BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA. The City of Birmingham became the third Alabama jurisdiction to commit to a 10-year planning process to end chronic homelessness last week. At an orientation meeting and press conference on Thursday, Birmingham Mayor Bernard Kincaid introduced members of a committee he has appointed to develop the plan. The 27-member committee will be co-chaired by First American Bank Executive Vice President Norm Davis and Dr. Mona Fouad of University of Alabama at Birmingham, and includes representatives of the Chamber of Commerce, churches and other faith based organizations, Cooper Green Hospital, the Alabama Power Company, the VA Hospital, and service providers.

United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Regional Coordinator Michael German participated in the event and provided an overview of the 10-year planning process. Pictured here (top, from l to r) are Council Regional Coordinator German, Mayor Kincaid, Dr. Fouad, Mr. Davis, and Plan consultant Aisha McGough.

Plan Co-Chair Davis has previously served as Alabama Superintendent of Banks and as Director of the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs. He is a past chairman of the Birmingham Housing Authority and has served on the Boards of the Birmingham United Way and Chamber of Commerce. Dr. Fouad is the founding director of the Minority Health and Research Center at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). In 2005, she received the Sullivan Best Practice Award in Reducing Health Disparities in the United States. The national award was presented at the annual meeting of the Association of Academic Health Centers. Dr. Fouad is the principal investigator on more than $40 million in federal grants that seek to improve health and prevent disease for minorities. John Gemmell from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Field Office also attended the event.

Birmingham, with a population of just over 242,000, is the largest city in Alabama and the county seat for Jefferson County. Montgomery unveiled a Plan in December 2004 and Mobile/Baldwin County unveiled a 10 Year Plan last year. In August 2005, United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano joined Alabama Governor Riley at the signing of an Executive Order creating the Alabama Interagency Council on Homelessness, led by the Alabama Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives.

PATERSON, NEW JERSEY. There is HOPE in Passaic. The Passaic County Interagency Council on Homelessness held a kickoff this week for a 10-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness. The Plan, Housing Our People Everywhere in Passaic (HOPE), will be developed over the next several months and finalized by December in an effort co-chaired by Bishop Arthur Joseph Serratelli (pictured here, bottom), Passaic County Freeholder Director Elease Evans, and St. Joseph Hospital Director of Emergency Preparedness Dr. James Pruden.

The kick-off event, hosted by Eva's Village Executive Director Sister Gloria Perez, brought together over 170 people including Bishop Serratelli; local, state, and federal elected and appointed officials including Mayor Pat LePore of West Paterson, Freeholder Director Evans, and State Assemblywoman Nellie Poe; service providers including Paterson Housing Authority Executive Director Irma Gorham; and formerly homeless persons and interested citizens. Also participating were the co-chairs of the New Jersey Interagency Council on Homelessness, New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency Special Housing Director Pamela McCrory and Corporation for Supportive Housing Director Deborah DeSantis. Federal officials in attendance included US. Interagency Council on Homelessness Regional Coordinator Sam Miller and HUD Newark Field Office Director Diane Johnson. Pictured here (middle, l to r) are Council Regional Coordinator Miller, Freeholder Director Evans, Dr. Pruden, and Housing Authority Director Gorham.

Passaic County, with a population nearing half a million, is located in the New York/New Jersey metropolitan area, The County is the 6th New Jersey jurisdiction to commit to the 10-year planning process.

NORMAN, OKLAHOMA. Norman, one of the 25 cities to participate in last year's inaugural National Project Homeless Connect Day on December 8, held a second successful Project Homeless Connect this week. 180 homeless individuals and families were assisted at Monday's event, which was organized and hosted by the community non-profit Food and Shelter for Friends. United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Regional Coordinator Michael German participated in the event.

