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The United States Interagency Council on Homelessness e-newsletter |
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Partners In a Vision
1000 homeless advocates and providers, federal, state, and local officials, representatives of national organizations, philanthropists, business leaders, and homeless people gathered in Washington, DC, this week for the Annual Conference of the National Alliance to End Homelessness. Entitled "Countdown to Success," the conference focused for three days through plenary sessions, workshops, and day-long institutes on key issues, innovations, and policy developments in efforts to end homelessness. Federal agency partners in attendance or participating included the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness and the Departments of Labor, Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Veterans Affairs, Education, and Justice. Partnering with the national homeless advocacy organization which first launched the 10-year planning concept four years ago, the National Alliance to End Homelessness, the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness conducted a day-long Institute on "Taking it to the Next Level: Implementing 10-Year Plans." Primarily public sector participants attended from across the country, and the session drew on a faculty of state and local experts who have made strides in plan implementation. Attendees included officials from state agencies, state interagency council members, city and county government, housing authorities, public programs, and homeless providers, and coalition groups. National Alliance to End Homelessness President Nan Roman (pictured here) co-chaired the Institute with Interagency Council Executive Director Philip Mangano. Attendees heard from faculty including New York City Department of Homeless Services Commissioner Linda Gibbs, who stressed the role of outcome measures and contract incentives in shifting the New York City shelter system to the goals of that city's new plan. Cherie Shoquist, Interim Director for Ending Long Term Homelessness for the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency described the political support strategy of MN Governor Tim Pawlenty who last spring unveiled his state's "Business Plan for Ending Long Term Homelessness." Sue Marshall, Executive Director of the DC Community Partnership to Prevent Homelessness, described the lessons learned in developing the new plan for the Nation's Capital, now in public comment. Kira Sarpard of the Interagency Council staff described for participants the experience of Lawrence, Massachusetts, a community of 75,000 with one of the state's lowest per capita income levels, which committed to a 10-Year Plan in May 2004. Ms. Sarpard described to participants how Lawrence made progress in using a sequence of events and opportunities to reach necessary next steps.
Representatives from Nebraska, Georgia, North Carolina, and Washington have become the latest House members to sign on as cosponsors of the Samaritan Initiative, H.R. 4057. Representative Doug Bereuter (NE) is a member of the House Select Committee on Hunger and the House Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity which held a hearing on the legislation on July 13 (see previous e- newsletter story). Representative David Price (NC) (pictured here), who serves on the House Appropriations Committee and the HUD-VA-IA Subcommittee, has also become a cosponsor. Representative Price has been involved in health care and housing issues during his House tenure and has been supportive of homeless efforts in his home state. Representative David Scott of Georgia serves on the Housing and Community Opportunity Subcommittee. He represents part of the city of Atlanta and portions of 11 Georgia counties: Clayton, Fulton, Gwinnett, Dekalb, Rockdale, Henry, Newton, Walton, Fayette, Butts and Spalding. Representative Rick Larsen (WA) also signed on to H.R. 4057. He has represented northwestern Washington State in the Congress since 2001. Additionally, this week the National Association of Counties at their annual conference adopted a resolution to support the Samaritan Initiative similar to the resolution passed unanimously last month by the U.S. Conference of Mayors that urged Congress to support this initiative in the ending of chronic homelessness through supportive housing. Clarification. Last week's e-newsletter provided extensive coverage of the July 13 House Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity hearing on H.R. 4057, the Samaritan Initiative, during which a variety of witnesses including mayors, city officials, Congress people, providers, and national advocate indicated their support for the Samaritan Initiative. Included in the coverage were excerpts from witnesses' testimony. Among the witnesses was James Mauck, President and CEO of Catholic Charities and Community Services in the Archdiocese of Denver. Mr. Mauck testified on behalf of Catholic Charities USA, Volunteers of America, and Lutheran Services in America. Excerpts from Mr. Mauck's testimony should not be construed to represent the support of the Volunteers of America (VOA) for the Samaritan Initiative. VOA has not endorsed the proposed legislation targeted to ending street and long term shelter homelessness.
