§2854 Restoration or replacement of damaged or destroyed facilities

Summary

The Secretary in charge may fix, rebuild, or replace any facility they manage, including family housing, if it is damaged or destroyed. If the work will cost more than the limit for a minor construction project, the Secretary must tell the proper congressional committees why the project is needed, how much it will cost, where the money will come from, and why it is being done this way. The notice must be sent electronically under section 480, and the work can only start after 14 days from when the committees get that notice. The Secretary may use operation-and-maintenance funds to replace a facility only if the damage was caused by a natural disaster or a terrorism incident and a notice is sent to Congress with the cost, funding source, and required certifications (if the building is damaged rather than destroyed, replacing must be more cost-effective than repairing, and delaying the project would harm national security or health, safety, or the environment). That work can start only after 7 days from the electronic notice, and the total O&M money used this way in one fiscal year cannot exceed $300,000,000.