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NEWS
RELEASE
Interagency Council on Homelessness
HUD Secretary Mel Martinez, Chairman
Philip Mangano, Executive Director
Office of Public Affairs, Washington, DC 20410
Release
No. 02-078 FOR RELEASE
Brian Sullivan Thursday
(202)708-0685 x7527 July 18, 2002
WHITE HOUSE INTERAGENCY COUNCIL ANNOUNCES NEW STRATEGY TO COMBAT
CHRONIC HOMELESSNESS
New plan will better coordinate federal response to homelessness
WASHINGTON - Fifteen years after enactment of the historic
McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, President Bush's newly reactivated
Interagency Council on Homelessness is announcing a new strategy
to better coordinate the nation's response to homelessness. Included
in the comprehensive plan is a unique collaboration between three
federal agencies that would provide $35 million in permanent housing
and critical services to long-term homeless individuals. The funding
will include $20 million from the Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD), $10 million from the Department of Health and
Human Services (HHS) and $5 million from the Department of Veterans
Affairs (VA).
The announcement was made by HUD Secretary Mel Martinez; HHS Secretary
Tommy G. Thompson; VA Secretary Anthony Principi; and, Philip Mangano,
executive director of the Interagency Council. Last year, Bush reactivated
the Council, which will coordinate the activities of 18 federal
agencies that assist homeless individuals and families and to concentrate
more effort into the prevention of homelessness. Today's meeting
was the first time the Council has met in six years.
"I
am proud to announce this Administration's new approach to confronting
the homeless challenge," said Martinez, who serves as Council
chairman. "For too many years, Washington waited until a person
became homeless before taking action. Today we come together to
commit the resources of HUD, HHS and VA as we move beyond managing
homelessness toward a more holistic approach including a greater
emphasis at preventing individuals from becoming homeless in the
first place."
"Every year, approximately 2 million people will experience
homelessness and approximately 200,000 will be chronically homeless,"
said Thompson. "We must improve access to and coordination
of essential health and social services to prevent new episodes
of homelessness from occurring. At HHS, we are committed to the
President's goal of ending chronic homelessness in 10 years. We
look forward to working with the Interagency Council on this important
task."
Principi said, "I am looking forward to working with the Council
to end homelessness among veterans and, ultimately, to work together
to eliminate chronic homelessness in America."
"Today's
announcements speak to the commitment of this Administration to
end homelessness for our most vulnerable neighbors," said Mangano.
"In collaboration, a number of federal agencies are creating
innovative initiatives that will bring change in the lives of those
who are homeless and at risk of homelessness and change on the streets
of our country."
A
critical component of addressing the needs homeless persons is to
provide an opportunity for individuals and families to find a permanent
place to live. The funding announced today will be directed to provide
permanent housing and support services to long-term homeless individuals
and families.
Research
confirms that approximately 10 percent of the nation's homeless
are so-called chronically homeless - often suffering from mental
illness or substance abuse. Though a fraction of the overall homeless
population, the chronically homeless account for more than half
the resources designed to meet the needs of the entire homeless
population.* For this reason, President Bush has made it a national
goal to move toward ending chronic homelessness in ten years.
In
addition to the funding proposed today, the Bush Administration
is announcing a multi-faceted approach toward meeting the goal of
ending chronic homelessness in America.
Prevention
For decades, the common strategy toward helping homeless persons
was to move those in need through a system of care and toward permanent
housing. Since 1987, for example, nearly $11 billion from HUD's
homeless assistance programs have helped hundreds of thousands of
men, women and families to leave homelessness while thousands of
others have come into homelessness. Modern research confirms prevention
is critical if this nation is to have a comprehensive, holistic
approach to the homeless problem.
In
another example of interagency collaboration, the Department of
Justice is joining with HUD, HHS, VA and the Departments of Agriculture,
Commerce, Education and Labor in Serious and Violent Offender Reentry
Initiative to identify at-risk persons and provide services BEFORE
they become homeless. The purpose of this $100 million program is
to prepare offenders for life outside of prison and youth correctional
facilities. This initiative provides approximately $2 million to
states to create a reentry strategy that reduces homelessness among
ex-offenders. The costs associated with prevention and early intervention
are significantly lower than the cost of providing emergency services
once a person becomes homeless.
Greater
Access to Mainstream Services
Currently 14 federal programs totaling $2.2 billion a year help
homeless persons in America, including more than $1 billion annually
from HUD. Only a fraction of homeless individuals and families,
however, have sufficient access to approximately $500 billion in
mainstream services including Medicaid, TANF, Food Stamps, and mental
health and drug/alcohol addiction programs.
To
provide greater access to these significant mainstream services,
HUD, HHS and VA are sponsoring a series of regional "policy
academies" across the country for state and local governments.
These policy academies will now be offered to every state to provide
local leaders the technical assistance they need to direct these
necessary services toward homeless persons.
Education
While homelessness impacts entire communities, children are especially
affected. Homeless children often do not receive the proper education
that comes from a stable home environment, often moving from classroom
to classroom as their families' circumstances change.
As
part of the President's "No Child Left Behind" initiative,
the Department of Education is creating a liaison for homeless children
in every school district in America. By having a dedicated person
to assist homeless families, local schools can better serve children
who have heretofore been underserved in schools. These liaisons
will be responsible for ensuring these children have the access
to the educational resources they will need to break the cycle of
homelessness.
Community
and Faith-Based Involvement
Recognizing that grassroots community and faith-based organizations
are already providing a network of social service to meet the needs
of the homeless, President Bush is attempting to remove existing
barriers that preclude the participation of these important groups
in federal funding opportunities. By rallying these "armies
of compassion," the Administration hopes to tap into a crucial
resource that, when leveraged with federal and other public-private
resources, will further assist individuals and families without
a home.
Background
on the Interagency Council
Congress
established the Interagency Council in 1987 with the passage of
the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act. Over the past six
years, however, the Council was relatively dormant. Last year, President
Bush reactivated the Interagency Council to better coordinate the
activities of 18 federal agencies that currently involved in assisting
the homeless. In addition, HUD, HHS and VA formed a joint task force
to study and improve the way these agencies respond to the various
needs of homeless individuals and families. For more information
on the work of the Interagency Council on Homelessness, visit www.ich.gov.
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*
May 2001, Center for Mental Health Policy and Services Research,
University of Pennsylvania. Dennis Culhane, Stephen Metraux and
Trevor Hadley
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