I. (A) Introduction

This report, "Illegal to Be Homeless: The Criminalization of Homelessness in the United States," is the third annual report since 2002. This study documents the widespread trend of violations of the basic human rights of people experiencing homelessness in 179 communities in 48 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia. Through the passage of possibly unconstitutional laws, the "selective enforcement" of existing laws, arbitrary police practices, and discriminatory public regulations, people experiencing homelessness face overwhelming hardships in addition to their daily struggle for survival. Instead of spending precious public resources and funding to address the significant lack of affordable housing in this country, local governments in urban, suburban, and rural areas divert these funds to local Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) and to policing, which often penalize the very people this money could help. In addition to continuing the documentation of this trend, this report emphasizes the connections between the creation of a public environment of intolerance and the increasing danger of living on the streets that results from this attitude.

This report is an annual summary of continuous investigation with evidence that criminalization is not only a local issue that is duplicated nationwide, but is also a national concern that demands a federal response. We have asserted and continue to assert that a pattern and practice of civil rights violations and unconstitutional behaviors by local government authorities, including the police and other city agencies, exists in many cities around the country. These practices exact enormous economic, social, political and individual costs and do nothing to prevent and end homelessness that plagues individuals nationwide.

With the unemployment rate still near its highest point in a decade, and with even deeper cuts in funding for social services and housing supports than we anticipated, the immediate future for the increasing number of people experiencing homelessness is desperate. For those people forced to live in public spaces without access to shelter, public restrooms, and places to store their belongings, life continues to be disastrous. Sympathy for homeless people depends in large measure on understanding the economic causes of homelessness and the oppressive conditions of living without a private space. Legislating against the behavior and circumstances of people who have no place to go is a giant step backward in the effort to end homelessness.

It is important to note that a number of city governments continue to violate the civil rights of homeless persons. A main goal of this report is to document these policies and show that, while many of the laws criminalizing homelessness are new, and many of the cities are cited for the first time, nevertheless a number of cities cited here have been among the worst cities for civil rights violations since data began being collected. The spread of the pattern and practice of using incarceration and harassment as an apparent attempt to "deter" people from being homeless must be met by a combination of tactics and organized efforts.

(B) A Working Definition of Criminalization

Class discrimination is still legal and acceptable in the United States. There is no protected status for those who are economically oppressed or excluded, much less those who are homeless, although homeless people are very often the targets of discrimination. On the contrary, the growing body of laws passed by local governments criminalizes activities necessary to survival on the streets. Because people without homes often have no option but to perform necessary functions in public, they are vulnerable to judgment, harassment and arrest for committing "nuisance" violations in public. For these people, economic or housing status effectively becomes the cause of their incarceration under "quality of life" ordinances. Instead of providing affordable housing and livable wages, our communities choose to protect themselves from visible homelessness under the guise of assumed threats to public safety.

Criminalization is the process of legislating penalties for the performance of life-sustaining functions in public. It also refers to the selective enforcement of existing ordinances. Both practices are intended to harass and arrest homeless people. Laws against obstruction of sidewalks and public ways such as sitting or lying in public spaces are largely enforced against homeless people. This report focuses on both kinds of criminalization.

Police in many cities commonly conduct "sweeps" in downtown areas before large political, religious, athletic or entertainment events. Police routinely stop people they suspect are homeless, ask for identification and run warrant checks. There have been many reports of police urging homeless people to leave town or face arrest if they are stopped again.

The underlying assumption behind these actions is that homelessness is a "public safety" issue. Therefore, cities attempt to eliminate visible homelessness through enforcing "quality of life" ordinances, which seek to improve the "quality of life" of housed and higher-income individuals by removing from sight those people who look poor and homeless. Arrest and incarceration has become an expedited way of removing individuals from sight. Unfortunately, many people justify criminalization as a "benevolent" means of coercing individuals into treatment and other services that are not voluntarily available.

Desperately-needed voluntary services are diverted into the correction's system, which in some communities have actually become part of the Continuum of Care; the explanation for the diversion is to provide an "alternative" to hard time. The growing tendency to "track" homeless people and their use of services is an insidious means of controlling the actual quantification of need. This tracking system also classifies some people as "service resistant" or not really homeless; the system excludes others as criminals.

