More of America’s military veterans would have access to affordable housing under a bipartisan bill offered last week by U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker (R-PA).
“Our veterans put their lives at great risk to keep all of us safe back home,” said Rep. Smucker on Monday. “To return home and be priced out of housing assistance simply because they receive service-related disability benefits is just plain wrong.”
The Home for the Brave Act, H.R. 6179, which Rep. Smucker cosponsored on Nov. 2 alongside bill sponsor U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-CA), would exempt veterans’ disability benefits from counting toward total income when determining their eligibility for housing assistance programs through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), according to a bill summary provided by the lawmakers.
“Our district has made great strides to eliminate veteran homelessness, and I am proud to stand with my constituents in this noble effort,” Rep. Smucker said. “I want to thank Rep. Carbajal for his work on behalf of our nation’s veterans and their families and look forward to working together to get this legislation passed.”
Currently, financial benefits for service-connected disabilities are counted as income when determining eligibility for HUD housing assistance programs, resulting in many veterans being found ineligible for such programs because their disability benefits are placing them at a higher income level, the summary says.
That would be changed under H.R. 6179, which is supported by the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, the National Coalition for the Homeless, and the Military Officers Association of America.
“It is wrong to deny veterans access to housing assistance programs due to disability benefits they receive for service-related injury or illness,” said Rep. Carbajal. “They stepped up to defend our nation and now Congress must step up for them by ending this housing discrimination against our disabled veterans.”