Housing, treatment and support services increased for veterans and their families, others in need

2007 Veterans and Human Services Levy Annual Report released

Homeless veterans and low-income families with children are among the people who received housing and a variety of other services this past year thanks to the voter approved Veterans and Human Services levy. In addition to more housing for the homeless, levy dollars improved access to post traumatic stress disorder and other counseling services for veterans and their families, enhanced programs and services for low-income families with young children, and increased availability for in-home treatment for seniors with depression .

Board members and county staff presented the Veterans and Human Services Levy Annual Report to the King County Regional Policy Committee on June 11, 2008 and to the Law, Justice and Human Services Committee on June 19, 2008.

The new or enhanced services are the result of voter approval of a ballot measure passed in November 2005 that generates over $13 million annually for six years to help veterans and their families and others in need. It also funds regional health and human services, including housing, homelessness prevention, treatment services, and employment assistance.

"The lives of homeless veterans and aging veterans and their families and others who have fallen on hard times are improving because King County voters wanted them to have shelter and the services needed to improve their health and stability," said King County Executive Ron Sims. "We are grateful to the citizens of King County for approving the funding to provide these much-needed services."

Two new oversight boards, the Regional Human Services Levy Oversight Board and the Veterans Citizen Levy Oversight Board, convened in early 2007. Over the past year, members spent hundreds of hours reviewing procurement plans, program designs and agency proposals for the new and enhanced services identified in the Veterans and Human Services Levy Service Improvement Plan approved by the King County Council in 2006.

"When I helped draft this ballot measure, it was imperative that the funds be used for King County veterans, families, and other vulnerable citizens," said King County Councilmember Bob Ferguson, who led the effort to place the levy before the voters in 2005. "The members of the oversight boards are to be commended for their service to King County because they help make sure the funds are enhancing programs for those who need services the most."

The levy focuses on several priority areas, including enhancing services for veterans and their families; ending homelessness through outreach, prevention, permanent supportive housing and employment; increasing access to behavioral health; and strengthening families at risk. Progress has been made in implementing new programs and services in each of these priority areas, as well as moving forward with a comprehensive evaluation tool to measure success.

"The levy is having a positive impact on the lives of individuals and families across our county," said Joe Ingram, co-chair of the Regional Human Services Levy Oversight Board. "We must continue our efforts to provide the housing and supportive services that will help people in need, adults and children, achieve healthier and more productive lives."

Thanks to levy funding, the King County Veterans' Program expanded basic stability services such as food, transportation and housing assistance. A new office, co-located with the county's WorkSource Renton, links veterans to employment and training services as well as veterans' assistance to help residents of south King County. Through an expanded contract with the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs, the county increased post traumatic stress disorder counseling by 3,000 hours and reserved an additional 28 shelter beds for veterans. The successful Veterans Incarcerated Project expanded in 2007 to reach and serve veterans in regional jails, connecting them to community services and housing that resulted in 14,000 fewer jail bed days and saving taxpayers about $1.6 million.

"King County stepped up to help its local veterans and their families," said William Wood, a member of Vietnam Veterans of America and vice-chair of the Veterans Citizen Levy Oversight Board. "Thanks to the support of the county's voters, we are better able to reach and serve our men and women returning from combat in Iraq and Afghanistan and provide the services that will help them and their families achieve and maintain stable lives."

Levy funding supported homeless prevention services as well as capital funding of about $7 million in 2007 for the creation of housing for veterans, their families and other low-income households countywide.

"This levy helped to build the home I now live in and also contributed to the King County Veterans' Program. I am grateful for the support I receive from the Veterans' Program, which helped me to find my new home and to be happier with my life," said Wilbert Morris, a U.S. Navy Vietnam veteran and resident of Plymouth Housing Group's Simons Senior Apartments, funded with Veterans and Human Services Levy dollars.

The levy also provided funding for a variety of regional health and human services implemented in 2007, including expansion of in-home services for seniors suffering from depression through the Program to Encourage Active, Rewarding Lives for Seniors (PEARLS), offered through the City of Seattle's Aging and Disability Services; and expansion of the Nurse-Family Partnership program offered by Public Health-Seattle & King County that provides early intervention and home visitation services for young parents with children to help them learn how to care for their children and themselves.

Information on the Veterans and Human Services Levy, including a copy of the 2007 Annual Report, is available online at www.kingcounty.gov/dchs/levy or by calling Linda Peterson, Division Director, Community Services Division at 206-263-9062. Individuals served by levy housing and human services are available for interviews upon request.