(C) The Income/Employment Crisis

According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, there is no state or local jurisdiction in this country where a person who works a minimum-wage job can afford housing at HUD's Fair Market Rents. The continuing decline in real value of minimum wage income, as well as the dramatic reduction of income supports like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI), without the subsequent availability of public housing units, creates and increases homelessness.

Forty-two percent (42%) of homeless people, nationwide, work. However, the income they earn is not sufficient for accessing safe, affordable and appropriate housing. In many cities the majority of available emergency housing or shelter costs at least $7 per night. Labor Pools become the trap for homeless people who must pay for their shelter and take whatever income-producing work is available. Making the transition from labor pool to living wage employment is the only way into permanent, reliable housing.

For women and families who live on TANF benefits (Temporary Aid to Needy Families) and must work for their monthly allowance, housing in the private market at 30% of income is impossible to find.

(D) The Health Care Crisis

Access to health care for individuals experiencing homelessness is limited and difficult to obtain. Homeless people with chronic illnesses often do not continue receiving treatment or medication in jail. Incarceration also poses deeper health care dangers. With incarceration comes an increased risk of contracting chronic illnesses or serious health problems such as tuberculosis and hepatitis.

Because of the limited availability of mental health care facilities, many individuals with mental health problems live on the streets or are incarcerated in jails where they are unlikely to receive the treatment they need. Due to the lack of long-term residential care services and the number of people with mental health problems living on the streets, police officers often assume the role of determining the need for treatment. Following the model Memphis has developed, some cities are training special units to specifically deal with people with mental health problems. These programs seem to be successful, but not without sufficient housing and supportive services.

In many cities residential treatment and recovery for addictions are not readily available. As a result, cities often jail substance abusers. The cost of jail time far exceeds the money spent for residential treatment with supportive housing.

(E) The Lack of Emergency Housing and Services

Most communities in this country lack enough shelter beds for the number of homeless people. Many shelters charge between $5.00 and $10.00 per night for a bed or even a mat on the floor. An overwhelming majority of communities lack sufficient social services to meet the needs of all their low-income/homeless individuals and families. And the recent economic recession has caused major cutbacks in funding to non-profit and service organizations. Already shelters operate above capacity and some have had to close for lack of funds. Thousands of people across the country need shelter and cannot get it. According to the 2003 U.S. Conference of Mayors Report, requests for emergency shelter increased by 13% over the previous year, with requests from homeless families with children increasing by 15%. Of the number of people requesting emergency shelter, 30% of homeless people and 33% of homeless families were turned away.

Every year hundreds of people die from exposure or from illnesses associated with long-term exposure.

(F) Political Rationale for Criminalization

Criminalizing the life-sustaining acts of people experiencing homelessness without offering legal alternatives is supported by conservative think tanks like the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation (CJLF), www.cjlf.org, and the Center for the Community Interest (CCI), formerly the American Alliance for Rights and Responsibilities, www.communityinterest.org. These think tanks apply the rules of private ownership to public space. These groups advocate anti-homeless policies under the guise of preserving the "common good."

The CJLF has especially targeted "begging" under the justification that whatever is good for private development is good for all urban residents. In addition, the CCI publishes anti-panhandling guides and defines itself as "a leading advocate for urban quality-of-life and safe-streets measures" that work "to get guns out of schools, gangs off of street corners, drug dealers out of housing projects, porn shops out of neighborhoods, aggressive panhandlers out of ATM lobbies and put mentally ill substance abusers into treatment and off the streets."

Bans on aggressive panhandling are viewed as a means of severely restricting panhandling without violating a person's freedom of speech. Laws or ordinances that include the language "aggressive" panhandling or solicitation are common. Most aggressive panhandling laws restrict locations where panhandling is permitted and the way in which individuals ask for money or goods.

Public spaces like streets, sidewalks, and parks are by definition "common property" and may be used by anyone. Private property owners are often able to persuade city officials to limit the use of public space and establish Business Improvement Districts, or BIDs. These areas exclude people with no access to private property from public property. The CJLF and the CCI's recommendations for regulating public space limit the use of common property and seek to justify exclusion by calling homeless people criminals and threats to public safety.

