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Peggy Lau
Government 1
Mr. Campopiano
23 September 2015
Ending Homelessness
On any given night nearly 800,000 people experience homelessness in the United States
(U.S.) (Leavitt). The U.S. government has made notable efforts to end homelessness, but more
work is still needed. The McKinney-Vento Act of 1987 created the now known United States
Interagency Council on Homelessness (U.S.I.C.H). U.S.I.C.H. organizes and manages federal
sponsored activities and programs to assist people experiencing homelessness. However, these
programs and activities are not enough to combat the problem with homelessness. There needs to
more funding for homelessness prevention programs in order to help those in need. More
housing should be provided for homeless people because evidence shows that stable homes for
the homeless will save taxpayers money, is cheaper than other homelessness prevention
programs, and helps curb the homelessness cycle.
Building adequate homes for those facing chronic homelessness is one of the many costeffective and beneficial solutions to the homelessness crisis in the U.S. A study done by the Penn
Center for Mental Health Policy and Services Research Center states that on average, the
homeless population (specifically the mentally ill) uses 40,500 dollars a year in public funds for
shelter, jail, and hospital services. They found that it would cost the same amount to provide
them with stable housing along with health and employment services. This shows that housing
for the mentally ill homeless would be more cost-effective and beneficial to them because it
provides for a permanent residence as well as opportunities that will help them retain housing.

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Stable housing for the homeless is not only a practical use of public funds, but is also beneficial
to the taxpayers who essentially provide for the public funds. In Seattle, a Housing First program
was initiated in order to provide permanent supportive housing to men and women facing
chronic alcohol addiction. An evaluation of the program published by the Journal of American
Medical Association in 2009 found that the Housing First approach saved taxpayers more than
four million dollars over the first year of operation. The similarity between drug or alcohol
addicts and the homeless is that both utilize publicly-funded crises services such as emergency
shelters or hospitals for drug or alcohol addicts. If there is a better way to use such public funds
in order to save taxpayers money while also directly targeting the homelessness problem, why
not use it? Providing stable housing for the homeless population not only saves money but is also
cheaper than other forms of homeless assistance.
Homeless assistance programs can be expensive if factors such as shelter, heath support
and employment assistance are considered. Forms of homeless assistance include subsidized
housing, project-based transitional housing and community-based rapid re-housing. Researchers
at Vanderbilt University produced the first ever large scale experiment that compared the
effectiveness of homelessness assistance programs for families. The ongoing Family Options
study enrolled more than two thousand families into permanent subsidized housing, projectbased transitional housing and community-based rapid re-housing at random (Johnston). The
families were then extensively interviewed to measure which program worked best to promote
family stability and well-being (HUD). Subsidized housing vouchers which provide a fixed
allowance for families to help pay for housing costs proved to be most effective. In other words,
families who were put into permanent housing and given a fixed salary were less likely to
become homeless again based on the follow up studies. Permanent subsidized housing also

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proved to be cheaper than other forms of homelessness care such as shelter care or transitional
housing (Brasher). This proves that providing stable and permanent housing for the homeless
population can be less costly and has more advantages than other forms of homeless care. The
Family Options study also shows that permanent housing helps curb the homelessness cycle.
Studies have shown that Housing First approaches directly contributes to helping the
homeless retain housing for an extended period of time. In the U.S. Department of Housing and
Urban Developments (H.U.D) 2014 Annual Assessment Report to Congress, it was found that
there were 578,424 people found homeless on a single given night in January. The homeless
population has decreased by ten percent in the last four years ever since the enactment of the
Opening Doors strategy by the Obama Administration. Opening Doors essentially
incorporates the Housing First approach, which provides stable housing for those in need of a
residence regardless of background or mental health issues (Opening Doors). Permanent
housing for those in need clearly shows a steady decrease in the homeless population. The
Institute of Governmental Studies at the University of California, Berkeley showed that after the
Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (H.P.R.P) was enacted after the 2008
recession, the homelessness population decreased by one percent from 2009 to 2011 despite the
poor economic downturn. How was that possible? Instead of using the 1.5 billion stimulus
dollars provided by the program on shelter beds or managing the homeless problem, the money
was utilized to find people who became homeless another place to reside as quickly as possible
(Housing, the Recession, and Preventing a Rise in Homelessness). If the government continues
with Rapid Re-Housing and Housing First strategies, then evidence shows that the homeless
population will drop dramatically in the years to come.

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Some may argue that people who experience homelessness are not responsible enough to
be independent house-owners. Although homeless people are more likely to have drug, alcohol,
and mental disorders than the general population, programs that help treat such disorders while
providing stable housing has a higher success rate of keeping homeless people off the street
(Housing the Homeless, No Strings Attached). Most people automatically think homeless shelters
are the easiest and cheapest way to reduce the homeless population. In the evidence stated
previously in the Family Options study, shelters are actually more expensive to maintain than
stable, permanent housing. This shows that homeless people are responsible enough to be homeowners as long as adequate care is provided to guide them along the way.
Homelessness has been an issue in America for over a hundred years. As the government
developed the policies regarding how to decrease the homeless population have improved
substantially. In recent years programs such as H.E.A.R.T.H and the H.P.R.P share a similar
solution in targeting the homelessness crisis. Rapid Re-Housing and Housing First strategies
have proved to save taxpayers money, be cheaper than other forms of homeless assistance
programs, and have helped curb the homelessness cycle. The end of homelessness is a possibility
in the near future, but in order for that to happen the government must provide funding to
programs like H.E.A.R.T.H and H.P.R.P so every individual or family can have a place to call
home.

Works Cited Page

Brasher, Joan. "Report: Homeless Families Fare Better with Housing Vouchers."
Vanderbilt Research. Vanderbilt University, 7 July 2015. Web. 16 Oct. 2015.

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"Housing First." Usich.gov. United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, n.d. Web. 22
Oct. 2015.
Housing, the Recession, and Preventing a Rise in Homelessness. Berkeley.edu. MacArthur
Foundation, n.d. Web. 22 October 2015.
Landerghini, Andrew. Housing the Homeless. At the U. University of Utah, 6
July 2015. Web. 16 Oct. 2015.
Leavitt, Michael O. "Strategic Action Plan on Homelessness." HHS.gov. U.S. Department of
Health & Human Services, 28 Feb. 2007. Web. 21 Oct. 2015.
Life After Transitional Housing For Homeless Families. Washington:
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2010. Print. 16 Oct. 2015.
Opening Doors. USICH.gov. United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, n.d. Web.
22 October 2015.
Ozio, Ron. Housing The Homeless Mentally Ill Pays For Itself. Penn News.
Sassi, Janet. Housing the Homeless, No Strings Attached. eNewsroom.
Fordham University, n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2015.
Rapid Re-Housing and Short-Term Rental Vouchers for Homeless Families.
Boston: Brandeis University, 2012. Print. 16 Oct. 2016.
Shinn, Marybeth, Daniel Gubits, Stephen Bell, Michelle Wood, Samuel Gastrup,
Claudia D. Solari, Scott R. Brown, Steven Brown, Lauren Dunton, Winston Lin, Debi
Mclnnis, Jason Rodriguez, Galen Savidge, and Brooke E. Spellman. Family Options
Study. Rep. Washington D.C.: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development,
2015. Print.

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