This is the new date of the hearing that was postponed by weather last fall.

Hearing Scheduled for March 25th Advocates Share Talking Points

Advocates for efforts to End Homelessness in New Jersey have prepared sample talking points with strategies that should be considered in the statewide plan to end homelessness.

The talking points are offered to all who plan to testify at the Interagency Council on the Homeless hearing that will be held on Tuesday, March 25, 2014 at from 1 – 4 PM at the NJ State Museum Auditorium. Additional information regarding the public hearing will be sent out in the beginning of March.

The strategies include:
1. Adopt Housing First as a State Policy
2. Create a Rapid Re-Housing rate for boards of social services
3. Support Local Efforts to Create Centralized and/or Coordinated Assessment Systems
4. Set a priority for homelessness with the State Public Housing Agency (PHA) and encourage the same from local PHAs
5. Assist local Continuums of Care (CoC) in retooling transitional housing

The talking points also make recommendations that would address impediments to the delivery of services
 Ensure that all agencies receiving state contracts for service funding are required to serve the most difficult to house homeless and focus their resources on solutions that work, while encouraging well-designed innovations for continuous improvement Encourage all state agencies that receive funding to assist the homeless, including DHS and DCA, to coordinate funding for housing and homeless services.
 Require participation of local Boards of Social Services in Continuum of Care (CoC) homeless planning activities Coordinate with local CoCs and ensure that all grants for state funding for homeless activities require local CoC approval

Department of Community Affairs (DCA) Commissioner Richard Constable and Department of Human Services (DHS) Commissioner Jennifer Velez will hold an Interagency Council on Homelessness public hearing on Tuesday, March 25, 2014 to hear from the public about how the State can best address the needs of homeless New Jerseyans.

The public hearing will be held from 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. at the at the NJ State Museum Auditorium at 205 West State Street, Trenton.

The Council is particularly interested in hearing views on two topics: Best practices in homeless services delivery and Impediments to the delivery of homeless services.

Individuals planning to speak will be limited to 3 minutes and will be expected to focus on one or both of those topics. Written remarks may be submitted via: email at or mail to Homeless Council Public Testimony, NJ Department of Human Services, Office of the Commissioner, PO Box 700, Trenton, NJ 08625-0700.

If you are in need of an accommodation, please contact Jennifer Crowley at the NJ Department of Human Services at (609) 292-6090 no later than Wednesday, December 11, 2013.

Please note that the public hearing is an opportunity to provide your comments, only. It is not interactive.

Decriminalizing homelessness

Here is a roundup article about the foul attempts by some politicians to outlaw homelessness and the push-back by people who know better, including Utah which is on the road to ending homelessness.

Click here. to read the story.

AlJazeera report: Hardworking yet still homeless in today's America

About 3.5 million people experience some kind of homelessness every year, and about a quarter of them are employed at the time, said Jeffrey Jones, executive director of the National Coalition for the Homeless.

These figures show that having a job is no insurance against living in a shelter or on the street. And in many U.S. cities, the need for support for homeless people is increasing as their numbers increase.

For the complete story click here.

Homeless Interfaith Memorial Night & Rally Dec. 21

Hello all,

We have received permission from Lakewood Township to hold our interfaith Homelessness Memorial Night and Rally Saturday, Dec. 21 at 7 p.m. in the Lakewood Town Center, Clifton Avenue between Third and Fourth Streets.

We will have local clergy, housing advocates and members of the homeless community speak that evening.

Parking is available in three municipal parking lots (one adjacent to the municipal building, one across the street from the police station, and one across from the Strand Theater.) Parking is also available in the County Board of Social Services building on Fourth Street behind the municipal building.

We expect the memorial and rally will take about an hour.

I have attached a handbill that can be distributed in the days leading up to the event in a week and a half.

We hope you can attend.  We will try to have light refreshments available.

