possession is consistent with the laws of the State in which the facility is located, liquor may be used and maintained in quarters assigned to employees as their normal abode, and away from the abode with the written consent of the head of the facility which specifies a special occasion for use and limits the area and period for the authorized use.

(8) Soliciting, vending, and debt collection. Soliciting alms and contributions, commercial soliciting and vending of all kinds, displaying or distributing commercial advertising, or collecting private debts in or on property is prohibited. This rule does not apply to (i) national or local drives for funds for welfare, health, or other purposes as authorized under Executive Order 12353, Charitable Fund Raising (March 23, 1982), as amended by Executive Order 12404 (February 10, 1983), and regulations issued by the Office of Personnel Management implementing these Executive Orders; (ii) concessions or personal notices posted by employees on authorized bulletin boards; and (iii) solicitation of labor organization membership or dues under 5 U.S.C. chapter 71.

(9) Distribution of handbills. The distributing of materials such as pamphlets, handbills, and/or flyers, and the displaying of placards or posting of materials on bulletin boards or elsewhere on property is prohibited, except as authorized by the head of the facility or designee or when such distributions or displays are conducted as part of authorized Government activities.

(10) Photographs for news, advertising, or commercial purposes. Photographs for advertising or commercial purposes may be taken only with the written consent of the head of the facility or designee. Photographs for news purposes may be taken at entrances, lobbies, foyers, or in other places designated by the head of the facility or designee.

(11) Dogs and other animals. Dogs and other animals, except seeing-eye dogs, shall not be brought upon property except as authorized by the head of the facility or designee.

(12) Vehicular and pedestrian traffic. Drivers of all vehicles in or on property shall drive in a careful and safe manner

at all times and shall comply with the signals and directions of police and all posted traffic signs. The blocking of entrances, driveways, walks, loading platforms, or fire hydrants in or on property is prohibited; parking in unauthorized locations or in locations reserved for other persons or contrary to the direction of posted signs is prohibited. Creating excessive noise on hospital or cemetery premises by muffler cut out, the excessive use of a horn, or other means is prohibited. Operation of a vehicle in a reckless or unsafe manner, drag racing, bumping, overriding curbs, or leaving the roadway is prohibited.

(13) Weapons and explosives. No person while on property shall carry firearms, other dangerous or deadly weapons, or ( explosives, either openly or concealed, except for official purposes.

be defined as, but not limited to, pick- | eting, or similar conduct on VA property; any oration or similar conduct to assembled groups of people, unless the oration is part of an authorized service; the display of any placards, banners, or foreign flags on VA property unless approved by the head of the facility or designee; disorderly conduct such as fighting, threatening, violent, or tumultuous behavior, unreasonable noise or coarse utterance, gesture or display or the use of abusive language to any person present; and partisan activities. i.e., those involving commentary or actions in support of, or in opposition to, or attempting to influence, any current policy of the Government of the United States, or any private group, association, or enterprise.

(15) Key security. The head of the facility of designee, will determine which employees, by virtue of their duties, Ishall have access to keys or barrier

card keys which operate locks to rooms or areas on the property. The unauthorized possession, manufacture, and/ or use of such keys or barrier cards is prohibited. The surreptitious opening or attempted opening of locks or cardoperated barrier mechanisms is prohibited.

(16) Sexual misconduct. Any act of sexual gratification on VA property involving two or more persons, who do not reside in quarters on the property, is prohibited. Acts of prostitution or solicitation for acts of prostitution on VA property is prohibited. For the purposes of this paragraph, an act of prostitution is defined as the performance or the offer or agreement to perform any sexual act for money or payment.

(b) Schedule of offenses and penalties. Conduct in violation of the rules and regulations set forth in paragraph (a) of this section subjects an offender to arrest and removal from the premises. Whomever shall be found guilty of violating these rules and regulations while on any property under the charge and control of VA is subject to a fine as stated in the schedule set forth herein or, if appropriate, the payment of fixed sum in lieu of appearance (forfeiture of collateral) as may be provided for in rules of the United States District Court. Violations included in the schedule of offenses and penalties may also subject an offender to a term of imprisonment of not more than six months, as may be determined appropriate by a magistrate or judge of the United States District Court:

(1) Improper disposal of rubbish on property, $200.

