Homelessness among veterans is a major issue across the country, but now many large municipalities are trying to do more to address it. One such place is Los Angeles County, where two lawmakers recently proposed a huge program to deal with the problem.
The Home for Heroes program, proposed by county supervisors Don Knabe and Hilda Solis, would cost $5 million and serve 1,000 or more homeless vets in the next year and a half, according to a report from the Los Angeles Daily News. That would include giving incentives to landlords who rent to homeless veterans, grants to cover some of their initial costs, and even something as simple as more beds in shelters specifically for veterans.
"One of the challenges in housing our homeless vets has been identifying housing for them, even when they had a voucher in hand," Knabe told the newspaper. "It was taking vets 90 days or longer to find an apartment."
This is part of a larger initiative to provide more support for the homeless in general, but Home for Heroes receives a special focus for obvious reasons, the report said.
Veterans who are struggling in any way should be on the lookout for programs such as these, offered by private groups as well as governmental agencies.