The Department of Veterans Affairs would have to set up a five-year pilot program, within 24 months, that gives competitive grants to nonprofit groups so they can provide trained service dogs to veterans with disabilities. Eligible veterans include those with blindness or low vision, loss of a limb or other major mobility problems, hearing loss, post-traumatic stress disorder, or traumatic brain injury, as confirmed by a physician. Each grant is capped at $2,000,000 per year, though the VA may raise that cap if inflation or program needs require it, after giving the House and Senate Veterans' Affairs Committees 30 days written notice. Nonprofits cannot charge veterans a fee for a service dog received through the program, and they must tell each veteran that the VA helped pay for the dog and what other VA benefits are available. The VA would also buy a commercial veterinary insurance policy for each dog and keep paying for it even after the pilot ends. The bill authorizes $10,000,000 a year for five years to run the program.
Congressional Summary
Service Dogs Assisting Veterans Act of 2025 or the SAVES Act of 2025This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to establish a five-year pilot program to award grants on a competitive basis to nonprofit entities to provide service dogs to veterans who have certain disabilities, conditions, or diagnoses (e.g., a visual impairment).Under the program, the VA may provide up to $2 million to a nonprofit entity in a fiscal year.The VA must provide a veterinary insurance policy to veterans who receive a service dog through a grant under the program.
Legislative Subjects
Details
- Congress
- 119th
- Chamber
- Senate
- Status
- summarized
- Action
- Reported to Senate
- Action Date
- 2026-02-24
- Date Added
- 2026-06-29
- Source
- Congress.gov →
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