(2) Spitting on property, $25.

(3) Throwing of articles from a building or the unauthorized climbing upon any part of a building, $50.

(4) Willful destruction, damage, or removal of Government property without authorization, $500.

(5) Defacement, destruction, mutilation or injury to, or removal, or disturbance of, gravemarker or headstone, $500.

(6) Failure to comply with signs of a directive and restrictive nature posted for safety purposes, $50.

(7) Tampering with, removal, marring, or destruction of posted signs, $150.

(8) Entry into areas posted as closed to the public or others (trespass), $50.

(9) Unauthorized demonstration or service in a national cemetery or on other VA property, $250.

(10) Creating a disturbance during a burial ceremony, $250.

(11) Disorderly conduct which creates loud, boisterous, and unusual noise, or which obstructs the normal use of entrances, exits, foyers, offices, corridors, elevators, and stairways or which tends to impede or prevent the normal operation of a service or operation of the facility, $250.

(12) Failure to depart premises by unauthorized persons, $50.

(13) Unauthorized loitering, sleeping or assembly on property, $50.

(14) Gambling-participating in games of chance for monetary gain or personal property; the operation of gambling devices, a pool or lottery; or the taking or giving of bets, $200.

(15) Operation of a vehicle under the influence of alcoholic beverages or nonprescribed hallucinogens,

narcotic marijuana,

rates, or amphetamines, $500.

drugs, barbitu

(16) Entering premises under the influence of alcoholic beverages or narcotic drugs, hallucinogens, marijuana, barbiturates or amphetamines, $200.

(17) Unauthorized use on property of alcoholic beverages or narcotic drugs, hallucinogens, marijuana, barbiturates, or amphetamines, $300.

or

(18) Unauthorized introduction on VA controlled property of alcoholic beverages narcotic drugs, hallucinogens, marijuana, barbiturates, or amphetamines or the unauthorized giving of same to a patient or beneficiary, $500.

(19) Unauthorized solicitation of alms and contributions on premises, $50.

(20) Commercial soliciting or vending, or the collection of private debts on property, $50.

(21) Distribution of pamphlets, handbills, and flyers, $25.

(22) Display of placards or posting of material on property, $25.

(23) Unauthorized photography on premises, $50.

(24) Failure to comply with traffic directions of VA police, $25.

(25) Parking in spaces posted as reserved for physically disabled persons, $50.

(26) Parking in no-parking areas, lanes, or crosswalks SO posted or marked by yellow borders or yellow stripes, $25.

(27) Parking in emergency vehicle spaces, areas and lanes bordered in red or posted as EMERGENCY VEHICLES ONLY or FIRE LANE, or parking within 15 feet of a fire hydrant, $50.

(28) Parking within an intersection or blocking a posted vehicle entrance or posted exit lane, $25.

(29) Parking in spaces posted as reserved or in excess of a posted time limit, $15.

(30) Failing to come to a complete stop at a STOP sign, $25.

(31) Failing to yield to a pedestrian in a marked and posted crosswalk, $25. (32) Driving in the wrong direction on a posted one-way street, $25.

(33) Operation of a vehicle in a reckless or unsafe manner, too fast for conditions, drag racing, overriding curbs, or leaving the roadway, $100.

(34) Exceeding posted speed limits:
(i) By up to 10 mph, $25.
(ii) By up to 20 mph, $50.
(iii) By over 20 mph, $100.

(35) Creating excessive noise in a hospital or cemetery zone by muffler cut out, excessive use of a horn, or other means, $50.

(36) Failure to yield right of way to other vehicles, $50.

(37) Possession of firearms, carried either openly or concealed, whether loaded or unloaded (except by Federal or State law enforcement officers on official business, $500.

(38) Introduction or possession of explosives, or explosive devices which fire a projectile, ammunition, or combustibles, $500.

(39) Possession of knives which exceed a blade length of 3 inches; switchblade knives; any of the variety of hatchets, clubs and hand-held weapons; or brass knuckles, $300.

