I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3970 

To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a pilot grant program 

to acquire and renovate abandoned homes for homeless veterans. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 5, 2015 

Mr. ISRAEL (for himself and Mr. ROONEY of Florida) introduced the following 

bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

A BILL 

To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a 

pilot grant program to acquire and renovate abandoned 

homes for homeless veterans. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Housing Our Heroes 

5 Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT GRANT PROGRAM FOR 

7 HOMELESS VETERANS. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than one year after 

9 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

10 Veterans Affairs shall commence a pilot grant program 


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1 to assess the feasibility and advisability of awarding 

2 grants to eligible entities to purchase and renovate aban3 doned homes for homeless veterans. 

4 (b) GRANTS.— 

5 (1) AWARD.—In carrying out the pilot program 

6 under subsection (a), the Secretary shall award 

7 grants to eligible entities to purchase and renovate 

8 abandoned homes for homeless veterans. 

9 (2) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The amount of a sin10 gle grant awarded under paragraph (1) shall not ex11 ceed $1,000,000. 

12 (3) NUMBER.—The Secretary may award to an 

13 eligible entity more than one grant under paragraph 

14 (1). 

15 (c) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—The Secretary may award 

16 a grant under subsection (b)(1) to any of the following: 

17 (1) A veterans service agency. 

18 (2) A veterans service organization. 

19 (3) Homeless organizations. 

20 (4) Any other nongovernmental organization. 

21 (d) SELECTION OF GRANT RECIPIENTS.— 

22 (1) APPLICATION.—Any eligible entity seeking 

23 a grant under subsection (b)(1) shall submit to the 

24 Secretary an application therefore in such form and 


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1 in such manner as the Secretary considers appro2 priate. 

3 (2) SELECTION PRIORITY.— 

4 (A) COMMUNITIES WITH GREATEST

5 NEED.—Subject to subparagraph (B), in ac6 cordance with regulations the Secretary shall 

7 prescribe, the Secretary shall give priority in 

8 the awarding of grants under subsection (b)(1) 

9 to eligible entities who serve communities that 

10 the Secretary determines have the greatest need 

11 of homeless services. 

12 (B) GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION.—The 

13 Secretary may give priority in the awarding of 

14 grants under subsection (b)(1) to achieve a fair 

15 distribution, as determined by the Secretary, 

16 among homeless veterans in different geo17 graphical regions. 

18 (C) OTHER AGREEMENTS.—In awarding a 

19 grant under subsection (b)(1) to an eligible en20 tity in a location determined pursuant to sub21 paragraphs (A) and (B), the Secretary shall 

22 give preference to eligible entities that are en23 tered into an agreement with the Secretary 

24 under section 2041 of title 38, United States 

25 Code. 


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1 (e) USE OF GRANT FUNDS.— 

2 (1) PURPOSES.—A grantee may use amounts of 

3 a grant awarded to the grantee under subsection 

4 (b)(1) to purchase or renovate abandoned homes, in5 cluding homes that have been foreclosed. 

6 (2) MAXIMUM PURCHASE AMOUNT.—Not more 

7 than $300,000 of the amount of a grant awarded 

8 under subsection (b)(1) may be used for the pur9 chase of a single home. 

10 (3) PAYMENT PROGRAM.— 

11 (A) The United States shall not have any 

12 ownership interest in a home that is purchased 

13 by a grantee using amounts of a grant awarded 

14 under subsection (b)(1). 

15 (B) Each grantee shall ensure that, begin16 ning one year after the date on which a veteran 

17 begins to reside in a home purchased or ren18 ovated by the grantee using a grant awarded 

19 under subsection (b)(1), the veteran makes 

20 monthly payments to the grantee in an amount 

21 determined appropriate by the grantee that is 

22 not less than 85 percent of the fair market rent 

23 for such home. 

24 (C) Each grantee shall determine whether 

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1 graph (B) shall be treated as rent or as a mort2 gage for the home for which the veteran is mak3 ing such payments. The Secretary, in coordina4 tion with the Secretary of Housing and Urban 

5 Development, shall determine the requirements 

6 for such payments. 

7 (D) Each grantee shall pay to the Sec8 retary of Veterans Affairs not less than 80 per9 cent of each payment received under subpara10 graph (B). 

11 (E) The Secretary may conduct an audit of 

12 any grantee to ensure that the grantee carries 

13 out this paragraph. 

14 (4) VETERANS HOMELESSNESS GRANT FUND.— 

15 (A) There is established in the Treasury a 

16 fund to be known as the ‘‘Veterans Homeless17 ness Grant Fund’’ (in this paragraph referred 

18 to as the ‘‘Fund’’). 

19 (B) The Secretary shall deposit into the 

20 Fund the payments collected by the Secretary 

21 under paragraph (3)(D). 

22 (C) Amounts deposited into the Fund pur23 suant to subparagraph (B) shall be available to 

24 the Secretary to carry out the pilot program 

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1 tion. The Secretary may not use such amounts 

2 from the Fund for any other purpose unless 

3 pursuant to a specific provision of law. 

4 (f) DURATION.—The Secretary shall carry out the 

5 pilot program under subsection (a) during the three-year 

6 period beginning on the date of the commencement of the 

7 pilot program. 

8 (g) ANNUAL REPORTS.—During each year in which 

9 the Secretary carries out the pilot program under sub10 section (a), the Secretary shall submit to Congress a re11 port that details, with respect to the year covered by the 

12 report, the number of grants awarded, the amounts so 

13 awarded, the progress of home purchase and renovation 

14 made by eligible entities using such grants, and the num15 ber of tenants currently paying rent towards such homes. 

16 (h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

17 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary a total of 

18 $25,000,000 to carry out the pilot program under sub19 section (a). 

20 (i) HOMELESS VETERAN DEFINED.—In this section, 

21 the term ‘‘homeless veteran’’ means any of the following 

22 veterans: 

23 (1) A veteran who is eligible to receive housing, 

24 clinical services, and case management assistance 


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1 under section 8(o)(19) of the United States Housing 

2 Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)(19)). 

3 (2) A veteran who is receiving— 

4 (A) assistance from, or is the beneficiary 

5 of a service furnished by, a program that is in 

6 receipt of a grant under section 2011 of title 

7 38, United States Code; or 

8 (B) services for which per diem payment is 

9 received under section 2012 of such title. 

10 (3) A veteran who is— 

11 (A) a beneficiary of the outreach program 

12 carried out under section 2022(e) of such title; 

13 or 

14 (B) in receipt of referral or counseling 

15 services from the program carried out under 

16 section 2023 of such title. 

17 (4) A veteran who is receiving a service or as18 sistance under section 2031 of such title. 

19 (5) A veteran who is residing in therapeutic 

20 housing operated under section 2032 of such title. 

21 (6) A veteran who is receiving domiciliary serv22 ices under section 2043 of such title or domiciliary 

23 care under section 1710(b) of such title. 


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1 (7) A veteran who is receiving supportive serv2 ices under 2044 of such title. 

Æ 


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