Witnesses tell subcommittee End Veteran Homelessness Act could free HUD‑VASH vouchers but VA flagged other concerns
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Summary
VA and homeless-services witnesses described tens of thousands of HUD-VASH leases, roughly 10,000 available vouchers, and supported narrowing eligibility gaps in the End Veteran Homelessness Act of 2025, while VA opposed overly prescriptive grant-application changes.
Department of Veterans Affairs officials and homelessness advocates told the House Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee that the End Veteran Homelessness Act of 2025 could help use underutilized HUD‑VASH vouchers but that operational questions remain.
The bill would expand eligibility and provide additional case-management supports for the HUD‑VASH (VA Supportive Housing) program, which pairs HUD housing choice vouchers with VA case management. Witnesses from VA and veterans' service organizations said broader eligibility and targeted supports could enable more vouchers to be used.
‘‘We have over 90,000 veterans under lease in HUD VASH… when we take away set‑asides we have about 10,000 vouchers available for use,’’ Jill Albanese, director of clinical operations and senior adviser to the VA Homeless Program Office, testified. She said eligibility rules and housing authorities’ procedures can limit voucher use and that some changes in the End Veteran Homelessness Act could free vouchers for eligible veterans.
Christina Keenan of the Veterans of Foreign Wars testified in support of the End Veteran Homelessness Act and called for the annual reporting and GAO studies included in the bill, saying they would improve program transparency. Keenan described the bill’s proposed reporting requirements as tools to ‘‘identify veterans who are not making progress and who may need to have their rehabilitation plans reworked’’ and to understand barriers to voucher use.
VA also testified that it supports efforts to end veteran homelessness but does not back all proposals on the subcommittee agenda. In opening remarks John Bell said the department ‘‘strongly supports the End Veteran Homelessness Act of 2025’’ but that it opposed the ‘‘homeless grant and per diem program applications bill’’ as overly prescriptive.
Members pressed witnesses on the number of unused vouchers and whether changing eligibility could allow veterans housed under other voucher types to transfer into HUD‑VASH and free up their existing vouchers. Albanese confirmed transfers are possible and that the End Veteran Homelessness Act would broaden eligibility ‘‘potentially, yes,’’ while noting that some questions about Public Housing Authority practices are under HUD’s authority.
The subcommittee did not adopt any legislation at the hearing. Members and witnesses emphasized coordination between VA and HUD, better data on voucher use, and additional outreach to rural and territorial providers to increase voucher uptake.