Zero Tolerance for Veterans Homelessness Act of 2009
Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 111-264.
Congressional Research Service
Official summary
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Jul 30, 2009
Zero Tolerance for Veterans Homelessness Act of 2009 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to establish a program within the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) for the prevention of veteran homelessness by identifying veterans who are homeless or at imminent risk of becoming homeless and providing assistance, including short and medium term rental assistance and housing relocation and stabilization services, to ensure that such veterans do not become or remain homeless.
Makes VBA regional offices responsible for oversight and coordination of: (1) any housing programs for veterans supported by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD); and (2) the program described above.
Includes new construction projects as projects under which eligible entities may receive grants for furnishing certain services to homeless veterans. Requires the study of the payment method for the reimbursement of grant recipients for per diem payments for furnishing services to homeless veterans and the development of an improved method to reimburse grant recipients for services furnished to homeless veterans.
Showing the opening paragraphs of the official summary.
Read full official summaryShow less
Amends the United States Housing Act of 1937 to set forth requirements for public housing agencies to provide vouchers for rental assistance to veterans (under current law, on behalf of homeless veterans with chronic mental illnesses or chronic substance use disorders) through the HUD-VA supported housing program.
Establishes in HUD a Special Assistant for Veterans Affairs in the Office of the Secretary.
Requires: (1) establishment of a method for the annual collection and aggregation of data on homeless veterans who participate in VA-HUD programs; and (2) submission to Congress of a comprehensive plan for ending homelessness among veterans.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Aug 14, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
Explore the bill from different angles
Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.
Neutral evidence review
Objective
Analyze S.1547 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
View full prompt & sources
Fairness and public impact
Progressive lens
Examine S.1547 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
View full prompt & sources
Institutions and government scope
Conservative lens
Examine S.1547 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
View full prompt & sources
Individual rights and government power
Liberty lens
Examine S.1547 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.