FOR THIS ISSUE, the e-newsletter focuses on remarks delivered by Interagency Council Executive Director Philip Mangano (pictured here) at the Plenary Session of the National Alliance to End Homelessness Annual Conference in Washington, DC. "I was in the Midwest not long ago. We were conducting a city focus group on innovative ideas from around the country that are creating change in reducing and ending homelessness. City Administrators were inspired by the faculty they were hearing and the results being reported. After the session the woman responsible for homeless policy in Wichita, Kansas, came up to me and said this: 'I feel like there's a train pulling out of the station and I want Wichita on it. ' The city official from Wichita is right. There is a train filling up and getting ready to pull out of the station. Inspired by the President's unprecedented call to end the most visible expression of homelessness, 20 federal agencies are on board that train and it is moving now. ". . . One of the signs that we are on board the train of abolitionism is that we don't leave anything on the table that would benefit homeless people. The President has proposed a new three-department collaboration targeted to the chronic homelessness initiative. The Samaritan Initiative is a $70 million unprecedented, coordinated, joint investment from HUD, HHS, and VA to create supportive housing for people on the streets and long term in shelters." "Some say it's not enough. Some say it should serve more populations. Some say it's overwhelmed by other budget matters. And some say it's not worth the effort. It's disingenuous. Don't support it. "Let me be clear on this as an advocate for homeless people for nearly a quarter century. It is irresponsible not to support the Samaritan Initiative. Irresponsible to leave those resources on the table. Irresponsible to our mission. Irresponsible to homeless people. Just as it would be irresponsible not to speak out on other issues that we feel would be harmful to homeless people and create more homelessness. The Samaritan is modest and is targeted. But it's an expression of political will that should be supported and won."
"I'm no longer carrying a 'ghost key' - the key I never had to a home." He is a Vietnam veteran who had been homeless, living on the streets of Contra Costa County for more than 30 years. She is a 41 year old single woman, the mother of 4 children between the ages of 17 and 24, no longer living with her, with a psychiatric history including prior suicide attempts, who've been living on the street for 3 years in Broward County. They are just 2 of the more than 300 men and women who have recently been able to move off the streets and out of shelters after years of homelessness into permanent supportive housing through a historic partnership between the federal government and 11 community collaboratives across the country. In October 2003, 11 communities were competitively chosen from more than 100 applications to participate in the Collaborative Initiative to Help End Chronic Homelessness, the precursor of the Samaritan Initiative. This Chronic Homelessness Initiative was an unprecedented effort by the U. S. Departments of Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, and Veterans Affairs to provide communities with housing, primary and behavioral health care, and other supportive services targeted toward ending the homelessness of those who have been living long term on the streets and in shelters. The announcement of the awards was made at the October 2003 meeting of the Interagency Council, which has guided the effort, and included the following communities: Chattanooga, TN, Chicago, IL, Columbus, OH, Denver, CO, Broward County, FL, Los Angeles, CA, Contra Costa County, CA, New York, NY, Philadelphia, PA, Portland, OR, and San Francisco, CA. This week representatives of each of these 11 community collaboratives, which include housing providers, substance abuse treatment and mental health counselors, outreach workers and case management staff, are meeting in Washington with federal agency officials from the DC and regional offices to assess progress in the implementation of these programs and learn approaches for program sustainability. This 3-day "grantees conference" which began Wednesday, will be reported on in future e-newsletters and on our website. United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano keynoted the gathering, urging each of the communities to collect the data that will make the cost effectiveness case to end chronic homelessness. "Do your homework on the economic arguments to end homelessness. Right now in difficult fiscal times at every level of government, no argument - not moral, not spiritual, not even quality of life - is as compelling as the economics of homelessness. That argument has already ensured change in some places. And it will in your community. I've not met a mayor yet who didn't identify with the findings or who could resist a new approach. The solutions of the future - supportive housing - are less expensive than the past ad hoc managing."
