Political Quotes

“today, as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, I am pleased to introduce the Veterans Programs Improvement Act of 2011. The bill I am introducing today would allow the Department of Veterans Affairs to continue the important work of ending veteran homelessness, improve the quality of the fiduciary program administered by VA, improve claims processing and make a number of other improvements to VA programs. This statement is not a full summary of all the provisions within this legislation. However, I would like to provide an overview of the major benefits this legislation would provide. The administration recently reported that as many as 76,000 veterans experienced homelessness on a given night in 2009. Many of these veterans face significant challenges such as mental illness, physical disability, and substance abuse. In order to heal and remain in stable housing, these veterans will need a great deal of support. I want to commend the VA for working tirelessly to reduce the number of veterans sleeping in the streets. We are certainly off to a good start, but I recognize that there is still much more work to be done. This bill will extend the life and improve upon several critical programs in the ongoing effort to get homeless veterans off the streets and into secure housing. Current law requires that VA diagnose ``serious mental illness'' or a ``substance abuse issue'' before it can use its authority to contract for emergency shelter services.…”