Military Construction and Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2017

Floor Speech

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Mr. DENT. 4974, and that I may include tabular material on the same.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chairman, I reserve a point of order on the gentleman's amendment.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chairman, I reserve a point of order on the gentleman's amendment.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chairman, I insist on my point of order.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chair, I make a point of order against this amendment. Although it is a very well-intended amendment, and I am very sympathetic to what he wants to do, I think there might be a way, if the gentleman withdraws and tries to perfect that amendment, that it might be made in order.

This amendment proposes to change existing law and constitutes legislation in an appropriation bill and, therefore, violates clause 2 of rule XXI.

The rule states in pertinent part: ``An amendment to a general appropriation bill shall not be in order if changing existing law.''

The bill gives direction to that effect.

I ask for a ruling from the Chair.

Again, I would ask my colleague to consider withdrawing and see if he can perfect that amendment so that it would be made in order.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chair, on the point of order, the point I am trying to make is this: if the amendment is withdrawn, it can be reworked so that it would be in order. We believe that there is a way to do that even today. That is the offer I am making to you. If the amendment is withdrawn, there is a possibility that this amendment could be made in order, but it does have to be perfected.

I am a cosponsor of the actual underlying legislation, so I support it. But at the moment, in our view, it does constitute legislation in an appropriation bill, and, therefore, it violates clause 2 of rule XXI.

But I pledge to work to the best of our ability to try to make it in order, even today, if possible.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition, but I am not opposed to the gentleman's amendment.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chair, I understand the gentleman's concerns about starting this large, new office at the VA. As you can see from our report, we cut the request for General Administration by $81.3 million, largely because of our concerns about funding this large office; so I think we have already achieved what the gentleman is looking to accomplish. It is hard to imagine that the VA could find $81 million in another account to backfill this office.

I will not oppose the gentleman's amendment. I will tell the gentleman, however, that this will inevitably become a conference issue because the Senate supports the creation of the office.

I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition, but I am not opposed to the gentleman's amendment.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chair, this amendment is familiar to us since the gentleman offered it last year. I am not sure it is necessary to repeat the language this year since we know the VA has rescinded the Fast Letter guidance. After all, with the IG investigation into the dual scheduling systems, it doesn't seem likely that the VA is maintaining recordkeeping systems that are not approved by headquarters; but I am not going to object to the amendment.

I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition, but I am not opposed to the gentleman's amendment.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chair, I understand there is a great demand throughout our Nation for State veterans' homes, and I wish we had the allocation to provide more for this program than we did.

I do want to raise a concern with the language that it might--I say ``might.'' I am not saying ``definitely''--favor some States rather than increase funding for the entire State HOME Program. I was pleased to hear the gentleman state that he is not trying to jump ahead of other States that may be in line, but this is an issue that we are going to have to discuss at the conference committee.

I am not going to object to the amendment.

Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chair, I claim the time to speak in opposition, but I am not opposed to the amendment.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chair, no one shares the gentleman's concerns more than I do about the inappropriate relocation incentive payments the VA initially paid to two executives at the Philadelphia regional office. The VA has since reformed its policies, and I hope we will never ever hear again about such egregious staff misconduct and inappropriate reimbursements.

However, I do think that the relocation incentive can be an important tool in some circumstances.

As I said, there was egregious misconduct in Philadelphia, as the gentleman correctly points out. There is no question. In fact, many of us went and visited the Philadelphia regional office at about that time for a hearing, both Republicans and Democrats, authorizers and appropriators, to discuss the challenges at that particular office.

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Mr. DENT. I yield to the gentleman.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word.

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Mr. DENT. The Department of Defense has awarded one construction contract, that is the explosives-handling wharf in Kitsap, Washington--I believe, in the gentleman's district--where the solicitation favored PLAs.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has not awarded any contracts that have used PLAs, and they currently have no solicitations that favor PLAs. That said, I am very sympathetic with the gentleman's amendment, and I urge adoption of the amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chairman, I claim the time in opposition, but I do not oppose the amendment.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chairman, the gentlewoman has offered the amendment in previous years, and we have accepted it.

Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chairman, I claim time in opposition, but I am not opposed.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chairman, we support the amendment. We appreciate the good work that my friend from New York (Mr. Gibson) has done to advocate on behalf of all veterans, and particularly his commitment to helping those who suffered from Agent Orange exposure, as well as many other issues.

So I support the amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. DENT. Will the gentleman yield?

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Mr. DENT. I support the amendment, and I certainly oppose discrimination in any way, shape, or form, particularly as, in this case, it relates to Federal contracting. I do support the amendment.

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Mr. DENT. Mr. Chairman, I move that the Committee do now rise and report the bill back to the House with sundry amendments, with the recommendation that the amendments be agreed to and that the bill, as amended, do pass.

The motion was agreed to.

Accordingly, the Committee rose; and the Speaker pro tempore (Mr. Thompson of Pennsylvania) having assumed the chair, Mr. Collins of Georgia, Chair of the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union, reported that that Committee, having had under consideration the bill (H.R. 4974) making appropriations for military construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2017, and for other purposes, directed him to report the bill back to the House with sundry amendments adopted in the Committee of the Whole, with the recommendation that the amendments be agreed to and that the bill, as amended, do pass.

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