City officials and organizers were particularly pleased with the variety of health services offered by government and community agencies including tuberculosis and blood sugar testing, foot care, and mental health counseling. Other on-site services included housing information from the Norman Housing Authority, bus passes, bicycle repair, and employment information from the Club House. Office Max, which distributed free coats to every homeless participant at the December PHC event, was again on-site to provide assistance and conduct job interviews. Numerous churches and community organizations donated food for sack lunches, toiletries, socks, and bottled water.

A 10-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness, ECHO 2015 , for Norman and Cleveland County was unveiled in April 2005, and United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano met with the City Council and with Norman Mayor Harold Haralson, who became the first Oklahoma Mayor to sign the Mayors Covenant of Partnership to End Chronic Homelessness. Commending the community on its 10-Year Plan, Executive Director Mangano noted the plan " emphasized prevention to stop the human tragedy before it begins; performance to ensure outcomes and results; pricing through cost benefit analysis to understand how expensive the issue is; and partnerships to ensure collaboration and accountability." A Plan Oversight Committee meets quarterly and a first year Progress Report is currently being prepared for transmittal to the City Council in August.

A 2006 National Project Homeless Week facilitated by the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness is scheduled for the week of December 4.

WASHINGTON, DC. The President's Budget for FY 2007 proposed $4.157 billion in targeted federal funding for homelessness programs, a record sixth consecutive year of increased funding. Additionally there are many other federal programs, not specifically targeted to homelessness, whose services also benefit homeless people. Over the past several months, the House of Representatives and the Senate Appropriations Committees have held hearings to consider the President's FY 2007 budget requests.

Last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee reported its FY 2007 recommendations for programs contained in the Transportation, Treasury, Judiciary, and Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Bill, and the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriation Bill. Both bills fund programs having particular significance for homelessness efforts. The Committee's recommendations must now be considered by the full Senate. The measures have previously been considered by the House of Representatives. Once the full Senate has acted on the measures, differences with the House recommendations will be reconciled by a conference committee.

The Transportation, Treasury, Judiciary, and Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Bill.

As reported in last week's enews, one of the most significant sources of federal assistance is HUD's Homeless Assistance Grants program. The President's budget requested $1.536 billion, a $209 million increase over FY 2006. While the House has agreed to the full increase, the Senate Appropriations Committee recommendation is $1.511 billion, $25 million less than the President's request.

For HUD's Section 8 program the Committee recommendation includes $15.9 billion for tenant-based assistance, the same as the President's request. This is a $502 million increase over FY 2006. For Project-Based assistance, the Committee recommended $5.7 billion, the same as the President's request which is an increase of $638 million over FY 2006.

For both the HOME and CDBG programs, the Committee recommendation is an increase over FY 2006 funding and the President's request, at $1.9 billion for HOME and $4.1 billion for CDBG.

For HOPWA ( Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS), the Committee recommended $295 million, an $8.8 million increase over FY 2006 but $5.1 billion below the President's request.

The United States Interagency Council on Homelessness is funded as an independent agency in the Transportation, Treasury, Judiciary, and Housing and Urban Development Bill. To continue the work of the Council in FY 2007, the President's budget requested $2 million, a nearly 12% increase over FY 2006. The Senate Appropriations Committee recommends the full amount as did the House of Representatives. The Committee commends the Council's work with 10-year planning processes around the country and asks the Council to convene a workshop on family homelessness.

The Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Bill.

New resources of approximately $5 million to support services in permanent supportive housing for chronically homeless persons are included in the Committee's recommendation of an overall $28 million increase for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration's Center for Mental Health Services. Committee report language expresses the intention that these funds be awarded to "applicants that operate permanent supportive housing funded by HUD's Homeless Assistance Programs or comparable programs, including those that were funded through the Interagency Collaborative Initiative to Reduce Chronic Homelessness." The "Interagency Collaborative Initiative" referred to in the Committee language is the historic collaborative effort of the U.S. Departments of Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, and Veterans Affairs announced at the first Council meeting to provide $55 million to create permanent supportive housing opportunities for chronically homeless persons. Eleven communities received funding under this initiative and that funding has ended the homelessness of over 632 disabled, long term homeless individuals.

