WASHINGTON, DC. Performance objectives are central to the FY 2006-2011 Draft Strategic Plan released by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) for public comment under the Government Performance and Results Act. The Draft Plan identifies performance objectives for four strategic goals that, when finalized, will serve as the foundation for the Department's budget and planning decisions. Noted below are highlights of specific performance goals included in the Draft Plan for several programs with particular relevance to efforts to reduce and end homelessness. Please refer to the actual draft plan for complete details. DOL will consider public comments received by August 25.

Acknowledging the partnerships inherent in many of the Department's strategies, United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano commented: "From the first day of the Interagency Council's revitalization, the Department of Labor under Secretary Chao's leadership has shown its commitment to collaboration, in the President's Reentry Initiative, in the HUD-DOL housing and employment initiative for persons who are chronically homeless, through the federal Policy Academies, and in its work with faith-based organizations and WIBs." Pictured here is U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Elaine Chao.

Strategic Goal 1 - A Prepared Workforce

• Assist ex-offenders in successful reintegration into the community and reduce recidivism through preparation for placement into the workforce.

Studies show an unemployed ex-offender is three times more likely to return to prison than an employed ex-offender and that returning offenders are highly concentrated in urban communities. Recidivism rates and the positive impact of gainful employment are two key areas addressed by the President's Prisoner Re-entry Initiative. The Departments of Labor, Housing and Urban Development, and Justice are jointly administering this initiative, which is designed to strengthen urban communities while helping ex-offenders find and keep employment. In addition to employment services, DOL provides assistance obtaining transitional housing and mentoring to ex-offenders - all key components for successful re-entry. Strategies to keep the program responsive to the needs of the participants and the community include expanding partnerships between State and local workforce investment systems and the criminal justice system; tapping into the unique capacities of faith-based and community organizations (FBCO) to train and mentor former prisoners; and working with intermediary organizations to connect employers with ex-offenders, particularly in high-growth industries.

• Improve the employment outcomes for veterans who receive One-Stop Career Center services and veterans' program services.

The Department helps veterans find jobs by funding grants to State Workforce Agencies for the delivery of employment and workforce information services through One-Stop Career Centers in local communities. These grants support Disabled Veteran Outreach Program specialists dedicated to serving veterans who need special employment assistance due to disabilities or barriers to employment. These grants also support Local Veterans Employment Representative (LVER) staff members, who conduct outreach to area employers to identify their employment needs, and develop employment opportunities for veterans. LVER staff members also provide transition employment assistance workshops to service members prior to their separation from the armed services.

The Department of Labor serves targeted veterans such as homeless veterans, incarcerated veterans, and seriously injured veterans who need individualized employment assistance in order to reenter the workforce. The Homeless Veterans' Reintegration Program (HVRP) and the Veterans' Workforce Investment Program (VWIP) are funded through a competitive grant process. Funding is open to a wide range of program operators, including State and local governments, faith-based organizations, and other community-based organizations. These grants are closely linked with other service providers to optimize their effectiveness in delivering employment services. For example, HVRP grants are closely coordinated with grant programs administered by the Departments of Housing and Urban Development and Veterans Affairs and other community resources that support related interventions, such as substance abuse treatment.

DOL continues to undertake specific program initiatives to meet the emerging needs of veterans and to assure continuous improvement in the services provided. DOL is developing and implementing State Workforce Agency performance standards to improve employment outcomes for veterans. DOL will continue to work to effectively address homelessness among veterans and problems faced by distinct veteran groups such as the disabled and aging. DOL is expanding the Recovery and Employment Assistance Lifelines program and its crosscutting efforts with the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs to provide individualized job training, counseling and re-employment services to seriously injured or wounded veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom and other recent conflicts.

Strategic Goal 2 - A Competitive Workforce

• Advance knowledge and inform disability employment policy that affects systems change throughout the workforce development system.

