Empowering Our Veterans Act of 2014

Empowering Our Veterans Act of 2014 - Prohibits the appropriation of funds, or the obligation or expenditure of funds by Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA), for any VA alternative energy generation project unless the funds for such project have been specifically authorized by law.

Directs the Secretary to transfer all unobligated funds that were appropriated to the VA before this Act's enactment for an alternative energy generation project to the VA's account funding veterans' medical care.

[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5480 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5480

   To prohibit the Secretary of Veterans Affairs from obligating or 
   expending funds for alternative energy generation projects unless 
        specifically authorized by law, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 16, 2014

  Mr. Weber of Texas (for himself and Mr. Schweikert) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' 
  Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Appropriations, for a 
 period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To prohibit the Secretary of Veterans Affairs from obligating or 
   expending funds for alternative energy generation projects unless 
        specifically authorized by law, 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; FINDINGS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Empowering Our 
Veterans Act of 2014''.
    (b) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) The primary responsibility of the Department of 
        Veterans Affairs is to provide the best possible medical care 
        to wounded veterans.
            (2) Since 2009, the Department has expended at least 
        $420,000,000 on solar and wind renewable energy projects at 
        facilities of the Department.
            (3) The wind power generation projects at facilities of the 
        Department have been full of costly delays and expensive 
        overages, thereby wasting millions of taxpayers' dollars and 
        distracting the Department from accomplishing its primary 
        responsibility.
            (4) The current disability claims backlog and appointment 
        wait times are an unacceptable national disgrace.
            (5) The Department should use all required resources to 
        ensure that all qualified veterans receive the best medical 
        care available.

SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL OF ALTERNATIVE ENERGY GENERATION 
              PROJECTS OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) Approval Required.--No funds may be appropriated for any fiscal 
year, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs may not obligate or expend 
funds, for any alternative energy generation project unless funds for 
that project have been specifically authorized by law.
    (b) Transfer.--The Secretary shall transfer all unobligated funds 
appropriated to the Secretary before the date of the enactment of this 
Act for an alternative energy generation project to the ``Medical 
Services'' account of the Department to provide medical care to 
veterans in the health care system established under section 1705(a) of 
title 38, United States Code.
    (c) Alternative Energy Generation Project Defined.--In this 
section, the term ``alternative energy generation project'' means a 
project carried out under the administration of the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs to produce electrical or thermal energy if the primary 
energy source for the project is not oil, natural gas, coal, or nuclear 
power.
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