(40) The unauthorized possession of any of the variety of incapacitating liquid or gas-emitting weapons, $200.

(41) Unauthorized possession, manufacture, or use of keys or barrier cardtype keys to rooms or areas on the property, $200.

(42) The surreptitious opening, or attempted opening, of locks or card-operated barrier mechanisms on property. $500.

(43) Soliciting for, or the act of, prostitution, $250.

(44) Any unlawful sexual activity, $250.

(45) Jogging, bicycling, sledding or any recreational physical activity conducted on cemetery grounds, $50.

(c) Enforcement procedures. (1) VA administration directors will issue policies and operating procedures governing the proper exercise of arrest and other law enforcement actions, and limiting the carrying and use of weapons by VA police officers. VA police officers found qualified under respective VA administration directives and duly appointed heads of facilities for the purposes of 38 U.S.C. 902(b)(1), will enforce these rules and regulations and other Federal laws on VA property in accordance with the policies and operating procedures issued by respective VA administration directors and under the direction of the head of the facility.

(2) VA administration directors will prescribe training for VA police offi- ! cers of the scope and duration necessary to assure the proper exercise of the law enforcement and arrest authority vested in them and to assure their abilities in the safe handling of situa- | tions involving patients and the public in general. VA police officers will successfully complete prescribed training in law enforcement procedures and the safe handling of patients as a condition of their retention of statutory law enforcement and arrest authority.

(3) Nothing contained in the rules and regulations set forth in paragraph (a) of this section shall be construed to abrogate any other Federal laws or regulations, including assimilated offenses under 18 U.S.C. 13, or any State or local laws and regulations applicable to the area in which the property is situated. (Authority: 38 U.S.C. 901)

[50 FR 29226, July 18, 1985]

As used in §§1.300 through 1.303 of this title:

(a) Secretary means the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

(b) Eligible person means any individual to whom the Secretary is authorized to furnish medical examination or treatment.

(c) Garage means a structure or part of a structure in which vehicles may be parked.

(d) Medical facility means any facility or part thereof which is under the jurisdiction of the Secretary for the provision of health-care services, including any necessary buildings and structures, garage or parking facility.

(e) Parking facilities includes all surface and garage parking spaces at a VA medical facility.

(f) Volunteer worker means an individual who performs services, without compensation, under the auspices of VA Voluntary Service (VAVS) at a VA medical facility, for the benefit of veterans receiving care at that medical facility.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 8109)

[53 FR 25490, July 7, 1988]

§ 1.302 Applicability and scope.

(a) The provisions of §§ 1.300 through 1.303 apply to VA medical facility parking facilities in the United States, its territories and possessions, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and to such parking facilities for the use of VA medical facilities jointly shared by VA and another Federal agency when the facility is operated by the VA. Sections 1.300 through 1.303 apply to all users of those parking facilities. Fees shall be assessed and collected at medical facilities where parking garages

are constructed, acquired, or altered at a cost exceeding $500,000 (or, in the case of acquisition by lease, $100,000 per year). The Secretary, in the exercise of official discretion, may also determine that parking fees shall be charged at any other VA medical facility.

(b) All fees established shall be reasonable under the circumstances and shall cover all parking facilities used in connection with such VA medical facility.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 8109)

[53 FR 25490, July 7, 1988]

§1.303 Policy.

(a) General. Parking spaces at VA medical facilities shall only be provided under the following conditions:

(1) VA and its employees shall not be liable for any damages to vehicles (or their contents) parked in VA parking facilities, unless such damages are directly caused by such employees acting in the course of their VA employment.

(2) Parking facilities at VA medical facilities shall only be made available at each medical facility for such periods and under such terms as prescribed by the facility director, consistent with §§ 1.300 through 1.303.

(3) VA will limit parking facilities at VA medical facilities to the minimum necessary, and administer those parking facilities in full compliance with ridesharing regulations and Federal laws.