The Department recognizes that the traditional, service-based silos of addressing the employment of people with disabilities and an insufficient understanding of employer perspectives have resulted in outcomes that have not significantly increased the employment rate of people with disabilities for the past 20 years. To address these issues, DOL has implemented an approach that looks at disability and employment comprehensively, within the Department and across the Federal government, to develop innovative policies and strategies for implementation throughout the workforce development system and employers. The Department will continue to develop national disability employment policy; foster implementation of effective policies and practices within state and local workforce development systems and with employers; conduct research that validates effective strategies for providing disability-employment related services and supports; and provide technical assistance on implementing effective systems-change strategies to both the demand and supply side of the labor market.

Strategic Goal 3 - Safe and Secure Workplaces

• Reduce employer-employee employment issues originating from service members' military obligations conflicting with their civilian employment.

Under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), the Department of Labor ensures that returning veterans and members of the National Guard and Reserve components suffer no penalties in their civilian jobs as a consequence of their military service. This is especially important today, with the activation of half a million Guard and Reserve members since September 11, 2001. DOL investigates employment and reemployment complaints and conducts compliance assistance activities to reduce the number and severity of complaints. A significant part of this effort involves providing as many on-site briefings as possible to National Guard and Reserve units as they are mobilized, and again as they are demobilized. DOL also engages in continuous outreach efforts to increase public awareness of the civilian employment rights of returning service members. This includes extensive outreach to educate multiple organizations on the new USERRA regulations, other special compliance assistance initiatives with employers, and the development and maintenance of Web-based tools that explain the provisions of the USERRA statute in clear terms.

Planned Research and Program Evaluations

DOL's Draft Strategic Plan also lists future planned research and program evaluations which for FY 2008-09 would include "evaluating the long term effect of the Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program on the employment of homeless veterans"; examining the Veterans Workforce Investment Programs "to evaluate the national strategy based on Pro-Vet effectiveness"; and evaluating the outcomes of Uniformed Services Employment Re-employment Rights Act under regulations issued in 2005.

Comments on the Draft Plan can be submitted by email to strategic-plan@dol.gov or by fax at (202)693-7954.

COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS. More than 3,500 appointed and elected officials from across the country met in Cook County, Illinois, August 4-8 for the 71st Annual Conference and Exposition of the National Association of Counties (NACo).

United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Regional Coordinators Michael German and Ed Cabrera represented the Council at this event and shared the importance of performing cost benefit analysis and establishing interagency partnerships with county officials from across the nation. The nation's more than 3,000 counties are overwhelmingly responsible for human services delivery at the local level. Across the country, county officials are playing a vital role in the development of 10-year plans to end chronic homelessness. NACo officially endorsed the Bush Administration's national goal of ending chronic homelessness at its July 2003 Annual Conference. NACo has continued to encourage counties to develop 10-year plans incorporating the latest research to prevent and end chronic homelessness.

The key role counties can play in creating jail and health systems diversion programs was the central theme of the session, Eliminating the Criminalization of Individuals with Mental Illness and Addictions. Identified as one of the most challenging and costly issues facing county governments today, officials from Bexar County, which includes San Antonio, presented the results of their cost benefit analysis and the overall outcomes. In just its first year, 2003, the county's Jail Diversion Program saved taxpayers between $3.8 million and $5 million, according to a policy report from the Center for Pharmacoeconomic Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, and reduced the jail stays or completely avoided incarceration of more than 1,700 people. The program, which has received funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Targeted Expansion Capacity Grants for Jail Diversion, has successfully diverted 4,100 persons since September of last year. Through the 10-year planning process many county governments and communities across the country are attempting to divert the homeless mentally ill and addicted from jail and health systems through innovative and creative collaborative solutions.

As county governments continue to evolve, through mergers, consolidations and incorporations, there is a growing trend toward regional approaches to issues including the development of regional 10-year plans to end chronic homelessness, such as the one developed by the Atlanta Regional Commission on Homelessness, which encompasses the City of Atlanta and Fulton, Cobb, DeKalb, and Clayton Counties.

