1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to veterans; appropriating money for Minnesota Assistance Council for 
1.3 	Veterans;amending Laws 2021, First Special Session chapter 12, article 1, section 
1.4 	37, subdivision 2.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. Laws 2021, First Special Session chapter 12, article 1, section 37, subdivision 
1.7 	2, is amended to read:

1.91.8

Subd. 2.Veterans Programs and Services

27,073,000

~~22,153,000~~
30,593,000

1.10 	(a) CORE Program. $750,000 each year is 
1.11 	for the Counseling and Case Management 
1.12 	Outreach Referral and Education (CORE) 
1.13 	program.
1.14 	(b) Veterans Service Organizations.
1.15 	$353,000 each year is for grants to the 
1.16 	following congressionally chartered veterans 
1.17 	service organizations as designated by the 
1.18 	commissioner: Disabled American Veterans, 
1.19 	Military Order of the Purple Heart, the 
1.20 	American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, 
1.21 	Vietnam Veterans of America, AMVETS, and 
1.22 	Paralyzed Veterans of America. This funding 
1.23 	must be allocated in direct proportion to the 
2.1 	funding currently being provided by the 
2.2 	commissioner to these organizations.
2.3 	(c) Minnesota Assistance Council for 
2.4 	Veterans. $750,000 ~~each year is~~ in fiscal year 
2.5 	2022 and $9,550,000 in fiscal year 2023 are
2.6 	for a grant to the Minnesota Assistance 
2.7 	Council for Veterans to provide assistance 
2.8 	throughout Minnesota to veterans and former 
2.9 	service members and their families who are 
2.10 	homeless or in danger of homelessness, 
2.11 	including assistance with the following:
2.12 	(1) ~~utilities~~ supportive services to maintain 
2.13 	housing;
2.14 	(2) employment; ~~and~~
2.15 	(3) legal issues~~.~~;
2.16 	(4) housing and housing-related costs; and
2.17 	(5) transportation.
2.18 	The assistance authorized under this paragraph 
2.19 	must be made only to veterans or former 
2.20 	service members who have resided in 
2.21 	Minnesota for 30 days prior to application for 
2.22 	assistance and according to other guidelines 
2.23 	established by the commissioner. In order to 
2.24 	avoid duplication of services, the 
2.25 	commissioner must ensure that this assistance 
2.26 	is coordinated with all other available 
2.27 	programs for veterans.
2.28 	$8,800,000 of the total appropriation in fiscal 
2.29 	year 2023 must be used for the establishment 
2.30 	and management of permanent supportive 
2.31 	housing options for homeless veterans and 
2.32 	former service members. Any unencumbered 
2.33 	balance of this appropriation does not cancel 
3.1 	and is available in fiscal years 2024 and 2025. 
3.2 	The base for this appropriation is $4,950,000 
3.3 	in fiscal year 2024 and $1,950,000 each year 
3.4 	thereafter.
3.5 	(d) State's Veterans Cemeteries. $6,172,000 
3.6 	the first year and $1,672,000 the second year 
3.7 	are for the state's veterans cemeteries. Of these 
3.8 	amounts, $4,500,000 the first year is to 
3.9 	construct and equip the new veterans cemetery 
3.10 	in Redwood Falls.
3.11 	(e) Honor Guards. $200,000 each year is for 
3.12 	compensation for honor guards at the funerals 
3.13 	of veterans under Minnesota Statutes, section 
3.14 	197.231.
3.15 	(f) Minnesota GI Bill. $200,000 each year is 
3.16 	for the costs of administering the Minnesota 
3.17 	GI Bill postsecondary educational benefits, 
3.18 	on-the-job training, and apprenticeship 
3.19 	program under Minnesota Statutes, section 
3.20 	197.791.
3.21 	(g) Gold Star Program. $100,000 each year 
3.22 	is for administering the Gold Star Program for 
3.23 	surviving family members of deceased 
3.24 	veterans.
3.25 	(h) County Veterans Service Office.
3.26 	$1,100,000 each year is for funding the 
3.27 	County Veterans Service Office grant program 
3.28 	under Minnesota Statutes, section 197.608.
3.29 	(i) Veteran Homelessness Initiative.
3.30 	$3,165,000 each year is for an initiative to 
3.31 	prevent and end veteran homelessness. The 
3.32 	commissioner of veterans affairs may provide 
3.33 	housing vouchers and other services to 
3.34 	alleviate homelessness among veterans and 
4.1 	former service members in Minnesota. The 
4.2 	commissioner may contract for program 
4.3 	administration and may establish a vacancy 
4.4 	reserve fund. The base for this appropriation 
4.5 	in fiscal year 2024 and each year thereafter is 
4.6 	$1,311,000.
4.7 	(j) Camp Bliss. $75,000 each year is for a 
4.8 	grant to Independent Lifestyles, Inc. for 
4.9 	expenses related to retreats for veterans at 
4.10 	Camp Bliss in Walker, Minnesota, including 
4.11 	therapy, transportation, and activities 
4.12 	customized for veterans.
4.13 	(k) Veterans On The Lake. $50,000 in the 
4.14 	first year is for a grant to Veterans on the Lake 
4.15 	for expenses related to retreats for veterans, 
4.16 	including therapy, transportation, and activities 
4.17 	customized for veterans.
4.18 	(l) Veterans Resilience Project. $400,000 
4.19 	each year is for a grant to the veterans 
4.20 	resilience project. Grant funds must be used 
4.21 	to make eye movement desensitization and 
4.22 	reprocessing therapy available to veterans and 
4.23 	current military service members who are 
4.24 	suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder 
4.25 	and trauma. The base for this appropriation in 
4.26 	fiscal year 2024 and each year thereafter is 
4.27 	$200,000.
4.28 	The veterans resilience project must report to 
4.29 	the commissioner of veterans affairs and the 
4.30 	chairs and ranking minority members of the 
4.31 	legislative committees with jurisdiction over 
4.32 	veterans affairs policy and finance by January 
4.33 	15 of each year on the program. The report 
4.34 	must include an overview of the program's 
4.35 	budget, a detailed explanation of program 
5.1 	expenditures, the number of veterans and 
5.2 	service members served by the program, and 
5.3 	a list and explanation of the services provided 
5.4 	to program participants.
5.5 	(m) 9/11 Task Force. $500,000 the first year 
5.6 	is for the Advisory Task Force on 9/11 and 
5.7 	Global War on Terrorism Remembrance. The 
5.8 	task force must collect, memorialize, and 
5.9 	publish stories of Minnesotans' service in the 
5.10 	Global War on Terrorism and impacts on their 
5.11 	dependents. The task force must host a 
5.12 	remembrance program in September 2021. 
5.13 	This is a onetime appropriation.

5.14 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective July 1, 2022.