H.R. 5995

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5995 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 5995

To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to make grants to eligible 
entities for the purpose of carrying out Ask the Question Campaigns, 
and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

November 10, 2025

Ms. Brownley (for herself and Mr. Thanedar) introduced the following 
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to make grants to eligible 
entities for the purpose of carrying out Ask the Question Campaigns, 
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.

This Act may be cited as the ``Have You Served Act''.

SEC. 2. GRANTS FOR ASK THE QUESTION CAMPAIGNS.

(a) Grant Program.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall make 
grants to eligible entities for the purpose of carrying out campaigns, 
to be known as ``Ask the Question Campaigns'', to encourage human 
services professionals, State and local governments, and community 
providers to ask consumers whether they or a loved one have served in 
the Armed Forces.
(b) Use of Funds.--An eligible entity that receives a grant under 
subsection (a) shall use the grant--
(1) to develop or expand an Ask the Question Campaign, 
under which the entity shall provide training to human services 
professionals, State and local governments, and community 
providers about--
(A) how to appropriately ask consumers whether they 
or a loved one have served in the Armed Forces; and
(B) resources available for members of the Armed 
Forces and veterans in their community through the 
Department of Veterans Affairs and other service 
providers to encourage the recipients of such training 
to refer consumers to the Department and other service 
providers, as appropriate; and
(2) for associated program costs, including staffing, 
technology, marketing and outreach materials, and convenings.
(c) Eligible Entity.--For purposes of this section, an eligible 
entity is a State or an American Indian or Alaska Native tribe--
(1) that--
(A) in the case of a State, develops a veteran 
suicide prevention plan, known as a ``Governors 
Challenge Action Plan''; or
(B) in the case of an American Indian or Alaska 
Native tribe, develops a veteran suicide prevention 
plan; and
(2) that submits to the Secretary a proposal for the 
implementation of such plan that contains such information and 
assurances as the Secretary may require.
(d) Technical Assistance.--The Secretary shall provide technical 
assistance to eligible entities that receive grants under this section 
to support the development and implementation of Ask the Question 
Campaigns. Such assistance shall include--
(1) the provision of best practices acquired from the 
experiences of other eligible entities carrying out Ask the 
Question Campaigns;
(2) the provision of information on veterans resources in 
the State where the eligible entity is located;
(3) the provision of information about screening protocols 
used by the Department for assessing suicide risk and social 
determinants of health; and
(4) establishing key performance indicators for the 
training provided under the Campaigns.
(e) Amount of Grant.--The Secretary may make up to 25 grants under 
this section for each of fiscal years 2026 through 2030. Each such 
grant shall be in an amount that does not exceed ``$200,000''.
(f) Reporting.--
(1) Grant recipients.--As a condition of a grant under this 
section, an eligible entity shall agree to submit, by not later 
than the last day of each fiscal year during which the entity 
receives a grant, to the Secretary a report on the key 
performance indicators for the training provided using the 
grant funds.
(2) Implementation report.--Not later than one year after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 
submit to Congress a report on the implementation of this 
section.
(3) Annual report.--Not later than 30 days after the last 
day of a fiscal year for which the Secretary makes a grant 
under this section, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a 
report on the key performance indicators for the training 
provided under such grants.
(g) Ask the Question Campaigns for Federal Agencies.--The 
Secretary, in coordination with the Director of the Office of 
Management and Budget, shall develop a plan to work with each Federal 
department and agency to implement Ask the Question Campaigns, where 
appropriate, through any social service or health care programs of the 
department or agency through which employees of the department or 
agency interact with individuals receiving services and benefits.
(h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out this 
section $6,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2026 through 2030.
(i) State Defined.--In this section, the term ``State'' means each 
of the several States, Territories, and possessions of the United 
States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
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