Pictured here (top, r-l ) are: Council Regional Coordinator German with incoming NACo President Colleen Landkamer of Blue Earth County, Minnesota, and President-Elect Eric Coleman of Oakland County, Michigan; (center): Council Regional Coordinator Cabrera participating in Jail Diversion Program discussion; (bottom, l - r): Dupage County, IL Board Member Thomas Bennington, Pike County, IL Commissioner Harry Forbes, Congresswoman Judy Biggert ( IL-13th), Tarrant County, TX Commissioner Glen Whitley, Council Regional Coordinator German, and Dupage County Board Member Jim Healey.

WASHINGTON, DC. A recent innovation to end homelessness will move from city streets to cyberspace next month when the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness and the National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education, and Families (IYEF) sponsor a web seminar for city leaders on Project Homeless Connect on September 7 at 2 p.m.

The Project Homeless Connect (PHC) 1-day, 1-stop model, which draws on the example of Stand Downs and the more recent 1-stops created in response to Katrina, has been identified by the Council as a consumer-centric innovation that mobilizes civic will to end homelessness. The Council recently announced December 4-8 as 2006 National Project Homeless Connect Week. The NLC-USICH webinar, entitled Project Homeless Connect: Using Civic Engagement to Serve the Homeless will provide practical advice and examples for cities interested in replicating the PHC model or improving upon their own past PHC events. Participants will be able to view presentations and video on-line while listening to presentations on-line or by phone. Presenters will include NLC's Abby Holsclaw, Judith Klain, director of San Francisco Project Homeless Connect; Katie Kitchin, director of Norfolk, Virginia's Office to End Homelessness; and representatives from the Interagency Council.

Space for the webinar is limited, and reservations must be made through NLC. Cities are encouraged to register early, and to join with community partners to participate as a group. To register online, go to the IYEF webpage and click on the Project Homeless Connect webinar link. For more information on the webinar, contact Stephanie Casey Pierce at (202) 626-3044 or pierce@nlc.org.

For more information on the Council's National Project Homeless Connect Week, contact usichevents@usich.gov

ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA. United Way of America, which has made "investing for impact" a strategy for success in communities, has been an active partner to the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness' 10-year planning efforts in more than two dozen jurisdictions across the country. Under the leadership of President and CEO Brian Gallagher, United Way is seeking to use its resources to create measurable and lasting change in communities and in individual lives.

Recognizing that "economic success equals human success," United Way is currently working with partners in the public and private sector to examine the role economic opportunity plays in framing the organization's initiatives to move families toward economic stability, using workforce, income support, and asset building strategies. United Way's Assets for Family Success Initiative provides its more than 1,300 locally governed organizations with skills and resources to offer families, including Individual Development Accounts, financial education, affordable financial products, and other asset building resources and strategies.

To consider ways to focus and partner on these resources and strategies, United Way President Gallagher last week convened leaders of United Way from Boston, Miami, and Denver with IRS Commissioner Mark Everson, private sector philanthropic leaders, including Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and the Federal Reserve Board, as well as the Annie Casey and William J. Clinton Foundations, Harvard Business School, and Center on Budget and Policy Priorities Executive Director Robert Greenstein. United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Deputy Director Mary Ellen Hombs participated in the meeting.

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA. A study published in the July 2006 issue of the Journal of General Internal Medicine describes findings by University of California at San Francisco researchers that suggest that the majority of chronically homeless persons may be a "finite" group that "does not seem to be regenerating itself," according to UCSF Assistant Professor of Medicine Judy Hahn who co-authored the study.

Homeless individuals in San Francisco at six emergency shelters and soup kitchens at four intervals were surveyed over nearly 14 years beginning in 1990 and ending in 2003. The study found that the median age rose from 37 years to 46 years at a rate of 0.66 years per calendar year, and the median total time homeless increased from 12 to 39.5 months, suggesting that those experiencing chronic homelessness are a "static, aging population." Moreover, this aging homeless population is experiencing significantly worsening health problems reflected in their increasing number of emergency health visits. 43.4% of those surveyed in 1996-97 had had at least one emergency room visit in the previous year; by 2003 that percentage had increased to 51.9%. Among specific health findings of those surveyed comparing the 1996-97 results with 2003, hypertension increased from 14.1% to 20.6%, diabetes from 4% to 8.2%, emphysema from 3% to 5.7%.