	Homelessness Memorial Night and Rally 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 21st the longest night of the year. The rally will be held at the Lakewood Town Center, Clifton Avenue between Third and Fourth Streets. Speakers include local clergy, housing advocates and our homeless brothers & sisters. Everyone is invited. Please join us Saturday evening in Lakewood.

"God shed his grace on thee"

Homelessness is a social justice issue, rooted in poverty and unequal access to resources.
When we sing about America and "God shed his grace on thee," do we think these blessings were given to us so we could horde them? My Christian tradition has taught me that we are to help those who are less fortunate that us. I also know this is not unique to Christians. There is a long history of Jewish traditions of people helping the poor. I have also witnessed Islam teaching the same thing. There is an obligation to reach out.
Pope Francis message has consistently been to help the poor: feed the hungry, clothe the naked, house the homeless. Most recently he has called attention to the evils our economic
I guess some political commentators take exception to this and try to discredit the gospel message, the Jewish tradition, the teachings of Islam.
James Martin, SJ has addressed the issue: Rush Limbaugh slams the Pope's critique of capitalism as "pure Marxism." Go, and learn the meaning of Catholic Social Teaching.
As for me, I just wonder why it is that those who know the least, seem to know it the loudest?
As we give thanks, let's give thanks that we are blessed so we can help the less fortunate. And for the opportunity to exercise our faith in the power of God.

From the Foundation Center: Why housing is everyone’s issue

Guest post from Gretchen Greiner-Lott, Vice President, Washington Regional Association of Grantmakers.

Why should you care about housing? Well, during last week’s snow event, I had some time to think about that a bit. Although we were all stuck at home together, my family and I still had light, heat, and shelter from the elements, as well as access to stores. But some people I know were not that lucky. It made me think about all the things that many of us take for granted that are essential to a strong, healthy, and connected community.

Because I have lived in my neighborhood for some years, I know my neighbors. I know who is sick or elderly and might need some help during the snow. I also know who might be able to assist me, if the need should arise. For those folks in our region whose housing situation is different – they move from place to place in search of a more affordable housing situation or the affordable situation they find lands them in a not so safe neighborhood – their community experiences are very different. They are not connected or supported.

“What does this have to do with me?” you might ask.

Everything.

For the remainder of the essay from the Foundation Center, click here.

Formerly homeless, man now determined to stay off the street

CHAMPAIGN — Doug Gritmacher holds up a paycheck in his living room with pride.
He'd just gotten it that day, the first check he's earned in four years, he says.
But it was a bittersweet day for him.

To read more go here.

With Nowhere Else to Turn, the Homeless Turn to the Hospitals

The Bergen Record has recently published an article that shows once again how costs for caring for the homeless are driven up when a county does not have a shelter in place.  The homeless turn to local hospital ERs for warmth and shelter, and by law the hospitals have to examine them and treat them.  Those costs are high.  And hospitals are inadequately compensated for their services.

Here is a link to the article: http://www.northjersey.com/englewood/052512_More_homeless_in_NJ_using_hospital_ERs_for_shelter_and_food.html?page=all

NJ State Sen. Richard Cody tests homeless shelters

On Monday night, Jimmy Peters had nowhere to go. The mentally ill man had just been released from the psychiatric ward of a local hospital. Dressed in worn out clothes, the bearded man, with tattoos all over his body, set out to find a place to sleep for the night.
State Senator Richard Codey played the role of Jimmy Peters on Monday as he went undercover to determine how a homeless mentally ill resident could survive. Codey, who served as New Jersey Governor for 14 months in 2004 and 2005, has long been an advocate for the mentally disabled.
NBC News reports that Codey took to the makeup chair for over an hour on Monday to get prepared for the role. He wore a fake beard and had phony tattoos. His teeth were made to look tobacco-stained and his face was altered to appear worn and tired.
The State Senator then took to the streets of Newark trying to find a shelter that would accept him for the night. This task would not prove to be an easy one for Codey as shelter after shelter turned him down. Most shelters in Newark required their occupants to be officially registered for government assistance.
"To find a place to take you if you're homeless was impossible essentially, unless you're on some government entitlement program," Codey told NBC News.
From Millburn Patch
http://millburn.patch.com/articles/codey-goes-undercover-to-investigate-homeless-conditions

