[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 168 (Tuesday, November 10, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Page S11346]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. UDALL, of New Mexico (for himself and Mr. Bond):
  S. 2760. A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for 
an increase in the annual amount authorized to be appropriated to the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out comprehensive service 
programs for homeless veterans; to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
  Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. President, tomorrow we will observe 
Veterans Day, a day to honor the millions of men and women who put on 
the uniform to defend our Nation. In communities across the Nation, we 
will gather to thank all veterans for their service, for their having 
risked their lives so that the rest of us could enjoy freedom.
  I rise to offer legislation that is meant to honor veterans who are 
too often forgotten. Tonight, on the eve of the day meant to highlight 
their heroism, more than 130,000 veterans will be homeless, left 
without a home and without a warm meal. For many, they are on the 
streets with their families--husbands and wives and children left 
without any safety net. Perhaps they recently lost their job. Perhaps 
they recently lost their home to foreclosure. Why they are on the 
streets matters less than why we have left them on their own.
  When coming into office, President Obama set a goal of ending 
homelessness among veterans within 5 years. This is a goal that I 
strongly support. VA Secretary Shinseki, himself a decorated veteran, 
has aggressively taken on this challenge, focusing efforts and funding 
toward eradicating homelessness.
  Last Friday, I rose on this floor to increase funding for the 
homelessness and grant per diem program to the fully authorized amount 
of $150 million. This vital program has produced real results, offering 
transitional housing to veterans and their families and allowing 
organizations to construct and renovate facilities that can provide a 
multitude of services. I am hopeful that we will see this amendment 
pass and this level of funding included in the final bill.
  However, if we are going to reach the President's goal of ending 
veterans' homelessness in five years, more will be needed. For that 
reason, I am joined today by Senator Bond in introducing S. 2760, 
legislation to increase the authorization of the grant and per diem 
program to $200 million. This increased funding can provide hundreds, 
perhaps thousands, of new beds and facilities for veterans in all 50 
States.
  Congressman Harry Teague introduced similar legislation earlier this 
year in the House where it has been marked up in subcommittee and is 
awaiting further action. I am hopeful that we will see Congress stand 
up to this moral obligation and provide the full resources needed for 
the thousands of veterans who have no home, who have no hope.
  Last week, as I offered my amendment, I read a letter from a 15-year-
old Boy Scout from Albuquerque. His father and grandfather are veterans 
and he is planning to follow in their footsteps and join the military 
himself when he is old enough. This young man wrote to say how angry he 
is that we are not doing enough to help our homeless veterans. ``These 
men and women are doing what they were called to do by our 
government,'' he wrote, ``but then they come back and are treated so 
poorly by everyone. We, as a Nation, need to do more to help our 
veterans.''
  To the smart young man who wrote me that letter and to all of 
America's veterans, this bill builds on efforts to meet our country's 
moral obligations to the men and women who so bravely served our 
country. I thank Senator Bond for his support and I urge fast action to 
move this legislation forward.
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