For PATH (Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness), the Committee recommended $54.26 million, the same as the President's request.

For the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Block Grant, the Committee recommended $1.789 billion, a $31 million increase over the FY 2006 level. The Committee report notes that since FY 2004, 14 states and one tribal entity have received funding through the President's Access to Recovery Voucher (ATR) initiative to purchase treatment and recovery through the use of vouchers. The first 3-year grant cycle ends September 30 and the Committee "supports SAMHSA's proposal to evaluate the extent to which the ATR programs were successful and urges SAMHSA as part of the ATR evaluation, to review and report on the extent to which the use of vouchers impacts clinical outcomes compared to the use of other purchasing strategies."

In his FY 2002 budget, the President announced a multi-year federal initiative to significantly improve health care access around the nation by creating additional new health centers ("access points") and expanding services at existing centers in 1200 communities under the Consolidated Health Centers program. The Health Care for the Homeless program is part of the Consolidated Health Centers program. By the end of FY 2005, this initiative had successfully expanded primary care access to an additional 3.65 million people through 428 new access points and 349 grants to expand capacity at existing centers.

The President's FY 2007 budget requested $1.963 billion, an increase of nearly $182 million for the Consolidated Health Centers program to provide for an additional 182 new access points, and the expansion of 120 existing centers. This would allow an additional 1.2 million people to be served for a total of 15.8 million nationally. The Committee recommended $1.926 billion, a $145 million increase over FY 2006 and $36 million less than the President's request. The Health Care for the Homeless program would receive $167 million at the Committee's recommended level.

For the Consolidated Runaway and Homeless Youth Program, the Committee recommended $87.8 million, the same as the President's request. $15.027 million is recommended for the Runaway Youth Prevention Program, also the same as the President's request.

Independent Living Training Vouchers provide up to $5000 for college tuition, or vocational training for individuals who age out of the foster care system. The Committee recommended $46.157 million for this program, the same as the President's request.

For LIHEAP (Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program), the Committee recommended $2.16 billion, a very slight increase over FY 2006.

For the Department of Labor's Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program, the Senate Appropriations Committee recommended $21.8 million, the same as the President's request which is a $2 million increase over FY 2006.

For the Education of Homeless Children and Youth Program in the Department of Education, the Committee recommended $61.87 million, the same as FY 2006 and the President's request.

In this issue, the e-news continues coverage of the Regional Federal Interagency Council on Homelessness meetings held to coincide with the Full Council meeting at the White House on July 10. The Region IV Federal Interagency Council, which covers the states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North and South Carolina, and Tennessee and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, will meet on August 23 for a presentation by Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin on progress in implementing Atlanta's Regional Blueprint to End Homelessness in Ten Years.

Region I

Intergovernmental collaboration was the theme of the Region I Interagency Council on Homelessness meeting in Boston. Region I Council members invited the " point person" on homelessness for each of the Region I states - Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont - to join them for a discussion of state initiatives and ways in which to improve collaboration between state efforts and federal agencies. Cathy Voyer, VT, Linda Fosburg, MA, Patrick Herlihy, NH, and Noreen Shawcross, RI were able to attend the meeting where discussion with regional federal officials from the U.S Departments of Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Labor, and Veterans Affairs, the Social Security Administration, and Office of Faith-based and Community Initiatives focused on HMIS implementation, homeless veterans needs, and other issues.

In a discussion with Council Regional Coordinator John O'Brien after the meeting, the state point persons commented that, not only had the exchange with the federal officials been helpful, but the opportunity to share information state to state had also been useful. They agreed to continue meeting with each other on a regular basis.

Region IX

Region IX Federal Interagency Council on Homelessness members meeting in San Francisco received a briefing from Trina Gonzalez, Special Assistant to the California Secretary of Health and Human Services, who is helping to lead the development of a statewide California 10-Year Plan. Ms. Gonzalez discussed the plan's progress and ways in which the federal regional representatives might be helpful in the state level planning process. Ms. Gonzalez asked the Council members to help her plan and convene a meeting of federal and state officials on meeting the needs of homeless veterans in California.

