A bill to help Wisconsin's homeless veterans is making its way through the state legislature, but some are saying not enough is being done to help veterans. Feb. 9, 2026. PC: Fox 11 Online
(WTAQ-WLUK) — A bill supporting Wisconsin’s homeless veterans was passed by the State Senate Wednesday and now heads to the desk of Governor Tony Evers.
The bill uses an existing $1.9 million to create a new state grant program. It would fund four nonprofits that house veterans in southeastern Wisconsin — two in Milwaukee, one in Janesville and one in Madison.
Meanwhile, the shuttered Veterans Housing and Recovery Program facilities in Green Bay and Chippewa Falls still sit empty. These locations closed in September after a lapse in funding in the state budget.
State Senator Jamie Wall, D-Green Bay, along with Sen. Jeff Smith, D-Eau Claire, proposed an amendment to reopen the two sites, but it failed on a party-line vote.
“I am disappointed that Republicans once again turned their backs on homeless veterans in Northeast Wisconsin. The closure of the center in Bellevue almost certainly means that some local veterans are sleeping on the street this winter. We have to do better,” Wall said in a statement.
State Sen. Eric Wimberger, R-Gillett, and State Rep. Benjamin Franklin, R-De Pere, authored the bill that will now be considered by Evers. In a statement, Wimberger said:
Today, the Senate voted to do what Governor Tony Evers should have been doing from the start: spending already-appropriated funds under his control to help care for Wisconsin’s homeless veterans. But since he closed two VHRP facilities and has repeatedly refused to spend the money available to him, the Legislature is stepping in to deliver a solution and ensure the important work of supporting our state’s homeless heroes is done.
My bill will ensure not only that these funds are spent, but that the State of Wisconsin is actively collaborating with the private sector to deliver these vital services to our veterans after their service to our country.
When the Green Bay and Chippewa Falls locations shut down, the veterans living there were moved to different homes in southeast Wisconsin, Minnesota or Michigan.
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