This Act excludes specific VA disability payments from being counted as income when unhoused disabled veterans apply for certain housing assistance programs.
Alejandro "Alex" Padilla
Senator
CA
The Housing Unhoused Disabled Veterans Act aims to increase housing assistance eligibility for disabled veterans by excluding specific VA disability benefits from income calculations for certain housing programs. This ensures that compensation received for service-connected disabilities does not prevent veterans from qualifying for supportive housing assistance. However, these excluded benefits will still be considered when calculating the final adjusted rent amount.
New Veterans Housing Bill Stops Counting Disability Pay for Eligibility, Opening Doors to Subsidized Housing
If you’re a disabled veteran struggling to find affordable housing, this bill is designed to take a major roadblock out of your way. The Housing Unhoused Disabled Veterans Act fundamentally changes how the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) calculates income for veterans applying for supported housing, specifically the Section 8(o)(19) program.
The Disability Pay Paradox: Solved for Eligibility
When a disabled veteran applies for subsidized housing, their VA disability payments (those received under Title 38, Chapters 11 or 15) often push their total income above the limit needed to qualify, even though that money is essential for their care. This bill fixes that paradox. Under Section 2, when a disabled veteran applies for initial income eligibility for the Section 8(o)(19) program, that specific VA disability compensation will no longer be counted. This means more disabled veterans who rely on those payments will now meet the income threshold to get their foot in the door for housing assistance.
The Fine Print: Rent Calculation Still Counts It
Here’s where the policy gets nuanced: While the disability pay is excluded for the initial eligibility hurdle, the bill specifies that it is still counted when calculating the veteran's “adjusted income.” Adjusted income is the number HUD uses to determine how much rent the veteran actually has to pay each month. Think of it this way: the bill ensures the disability check doesn't disqualify you from the program, but once you're in, that money is factored into your ability to pay your share of the rent. This is a common structure in subsidized housing—it increases access without completely eliminating the required tenant contribution.
Expanding Access on VA Land
Section 3 applies this same principle to veterans applying for housing built on Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) property. For any rental housing built on VA land after this law passes, HUD must also ignore those specific VA disability payments when figuring out if the veteran is eligible for rental assistance. This is a clean, targeted fix that ensures veterans aren't penalized for receiving the benefits they earned when seeking housing on the very land designated for them. For a veteran trying to move into a new housing community built near a VA medical center, this provision ensures their disability compensation doesn't become a barrier to entry.