In 2005, California became the final state in Region IX - which also includes Arizona, Hawaii and Nevada - to establish a state interagency council on homelessness. Last month, a two day planning session of stakeholders including CA state executive and legislative branch officials, city and county government representatives, federal agency officials, advocates, providers, clients, and foundations was held in Monterey to begin drafting a California 10-Year Action Plan to End Chronic Homelessness. The stakeholders discussed and ranked strategies to be included in a first draft of the statewide plan expected later this summer. The strategies discussed included funding streams for new housing, including permanent supportive housing; discharge and transition planning; outreach, treatment and services improvements; and facilitating client access to income and employment.

Also on July 10, two members of the Region IX Federal Interagency Council on Homelessness-Steve Sachs of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and Dennis Stewart with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Service held a workshop in Phoenix, Arizona, for government officials and service providers to discuss overcoming barriers and streamlining access to food stamp benefits. The Phoenix presentation was the latest of a series of presentations held in the Region IX area on achieving better outcomes for homeless people through more effective utilization of the food stamp program. Recognizing and addressing barriers to utilization of the food stamp program by homeless people, especially the chronically homeless population, provides models for improving access to other mainstream programs such as Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). Increasing access to mainstream programs was a goal of the federally- funded Policy Academies attended by all states and territories.

Workforce Development and Cooperative Extension Working Hand in Hand, an article published in the December 2005 Journal of Extension, the peer reviewed journal of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Cooperative Extension Service, serves as a useful reminder of the importance of thinking "out of the box" when identifying community stakeholders for 10-Year planning purposes and developing new partnerships for homelessness prevention efforts.

At-risk families living in a high crime, high unemployment area of South Phoenix have benefited from a partnership between the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension Service of Maricopa County and the Keys Community Center job training program. Project STRIDE- Successful Training Resources for Individual Development- was begun in 1997 with a two year grant from the City of Phoenix through a competitive Request for Proposals for its Enterprise Community Program whose goal was to "prepare local people for local jobs" and later was continued with support from the Southwest Leadership Foundation.

Through Project STRIDE, the job training programs of the Keys Community Center were augmented with an Extension Connection life skills curriculum adapted for high risk audiences to enable participants to "overcome barriers to entering the workforce, achieve job stability and advance in life for themselves and their families." The program targeted the homeless, TANF recipients, teen parents, families with incomes below the poverty level, former drug users, former parolees, and probationers , who were over age 18, drug free, and living in the enterprise community neighborhood. Outreach efforts were facilitated by Extension's historical role in providing nutrition and other services to hard to reach families and by churches and other faith based organizations in the community.

Program data from 2000-2004 shows that of 260 persons enrolled in the Project STRIDE collaborative effort, 218 completed the program with 43% receiving jobs and others enrolling for more technical training at a local community college. The article notes that the program is currently in transition with a new Advisory Board and restructuring underway to better serve the community.

When New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg addressed the National Alliance to End Homelessness Annual Conference in Washington last week, no one who knows Rob Hess was surprised to hear the Mayor announce a new initiative to "take the next major step" in meeting the goal of ending chronic homelessness in the city. After all, it had been 3 months since Rob Hess (pictured here) had been appointed by Mayor Bloomberg as the city's new Commissioner of the Department of Homeless Services. Rob Hess is used to accomplishing a lot in a short period of time.

As Deputy Managing Director for Special Needs Housing in Philadelphia, Mr. Hess promoted data collection and evaluation, adopted new engagement strategies, and pursued partnerships within the city and with state and federal agencies to fashion a targeted approach to street homelessness that resulted in a 60% reduction in Philadelphia's chronic homeless population in 4 years and also addressed the prevention of weather-related street deaths effectively.

