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During this past year we have heard numbers related to homelessness that were unprecedented. More resources than ever before dedicated to our poorest neighbors. More people moved off the streets. Record numbers of homeless people ending their homelessness. The number of homeless veterans falling to a 10-year low. More families at risk of homelessness through the impact of the "double trouble" of mortgage/foreclosure and job losses. Once again in FY08 record resources from Washington. More than $4.8 billion targeted to homeless people. The President's FY09 budget requested more than $5 billion targeted to homeless people. If Congress goes along with the President's request, that would be an unprecedented 8th consecutive year of record resources. And, in addition, we saw the resumption of the field-tested, evidence-based HUD-VASH initiative to ensure housing solutions for those who have served their country, more than 10,000 housing tenancies created for homeless veterans. And more VA resources for homeless people than ever before. More resources than ever before also came from state and local governments through State Interagency Councils and 10 Year Plans. Some states for the first time making resources available targeted to homeless people. In tracking kept by the Council 100 state and city governments have made more than $3.5 billion available to homeless people over the past 4 years. In the past year, more jurisdictional CEO's are committed to 10 Year Plans. When the year began 529 mayors and county executives had committed in 321 plans. At the end of this year these number had increased to over 860 CEO's and more than 355 plans. STREET AND CHRONIC HOMELESSNESS DOWN The most important numbers of the year were unquestionably those released from data collected from communities across the country during 2005 and 2007. A comparison of the numbers for those two years revealed a 12% decrease in overall homelessness and nearly a 30% decrease in street and chronic homelessness. That is the first documented national decrease in homelessness in more than a quarter century. The street/chronic decrease represents a reduction of more than 52,000 people living on our streets or languishing in our shelters. Given an average length of stay in homelessness of 5 years, the reduction represents more than 260,000 years of homelessness coming to an end. That means quantifiable cost savings in health and law enforcement systems in cities across the country. NEW RESOURCES TO MITIGATE "DOUBLE TROUBLE" Just recently through the Housing and Economic Recovery Act (HERA) passed a few months ago, $3.92 billion was made available to states and communities across the country. That initiative, the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP), administered by HUD, requires that 25% of the resources be targeted to those who are the poorest and most impacted by the double-trouble, meaning that nearly $1 billion is focused on our poorest families, those who are very low and extremely low income households. Those resources will be made available in early 2009 to mitigate the mortgage/foreclosure crisis. HUD Secretary Preston has prioritized flexibility and expedited availability of the funds. All of these numbers - whether increased funding or decreased homelessness - have been put at risk by the troubled economy, the "double-trouble" of foreclosure and job loss mentioned earlier. With foreclosure rates high in a number of areas of the country and job loss rates now exceeding a million, we would be naïve to believe that families would not be impacted. And they are. Across the country the reports indicate that the street and chronic numbers are staying down, but that families at risk and in homelessness have increased. The NSP resources will mitigate that human tragedy through purchases of foreclosed properties and local land banks. Over the next year we'll understand better the impact of the $3.92 billion to respond to the crisis. Our vigilance is needed to ensure that the resources required to remedy the crisis are made available. HEART AND HEAD ABOLITIONISM While across the country numbers are remoralizing our efforts and revealing difficult times, our abolitionist mission remains undeterred. No longer is our question "what", but "how." And the creativity of federal, state, and local government officials, along with the innovations practiced in the field, offer reinforcements on the front lines. Our big hearts are now matched by smart minds informed by data and research from cost studies and innovative initiatives. Our national partnership has grown into an international conspiracy, a "breathing together" to accomplish this mission. As co-conspirators we have learned from one another and conspired to replicate innovations and to collaborate across state lines. HISTORY IS ON OUR SIDE We remain on the right side of history. Our genealogy includes the abolitionists, suffragists, and civil rights activists. We are part of that gene pool in our nation's history that will not tolerate a moral and spiritual and economic wrong. We understand the moral common sense of the future. Our children and grandchildren will look at homelessness the way we now look at slavery or limited suffrage or compromised civil rights. Just as they are unthinkable to us now - we are all abolitionists, suffragists, and civil rights activists now - our common conspiracy to abolish homelessness will allow our children to think the same of homelessness. To paraphrase Muhammad Yunus, we look forward to the day we shall visit museums to see what homelessness once was. Everyday we get closer to our true calling as curators.
2008 NATIONAL PROJECT HOMELESS CONNECT WEEK
US Interagency Council December 2008. Immediacy, Hospitality, and Results are the hallmarks of the Project Homeless Connect innovation. Over the past several days, over 25 communities from Connecticut to California, from Tennessee to Texas have participated in the Fourth Annual National Project Homeless Connect Week facilitated by the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness. Working side-by-side in a new configuration focused on problem solving and results, thousands of community volunteers, service providers, and the business community, encouraged by their local elected leaders and joined by state and federal partners, have welcomed their homeless neighbors to a one day, one-stop that offers immediate access to resources (see chart below) that create a pathway out of homelessness. In a Presidential message delivered to the Council and read at the Connect events around the country, President George W. Bush sent greetings and expressed appreciation to all those involved in the week's events for their "dedicated efforts to give all Americans the opportunity to realize their full potential." With the encouragement of the Council, over 200 communities in the U.S., Canada, and Australia have adopted the innovation of Project Homeless Connect over the last three years. Please visit our National Project Homeless Connect web page to learn more about this field-tested, evidence-based practice that effectively engages homeless consumers and offers immediate access to resources that create the trajectory out of homelessness. Read More about some of the 2008 National Week events. Jurisdictional Leadership:
Federal and State Partners:
Project Homeless Connect brings together volunteers of all ages, backgrounds, and experience levels.