Other media covered the story:
CBS News
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2012/03/07/nj-st-sen-dick-codey-goes-undercover-at-homeless-shelter/
MSNBC
http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/07/10600009-former-new-jersey-governor-goes-undercover-as-homeless-man
Huffington Post
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/07/richard-codey-homeless-man_n_1326717.html

GAO on homelessness

What GAO Found

Definitional differences of homelessness have posed challenges to providing services for children and youth. Children and youth living in precarious situations, such as living with others or in hotels, historically were excluded from receiving government-funded services. Congress enacted the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing Act of 2009 (HEARTH Act), which broadened the general definition of homelessness and provided greater statutory specificity concerning those who should be considered homeless. In November 2011, HUD issued a final rule on the definition of homelessness, adding a new category of homelessness––unaccompanied youth, and families with children and youth who are defined as homeless under other federal statutes. The HEARTH Act and HUD’s recent definition changes may alleviate some challenges previously faced by children and youth in accessing services, but not enough time has passed to assess the impact of those changes. Some children and youth who previously were not considered homeless by HUD will now qualify as homeless. However, the broadening of the definition does not mean that everyone who meets the new definition would be entitled to benefits in all homeless assistance programs, and constraints on resources will likely continue to restrict access for some children and youths.

As of December 2011, the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (Interagency Council) and federal agencies had taken steps to develop a common vocabulary for discussing homelessness and related terms, as GAO recommended in its June 2010 report. In January 2011, the Interagency Council convened a meeting of experts to discuss the development of a common vocabulary and the extent to which differences in definitions create barriers to accessing services. The Interagency Council issued a report to Congress in June 2011 that summarized the feedback received during the meeting. The report notes that a common vocabulary would allow federal agencies to better measure the scope and dimensions of homelessness, and may ease program implementation and coordination. As of December 2011, Interagency Council staff told GAO that they held three meetings––in August, September, and October 2011––to discuss implementation of a common vocabulary and data standard with key federal agencies such as HUD; the Departments of Commerce, Education, Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor, and Veterans Affairs (VA); and the Social Security Administration. The Interagency Council also noted that individual federal agencies have taken some positive steps to create this common data standard and improve coordination across agencies. For example, HHS and VA have been working with HUD to plan the potential transition of some of their programs to HUD’s data system (Homelessness Management Information Systems). As GAO has reported in the past, a common vocabulary would allow agencies to collect consistent data that agencies could compile to better understand the nature of homelessness, and it would allow agencies to communicate and collaborate more effectively.

Why GAO Did This Study

According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) estimates of shelter use, the number of homeless families increased by 20 percent from 2007 to 2010 and families currently represent a much larger percentage of the shelter population than ever before. Multiple federal agencies administer programs designed to address the needs of children and youths experiencing homelessness, but some programs use different definitions of homelessness to determine eligibility. The definitions range from people living in emergency or transitional shelters or on the street to those living with others because of economic hardship or living in motels or campgrounds because they lack other adequate alternative accommodations.

This testimony discusses differences in the federal definitions of “homelessness” and other factors that may influence the effectiveness of programs serving persons experiencing homelessness, including children and youth. In completing this statement, GAO reviewed and updated, as appropriate, its June 2010 report, Homelessness: A Common Vocabulary Could Help Agencies Collaborate and Collect More Consistent Data (GAO-10-702). In that report, GAO recommended that federal agencies develop a common vocabulary for homelessness and determine whether it would be cost-effective to use this common vocabulary to develop and implement guidance for collecting consistent federal data on housing status. The agencies agreed with our recommendations. This statement also discusses the progress federal agencies have made in implementing these recommendations.