(b) Fees. (1) As provided in §1.302, VA will assess VA employees, contractor employees, tenant employees, visitors, and other individuals having business at a VA medical facility where VA parking facilities are available, a parking fee for the use of that parking facility. All parking fees shall be set at a rate which shall be equivalent to onehalf of the appropriate fair rental value (i.e., monthly, weekly, daily, hourly) for the use of equivalent commercial space in the vicinity of the medical facility, subject to the terms and conditions stated in paragraph (a) of this section. Fair rental value shall include an allowance for the costs of management of the parking facilities. The Secretary will determine the fair market rental value through use of generally accepted appraisal techniques. If the

appraisal establishes that there is no comparable commercial rate because of the absence of commercial parking facilities within a two-mile radius of the medical facility, then the rate established shall be not less than the lowest rate charged for parking at the VA medical facility with the lowest established parking fees. Rates established shall be reviewed biannually by the Secretary to reflect any increase or decrease in value as determined by appraisal updating.

(2) No parking fees shall be established or collected for parking facilities used by or for vehicles of the following:

(i) Volunteer workers in connection with such workers performing services for the benefit of veterans receiving care at the medical facility;

(ii) A veteran or an eligible person in connection with such veteran or eligible person receiving examination or treatment;

(iii) An individual transporting a veteran or eligible person seeking examination or treatment; and

(iv) Federal Government employees using Government owned or leased or private vehicles for official business.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 8109)

[53 FR 25490, July 7, 1988]

NOTE: Sections 1.460 through 1.499 of this part concern the confidentiality of information relating to drug abuse, alcoholism or alcohol abuse, infection with the human immunodeficiency virus, or sickle cell anemia in VA records and are applicable in combination with other regulations pertaining to the release of information from VA records. Sections 1.500 through 1.527, Title 38. Code of Federal Regulations, implement the provisions of 38 U.S.C. §§5701 and 5702. Sections 1.550 through 1.559 implement the provisions of 5 U.S.C. §552 (The Freedom of Information Act). Sections 1.575 through 1.584 implement the provisions of 5 U.S.C. §552a (The Privacy Act of 1974).

The provisions of §§1.460 through 1.499 of this part pertain to any program or activity, including education, treatment, rehabilita

tion or research, which relates to drug abuse alcoholism or alcohol abuse, infection with the human immunodeficiency virus, or sickle cell anemia. The statutory authority for the drug abuse provisions and alcoholism or alcohol abuse provisions of §§1.460 through 1.499 is Sec. 111 of Pub. L. 94-581, the Veterans Omnibus Health Care Act of 1976 (38 U.S.C. §§7331 through 7334), the authority for the human immunodeficiency virus provi sions is Sec. 121 of Pub. L. 100-322, the Veterans' Benefits and Services Act of 1988 (38 U.S.C. §7332); the authority for the sickle cell anemia provisions is Sec. 109 of Pub. L 93-82, the Veterans Health Care Expansion Act of 1973 (38 U.S.C. §§ 1751-1754).

AUTHORITY: 38 U.S.C. 1751-1754 and 7331

7334.

SOURCE: 60 FR 63929, Dec. 13, 1995, unless otherwise noted.

§1.460 Definitions.

For purposes of §§1.460 through 1.499 of this part, the following definitions apply:

Alcohol abuse. The term "alcohol abuse" means the use of an alcoholic beverage which impairs the physical. mental, emotional, or social well-being of the user.

Contractor.

The term "contractor" means a person who provides services to VA such as data processing, dosage preparation, laboratory analyses or medical or other professional services. I Each contractor shall be required to enter into a written agreement subjecting such contractor to the provisions of §§1.460 through 1.499 of this part; 38 U.S.C. 5701 and 7332; and 5 U.S.C. 552a and 38 CFR 1.576(g).

Diagnosis. The term "diagnosis" means any reference to an individual's alcohol or drug abuse or to a condition which is identified as having been caused by that abuse or any reference to sickle cell anemia or infection with the human immunodeficiency virus which is made for the purpose of treatment or referral for treatment. A diagnosis prepared for the purpose of treatment or referral for treatment but which is not so used is covered by §§ 1.460 through 1.499 of this part. These regulations do not apply to a diagnosis of drug overdose or alcohol intoxication which clearly shows that the individual involved is not an alcohol or drug abuser (e.g., involuntary ingestion