Bill Summary
This legislation is known as the "Housing Our Military Servicemembers Act of 2019" or the "HOMeS Act of 2019." The purpose of this bill is to amend section 428 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act in order to provide incentives to organizations who receive grants through the Continuum of Care program to re-house all former members of the Armed Forces who are experiencing homelessness. The bill also requires the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to develop a strategy to end homelessness among former servicemembers who are not eligible for existing housing programs for veterans. This strategy must be submitted to relevant committees within 12 months of the enactment of the Act.
Possible Impacts
1. This legislation may affect former servicemembers by providing incentives to re-house them through the Continuum of Care program, potentially providing them with stable housing and reducing homelessness among this population.
2. The bill may also affect individuals who are not eligible for veterans affairs housing programs, as it requires the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to develop a strategy to end homelessness among former servicemembers in this group.
3. The HOMeS Act may also have a financial impact on the government, as the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development is required to submit a report outlining the strategy and implementation schedule, potentially leading to increased funding for programs aimed at addressing homelessness among former servicemembers.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 715 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 715
To amend section 428 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act to
provide incentives to grantees under the Continuum of Care program to
re-house all former members of the Armed Forces, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 23, 2019
Mr. Stivers (for himself and Mrs. Beatty) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend section 428 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act to
provide incentives to grantees under the Continuum of Care program to
re-house all former members of the Armed Forces, 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 ``Housing Our Military Servicemembers
Act of 2019'' or the ``HOMeS Act of 2019''.
SEC. 2. INCENTIVE FOR PROVEN STRATEGIES.
Subsection (d) of section 428 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11386b(d)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (2)--
(A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``and former
servicemembers'' before the semicolon at the end; and
(B) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``and former
servicemembers'' before the first comma; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(4) Former servicemember.--For purposes of this
subsection, the term `former servicemember' means a person who
served in the active or inactive military, naval, or air
service, and who was discharged or released therefrom.''.
SEC. 3. STRATEGY TO END HOMELESS AMONG FORMER SERVICEMEMBERS.
The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall develop a
strategy to identify and eliminate homelessness among former
servicemembers who are not eligible for the veterans affairs supported
housing program under section 8(o)(19) of the United States Housing Act
of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)(19); known as HUD-VASH) and other housing
programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs. Not later than the
expiration of the 12-month period beginning on the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
shall submit a report to the Committees on Financial Services and
Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committees on
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and Veterans' Affairs of the Senate
setting forth such strategy and a schedule for implementing such
strategy.
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