Oneida Nation Gets Federal Funding to Help House Tribal Veterans
Small program an exception to federal slashing of housing grants and staffing.
U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Scott Turner announces new funding to help at-risk tribal veterans find housing on the Oneida Nation’s reservation. Photo courtesy of HUD
More than $2 million in federal funding will go to expand rental assistance for Native American veterans who are unhoused or at risk of becoming homeless as the nation’s federal housing agency faces cuts to grants and staff.
U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner announced $2.2 million in new funding Thursday on the Oneida Nation’s reservation, which spans roughly 65,000 acres in Brown and Outagamie counties. The money is part of leftover funds from previous fiscal years that will be made available through HUD’s Tribal Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing, or the VASH program.
During a press conference, Turner said more than 500 veterans in 29 tribal communities are currently being housed under the program.
“HUD-VASH delivers critical rental assistance to Native American veterans and tribal communities all across our great nation, including right here in Oneida,” Turner said.
The funding comes as the Trump administration has sought to terminate grants and programs that help preserve affordable housing, as well as cut about 4,000 positions. The Associated Press has reported that may include about half of the roughly 1,500 federal workers who help facilitate rental assistance for Native Americans.
The Oneida Nation has helped Native American vets under the program for the last decade. The tribe’s chairman, Tehassi Hill, said it’s helped meet the community’s needs for affordable and available housing.
“That includes emergency housing, transitional living and a path to home ownership,” Hill said.
The agency began piloting the Tribal HUD-VASH program in 2016, awarding $5.9 million to 26 tribes in its first year. Oneida Nation is the only tribe in Wisconsin to currently offer assistance under the program, according to Scott Denny, residential rentals and outreach area manager for Oneida Nation’s Comprehensive Housing Division.
Denny told WPR the Oneida Nation is currently providing rental assistance to 19 veterans living in Brown and Outagamie counties.
“The excitement of the announcement is that it’s going to create more opportunity for more tribes to pursue this assistance that they in turn could administer to Native veterans,” Denny said.
Denny said the rental assistance provided by the tribe is determined on a case-by-case basis depending on the veteran’s income and household size. Under vouchers offered by Oneida, he said veterans must pay a maximum of 20 percent of their monthly gross income, excluding income from veterans benefits. The Oneida Nation pays the remaining portion of their rent.
Mitchell Waukau, a member of the Oneida Nation and Menominee Indian Tribe, said he’s a former marine who served during Desert Storm. At the press conference, he said the program helped him and his two sons find housing after he was evicted. Waukau said he had sent his two sons to stay with family and ended up living in his car for several weeks.
“Because we were moving around, I couldn’t get my son into a stable school because I didn’t have a good address for him. But through the help of the HUD-VASH program, he’s going to be graduating next month,” Waukau said. “I can’t say enough of how much this has taken me and my family from really within a car to we have a home over our heads, and we’re safe.”
Denny said tribal veterans he’s worked with have struggled with social or behavioral issues that have affected their ability to find housing, adding that some landlords have declined to participate in the program since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Wisconsin Republican Congressman Tony Wied said he looks forward to working with Turner to ensure communities like the Oneida Nation have access to housing.
“Our Native American veterans risked their lives for our country, and they should never have to worry about losing their housing on tribal lands,” Wied said in a statement. “I thank the Secretary for his leadership and look forward to continuing our strong partnership to protect Native residents across Northeast Wisconsin.”
More than 1,100 veterans have received help under the federal program. HUD is accepting applications for funds from eligible tribes through Aug. 15.
Tribes can access $2.2M to help house tribal veterans, including the Oneida Nation was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.
If you think stories like this are important, become a member of Urban Milwaukee and help support real, independent journalism. Plus you get some cool added benefits.
help to veterans is vital!