Connors, Rumpf & Gove

October 1, 2010   

Contact: Jason Smith / (609) 693-6700
District 9

The State Senate has approved legislation (S-122) sponsored by Senator Christopher J. Connors, Assemblyman Brian E. Rumpf and Assemblywoman DiAnne C. Gove (all R-Ocean/Burl./Atl.) that would require a portion of tenant-based assistance vouchers under the State Rental Assistance Program be reserved for grants to veterans.

“As the economy continues to show no sign of improvement, our Delegation feels there is a pressing need to improve veterans’ access to affordable housing opportunities,” said Senator Connors, who serves on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee. “Our veterans-centered initiative takes a sensible approach to this issue in that it would modify an existing resource to ensure that more veterans who served their country and have fallen on hard times obtain housing under the State Rental Assistance Program.”

The State Rental Assistance Program was established for low-income individuals or households. Currently, a portion of the grants available under the Program are reserved specifically for veterans who have completed the Veterans Transitional Housing Program known as “Veterans Haven.” This is a vocational and transitional housing program for homeless veterans, which is administered by the State’s Department of Military and Veterans’ Affairs.

“The State Rental Assistance Program serves as a safety-net for certain individuals who were not able to obtain Section 8 housing through the federal government” remarked Assemblyman Rumpf. “Therefore, we felt this already up and running program would be a suitable and effective means of providing housing assistance to veterans in these economic times where state resources are scarce.”

Assemblywoman Gove, who serves on the Assembly Military and Veterans’ Affairs Committee, went on to add, “Our nation and state has an obligation to provide housing options to those that have served in our Armed Forces on account of their dedicated service. This form of rental assistance serves as a lifeline for so many, but needs to be modified to serve the needs of more veterans. This worthy goal would be achieved through the enactment of our bipartisan supported legislation.”

The State Senate has approved legislation (S-122) sponsored by Senator Christopher J. Connors, Assemblyman Brian E. Rumpf and Assemblywoman DiAnne C. Gove (all R-Ocean/Burl./Atl.) that would require a portion of tenant-based assistance vouchers under the State Rental Assistance Program be reserved for grants to veterans. [...]