There’s also nothing like being homeless.

The Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs (MDVA), in partnership with myriad public, private and nonprofit partners, has focused on ending Veteran homelessness since 2014. An issue with many layers and complexities, Veteran homelessness remains a challenge.

On a positive note, eight of 10 Minnesota Continuums of Care (CoCs) have effectively ended Veteran homelessness in their communities. Effectively ending Veteran homelessness does not mean that a community will never again have a homeless Veteran. Instead, according to the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH), it means that every community will have a comprehensive response in place that ensures homelessness is prevented whenever possible. If it can’t be prevented, it will be a rare, brief and one-time experience.

Two CoCs – Hennepin and Ramsey – continue their efforts to reach the milestone of effectively ending Veteran homelessness in their counties.

Despite the efforts, the number of homeless Veterans on the MDVA Homeless Veterans Registry has hovered between 300 and 325 per day for the last two years.

This was the topic of discussion at the July 11 Commanders’ Task Force meeting held in Mankato. The group renewed its commitment to address this issue.

MDVA has learned a lot during the last few years about the homeless Veteran community and how we can best help them. The Minnesota Legislature was very supportive of our plans and in the recent legislative session, provided more than $16 million in the FY 24 and FY 25 biennium budget to support our state becoming the next state in the country to achieve “functional zero” for Veteran homelessness.

There a several initiatives underway.

• Veteran Homelessness Initiative. $4.3 million the first year and $1.3 million the second year to prevent and end Veteran homelessness. This funding represents an extension of MNVEST FY23 Spending Authority.
• Homeless Veterans and SOAR Program. $1 million each year is to operate the homeless Veteran registry and homeless programs and to assist Veterans, former service members, and Veterans' and former service members' dependents with obtaining federal benefits through the Social Security Administration.
• Minnesota Assistance Council for Veterans. $7.9 million the first year and $1.1 million the second year for grants to provide assistance throughout Minnesota to Veterans and Veterans' families who are homeless or in danger of homelessness. Of these amounts, $6.3 million in the first year is for the establishment of permanent supportive housing options for homeless Veterans and former service members.

We welcome the community’s support to help us reach our goal to end Veteran homelessness in Minnesota.

As always, if you need information or support on any Veteran issue, please visit our website, contact your County Veterans Service Officer, or contact LinkVet at 1-888-LinkVet.

Thank YOU for your service!