Washington—Senator Dianne Feinstein today applauded unanimous Senate passage of the West Los Angeles VA Campus Improvement Act. Senator Feinstein introduced the Senate version of the bill in January and has long championed the West LA VA campus as a key resource to reduce veteran homelessness in Los Angeles.
The bill would allow the Department of Veterans Affairs to contribute land-use revenues generated at the West LA VA campus to the development of supportive housing and services for homeless veterans. Currently, the VA can only use lease proceeds for campus beautification.
The bill would also allow the VA to enter into longer-term leases on campus to help facilitate housing construction and reduce financing costs.
Because the Senate amended the House bill introduced by Congressman Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) to include annual assessments of the expenditure of funds and the direct benefits those expenditures provide to veterans, the bill must now return to the House for a final vote before it can be signed into law.
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