Ranking Member Takano: Housing, Not Handcuffs, Is the Solution to Veteran Homelessness

WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Mark Takano issued the following statement, after the Trump Administration’s recent Executive Order (EO). This Executive Order would advance a dangerous plan to create homeless detention camps that will disproportionately harm the nearly 13,000 veterans experiencing unsheltered homelessness in America and threaten resources for the hundreds of thousands of veterans who depend on HUD and VA housing assistance. 

“Hundreds of thousands of veterans rely on the incredibly successful HUD and VA housing assistance programs. Trump's new Executive Order criminalizes homelessness and mental illness, directing states to treat these complex social issues as crimes rather than addressing their root causes. This directive misdiagnoses the root causes of homelessness – particularly among veterans – and proposes punitive measures that will punish and endanger the very people it claims to help. Instead of getting veterans off the street, this misguided approach delays that process and puts handcuffs on those vulnerable veterans. It will exacerbate the homelessness crisis.

The Trump Administration should have invested the funding that is going to be spent putting veterans in jail into programs that are proven to work to keep veterans off the street like HUD-VASH and SSVF. I call on President Trump to immediately rescind this Executive Order’s harmful approach of blaming and punishing homeless Americans. I urge colleagues on both sides of the aisle to reject any budget or legislation that slashes housing resources or dismantles proven programs like HUD-VASH. Veterans deserve dignity and help—not handcuffs. They need a home, not a jail cell or institution.

The solution to veteran homelessness isn’t incarceration—it’s housing, as proven time and again by the very programs now under threat. The Administration must remember our veterans’ humanity: with housing and support, they can recover and rebuild. Abandoning Housing First in favor of cruel “tough on homelessness” tactics will take us back to a darker time. I strongly oppose this misguided strategy. Democrats stand ready to advance real solutions—expanding affordable housing, strengthening HUD-VASH, and fully funding what works. That is how we honor our promise to those who served. We must not let fearmongering erase hard-won progress. At a time when veterans are most vulnerable let’s treat them with the respect they embodied in service, not serve them a jail sentence.”

Background: 

On May 9, 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order that proposed to establish the National Center for Warrior Independence. The EO claimed a goal to house up to 6,000 veterans, by January of 2028, yet this latest EO seems to contradict these proposals by choosing incarceration over housing for veterans.  

Experts agree that HUD-VASH is one of the most successful housing interventions ever created and has led to an over 55% decrease in veteran homelessness since its inception. The fundamental reason for the success of HUD-VASH is its adherence to and incorporation of Housing First principles. Research and results show that coupling housing with wrap around supportive services works to get and keep veterans safely and permanently housed.  

The root causes of housing insecurity for veterans are deeply complex. Of the veterans served by VA homeless programs, half report no problems with drugs or alcohol and approx. Forty percent report no problems with mental health. Experiencing homelessness often exacerbates mental health issues and makes them harder to treat due to lack of access to healthcare. Research shows that connecting veterans to housing first leads to better long-term outcomes and is a more cost-effective option than forcing them into jails or institutions.   

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President Trump

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