During his tenure, Philadelphia, the nation's fifth largest city, developed a 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness and was awarded one of only eleven federal awards made under the HUD-HHS-VA Collaborative Initiative to Help End Chronic Homelessness. Always enthusiastic and always prepared to move forward, no one was surprised when Philadelphia was the first of the grantees to begin implementation of their program, moving a Vietnam veteran who'd been living in shelters for over 1100 days into permanent supportive housing.

Mr. Hess has discussed local government efforts to end chronic homelessness at a Full Council meeting at the White House, testified at a Congressional hearing in support of the Administration's Samaritan Initiative to provide more resources for permanent supportive housing, and participated in the Council's Tripartite discussions with Canada and the UK. He has generously shared his knowledge and experience at numerous Council-sponsored state colloquies and hosted many site visits to Philadelphia from communities engaged in 10-Year planning efforts.

For his enthusiasm and his "beautiful" can-do spirit in identifying and implementing solutions that are achieving results in ending chronic homelessness, the Council awarded Rob Hess an inaugural A Home for Every American Award.

Street homelessness was the subject of National Public Radio Morning Edition stories last week. The stories may be heard in their entirety by linking to the NPR website. WBUR, NPR's Boston Affiliate also presented a one hour program July 20 focused on Housing First with United States Interagency Council Executive Director Philip Mangano as the guest of On Point.

July 14: Miami Offers Lessons on Handling the Homeless, reports that Miami's efforts to reduce the number of homeless on the streets is becoming a model for other cities. The NPR segment includes an interview with Alvah Chapman, the now 85 year old former chairman and CEO of Knight Ridder who in 1992 agreed to lead then Governor Lawton Chiles' Commission on Homelessness to assist the estimated 8000 homeless people in Miami -Dade County. The Commission recommended a public- private partnership and proposed a 1% sales tax restaurant sales tax in Miami-Dade County to generate money for homeless programs which the Legislature approved in the waning moments of the 1993 session. That 1% sales tax is administered through the Miami-Dade Homeless Trust (public partner) in collaboration with the Community Partnership on Homeless (private sector partner).

NPR also interviewed Miami Dade Judge Stephen Lysmon, a member of the Homeless Trust Board, who is especially concerned about the numbers of people with mental illness in jail and about preventing discharges into homelessness from the correction system. Judge Lysmon says that people with mental illness are in jail eight times longer than people without mental illness at seven times the cost to taxpayers; and describes the court efforts to prevent homelessness with an announcement each morning that there is an outreach worker available to meet with anyone being released who needs housing.

Miami is one of over 220 jurisdictions across the nation committed to the 10-year planning process to end chronic homelessness. Miami Mayor Manny Diaz unveiled the City's plan, Helping Hands Mending Hearts, in 2004. Miami was one of 25 jurisdictions to participate in last year's inaugural National Project Homeless Connect. Hundreds of volunteers and service providers assisted over 600 homeless individuals, helping more than 80 to move off the streets into housing. In his April 2006 State of the City Address, Mayor Diaz reported a 30% reduction in street homelessness. More information on best practices in discharge planning can be found in the Innovations section of the Council's website. The websites of the U.S. Department of Justice and Health and Human Services, two of the Council's 20 member agencies, provide useful information on prisoner re-entry initiatives and mental health/criminal justice systems interface.

July 19: Homeless Alcoholics Find a Home reports on the 1811 Eastlake Project in Seattle, a Housing First initiative targeting chronic alcoholics who ricochet through expensive systems of public assistance including medical care and corrections. Bill Hobson, Eastlake's Executive Director, describes the county's intent in focusing on this particular population, " What we're doing is acknowledging the likelihood that they are never going to stop drinking and what we want to do is to help them discover ways to reduce the levels of consumption around a bunch of people who actually care about them and reduce utilization of these other expensive services." Data from the 1811 Eastlake project confirms the precarious health of persons experiencing chronic homelessness and refutes the notion that most of them prefer to live on the streets. All 75 units at Eastlake were filled by approaching only 79 chronic alcoholics and four of the original 75 have passed away.

