Alliance Online News: New Paper on Ending Family Homelessness

Newsletters | 28 Jul 2009

Author: National Alliance to End Homelessness

July 28, 2009

POLICY | DATA + RESEARCH | TOOL + TRAINING | NEWS + MEDIA

Forward

Editor: Amanda Krusemark

Spotlight On...

Alliance and Enterprise Community Partners Release Paper on Ending Family Homelessness

Yesterday, July 27, the Alliance and Enterprise Community Partners released a new paper examining the existing research on family homelessness. The paper by Marybeth Shinn of Vanderbilt University examines existing research and indicates that families experiencing homelessness are similar to other low-income families and primarily lack access to affordable housing. The author discusses the important role of housing subsidies in helping families to prevent or end their homelessness and maintain housing stability. The paper also discusses the role of services in housing stability and family well-being. Click here to view the Alliance's press release about the paper.

Full Paper

National Conference on Ending Homelessness Starts Tomorrow

The Alliance's annual National Conference on Ending Homelessness begins tomorrow, Wednesday, July 29, and will conclude on Friday, July 31. The Alliance is pleased to announce that Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) will give a keynote address at the conference on Friday morning, July 31. Senator Reed helped to lead the successful effort to reauthorize the HUD McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance programs and has also been instrumental in the provision of numerous other resources for homeless and at-risk individuals and families.

On Thursday afternoon, July 30, Adolfo Carrión, Director of the White House Office of Urban Affairs, will give a keynote address. Mr. Carrión has been a leader in addressing the needs of our nation's urban areas, including homelessness, first in New York City and now at the White House. Also on Thursday afternoon, Professor Dennis Culhane of the University of Pennsylvania's School of Social Policy and Practice will give remarks. Dr. Culhane's research on homelessness and housing has helped to transform how the United States addresses homelessness.

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan will give a keynote address on Thursday morning, July 30. Secretary Donovan has stated that he wants to move HUD toward a greater focus on responsibility, transparency, and effectiveness.

Also, please remember to purchase your very own "End Homelessness." t-shirt at the conference. Shirts will be available in men's and women's sizes: small, medium, large, and extra large. They will be available for purchase in the Grand Foyer of the Renaissance Washington, DC Hotel near the registration desk on Tuesday night, July 28 during pre-registration, through Friday afternoon, July 31. Shirts are $15. All proceeds will benefit the National Alliance to End Homelessness.

The Alliance looks forward to you joining us this week!

Conference Website

Hill Update

House Passes Frank Melville Supportive Housing Act
On July 22, the House passed H.R. 1675, the Frank Melville Supportive Housing Investment Act of 2009 under suspension of the rules. The bill would reform the Section 811 program and help to address the enormous housing crisis faced by millions of extremely low-income people with disabilities. H.R. 1675 would also spur the creation of new Section 811 units. The legislation was introduced in March by Representative Chris Murphy (D-CT) and is named after the co-founder of the Melville Charitable Trust, a philanthropic organization dedicated to ending homelessness. The legislation now heads to the Senate.

House Committee Approves SEVRA
On July 23, the House Financial Services Committee voted to approve the Section 8 Voucher Reform Act (SEVRA). The legislation, H.R. 3045, would expand and streamline the Section 8 program and would authorize an additional 150,000 vouchers for fiscal year (FY) 2010. It would also change the formula used to calculate wage eligibility and detail protections for tenants in cases of landlord delinquency. The committee adopted a manger's amendment by Representatives Maxine Waters (D-CA) and Barney Frank (D-MA) related to the Housing Innovation Program, the next iteration of the Moving to Work demonstration program. The amendment would allow select public housing agencies to experiment with efforts to promote self-sufficiency. The legislation is likely to be considered by the full House after the August recess.

Appropriations: House Approves FY 2010 Labor-HHS-Education Bill
Last Friday, July 24, the House approved its FY 2010 Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), and Education legislation. The Senate Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Subcommittee is expected to mark up its version of the bill today, July 28, with the full Appropriations Committee scheduled to mark it up later this week. The House version of the legislation included:

$117 million for Runaway and Homeless Youth Act programs, $2 million more than in FY 2009 and than the Administration requested;
$75 million for SAMHSA Homeless Services (including Grants for the Benefits of Homeless Individuals), equal to both the President's request and the FY 2009 level;
$2.2 billion for Community Health Centers, resulting in approximately $190 million for Health Care for the Homeless program, similar to the FY 2009 level;
$68 million for the Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH), equal to the Administration's request but $8 million above FY 2009;
$37 million for the Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program, $11 million more than in FY 2009; and
$65 million for Education for Homeless Children and Youth, level funding from FY 2009.