NEW JERSEY GOVERNOR JON CORZINE SIGNS EXECUTIVE ORDER CREATING STATE INTERAGENCY COUNCIL
STATEMENT RELEASED BY THE WHITE HOUSE - OCTOBER 20, 2008In conjunction with the 12th meeting of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness under this Administration, the White House issued a Statement recognizing the Council's work in achieving unprecedented partnership, investment, and results.
"Today, the Interagency Council on Homelessness conducted its final meeting under this Administration. President Bush appreciates the work of Council Director Philip Mangano and the members of his Cabinet who invested the time and energy to make its work a success. Back in 2002, the Bush Administration revitalized the battle against chronic homelessness by regularly bringing together Cabinet Secretaries and other top officials from 20 Federal agencies in a position to help Americans living on the streets. This effort increased Federal resources by 60 percent, created national partnerships with mayors, county executives, governors, and the private sector, and encouraged results-oriented solutions. And results are what we got. Thanks to comprehensive new data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, we know that over the latest three years the number of chronically homeless individuals in the U.S. tumbled 30 percent -- from 175,914 to 123,833. And the number of homeless persons of all sorts fell from 763,010 to 671,888. U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness executive director Philip Mangano notes that this is 'the largest documented decrease in homelessness in our nation's history.' All Americans want to see the numbers of chronically homeless continue to decline, and the policies we have implemented should help in that regard for many years." View Official White House Release Photo Gallery from October 20, 2008 Council Meeting
NATION'S JURISDICTIONAL LEADERS AFFIRM PARTNERSHIP OF 'ACCOUNTABILITY AND RESULTS' TO PREVENT AND END HOMELESSNESS AT ANNUAL MEETINGS IN 2008
MIAMI, FL. June 24. Hosted by incoming United States Conference of Mayors President and Miami Mayor Manny Diaz who on Monday accepted the gavel from Trenton Mayor Doug Palmer, the nation's Mayors convened in Miami on Friday for their 76th Annual Meeting. Throughout the Conference events, Mayors affirmed the goal of ending homelessness and expanded their bipartisan partnership with the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness ("Council") to end homelessness in the nation through partnership, innovation, jurisdictional accountability, and results. Mayor Diaz (shown here with Council Director Mangano) was recognized with the Council's 2008 Mayoral Leadership "Home for Every American" Award earlier this year at the Council's Third Annual National Summit for Jurisdictional Leaders.
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| Privacy Statement | Last
Updated: |
The
United States Interagency Council on Homelessness
409 Third Street SW | Suite 310 | Washington, D.C. 20024 Phone (202) 708-4663 | Fax (202) 708-1216 |
TRENTON, NJ. November 26. New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine today signed Executive Order 126 creating the New Jersey 
Today's signing, which was attended by US Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano and took place at the Greater Trenton Behavioral HealthCare Adult Services facility, followed up a commitment made by Governor Corzine during remarks to the 
ORLANDO, FL. November 17, 2008. 4,000 municipal leaders including mayors, city council members, city managers, and invited guests gathered in Orlando, Florida November 11-15 for the National League of Cities 2008 Annual Congress of Cities and Exposition. Progress in reducing chronic homelessness through jurisdictionally- led, community- based 10 Year Plans, and new challenges posed by rising numbers of mortgage foreclosures were on the agenda as US Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano was invited to speak at a plenary session on ideas and solutions to stabilize neighborhoods during this foreclosure crisis and to address meetings of the Human Development and the Community and Economic Development Policy and Advocacy Committees. Director Mangano is shown here with NLC Executive Director Don Borut.
JACKSON COUNTY/KANSAS CITY, MO. July 15. Meeting in the American heartland for the 2008 NACo Annual Conference and Exposition, the nation’s county officials endorsed and affirmed through a Resolution innovations that are reducing and ending chronic homelessness in communities throughout the nation. 
Five years ago to the day that NACo first adopted a Policy Resolution supporting 10 Year Planning and encouraging counties to engage with the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness to create 10 Year Plans, county officials affirmed with a new resolution the progress being made and the innovations responsible for the decreased numbers. Reaffirming support for 10 Year Plans and with special focus on homeless veterans, cost benefit analysis, Project Homeless Connect, and America’s Road Home, the NACo Resolution adopted today endorses innovative initiatives in 10 Year Plans, including Rapid Rehousing and Housing First strategies, and calls on communities to adopt these and other innovations that are making a difference on the streets and in the neighborhoods of our country.