The Report

The McKinney Act
NCH Fact Sheet #18
Published by the National Coalition for the Homeless, April 1999

LINK

The Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act (PL100-77) was the first -- and remains the only -- major federal legislative response to homelessness. This fact sheet provides a brief history of the McKinney Act, describes its content and evolution, and summarizes recent trends in McKinney Act legislation and funding. A list of resources for further reading is also provided.

HISTORY
In the early 1980s, the initial responses to widespread and increasing homelessness were primarily local. Homelessness was viewed by the Reagan Administration as a problem that did not require federal intervention. In 1983, the first federal task force on homelessness was created to provide information to localities on how to obtain surplus federal property; this task force did not address homelessness through programmatic or policy actions.
In the years which followed, advocates around the country demanded that the federal government acknowledge homelessness as a national problem requiring a national response. With this goal in mind, the Homeless Persons' Survival Act was introduced in both houses of Congress in 1986. This act contained emergency relief measures, preventive measures, and long term solutions to homelessness. Only small pieces of this proposal, however, were enacted into law. The first, the Homeless Eligibility Clarification Act of 1986, removed permanent address requirements and other barriers to existing programs such as Supplemental Security Income, Aid to Families with Dependent Children, Veterans Benefits, Food Stamps, and Medicaid. Also in 1986, the Homeless Housing Act was adopted. This legislation created the Emergency Shelter Grant program and a transitional housing demonstration program; both programs were administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

In late 1986, legislation containing Title I of the Homeless Persons' Survival Act -- emergency relief provisions for shelter, food, mobile health care, and transitional housing -- was introduced as the Urgent Relief for the Homeless Act. After an intensive advocacy campaign, the legislation was passed by large bipartisan majorities in both houses of Congress in 1987. After the death of its chief Republican sponsor, Representative Stewart B. McKinney of Connecticut, the act was renamed the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act. It was signed into law by a reluctant President Ronald Reagan on July 22, 1987.


CONTENT
The McKinney Act originally consisted of fifteen programs providing a range of services to homeless people, including emergency shelter, transitional housing, job training, primary health care, education, and some permanent housing. The McKinney Act contains nine titles:

Title I of the McKinney Act includes a statement of six findings by Congress and provides a definition of homelessness.

Title II establishes and describes the functions of the Interagency Council on the Homeless, an independent entity within the Executive Branch composed of the heads of 15 federal agencies.

Title III of the McKinney Act authorizes the Emergency Food and Shelter Program, which is administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Title IV authorizes the emergency shelter and transitional housing programs administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, including the Emergency Shelter Grant program (expanded from the program created by the Homeless Housing Act in 1986), the Supportive Housing Demonstration Program, Supplemental Assistance for Facilities to Assist the Homeless, and Section 8 Single Room Occupancy Moderate Rehabilitation.

Title V of the McKinney Act imposes requirements on federal agencies to identify and make available surplus federal property, such as buildings and land, for use by states, local governments, and nonprofit agencies to assist homeless people.

Title VI authorizes several programs administered by the Department of Health and Human Services to provide health care services to homeless persons, including the Health Care for the Homeless program, a Community Mental Health Services block grant program, and two demonstration programs providing mental health and alcohol and drug abuse treatment services to homeless persons.

Title VII of the McKinney Act authorizes four programs: the Adult Education for the Homeless Program and the Education of Homeless Children and Youth Program, both administered by the Department of Education; the Job Training for the Homeless Demonstration Program, administered by the Department of Labor; and the Emergency Community Services Homeless Grant Program, administered by the Department of Health and Human Services.

Title VIII amends the Food Stamp program to facilitate participation in the program by persons who are homeless, and also expands the Temporary Emergency Food Assistance Program, administered by the Department of Agriculture.

Title IX of the McKinney Act extends the Veterans Job Training Act.


