President Donald Trump signed U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz’s Disabled Veteran Housing Support Act into law on Jan. 20. The act eliminates veteran disability-related income from being included in total income when veterans apply for housing assistance through the Community Development Block Grant.
The act aims to further housing access in the hopes of preventing veteran homelessness. De La Cruz believes that the law will “ensure federally-funded programs best serve our veterans and do not punish them for benefits they have earned.”
Based on a report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, veterans comprised 7% of the homeless population on a given night in the U.S. during 2023. For this count, homelessness was defined as someone living in a shelter, on the street or any other place unfit for human living.
Based on Close to Home San Antonio and Bexar County’s 2025 Point in Time count, veterans made up 6.5% of the city’s homeless population. 218 veterans were reported to be staying in shelters or temporary housing, while 19 were found to be living in cars, abandoned buildings or other sites not meant for human habitation.
The 2026 Point in Time count releases this week and can be found on the Close to Home San Antonio and Bexar County website within their 2026 State of Homelessness Report.
The Disabled Veteran Housing Support Act addresses cost factors associated with homelessness. However, the HUD acknowledges that in addition to costs, some recurring influences for veterans being unhoused include mental health issues, such as post traumatic stress disorder, intimate partner violence and military sexual trauma.
The National Defense Authorization Act, signed by Trump in December, acknowledges the mental health and financial issues faced by veterans and implements strategies to support military communities.
The act requires research into rental costs to ensure housing assistance keeps up with inflation. It will also provide servicemembers with a 3.8% pay increase and require a Department of Defense assessment of telehealth availability, staffing, wait times and an improvement plan for mental health services.
Additionally, spouses of military personnel would receive support in the form of a pilot program to improve transitions for military families, and retiring servicemembers would be eligible to “move into careers in the defense industrial base and medical profession.”
Veterans in San Antonio experiencing homelessness currently have access to a variety of housing services.
The HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing offers rental assistance along with case management and clinical services. Rental assistance is determined by Housing Choice Voucher eligibility. To check for qualification, contact the local VA via phone at (210)-616-9915 or visit them at the Bluff Creek Building, located at 4201 Medical Dr. Suite 280.
The Veterans’ Housing Stability Program provides assistance through three distinct programs, focusing on prevention, rehousing and wrap-around services. To check eligibility, visit the SAMMinistry website at samm.org.