The 1811 Eastlake project, a Housing First project for chronically homeless alcoholics funded by King County, Washington, was profiled in the June 8 e-news.

July 20: Los Angeles Community Pushes Plan to House Homeless Vets notes the work of a Los Angeles-based non profit, New Directions, to provide temporary housing and intensive services to homeless veterans, and interviews Santa Monica Mayor Bobby Shriver who would like to see three currently empty buildings on the campus of the West Los Angeles Veterans Administration campus used to provide housing and clinical services to homeless veterans. New Directions Inc. is a residential self-help program for veterans in Los Angeles based on the 12-Step Program of Alcoholics Anonymous. The program operates four West Los Angeles residential facilities serving approximately 800 clients each year. The program also operates three business enterprises - catering, construction and a restaurant to help residents develop employment skills. New Directions Executive Director Toni Reinis described this successful program at a September 2004 meeting of the Full U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness. (Pictured here at Council Meeting, 3rd from left)

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has established a state interagency council on homelessness and work has begun on a statewide plan to end chronic homelessness that will specifically address the needs of homeless veterans (see related story this issue). Information on best practices in identifying the needs of homeless veterans in jurisdictional planning processes can be found in the State and Local Section of the Council 's website.

IN THIS ISSUE, the enews highlights remarks made during a consumer panel discussion moderated by United States Interagency Council Executive Director Philip Mangano at a plenary session during last week's National Alliance to End Homelessness Annual Conference. The five consumers shared their remarkable stories of the journey from a place they never thought they'd be - homeless - to a place where they are now - a home. Pictured here, left to right, are Council Director Mangano, Lakeisha Wells, Jerome Jackson, Paula Curry, Charles High, and Hyacynth King.

. . . I never lived anywhere for long when I was growing up. I had my kids when I was young, starting at 15. I was dually diagnosed in 2000. I've been in abusive relationships, in shelter. They did not think I was ready for a place of my own. Now I've been housed for a year, sober for a year. Now I'm with my kids, working with my church. What's the best thing? When I tell my kids, "Go to your room." There is no way I will let this be taken away. -- Lakeisha Wells, Philadelphia

. . . What did I want most when I was out? A roof over my head. I was living out of a tote bag, stopping in gas stations to wash up. Sleeping out, staying in emergency rooms, waiting rooms, then on a bench at 7th and Pennsylvania Avenue, then a shelter. What is important to me now? (Standing and twirling his key ring) "This." The Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines can come in. I am not giving this up. -- Charles High, Washington, DC

. . . I am secure in a place to stay now. I was a father at a young age, got involved in drugs, had some mental health issues. Really I was homeless off and on for 20 years before I got into the Pathways program. Now my name is on the lease. -- Jerome Jackson, Washington, D.C.

. . . Cars, woods, empty houses, shelters. I slept in all kinds of places. I didn't want to go in if I had to go to a 30-day program first for my drinking. But my worker came and got me and moved me to a room where I did not have to be sober. That was December 2005. What would I say to everyone now? See, I did it. -- Paula Curry, Quincy, MA

. . . You become invisible. People see you but they don't. A Philadelphia police officer would come by, and he would ask me how I was. He brought me coffee. We shared a cigarette. He was the only person I could trust. I was over a year in a residential program, but they did not think I was ready to live on my own. What is important to me now? My privacy, having a place to call my own, a retreat that's safe. -- Hyacinth King, Philadelphia

. . . These are American stories as old as our country. Overcoming adversity. Overcoming discrimination and ignorance about disease. You all bring a scripture that says that: faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen. You give us all faith that the tragedy of homelessness can end in our neighborhoods, our communities, and our country. You bear testimony to the substance of what we've hope for and see now -- that homelessness can be overcome. You bear witness to the efficacy of all our work. -- Council Director Mangano