The UCSF researchers discussed their findings with social workers working with the homeless population in Los Angeles, New York, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Toronto, and Philadelphia and report that these cities are finding a similar "aging phenomenon" among the street homeless population.

Commenting on the research findings, United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano noted that the data affirm the Administration's prioritization of this population as being those most vulnerable and likely to die on our streets, and that the creation of permanent supportive housing opportunities through jurisdictional 10-year planning processes combining federal, state, local, and private resources is "perfectly matched as a cost effective antidote to the homelessness of this population." Across the country, more than 220 state and city/county jurisdictions are engaged in 10-year planning processes. The San Francisco 10-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness developed in 2004 calls for the development of 3000 permanent supportive housing units by 2010, about half of which have already been created.

The study was conducted by the UCSF Epidemiology and Prevention Interventions Center at San Francisco General Hospital Medical Center and was supported by funding from the National Institutes of Health and the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.

OLYMPIA, WASHINGTON. Homeless families in Washington State are benefiting from over $4.1 million awarded over the last two years by the Washington Families Fund to 15 housing innovative partnerships to expand the availability of service enriched housing. The most recent announcement of $1.6 million in funding to 5 organizations will support service enriched housing for homeless families in Yakima, Tacoma and rural Pierce County, Forks and Port Angeles in Clallam County, and Lynnwood in Snohomish County.

The Washington Families Fund (WFF), established by the Washington State Legislature in 2004 with a $2 million appropriation, is a public-private partnership that is expanding the availability of service-enriched affordable housing for homeless families by providing stable long-term funding for housing-based supportive services including comprehensive case management, job training, parenting skills, substance abuse and domestic violence counseling. The initial $2 million state investment has been matched by over $3 million in private funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and a dozen other funders. In March, the WWF was allocated an additional $4 million by the Legislature. WWF also includes a partnership with public housing authorities throughout the state of Washington. The housing authorities have pledged the support of project-based Section 8 vouchers to support the operating costs of a number of projects.

To implement WWF, the Washington State Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development (CTED) was charged with establishing a statewide steering committee to select a nonprofit entity to serve as the WFF administrator. The Steering Committee comprised of representatives of foundations, nonprofit housing and service providers, housing authorities, local government, CTED, and the Department of Social and Human Services (DSHS) chose AIDS Housing of Washington (AHW) through a competitive selection process. AHW has contracted with the Corporation for Supportive Housing for project underwriting and technical assistance services. The Steering Committee continues to serve in an advisory capacity to AHW.

WFF funding is being used to capitalize a reserve account for support services linked to housing for homeless families. Grantees selected through a competitive application process are expected to contribute a portion of the project's operating income to partially fund services delivered to resident families. WFF grants range from $1,500 to $3,500 per unit per year for up to ten years. In June 2005, a first round of 10 year grants totaling $2.64 million was awarded to 10 service enriched housing projects. Of the 84 families who were enrolled in 2005 and received service enriched housing as a result of the WWF funding, there were a total of 163 children under the age of 18, 88% were single parent families, 30% had been homeless three or more times in the previous 3 years, 54% had moved at least twice in the past year, and 64% had experienced domestic violence.

In a continuing series of e-news profiles on the recipients of A Home for Every American Award, we highlight the contribution of OliverMcMillan CEO and San Diego 10-Year Plan Co-Chair Dene Oliver to the National Partnership to End Chronic Homelessness.

