Legislators Call on Governor to Keep Veterans’ Housing Facilities Open
MADISON – Legislators from communities affected by Governor Tony Evers’ planned closures of homeless veterans’ shelters sent a letter to Governor Tony Evers today, calling on him to use funds already at his disposal to prevent the closure of two Veterans Housing and Recovery Program (VHRP) facilities located in Chippewa Falls and Green Bay.
The letter outlines how a series of underestimated revenues and overestimated costs by the Evers Administration contributed to the faulty math that guided the Administration to shutter the veterans’ homeless shelters. This includes the Governor annually returning unspent funds from the Administration of Loans and Aids Appropriation, a fund that has previously been used to support the VHRP facilities, to the state treasury. In Fiscal Year 2025, these returned funds amounted to $608,300. The legislators wrote, “We ask that you stop sending appropriated money intended for veterans back to the treasury unspent. The Legislature fully funded VHRP. You alone are returning these funds and closing these shelters.”
The legislators also remind the Governor he can release a portion of the hundreds of millions in unspent COVID-19 funds that remain under his sole control. An August report shows the Administration has $373 million in unspent COVID-19 relief funds that federal rules allow to be re-obligated for purposes that include the VHRP program. The letter reads. “While the Legislature funded VHRP at 115%, you may also re-obligate some of the $373 million in remaining ARPA funding at your discretion to the VHRP. You used this method two years ago and can do it again.”
The letter closes with the legislators issuing a call to action by the Governor, stating, “Please do right by Wisconsin’s veterans and operate these shelters instead of returning money for this fully-funded program back to the treasury…Closing the shelters in Green Bay and Chippewa Falls was your choice, and you can choose to keep them open before it’s too late.”
The letter was authored by Senators Eric Wimberger (R-Oconto) and Jesse James (R-Thorp), and Representatives Karen Hurd (R-Withee), Clint Moses (R-Menomonie), Rob Summerfield (R-Bloomer) and Ben Franklin (R-Green Bay).
