shall prescribe.''
    [Any action taken by Secretary of Veterans Affairs before Feb. 13, 
1996, under provision of law amended by title I of Pub. L. 104-110 that 
was taken during period beginning on date on which authority of 
Secretary under such provision of law expired and ending on Feb. 13, 
1996, considered to have same force and effect as if such amendment had 
been in effect at time of that action, see section 103 of Pub. L. 104-
110, set out as a note under section 1710 of this title.]


               Annual Reports to Congressional Committees

    Pub. L. 102-590, Sec. 10, Nov. 10, 1992, 106 Stat. 5141, directed 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs, not later than May 1 of each of 1994, 
1995, and 1996, to submit to Committees on Veterans' Affairs of Senate 
and House of Representatives a report on implementation of Pub. L. 102-
590, including information on (1) number of veterans assisted, (2) 
services provided, and (3) Secretary's analysis of operational and 
clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of programs established 
under, or with assistance provided by, Pub. L. 102-590, prior to repeal 
by Pub. L. 103-446, title X, Sec. 1001(c), Nov. 2, 1994, 108 Stat. 4679.


                     Authorization of Appropriations

    Pub. L. 102-590, Sec. 12, Nov. 10, 1992, 106 Stat. 5142, as amended 
by Pub. L. 103-446, title X, Sec. 1004, Nov. 2, 1994, 108 Stat. 4679; 
Pub. L. 104-110, title I, Sec. 102(c)(3), Feb. 13, 1996, 110 Stat. 769; 
Pub. L. 106-117, title IX, Sec. 903(4), Nov. 30, 1999, 113 Stat. 1587, 
provided that: ``There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 
this Act [see Short Title of 1992 Amendment note set out under section 
101 of this title] (other than section 8 [amending section 3735 of this 
title]) $48,000,000 for each of fiscal years 1993 through 1997 and 
$50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2000 and 2001. Nothing in this Act 
shall be construed to diminish funds for, continuation of, or expansion 
of existing programs administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
to serve veterans.''
