During the Housing Authority’s housing and resource fair for veterans at Bob Hope Patriotic Hall, some veterans finally received housing vouchers.
L.A. Mayor Karen Bass showed up at the event to deliver the vouchers. She said they had to get the law changed so many more veterans would be eligible for the vouchers.
“Prior to us changing the law, if you were a veteran and you took your healthcare benefits, you are automatically, for the most part, ineligible for your voucher because your healthcare benefits counted as your income,” she said. “That's crazy to make veterans make that choice and for years, we had literally thousands of unused vouchers. I don't believe there should be one unused voucher in our city or in our county.”
John Bigham, an Air Force veteran, was among those who received a voucher. He spoke with KNX News’ Jon Baird about what it means to him.
“When I find a place, I pretty much only have to pay a third of my income, whatever my income is at the time, and this is a big, big thing,” he said. “It's a big deal for me because I hadn't been able to afford the down payment. I've been making money, but I just haven't accumulated enough money to be able to afford the down payment.”
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