Reps. Crane and Davids Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Improve Housing Access for Tribal Veterans

This afternoon, Rep. Eli Crane (R-AZ) and Rep. Sharice Davids (D-KS) introduced the bipartisan Tribal Veterans Voucher Flexibility Act to improve how unused housing vouchers are managed and distributed through the Tribal HUD-VASH program . The legislation would allow Tribes to voluntarily give back vouchers they do not plan to use, so the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) can redirect assistance to Tribal communities facing a shortage. Native American veterans experience some of the highest rates of homelessness in the United States. To address this, Congress created the Tribal HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (Tribal HUD-VASH) demonstration program, which provides rental assistance and supportive services to Native veterans who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. Although the program has helped many veterans secure stable housing, it lacks a clear process for Tribes to return vouchers they cannot use or to request additional ones. As a result, valuable housing support sits idle while veterans in other Tribal communities wait for help. The Tribal Veterans Voucher Flexibility Act directly addresses this gap by requiring HUD to establish a voluntary program for reallocating unused Tribal HUD-VASH vouchers. Under the bill, Tribes and Tribally Designated Housing Entities (TDHEs) can notify HUD if they have vouchers they do not expect to need in the following fiscal year. Importantly, releasing vouchers will not affect a Tribe’s or TDHE’s consideration for future allocations. Likewise, Tribes and TDHEs that require additional vouchers can request them, and HUD may then reassign available assistance to those communities. This approach directs limited resources to the veterans who need them most. To reduce administrative barriers, the bill ensures Tribes and TDHEs can report unused vouchers through digital, phone, or mail correspondence. It also requires HUD to launch the program within 180 days of enactment and to deliver a report to the relevant congressional committees within the same timeframe. The report must include: The number of vouchers each Tribe or TDHE left unused Each Tribe or TDHE that received reallocated vouchers The number of Tribes and TDHEs without enough vouchers Recommendations for better distributing surplus vouchers to Tribes and TDHEs seeking more An assessment of whether the overall number of Tribal HUD-VASH vouchers should be increased By creating a streamlined reallocation process, this bill strengthens the Tribal HUD-VASH program and expands Native veterans’ access to the housing assistance they have earned. This is not the first time Reps. Crane and Davids have partnered on legislation to assist Tribal communities. In both the 118th and 119th Congresses, Rep. Davids introduced the Native American Entrepreneurial Opportunity Act , which would bolster U.S. Small Business Administration outreach to Tribal entrepreneurs navigating the unique complexities of running a business on a reservation. Rep. Crane co-led the measure, and it has twice passed the House with strong bipartisan support. Rep. Crane also joined Rep. Greg Stanton (D-AZ) in leading an amendment to redirect $5 million from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) General Administration account to the VA Office of Rural Health. The House unanimously adopted the amendment, which would fund mobile clinics and targeted clinical staffing to improve access to care for Tribal veterans. Today’s introduction builds on Rep. Crane’s ongoing efforts to close gaps in the care and services available to Native veterans. “The Tribal HUD-VASH program helps house Tribal veterans in need, but the current system is not as efficient as it should be. Some Tribes have leftover vouchers they cannot use while others lack the resources to take care of our veterans. Our legislation aims to resolve this longstanding issue by getting unused vouchers into the hands of Tribes that can put them to use. This is a sensible approach that makes better use of existing support without expanding the size and scope of the federal government. As the representative for more than half of the Tribes in Arizona, I’m honored to advocate for these heroes by reforming and modernizing this process. I appreciate Rep. Davids’ willingness to work across the aisle. We’ve made real progress together before, and I look forward to building on that success with this bill,” said Rep. Eli Crane . “Native veterans hold a special place in my heart. My mom and grandfather both served in the Army, and as a Native person, I know how much our communities value the veterans who have served our country. Tribal Nations know best what their communities and veterans need, and respecting Tribal sovereignty means giving them the flexibility and resources to meet those needs. I’m grateful to work with Rep. Crane on this bipartisan effort to ensure more Native veterans get the housing they need after returning home,” said Rep. Sharice Davids, a member of the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin.