PSI Sci
New here? Follow the money and the votes · Not sure of your district? Find your U.S. House member · Find your state legislators

H.R. 5815: Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Authorization Act of 2006

Before you vote › Federal bills

H.R. 5815: Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Authorization Act of 2006

109th Congress · introduced 2006-07-17 · Armed Forces and National Security · Latest: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2006-07-17 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Rep. Brown, Henry E., Jr. [R-SC-1] · what a sponsor is
  3. What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
  4. Where it stands now: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
  5. If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Authorization Act of 2006

Plain summary

Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Authorization Act of 2006 - (Sec. 2) Authorizes the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a major medical facility project (project) for restoration of the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Biloxi, Mississippi. (Sec. 3) Authorizes the Secretary to enter into an agreement with: (1) Louisiana State University to design, construct, and operate a joint-use medical facility in or near New Orleans, Louisiana, to replace the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in New Orleans damaged by Hurricane Katrina in August 2005; and (2) the Medical University of South Carolina to design, construct, and operate a joint-use medical facility in Charleston, South Carolina, to replace the Ralph H. Johnson Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Charleston. (Sec. 5) Authorizes the Secretary to enter into an agreement to purchase a site for the replacement of the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Denver, Colorado. Requires a report from the Secretary to the congressional veterans' committees on options available for the replacement facility. (Sec. 6) Authorizes the Secretary to carry out specified projects in connection with the Capital Asset Realignment Initiative (Initiative) in Alaska, California, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas. (Sec. 7) Authorizes the Secretary to carry out specified major medical facility leases in: (1) FY2006 in Indiana, Maryland, and Texas; and (2) FY2007 in Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, and Texas. (Sec. 8) Authorizes appropriations for: (1) FY2006 projects; (2) projects under the Initiative; and (3) major medical facility leases. (Sec. 9) Expresses the sense of Congress recognizing the need for veterans' medical facility improvements in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Requires a report from the Secretary to the veterans' committees on options available for replacing the current Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in San Juan. (Sec. 10) Authorizes the Secretary to convey to the city of Fort Thomas, Kentucky, a portion of Tower Park in Fort Thomas. (Sec. 11) Establishes in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) the position of Director, Construction and Facilities Management, with responsibility for: (1) construction and facilities management across the VA; and (2) all VA major and minor construction projects. (Sec. 12) Directs the Secretary to submit to the veterans' committees: (1) a business plan for enhanced access to outpatient care for primary, mental health, and specialty care in the areas of Lewiston-Auburn, Houlton, and Dover-Foxcroft in Maine and Whiteside County, Illinois; and (2) a report identifying and outlining options available for the placement of a VA medical center in Okaloosa County, Florida.

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House amended), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Authorization Act of 2006

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House amended)

AI explanation – may be wrong, check the official text

No AI explanation yet. It takes up to a minute to write and is then saved for everyone.

Limited to a few requests an hour per person.

The strongest published arguments

Arguments for (supporters)

Needs sources: no published arguments on this side yet. We only show items backed by a published source. Suggest one.

Arguments against (opponents)

Needs sources: no published arguments on this side yet. We only show items backed by a published source. Suggest one.

Alternatives

Needs sources: no published alternatives yet (for example a different bill, a law instead of an amendment, or keeping current law). We only show items backed by a published source. Suggest one.

How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Brown, Henry E., Jr. [R-SC-1] · 3 cosponsors

Cost estimate: CBO cost estimate: H.R. 5815, Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Authorization Act of 2006 (2006-08-30); CBO cost estimate: H.R. 5815, Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Authorization Act of 2006 (2006-08-30)

Cosponsors on this site

Agencies named in this bill

Found automatically: the agency's full official name appears in the bill title. A bill can affect agencies it does not name, so this list may be incomplete.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (3)
Appropriation
Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Authorization
A law that creates or continues a government program and says what it may do, often with a suggested spending ceiling. An authorization alone does not provide money; a separate appropriation does.
Ballot initiative
A proposed law or constitutional amendment that citizens place on the ballot by gathering enough voter signatures, so voters decide it directly. About half the states allow some form of it.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Record fed-us-cong109-hr5815 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong109 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong109