Press Release — March 13, 2026

Press Release: Candidate Condemns VA Plan to Strip Rights From Homeless Veterans - Jonny Larsen Candidate for UT-04

MARINE COMBAT VETERAN JONNY LARSEN CONDEMNS VA/DOJ PLAN TO FORCE HOMELESS VETERANS INTO GOVERNMENT-CONTROLLED GUARDIANSHIP

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - Jonny Larsen, Marine combat veteran and 2026 congressional candidate for Utah's 4th district, condemned the Trump administration's decision to grant Veteran Affairs attorneys new legal authority to force homeless veterans into court-ordered guardianship without congressional review or approval.

On March 11, the VA and Department of Justice signed a memorandum of understanding allowing VA attorneys to initiate state court guardianship proceedings against veterans deemed unable to make their own medical decisions. This includes veterans experiencing homelessness.

This was not authorized by Congress. The Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee was not consulted. The National Coalition for Homeless Veterans and Disabled American Veterans were blindsided. The Constitution vests all legislative power in Congress, not the President. Writing new law through an interagency agreement, without a single vote in Congress, is not how this country works.

"Guardianship takes away a veteran's right to make their own decisions about their own life. That is not care. That is control. They deserve housing, mental health providers, trained staff, and treatment they can walk away from," Larsen said.

Approximately 33,000 veterans are homeless nationally, and up to 60 percent have a mental illness. During the fall 2025 government shutdown, Congress let the Health Care for Homeless Veterans program expire while the administration built a legal framework to lock veterans up. Utah's 4th District alone is home to more than 33,000 veterans.

Jonny Larsen is the Democratic nominee for Utah's 4th Congressional District. A Marine Corps infantry veteran who served from 2000 to 2004 and rose to the rank of Sergeant, Larsen deployed twice to Iraq and was present in Washington, D.C. on September 11, 2001, where he witnessed the attack on the Pentagon and later stood as part of the first Honor Guard at Ground Zero. Learn more at JonnyLarsen.com.