Sponsors (4)
The bill provides targeted, potentially high‑impact financial and housing counseling and protections for service members and families while expanding counselor capacity and oversight, but it requires taxpayer funding and faces risks of limited provider availability and delayed public reporting that could slow and obscure early program results.
Service members and their families will receive one-on-one financial counseling (credit, budgeting, anti‑predatory lending, rental/homebuying) within one year, improving personal financial stability and reducing vulnerability to predatory products.
Service members, families, and veterans will get tailored assistance on VA home loans and SCRA/10 U.S.C. § 987 protections to help preserve benefits and avoid predatory practices.
Establishing HUD‑certified housing counselor training expands the number of qualified counselors able to assist military households, supporting longer‑term housing stability and access to competent advice.
Taxpayers will incur additional costs to set up and operate the counseling program and HUD‑certification training.
Requirement that DoD contract with suitably qualified HUD‑approved 501(c)(19) organizations could limit the provider pool and slow program rollout, delaying access for service members.
Public reporting of program metrics is scheduled two years after services begin, which delays timely public accountability and limits early oversight of program implementation and outcomes.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Requires DoD to establish within 1 year a one‑on‑one financial and housing counseling program for service members via agreement with a HUD‑approved VSO counseling organization.
Introduced March 24, 2026 by Kristen McDonald Rivet · Last progress March 24, 2026
Requires the Secretary of Defense to set up a Department of Defense program within one year that provides one-on-one financial and housing counseling for service members. The counseling must cover credit, budgeting, anti‑predatory lending, permanent change-of-station and rental planning, VA home loans, and protections under the SCRA and related law, and must be provided through an agreement with a HUD‑approved counseling organization that is also a 501(c)(19) Veteran Service Organization with relevant expertise. The bill also directs the Secretary to report to the House and Senate Armed Services Committees on implementation and program metrics within two years after services begin.