S. 3119

119 S3119 IS: Fisher House Availability Act of 2025
 U.S. Senate
 2025-11-06
 text/xml
 EN
 Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
 II  119th CONGRESS  1st Session  S. 3119  IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES   November 6, 2025   Mr. Moran  (for himself and  Mr. Blumenthal ) introduced the following bill; which
  was read twice and referred to the  Committee
  on Veterans’ Affairs    A BILL
To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans
  Affairs to make temporary lodging facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs
  available for members of the Armed Forces, other individuals on active duty, and family
  members of such individuals on a space-available basis, and for other
 purposes.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the   Fisher House Availability Act of 2025  .
2.
Expansion of availability of Department of Veterans Affairs temporary lodging to
 certain individuals
Section 1708 of title 38, United States Code, is amended—
(1)
by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
(a)
The Secretary may furnish persons described in subsection (b) with temporary lodging in a Fisher house or other appropriate facility in accordance with this section.
 ;
(2)
in subsection (b)—
(A)
by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
(2)
A member of the family of a veteran described in paragraph (1) and others who accompany such veteran and provide the equivalent of familial support for such veteran.
 ; and
(B)
by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
(3)
On a space-available basis—
(A)
an eligible individual who must travel a significant distance to receive care or services at a Department facility or non-Department facility; and
(B)
a member of the family of an eligible individual described in subparagraph (A) and others who accompany such eligible individual and provide the equivalent of familial support for such eligible individual during the receipt of care or services described in such subparagraph.
(4)
On a space-available basis—
(A)
a member of the family of a veteran who must travel a significant distance for such family member to receive care or services at a Department facility or non-Department facility; and
(B)
the veteran and others who accompany such family member and provide the equivalent of familial support for such family member during the receipt of care or services described in such subparagraph.
(5)
On a space-available basis—
(A)
a member of the family of an eligible individual who must travel a significant distance for such family member to receive care or services at a Department facility or non-Department facility; and
(B)
the eligible individual and others who accompany such family member and provide the equivalent of familial support for such family member during the receipt of care or services described in such subparagraph.
 ;
(3)
by striking subsection (c) and redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as subsections (c) and (d), respectively;
(4)
in subsection (d), as so redesignated—
(A)
in paragraph (2), by striking  subsection (d)  and inserting  subsection (c) ;
(B)
in paragraph (3), by striking  a veteran under subsection (b)(2)  and inserting  an individual under subsection (b) ;
(C)
in paragraph (4), by striking  and  after the semicolon;
(D)
by redesignating paragraph (5) as paragraph (6); and
(E)
by inserting after paragraph (4) the following new paragraph (5):
(5)
establishing criteria for providing access to temporary lodging facilities on a space-available basis under paragraphs (3) through (5) of subsection (b); and
 ; and
(5)
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
(e)
In this section:
(1)
The term  eligible individual  means a member of the Armed Forces, regardless of duty status, or any individual on active duty.
(2)
The term  Fisher house  means a housing facility that—
(A)
is located at, or in proximity to, a Department medical facility;
(B)
is available for residential use on a temporary basis by patients of that facility and others described in subsection (b); and
(C)
is constructed by, and donated to the Secretary by, the Zachary and Elizabeth M. Fisher Armed Services Foundation or the Fisher House Foundation, Inc.
 .