When businessman and 10-Year Plan Leadership Council Co-Chair Dene Oliver presented the Plan to End Chronic Homelessness in the San Diego Region to the San Diego City Council in June, he noted that "the time waiting to get here was well spent." He outlined for Council members the planning partnership with the United Way of San Diego which had provided fiscal, administrative and consulting support; the involvement of over 100 stakeholders through the Leadership Council and the Committee of Service Providers; and the regional effort that had included meetings with 18 mayors of neighboring cities within San Diego County. He noted the extensive research on the demographics of the homeless population in the San Diego region and inventory of available services and resources. The planners' search for best practices took Mr. Oliver and other members of the Leadership Council both around the country to meet with plan leaders in other cities as part of the National Partnership to End Chronic Homelessness constellated by the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, and into their own backyard to learn from the research being done at the University of California at San Diego and from model programs like the Serial Inebriate Program (SIP) and the new supportive housing models such as the recently opened Rachel's Women Center.

In concluding his remarks to the City Council, Mr. Oliver said, "The City has new great leadership in Mayor (Jerry) Sanders along with this City Council and that gives us all much to be grateful about. Now is the time for our Plan, and the effort to end chronic homelessness to come to the forefront of all San Diegans."

Over two years, through one of the most turbulent times in San Diego's political history, the Leadership Council led by Mr. Oliver had persevered to create a regional 10-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness informed by business principles and outcome-oriented. For his efforts holding together a city and region's response to homelessness, resisting inertia, defying the forces of entropy, and inexorably moving forward a 10-Year Plan for San Diego which addresses the "human suffering of homelessness as well as the drain on community resources," Mr. Oliver has given his City and the National Partnership to End Chronic Homelessness a reason to be grateful to him. The Council was pleased to acknowledge Mr. Oliver's efforts with A Home for Every American Award.

WASHINGTON, DC. The federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is an important - and often underutilized - tool to prevent and end homelessness among working, low-income families and individuals. According to the Internal Revenue Service, millions of low-income Americans forfeit this critical tax relief each year, when they qualify and could claim the credit, owe no tax, or receive a tax refund.

Each year, EITC provides substantial tax relief to low-income families in the United States while encouraging work. In 2004, more than 21 million taxpayers collected more than $39 billion in EITC payments. Studies by the Internal Revenue Service have indicated that 25 percent of qualified workers do not claim the credit.

For persons experiencing homelessness or for those at-risk of homelessness, EITC can provide important financial resources. The EITC does not affect eligibility for low-income housing, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Medicaid, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), or food stamps. Families living in homeless shelters with their children are eligible for EITC.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have taken steps to ensure that more eligible families and individuals take advantage of the tax credit. A 2004 Memorandum of Agreement signed by HUD Secretary and Interagency Council Chair Alphonso Jackson and IRS Commissioner Mark W. Everson called for increased outreach and education efforts concerning EITC and greater accessibility to tax preparation services for low-income families.

The EITC was created by Congress in 1975, and, according to a 2005 report of the Government Accountability Office, represents the second largest federal expenditure among more than a dozen programs targeted to low- income individuals. To qualify for EITC, taxpayers must meet certain requirements and file a tax return, even if they did not earn enough money to be obligated to file a tax return. To be eligible in the 2006 tax year:

• Families with more than one qualifying child must have an earned income of less than $36,348, or $38,348 if married filing jointly.
• Families with one qualifying child must have an earned income of less than $32,001, or $34,001 if married filing jointly.
• Families without a qualifying child must have an earned income of less than $12,120 or $14,120 if married filing jointly.

The Internal Revenue Service provides a step-by- step guide for determining eligibility for the EITC. The National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education and Families has produced an EITC toolkit for municipal leaders, Maximizing the Earned Income Tax Credit in Your Community that is a useful resource for family homelessness prevention efforts.

One-stop events such as Project Homeless Connect and Stand Downs offer opportunities to increase awareness of the EITC. Just as representatives of the Social Security Administration volunteer on site to provide Social Security and SSI benefit information, employees of the IRS are encouraged to participate on site to provide information and assistance regarding the EITC. Many employers, faith- based and community organizations, and public service organizations also conduct EITC outreach activities.