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116TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 1749
To authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to make grants to State
and local entities to carry out peer-to-peer mental health programs.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 13, 2019
Mr. ZELDIN (for himself, Ms. STEFANIK, Miss RICE of New York, Mr.
SUOZZI, Mr. COLLINS of New York, and Mr. KING of New York) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Vet-
erans’ Affairs
A BILL
To authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to make
grants to State and local entities to carry out peer-
to-peer mental health programs.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
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tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
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This Act may be cited as the ‘‘PFC Joseph P. Dwyer
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Peer Support Program Act’’.
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SEC. 2. P.F.C. JOSEPH P. DWYER PEER SUPPORT PROGRAM.
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(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs
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shall establish a grant program to be known as the
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‘‘P.F.C. Joseph P. Dwyer Peer Support Program’’ under
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which the Secretary shall make grants to eligible entities
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for the purpose of establishing peer-to-peer mental health
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programs for veterans.
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(b) ELIGIBLE ENTITY DEFINED.—In this section,
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the term ‘‘eligible entity’’ means any of the following enti-
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ties that submit to the Secretary an application containing
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such information and assurances as the Secretary may re-
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quire:
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(1) A nonprofit organization having historically
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served veterans mental health needs.
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(2) A congressionally chartered veteran service
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organization.
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(3) A State, local, or tribal veteran service
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agency, director, or commissioner.
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(c) AMOUNT OF GRANT.—The recipient of a grant
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under this section shall receive a grant in an amount that
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does not exceed $250,000.
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(d) USE OF FUNDS.—The recipient of a grant under
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this section shall use the grant funds to—
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(1) carry out a program that meets the stand-
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ards developed under subsection (e);
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(2) hire veterans to serve as peer specialists to
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host group and individual meetings with veterans
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seeking nonclinical support;
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(3) provide mental health support to veterans
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24 hours each day, seven days each week; and
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(4) hire staff to support the program.
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(e) PROGRAM STANDARDS.—
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(1) ADVISORY
COMMISSION.—The Secretary
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shall establish an advisory committee for the pur-
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pose of creating appropriate standards applicable to
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programs established using grants under this sec-
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tion.
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(2) STANDARDS.—The standards developed
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under paragraph (1) shall include initial and contin-
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ued training for veteran peer volunteers, administra-
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tive staffing needs, and best practices for addressing
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the needs of each veteran served.
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(f) NONRETENTION
OF RECORDS.—The Secretary
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may not require the recipient of a grant under this section
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to maintain records on veterans seeking support or to re-
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port any personally identifying information directly or in-
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directly to the Secretary about such veterans.
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(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is
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authorized to be appropriated $25,000,000 to carry out
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this section during the 3-year period beginning on the date
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of the enactment of this Act.
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Æ
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