,,ii #aaith ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #dbah ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,march #bf1 #bjbf,ms4 ,duckworth 7for herself1 ,mr4 ,sheehy1 and ,mr4 ,banks7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,veterans' ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to amend title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code1 to address appraisal fees for housing loans guaranteed by the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,,va ,appraisal ,modernization ,act4 #b4 ,appraisal fees for ,department of ,veterans ,affairs home loans 7a7 ,in general ,chapter #cg of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended by inserting after section #cgca the following new section3 #cgca;,a4 ,appraisal fees 7a7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,appraisal fee ,the term appraisal fee means the compensation paid to an appraiser for conducting an appraisal of property in connection with a loan guaranteed1 insured1 or made under this chapter4 7#b7 ,high-demand county ,the term high-demand county means a county designated as a high-demand county under subsection 7c74 7#c7 ,remote county ,the term remote county means a county designated as a remote county under subsection 7c74 7b7 ,annual inflation adjustment 7#a7 ,baseline ,not later than #ahj days after the date of the enactment of the ,,va ,appraisal ,modernization ,act1 the ,secretary shall establish appraisal fees for purposes of this chapter4 7#b7 ,adjustment ,on ,january #a1 #bjbg1 and annually thereafter1 the ,secretary shall adjust the appraisal fees established under paragraph 7#a7 to reflect the percentage of the increase1 if any1 in the purchase price of homes during the previous year1 as determined by the quarterly purchase-only ,house ,price ,index published by the ,federal ,housing ,finance ,agency1 rounded to the nearest #be4 7#c7 ,publication2 notice ,the ,secretary shall-- 7,a7 publish the appraisal fees established under this subsection on the publicly available website of the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs2 and 7,b7 directly notify the appraisers on the list developed and maintained under section #cgca7;a77#c7 of this title of such fees4 7c7 ,designation of high-,demand counties and remote counties 7#a7 ,high-demand counties 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall designate a county as a high-demand county for purposes of this section if-- 7i7 during the #ij-;day period preceding the date on which the designation is made-- 7,i7 the average time to complete an appraisal in the county exceeded the timeliness standard established under section #cgca of this title by more than three business days2 or 7,,ii7 more than #ae percent of appraisal assignments in the county were unassigned for five or more business days due to insufficient appraiser availability2 or 7ii7 the ,secretary determines1 based on data analysis and market conditions1 that demand for appraisals in the county substantially exceeds available appraiser capacity4 7,b7 ,list2 updates ,the ,secretary shall-- 7i7 maintain a list of high-demand counties designated under subparagraph 7,a72 and 7ii7 on a quarterly basis1 review and update such list4 7#b7 ,remote counties 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall designate a county as a remote county for purposes of this section if-- 7i7 there are fewer than five appraisers on the list developed and maintained under section #cgca7;a77#c7 of this title within #cj miles of the county's geographic center2 7ii7 the average distance traveled by an appraiser to complete an assignment in the county is greater than #dj miles one way2 or 7iii7 the ,secretary determines that the county is characterized by low appraiser density relative to loan volume4 7,b7 ,list2 updates ,the ,secretary shall-- 7i7 maintain a list of remote counties designated under subparagraph 7,a72 and 7ii7 on a quarterly basis1 review and update such list4 7d7 ,appraisal fees in high-,demand counties 7#a7 ,in general ,on ,january #a1 #bjbg1 and annually thereafter1 the ,secretary shall increase the appraisal fee for appraisals made in high-demand counties to not less than #abe percent of the appraisal fee established under subsection 7b74 7#b7 ,increase ,in carrying out paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary may increase the appraisal fee for appraisals made in a high-demand county to not more than #aej percent of the appraisal fee established under subsection 7b7 if the county has been designated as a high-demand county for four quarters or more4 7e7 ,mileage reimbursement 7#a7 ,in general ,for any appraisal made for purposes of this chapter in a high-demand county or remote county1 the ,secretary shall reimburse the appraiser for mileage at the rate prescribed by the ,administrator of ,general ,services under section #egjg7;b7 of title #e for use on official business of privately owned automobiles4 7#b7 ,mileage ,in this subsection1 the term mileage means the round trip distance in miles between the appraiser's place of business and the subject property4 4 7b7 ,clerical amendment ,the table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section #cgca the following new item3 #cgca;,a4 ,appraisal fees4 4 #c4 ,report and study 7a7 ,report ,not later than #ahj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary of ,veterans ,affairs shall submit to the ,committee on ,finance of the ,senate and the ,committee on ,ways and ,means of the ,house of ,representatives a report that includes the following3 7#a7 ,an estimation of-- 7,a7 the effects of section #cgca;,a of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code1 as added by section #b1 on government expenditures over time2 7,b7 the impact of such section on the number of appraisers who join the appraisal network of the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs2 7,c7 the impact of such section on completion times for appraisals in high-demand counties2 and 7,d7 the impact of such section on the use of housing loans guaranteed1 insured1 or made under chapter #cg of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code4 7#b7 ,recommendations to prevent fraud1 waste1 and abuse in the implementation of such section4 7b7 ,study ,not later than #ahj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary of ,veterans ,affairs shall-- 7#a7 conduct on a study on the feasibility and advisability of-- 7,a7 procuring contracts for home appraisers in areas where supply cannot meet demand2 and 7,b7 restructuring the appraisal process of the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs to more closely mirror the appraisal process for loans insured by the ,federal ,housing ,administration2 and 7#b7 submit to ,congress1 and make publicly available1 a report on the results of such study4