In 2005, the Washington state legislature enacted the Housing and Homelessness Assistance Act, HB 2163, a funded mandate to develop and implement county- and statewide plans to reduce homelessness by 50 percent by the year 2015. While more money than ever has been allocated to the implementation of state and local plans to end homelessness, and while many jurisdictions have made progress identifying and implementing effective solutions, more state funding and policy changes are needed if we are to actually end, rather than just manage, homelessness.
Lack of permanently affordable housing units continue to be the largest barrier to reducing and ultimately ending homelessness because the cost of housing and other living expenses continues to rise much faster than wages. Following years of disinvestment in public housing by prior administrations, the Bush White House is now de-funding Section 8 vouchers. More and more families and individuals are struggling to make ends meet. And despite our best efforts, many areas are experiencing increases in the number of homeless people due to economic circumstances beyond our control.
In order to make progress in reducing homelessness, advocates in Washington are looking to the State’s Transitional Housing Operating and Rent (THOR) program to help minimize the gap between wages and living expenses.
The THOR program has been very effective in helping homeless families with children move from homelessness to self sufficiency. Between 2005 and 2007, 30 agencies used $5 million to serve homeless families with children in 35 counties. These families were eligible to receive case management and rental assistance for one to 24 months, and on average stayed in the program from seven months to a year.
The Washington State Coalition for the Homeless, the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance, the Committee to End Homelessness in King County, the United Way of King County, Catholic Community Services, and other advocacy groups are asking the legislature to allocate an additional $10 million for the rental assistance portion of THOR this biennium. We are also asking that the program serve single adult households, unaccompanied youth, people at risk of homelessness, and homeless families with children.
There is a disproportionate number of programs available for homeless families with children compared to those available for single adults. The 2007 statewide point-in-time count found that 6,094 out of the 22,045 total homeless people were unsheltered; nearly 80 percent were single adults and couples without children. Clearly, we must do something to increase funding for single adults, and expanding the eligibility for THOR is a way to accomplish that.
The point-in-time count also found 550 homeless unaccompanied youth, 119 of them unsheltered. The Independent Youth Housing Pilot Program, enacted during the 2007 session, will provide $1 million for rental assistance and case management for youth leaving the foster care system. While this is a valuable and much-needed program, it does not and cannot serve youth who have not graduated from the foster care system, such as children who are under 18 and have run away from home or a foster care situation that is unsafe. There are currently only four licensed overnight youth shelters in Washington. These shelters receive a total of $120,000 to provide emergency shelter to homeless youth. While these shelters can keep youth out of immediate danger for up to 90 days, they do not offer the stability and support that rental assistance and case management would.
Nearly 6,000 people were considered precariously housed, living with family and friends, according to last year’s count and since many counties elected not to report this number it’s probably many more. It’s a potential number of people at risk of becoming homeless who could benefit from THOR rental assistance and case management.
Since THOR’s inception in 1999, there is a general trend of serving fewer new families each year. According to the Homeless Families Plan, families are staying in the program longer due to long waits for Section 8 vouchers, lack of permanently affordable housing, lack of adequate housing stock, and higher level service needs of these families. People are staying in poverty longer, requiring greater resources to help them. A $10 million enhancement and expanded program eligibility for THOR will help providers move more people out of homelessness and on to self-sufficiency.
During the 2007 session, the THOR expansion passed the House but died in the Senate Ways and Means Committee. This year, the Senate Democratic Caucus has declared housing its number one priority, and SB 5959 passed the Senate unanimously the first week of the session. It will be heard in the House of Representatives Housing Committee this week. Support for housing and homelessness legislation is also very strong in the House of Representatives. We are very optimistic that the THOR expansion will pass this year. To lend your support, call your legislators at (800)562-6000.
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