[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4809 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4809
To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a grant
program for the provision of service dogs to eligible veterans, and for
other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 20, 2023
Mr. Santos introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Veterans' Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a grant
program for the provision of service dogs to eligible veterans, and for
other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Service Dogs Assisting Veterans
Act'' or the ``SAVES Act''.
SEC. 2. GRANT PROGRAM FOR PROVISION OF SERVICE DOGS TO VETERANS.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, acting through
the Under Secretary for Health of the Department of Veterans Affairs,
shall establish a program under which the Secretary may award grants,
on a competitive basis, to nonprofit organizations determined eligible
by the Secretary under subsection (b) to assist such organizations in
carrying out programs to provide service dogs to eligible veterans.
(b) Applications.--
(1) Submission.--To be eligible to receive a grant under
this section, a nonprofit organization shall submit to the
Secretary an application at such time, in such manner, and
containing such information as the Secretary may require.
(2) Elements.--An application submitted under paragraph (1)
shall include the following:
(A) A proposal for the evaluation required under
subsection (d)(2).
(B) A description of, with respect to the program
to be planned, designed, established, or operated using
grant amounts, the following:
(i) The training to be provided to eligible
veterans by the organization in connection with
the program.
(ii) The training of dogs that will serve
as service dogs under the program.
(iii) The aftercare services to be provided
to such dogs and eligible veterans by the
organization under the program.
(iv) The plan for publicizing the
availability of such dogs under the program
through a marketing campaign that targets
eligible veterans.
(v) The commitment of the organization to
have humane standards for animals.
(C) A statement certifying that the organization is
accredited by the organization known as ``Assistance
Dogs International'', or successor organization, or
another accreditation organization that the Secretary
determines is similarly widely recognized and has
accreditation standards that meet or exceed the
standards of Assistance Dogs International.
(c) Use of Funds.--A recipient of a grant under this section may
only use the grant amounts so received to plan, design, establish, or
operate one or more programs that provide service dogs to eligible
veterans.
(d) Conditions.--As a condition of awarding a grant to a nonprofit
organization under this section, the Secretary shall require that each
such organization agree to--
(1) provide equal access to service dogs to eligible
veterans who are women; and
(2) conduct an evaluation of the effectiveness of the
activities carried out by the organization using grant amounts.
(e) Maximum Amount.--The total amount of grants awarded to each
nonprofit organization under this section may not exceed $2,000,000.
(f) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) The term ``covered disability'' means any of the
following:
(A) Blindness or visual impairment.
(B) Loss of use of a limb, paralysis, or other
significant mobility issue.
(C) Loss of hearing.
(D) Traumatic brain injury.
(E) Post-traumatic stress disorder.
(F) Military sexual trauma.
(G) Any other disability that the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs considers appropriate.
(2) The term ``covered service'', with respect to a dog--
(A) means the conduct of work or performance of
tasks by the dog--
(i) for the benefit of an individual with a
disability, including a physical or sensory
disability or a psychiatric, intellectual, or
other mental disability; and
(ii) directly related to the disability of
the individual; and
(B) does not include--
(i) the crime-deterrent effects of the
presence of the dog; or
(ii) the provision by the dog of emotional
support, well-being, comfort, or companionship.
(3) The term ``eligible veteran'' means a veteran who--
(A) is enrolled in the system of annual patient
enrollment of the Department of Veterans Affairs
established and operated under section 1705(a) of title
38, United States Code; and
(B) has at least one covered disability.
(4) The term ``service dog'' means any dog that is
individually trained to provide covered service.
(g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this Act $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years
2024 through 2028.
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