Bipartisan bill introduced to protect disabled veterans access to affordable housing
WASHINGTON – Representatives Linda T. Sánchez (D-Calif.), Mike Kelly (R-Pa.), Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.) and Blake Moore (R-Utah) today introduced the bipartisan Fair Housing for Disabled Veterans Act, a bill to ensure that veterans’ service-related disability benefits are not used to deny veterans access to affordable housing.
Currently, these disability benefits are considered income in calculations for the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC), often pushing disabled veterans above eligibility thresholds and potentially into homelessness. The bill would exclude service-related disability benefits from those income calculations, ensuring veterans are not denied housing assistance.
“Veterans who have sacrificed for our country shouldn’t face barriers when trying to find a safe, affordable place to live,” said Congresswoman Sánchez. “Disability benefits are meant to cover the costs of injuries sustained during their service – they’re not income. Our bill would ensure that veterans aren’t unfairly disqualified from affordable housing, allowing them to live with the dignity they earned through their service.”
“This critical legislation ensures veterans can continue to keep more of their hard-earned money and have the resources they need to purchase an affordable home,” said Congressman Kelly, chairman of the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Tax. “This legislation puts the tax code to work for those who have worn the uniform to protect our great nation.”
“Our veterans are being denied access to affordable housing programs because of a flaw in IRS code that classifies their disability benefits as income. Those who served our country, and especially those who sustained a service-connected disability, should never be turned down from the ability to obtain a safe and stable home,” said Congressman Gomez. “With this bill, we’re making sure veterans can access the housing support they deserve after their service and sacrifice to our country.”
“As the representative of Hill Air Force Base and an active veteran community, improving servicemember housing has been a priority my entire time in Congress. Homelessness among our veteran population is unacceptable, and our veterans are more than deserving of affordable housing – especially when they are injured while serving,” said Congressman Moore. “I am proud to introduce the bipartisan Fair Housing for Disabled Veterans Act with my Ways and Means colleagues to exclude service-related disability payments from the income calculation for LIHTC eligibility to ensure that our servicemembers and their families are better able to access affordable housing when they return home.”
“VA disability compensation should never be a barrier to accessing stable housing for veterans,” said Jose Ramos, vice president for government and community relations for Wounded Warrior Project. “But currently, wounded warriors are penalized for injuries sustained during service to our country when their VA benefits make them ineligible to rent affordable, stable, and often higher-quality housing created through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program. These are often our most vulnerable veterans who need both supports – their VA payments and housing assistance. WWP is grateful for the bipartisan leadership of Representatives Linda T. Sánchez and Mike Kelly in introducing the Fair Housing for Disabled Veterans Act to address this problem and help veterans across the country.”
Specifically, the Fair Housing for Disabled Veterans Act would amend the Internal Revenue Code to strike consideration of veterans’ service-connected disability and pension payments when determining income qualifications for properties financed with LIHTC and qualified residential bonds.
The full text of the bill can be found HERE.
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