Appropriations: House Approves FY 2010 T-HUD Bill
On July 23, the House passed H.R. 3288, FY 2010 legislation for Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development (T-HUD). The bill included a total of $47 billion for HUD. The Senate T-HUD Appropriations Subcommittee is expected to mark up its legislation tomorrow, July 29, with the full Appropriations Committee scheduled to consider it later this week. The legislation approved by the House included:

$1.85 billion for Homeless Assistance Grants, $56 million above the President's request and $173 million above the FY 2009 level (an increase of 10.3 percent);
$18.2 billion for tenant-based rental assistance, $1.2 billion above FY 2009 and $406 million above President Obama's request;
$75 million for HUD-VASH vouchers, which would be $75 million above the Administration's request and level funding from FY 2009;
$8.7 billion for project-based rental assistance, an increase of $1.6 billion over FY 2009 and $600 million above the Administration's request; and
$350 million for Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA), $40 million above both the President's request and the FY 2009 level.

The legislation also included $1 billion for Section 202 Housing for the Elderly, $350 million for Section 811 Housing for People with a Disability, $250 million for HOPE VI, $4.6 billion for the Community Development Block Grant program, $2.5 billion for the public housing Capital Fund, and $4.8 billion for the public housing Operating Fund.

Preparation for Capitol Hill Day Continues

This week, hundreds of people will be meeting with their Senators and Representatives while they are in town for the Alliance's Annual Conference and Capitol Hill Day. In preparation for these Congressional visits, the Alliance hosted two Federal Policy Updates last week to brief participants on the Capitol Hill Day Federal Policy Agenda, which is a set of high-priority issues that Congress is considering right now. Presenters provided up-to-date information on the status of and key talking points for each issue, as well as information on what action is needed to secure important funding and to finalize as many bills as possible in this Congressional session. In order to be fully prepared for Hill Day Congressional visits, the Alliance has posted the Federal Policy Update webinar presentations and policy and advocacy-related materials on the Capitol Hill Day Information Page. For additional information on the Federal Policy Agenda or Hill Day activities, visit the Advocacy Information Table next to Registration at the conference this week.

Capitol Hill Day Information Page

2009 CoC Registration Opens

Last Friday, July 24, HUD officially opened the 2009 Continuum of Care (CoC) Registration. This registration applies only to CoC lead agencies; project applicants are not required to register in e-snaps at this time. The e-snaps system will allow users to transfer data from the 2008 CoC Competition into the 2009 registration, in order to reduce the amount of data entry needed. The deadline for submission of CoC Registration is August 25, but CoCs are encouraged to submit their registrations by August 17, so visit HUD's Homelessness Resource Exchange frequently for more resources. HUD has also posted a July 16 Notice about the registration process and changes to the CoC homeless competition this year.

More Information on CoC Registration

Alliance Promotes Watch Parties for Release of "The Soloist"

On August 4, the film "The Soloist" is coming out on DVD. The Alliance is participating in celebrating the release of the film by promoting watch parties and providing advocates, providers, and other supporters with the chance to utilize the film's release to spur and continue conversations about the state of homelessness in the United States. Conversations about ways to improve the homelessness system and livelihoods of those experiencing homelessness are critical as we push our agenda forward to end homelessness in the country. The Alliance has created a "Watch Party" toolkit, which will be made available on the Serve.gov website and the Alliance's website. The toolkit includes discussion questions for the movie, a factsheet on homelessness, and a list of ways that people can get involved with the Alliance and with the issue of homelessness.

More Information on Toolkit and DVD Release

HUD Opens 60-Day Public Comment Period

On July 24, HUD announced that it was opening a 60-day comment period for reporting requirements and data standards based on two recently-released Notices. A July 22 Notice included information regarding CoC programs, including the Annual Performance Report, the Annual Homeless Assessment Report Table Shells, and Revised HMIS Data Standards. A July 24 Notice included information about HPRP documents, including the Initial Performance Report, the Quarterly Performance Report, and Revised HMIS Data Standards. Those wishing to submit comments in response to either of these Notices should send comments to Brett Gagnon (brett.d.gagnon@hud.gov) and copy Lillian Deitzer (lillian.l.deitzer@hud.gov). Comments must be received by September 22.

ABOUT US
	The National Alliance to End Homelessness is a nonpartisan, non profit organization dedicated to solving the problem of homelessness and preventing its continued growth. www.endhomelessness.org
Expert Q & A
	Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy. This month's featured expert is Steve Hilton, President and CEO of the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. Take Five!
UPCOMING EVENTS
	July 29 - 31 \| Annual Conference

QUICK LINKS
	Ten Year Plan The Ten Essentials Online Library Multimedia Library Community Plans Fact Sheets Legislative Updates Newsletter Archive Daily Media Clips YouTube

Alliance Online News: New Paper on Ending Family Homelessness

Newsletters | 28 Jul 2009

Author: National Alliance to End Homelessness

GET UPDATES

Sign up for the Alliance Newsletter