TOURS Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9376 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9376

 To amend title 38, United States Code, to codify the National Veteran
    Suicide Prevention Annual Report and to direct the Secretary of
 Veterans Affairs to study the effects of the Chaplain Service of the
           Department on the risk of suicide among veterans.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 18, 2026

 Mr. Valadao introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
                     Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 To amend title 38, United States Code, to codify the National Veteran
    Suicide Prevention Annual Report and to direct the Secretary of
 Veterans Affairs to study the effects of the Chaplain Service of the
           Department on the risk of suicide among veterans.

    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 ``Trauma Outreach, Understanding, and
Resiliency through Spirituality Act'' or the ``TOURS Act''.

SEC. 2. NATIONAL VETERAN SUICIDE PREVENTION ANNUAL REPORT:
              CODIFICATION; ANNUAL BRIEFING.

    Section 1720F of title 38, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (l) as subsection (m); and
            (2) by inserting, after subsection (k), the following new
        subsection (l):
    ``(l) Annual Report; Briefing.--(1) The Secretary, acting through
the Office of Mental Health and Suicide Prevention of the Department,
shall produce an annual report on suicide prevention.
    ``(2) The Secretary shall submit each such report to the Committees
on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives.
    ``(3) The Secretary shall provide an annual briefing on the most
recent such report to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate
and House of Representatives.''.

SEC. 3. EFFECT OF CHAPLAIN SERVICE OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS
              AFFAIRS ON RISK OF SUICIDE BY VETERANS: STUDY; REPORT.

    (a) Study Required.--Not later than January 1, 2027, the Secretary
of Veterans Affairs shall conduct a two-year study on the relationship
between--
            (1) veterans' engagement with the Chaplain Service and
        other faith-based programs of the Department; and
            (2) the risk of suicide among veterans.
    (b) Scope.--In carrying out the study under this section, the
Secretary shall--
            (1) identify and define measurable categories of such
        engagement, including group activities, outreach events, and
        non-confidential interactions;
            (2) track veterans' use of mental health services that
        involve chaplains;
            (3) track veterans' use of faith-based programs of the
        Department;
            (4) collect and analyze data on such engagement across
        facilities of the Department;
            (5) assess correlations, if any, between such engagement
        and mental health outcomes, including suicide-related
        behaviors; and
            (6) identify best practices and programs that demonstrate
        positive outcomes.
    (c) Limitations.--In carrying out the study, the Secretary shall
ensure that--
            (1) veterans are informed of such data collection;
            (2) no data is collected or reported that would compromise
        the confidentiality of medical records or protected religious
        communications; and
            (3) use of chaplaincy services remains voluntary.
    (d) Reports.--The Secretary shall submit to the Committees on
Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives a report
regarding such study not later than 90 days after the end of each year
of the study. Elements of each such report include the following:
            (1) A summary of data collected.
            (2) An analysis of trends and outcomes.
            (3) A list of programs that the Secretary determines have a
        measurable effect on the risk of suicide.
            (4) Recommendations of the Secretary regarding how to
        improve data collection regarding, and resource allocation for,
        suicide prevention.
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