CEOs of the 34 new awardee programs under the Social Security Administration (SSA)'s Homeless Outreach Projects and Evaluation (HOPE) convened at the Social Security Administration in Baltimore this week for a kickoff orientation. The $6.6 million HOPE awards were announced at the Interagency Council's April 1 meeting at the White House. Eighteen states are represented among the 34 new awards. Grantee organizations will reach out to a wide range of persons experiencing chronic homelessness. Attendees were welcomed by Associate Commissioner Mary Ellen Kyle of the Office of Program Development and Research and also heard from other SSA officials including HOPE Lead Project Officer Sally Zeller. In discussing the awards at the April 1 Council meeting at the White House, SSA Deputy Commissioner Lockhart noted that six of the grants went to faith- based organizations, and more than 50% of the grants had an employment services component. SSA estimates that 5000 homeless persons will be served through the programs receiving these funds over the next 3 years. Of the 34 awardees, 23 are using the "disability model" based on the University of Maryland presumptive disability approach, and 20 are expected to use representative payee services for recipients. 20 awardees expect to serve a pre-release population, and 14 are serving veterans. 22 awardees are targeting persons with serious mental illness, and 16 expect to serve persons with HIV/AIDS.
Ohio Governor Robert Taft (pictured here) became the 48th Governor in the nation to establish a State Interagency Council on Homelessness when he signed Executive Order 2004-09T on June 15 in Columbus. The Governor of the Buckeye State joined 47 other Governors in the states and territories who have taken this step toward eliminating homelessness. A state group convened by the Governor had recommended the creation of the Council to eliminate homelessness and unnecessary institutionalization in the state. Recognizing that "the creation of a statewide partnership provides a coordinated effort for state, federal, and local response to the challenge of ending homelessness with an emphasis on ending chronic homelessness," Governor Taft created the Interagency Council on Homelessness and Housing to serve as the planning and policy development body for short and long-term strategies on homelessness prevention and eliminating chronic homelessness. The Council will report annually to the Governor on its progress. Members of the new Council will include the Governor's Office, Ohio Departments on Aging, Alcohol, and Drug Addiction Services, Criminal Justice Services, Development, Education, Health, Job and Family Services, Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities, Faith-based Initiatives, Veterans Affairs, Rehabilitation and Corrections, Youth Services, and the Ohio Housing Finance Agency. The Council will also include at least six service providers or statewide organizations to be appointed by the Governor.
Stating that "This Web page furthers the Administration's commitment to helping the homeless, including homeless veterans," Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao, who serves as Vice chair of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, launched the new DOL web site on homelessness. "The Department of Labor is committed to pooling our resources and working together with Congress, our federal, state and local partners to achieve the President's goal of ending chronic homelessness in 10 years." The new site provides employment information to people at risk or currently experiencing homelessness. The site is a resource for targeted training, education and placement services in addition to employment information. The website also provides links to the Department of Labor's homeless program and other government and non- government homeless programs. DOL has addressed the needs of homeless Americans through a number of targeted intervention and prevention programs. The launch of the new website is furtherance of their commitment.
In a letter from Pennsylvania Governor Edward Rendell to United States Interagency Council Executive Director Philip Mangano last week, the Governor reported on the inaugural meeting of the Pennsylvania Interagency Council on Homelessness on June 28, 2004. Governor Rendell has appointed his Housing Cabinet to serve as the Pennsylvania Council, responsible for the development of the state's 10-Year Plan to end chronic homelessness. The Council is led by the Governor's Office of Housing and Community Revitalization. Other council members include the Secretaries of the Departments of Public Welfare, Environmental Protection, Aging, Community and Economic Development, Transportation, Corrections, Banking, Labor, and Industry. At the completion of the meeting, the Housing Cabinet accepted the draft plan to end homelessness in Pennsylvania. Governor Rendell described these accomplishments as "an important first step in setting the overall policy framework that will guide the Commonwealth in marshalling the resources to end homelessness in Pennsylvania." Topics discussed at the meeting included the history and composition of Pennsylvania's homelessness assistance process, recent trends affecting this population, barriers in addressing homelessness and strategies to reduce homelessness.
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Washington · DC · 20410 |