Thank you, Chair.
I would like to thank the witnesses for coming today, for the service of those who have served and for your time.
Chair, through you, I'm going to ask this question because it's one that's swirling around in my mind after hearing a bit of the testimony. It's piggybacking on my colleague, Mr. Dowdall's, comments from earlier. The question I have right now is this: What is it going to take to create a healthy organization—meaning Veterans Affairs—to help veterans who are in need?
I'm asking myself this question because I want to know what it's going to take to shorten the span of time from recommendations that come from here to implementation. I ask that question because earlier on Mr. Dowdall brought forward a report from 2018: “A Seamless Transition to Civilian Life For All Veterans: It's Time For Action”. Six years ago, it was time for action for vets who were homeless.
Mr. Harris, earlier on, you shared with us that there is going to be an announcement—a launch—in the spring. This is six years later. We're going to be having a launch for something that was identified six years ago. Part of this launch, if I understand, is that money is now going to be allocated from Veterans Affairs to the Infrastructure Bank, which is another layer of bureaucracy and a holdup for people who are homeless and in need.
I want to know what it's going to take for us, when we complete our reports here, to be able to shorten the span to help people who are in need.