Cantwell Announces $2.6 Million to Provide Housing for WA Homeless Vets
Housing agencies in Aberdeen, Bellingham, Bremerton, Everett, Pasco, Silverdale, Spokane, and Tacoma to receive vouchers for eligible vets
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) announced that nine public housing agencies in Washington state will receive a total of $2.6 million in vouchers to help homeless veterans pay for housing.
The HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) vouchers are awarded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
“These vouchers are critical to ensuring that housing and supportive services are accessible for those who have served our country. About 3,400 veterans in the State of Washington currently rely on these federal government vouchers, and this allocation will allow for more to access these vital services,” said Sen. Cantwell.
These nine housing agencies are receiving funding:
- Housing Authority of Grays Harbor County, Aberdeen, $26,620
- Bellingham Housing Authority, $37,643
- Housing Authority of the City of Bremerton, $189,013
- Housing Authority of Snohomish County, Everett, $344,547
- Housing Authority of Pasco and Franklin County, $153,314
- Kitsap County Consolidated Housing Authority, Silverdale, $69,113
- Spokane Housing Authority, $795,165
- Tacoma Housing Authority, $520,986
- Housing Authority of Pierce County, $480,708
Eligible homeless veterans are referred by the VA to the housing agencies, who issue the voucher. The veteran can then use the voucher to pay for privately-owned housing for themselves and their family. To be eligible and to continue receiving the vouchers, veterans must participate in VA case management services.
Sen. Cantwell is a strong supporter of the HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing program and has taken action to preserve the program’s federal funding.
In May 2022, she singled out the program with a specific request for funding in the FY 2023 federal budget. The program was funded, and the money announced today comes from that budget.
Sen. Cantwell is a strong advocate for veterans in Washington state and across the nation. In 2021, Sen. Cantwell celebrated the opening of Chuck Austin Place Veterans Housing and Services Center in Yakima. Chuck Austin Place received more than 50% of its funding from the Affordable Housing Tax Credit (Housing Credit), a program championed by Senator Cantwell.
In August 2022, Sen. Cantwell voted with Senate colleagues to pass the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act, which expanded VA health care eligibility for exposure to toxic burn pits for veterans who served after Sept. 11, 2001, and allocated funds to expand care services at 31 VA facilities across the nation, including $36.13 million for the Richland VA Clinic in Washington state.
In 2021, in response to an uptick in call volume to veteran suicide hotlines, she joined a bipartisan group of her colleagues calling on the VA to swiftly develop a program that proactively reaches out to veterans of Afghanistan and Iraq and provides them with mental health resources.
In 2020, she and her fellow Senate Democrats advocated for Vietnam veterans who had been exposed to Agent Orange in the line of duty, calling on the Trump administration to stop stonewalling critical benefits for service members suffering from bladder cancer, hypothyroidism, Parkinsonism and hypertension related to their exposure.
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