,,ii #aaith ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #adda ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,april #aj1 #bjbe,mr4 ,tillis 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,blumenthal1 ,mr4 ,cornyn1 ,mr4 ,durbin1 ,mr4 ,cramer1 ,ms4 ,slotkin1 ,mr4 ,king1 ,ms4 ,rosen1 and ,mrs4 ,shaheen7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,veterans' ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to require the ,secretary of ,veterans ,affairs to award grants to nonprofit entities to assist such entities in carrying out programs to provide service dogs to eligible veterans1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,service ,dogs ,assisting ,veterans ,act of #bjbe or the ,,saves ,act of #bjbe4 #b4 ,department of ,veterans ,affairs pilot program to award grants for the provision of service dogs to veterans 7a7 ,in general 7#a7 ,pilot program required ,not later than #bd months after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary of ,veterans ,affairs shall establish a pilot program under which the ,secretary shall award grants1 on a competitive basis1 to nonprofit entities to provide service dogs to eligible veterans4 7#b7 ,duration ,the ,secretary shall carry out the pilot program during the five-year period beginning on the date on which the first grant is awarded under this section4 7b7 ,applications 7#a7 ,in general ,to be eligible to receive a grant under this section1 a nonprofit entity shall submit an application to the ,secretary at such time1 in such manner1 and containing such commitments and information as the ,secretary may require4 7#b7 ,elements ,an application submitted under paragraph 7#a7 shall include the following3 7,a7 ,a proposal for the provision of service dogs to eligible veterans1 including how the nonprofit entity will communicate with the ,secretary to ensure an increasing number of service dogs are provided to such veterans4 7,b7 ,a description of the following3 7i7 ,the training that will be provided by the nonprofit entity to eligible veterans4 7ii7 ,the training of dogs that will serve as service dogs4 7iii7 ,any additional support or services the nonprofit entity will provide for such dogs and eligible veterans4 7iv7 ,the plan for publicizing the availability of such dogs through a marketing campaign that targets eligible veterans4 7v7 ,the commitment of the nonprofit entity to have humane standards for animals4 7vi7 ,the demonstrated experience of the nonprofit entity in training service dogs in compliance with the requirements of the ,americans with ,disabilities ,act of #aiij 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #abaja et seq474 7c7 ,award of grants 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall award a grant to each nonprofit entity for which the ,secretary has approved an application submitted under subsection 7b77#a74 7#b7 ,agreement required ,before the provision of any grant amounts to a nonprofit entity selected to receive a grant under this section1 the ,secretary shall enter into an agreement1 containing such terms1 conditions1 and limitations as the ,secretary determines appropriate1 with such entity4 7#c7 ,maximum grant amount ,a grant awarded to a nonprofit entity under this section may not exceed #b1jjj1jjj4 7#d7 ,payments ,the ,secretary shall establish intervals of payment for the administration of each grant awarded under this section4 7d7 ,use of funds 7#a7 ,in general 7,a7 ,requirement ,a recipient of a grant under this section shall use the grant amounts to plan1 develop1 implement1 or manage 7or any combination thereof7 one or more covered programs4 7,b7 ,covered program defined ,in this paragraph1 the term covered program means a program under which-- 7i7 service dogs are provided to participants in the program2 and 7ii7 only eligible veterans are allowed to participate in the program4 7#b7 ,administrative expenses ,the ,secretary may establish a maximum amount for each grant awarded under this section that may be used by the recipient of the grant to cover administrative expenses4 7#c7 ,other conditions and limitations ,the ,secretary may establish other conditions or limitations on the use of grant amounts under this section4 7e7 ,requirements for grant recipients 7#a7 ,notifications and information ,a recipient of a grant under this section shall-- 7,a7 notify each veteran who receives a service dog through such grant that the service dog is being paid for1 in whole or in part1 by the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs2 and 7,b7 inform each such veteran of the benefits and services available from the ,secretary for the veteran and the service dog4 7#b7 ,prohibition on certain fees ,a recipient of a grant under this section may not charge a fee to a veteran receiving a service dog through such grant4 7f7 ,veterinary insurance 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall provide to each veteran who receives a service dog through a grant under this section a commercially available veterinary insurance policy for the service dog4 7#b7 ,continuation ,if the ,secretary provides a veterinary insurance policy to a veteran under paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary shall continue to provide the policy to the veteran without regard to the continuation or termination of the pilot program4 7g7 ,training and technical assistance ,the ,secretary may provide training and technical assistance to recipients of grants under this section4 7h7 ,oversight and monitoring 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary-- 7,a7 shall establish such oversight and monitoring requirements as the ,secretary determines appropriate to ensure that grant amounts awarded under this section are used appropriately2 and 7,b7 may take such actions as the ,secretary determines necessary to address any issues identified through the enforcement of such requirements4 7#b7 ,reports and answers ,the ,secretary may require each recipient of a grant under this section to provide1 in such form as may be prescribed by the ,secretary1 such reports or answers in writing to specific questions1 surveys1 or questionnaires as the ,secretary determines necessary to carry out the pilot program4 7i7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,eligible veteran 7,a7 ,in general ,the term eligible veteran means a veteran 7as defined in section #aja of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code7 who1 as determined by a physician1 has one or more disabilities1 conditions1 or diagnoses described in subparagraph 7,b74 7,b7 ,disability1 condition1 diagnosis described ,a disability1 condition1 or diagnosis described in this subparagraph is any of the following3 7i7 ,blindness or visual impairment4 7ii7 ,loss of use of a limb1 paralysis1 or other significant mobility issue1 including mental health mobility4 7iii7 ,loss of hearing4 7iv7 ,post-traumatic stress disorder4 7v7 ,traumatic brain injury4 7vi7 ,any other disability1 condition1 or diagnosis for which the ,secretary determines1 based on medical judgment1 that it is optimal for the veteran to manage the disability1 condition1 or diagnosis and live independently through the assistance of a service dog4 7#b7 ,pilot program ,the term pilot program means the pilot program required by subsection 7a77#a74 7#c7 ,service dog ,the term service dog means any dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks that are-- 7,a7 for the benefit of a veteran with a disability1 condition1 or diagnosis described in paragraph 7#a77;,b72 and 7,b7 directly related to the disability1 condition1 or diagnosis of the veteran4 7j7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section #aj1jjj1jjj for each of the five consecutive fiscal years following the fiscal year in which the pilot program is established under subsection 7a74