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S4168
SENATE, No. 4168
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
�
INTRODUCED MAY 11, 2026
Sponsored by:
Senator� JAMES BEACH
District 6 (Burlington and Camden)
Senator� NILSA I. CRUZ-PEREZ
District 5 (Camden and Gloucester)
Co-Sponsored by:
Senators Amato and Corrado
SYNOPSIS
���� Establishes �Veterans Helping Veterans� program in
DVA.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
���� As introduced.
��
An Act
establishing a housing assistance program for homeless
veterans and supplementing Title 38A of the New Jersey Statutes.
����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:
���� 1.��� a.� The Department of
Veterans Affairs, in consultation with the Department of Human Services, shall
establish a housing assistance program to be known as the �Veterans Helping
Veterans Program.�� The purpose of the program shall be to link homeless
veterans with veterans who volunteer to house such homeless veterans.� As
nearly as practicable, the program shall be modeled upon the State�s foster
care program with respect to the vetting process, benefits, and incentives for
veterans participating in the program to receive or to provide housing.
���� b.��� In establishing the �Veterans
Helping Veterans Program� pursuant to this section, the Department of Veterans
Affairs, in consultation with the Department of Human Services, shall develop
guidelines and procedures for the program.� The guidelines and procedures shall,
at a minimum, include the following:
���� (1)�� the application process to
participate in the program;
���� (2)�� criteria for the
evaluation of such applications;
���� (3)�� criteria for eligibility
to receive housing, which shall include, but not be limited to, being a veteran
and being homeless or at risk of homelessness;
���� (4)�� criteria for eligibility
to provide housing, which shall include, but not be limited to, being a veteran;
and
���� (5)�� the terms and conditions
for participation in the program, which shall include, but not be limited to,
the time period for which veterans will be housed, the responsibilities of the
homeless veterans and the veterans who volunteer to house such homeless veterans,
and the incentives and benefits to be provided to program participants.
���� The Department of Veterans
Affairs shall monitor participants� compliance with the guidelines and
procedures of the program and require the participants to periodically report
to the department information relating to participation in the program.
���� c.���� The Commissioner of the
Department of Veterans Affairs may apply for and accept on behalf of the State
any grants from the federal government or any agency thereof, or from any
foundation, corporation, association or individual, and may comply with the terms,
conditions, and limitations thereof, to develop and implement the housing
assistance program. Any money so received shall be appropriated to, and may be
expended by, the department, subject to any limitations imposed in such grants,
and in accordance with guidance from the Director of the Division of Budget and
Accounting in the Department of the Treasury.
���� d.��� Within 90 days after the
date of enactment of this section, and notwithstanding the provisions of the
�Administrative Procedure Act,� P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.) to the
contrary, the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Human
Services shall, immediately upon filing proper notice with the Office of
Administrative Law, adopt the rules and regulations prepared by the departments
to implement the program established pursuant to this section.
���� The rules and regulations
shall be in effect for a period not to exceed one year after the date of the
filing.� These rules and regulations shall thereafter be adopted, amended, or
readopted by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Human
Services in accordance with the requirements of the �Administrative Procedure
Act,� P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.).
���� e.���� As used in this
section, �veteran� means any resident of the State now or hereafter who has
been discharged honorably or under conditions other than dishonorable from any
branch of the Armed Forces of the United States, or a Reserve component
thereof, including members of the National Guard who served on federal active
duty.
���� 2.��� This act shall take
effect 90 days after the date of enactment, except that the Department of
Veterans Affairs may take any anticipatory administrative action in advance as
shall be necessary for the implementation of this act.
STATEMENT
���� This bill establishes the
�Veterans Helping Veterans� program in the Department of Veterans Affairs
(DVA).
���� The DVA, in consultation with
the Department of Human Services (DHS), will establish a housing assistance
program to be known as the �Veterans Helping Veterans Program.�� The purpose of
the program is to link homeless veterans with veterans who volunteer to house
such homeless veterans.� As nearly as practicable, the program will be modeled
upon the State�s foster care program with respect to the vetting process,
benefits, and incentives for veterans participating in the program to receive
or to provide housing.
���� The DVA, in consultation with
the DHS, will develop guidelines and procedures for the program, which will, at
a minimum, include the following: the application process to participate in the
program; criteria for the evaluation of such applications; criteria for
eligibility to receive housing, which will include, but not be limited to,
being a veteran and being homeless or at risk of homelessness; criteria for
eligibility to provide housing, which will include, but not be limited to,
being a veteran; and the terms and conditions for participation in the program,
which will include, but not be limited to, the time period for which veterans
will be housed, the responsibilities of the homeless veterans and the veterans
who volunteer to house such homeless veterans, and the incentives and benefits
to be provided to program participants.
���� This bill provides that the DVA
will monitor program participants� compliance with the guidelines and
procedures of the program and require the participants to periodically report
to the DVA information relating to participation in the program.
���� The Commissioner of the DVA
may apply for and accept on behalf of the State any grants from the federal
government or any agency thereof, or from any foundation, corporation,
association or individual, and may comply with the terms, conditions, and
limitations thereof, to develop and implement the housing assistance program.
���� The bill defines �veteran� to mean
any resident of the State now or hereafter who has been discharged honorably or
under conditions other than dishonorable from any branch of the Armed Forces of
the United States, or a Reserve component thereof, including members of the
National Guard who served on federal active duty.