EVOLUTION
The McKinney Act has been amended four times: in 1988, 1990, 1992 and 1994. These amendments have, for the most part, expanded the scope and strengthened the provisions of the original legislation.
In 1988, Congress amended the McKinney Act with relatively minor changes. The 1988 amendments mostly served to expand eligible activities and to modify the distribution of McKinney funds.

The 1990 amendments were more far reaching, altering the majority of programs authorized by the original act. In addition to expanding eligible activities for several McKinney Act programs, a few new programs were created. These included the Shelter Plus Care program, which provides housing assistance to homeless individuals with disabilities, mental illness, AIDS, and drug or alcohol addiction, and a demonstration program within the Health Care for the Homeless program to provide primary health care and outreach to at-risk and homeless children. Also in 1990, the Community Mental Health Services program was amended and given a new name: the Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH) program. The 1990 amendments also specified in greater detail the obligations of states and local educational agencies in assuring the access of homeless children and youth to public education. The amendments also increased the Education of Homeless Children and Youth program's authorization and required states to make grants to local educational agencies for the purpose of implementing the law.

The 1992 amendments modified and expanded Title IV of the McKinney Act, the shelter and housing provisions. Included in these amendments were the creation of "safe havens," or very low-cost shelter for persons unwilling or unable to participate in supportive services; the creation of a Rural Homeless Housing Assistance grant program; and the consolidation of the mental health services demonstration program and the alcohol and drug abuse treatment demonstration program into the Access to Community Care and Effective Services and Support (ACCESS) program. The ACCESS demonstration program was designed to fund projects that integrate services for severely mentally ill people.

In 1994, Congress amended the Education of the Homeless Children and Youth program and the Surplus Property Program. The amendments to the Education of Homeless Children and Youth program provided local educational authorities with greater flexibility in the use of funds; specified the rights of homeless preschoolers to a free and appropriate public preschool education; gave parents of homeless children and youth a voice regarding their children's school placement; and required educational authorities to coordinate with housing authorities. The 1994 amendments also removed military bases closed under base-closure laws from the McKinney Act process and created a new process under which service providers could apply to Local Redevelopment Agencies to use property at closed bases to assist homeless persons.


RECENT TRENDS AND CURRENT STATUS
Since the passage of the McKinney Act in 1987, the McKinney Act programs have been expanded, and funding has significantly increased. However, McKinney programs have suffered setbacks in recent years. These programs now face new challenges as homelessness persists unabated across the country.
Congress authorized just over $1 billion in expenditures for McKinney Act programs for 1987 and 1988; however, a total $712 million was appropriated for those years. In subsequent years, overall funding levels increased from $350.2 million in FY87 to the all-time high of $1.49 billion in FY95. Recently, however, support for McKinney Act programs has fluctuated. In FY94, the Interagency Council on the Homeless lost its funding and was made part of the White House's Domestic Policy Council. In FY95, funding for the Job Training for the Homeless program was terminated. In FY96, funding for McKinney programs was cut by a total of 27%. Several McKinney programs saw their funding eliminated entirely. These programs included the Adult Education for the Homeless program, the Homeless Veterans Reintegration Project, the Emergency Community Services Homeless Grant Program, and the Family Support Centers. Over the past few years, funding has been partly restored to some of these programs, although few have surpassed their FY95 funding levels.

More recently, a few McKinney Act programs have been repealed and some may face dramatic restructuring. In 1998, consolidation legislation repealed the Job Training for the Homeless program and the Adult Education for the Homeless program. A current legislative proposal would consolidate the shelter and housing programs administered by HUD. If adopted, the proposal would distribute the bulk of the HUD Homeless Assistance funds through block grants to cities and states; limit the authorized funding level; and gradually decrease the amount of HUD money spent on supportive services.

The Education for Homeless Children and Youth program faces reauthorization in 1999 as part of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act reauthorization.


CONCLUSION
The McKinney Act has created valuable programs that have saved lives and helped hundreds of thousands of Americans to regain stability. A 1995 evaluation of the HUD McKinney programs concluded that the programs "have assisted significant numbers of homeless persons to regain independence and permanent housing and at reasonable costs." A 1996 evaluation of the HUD McKinney programs' Continuum of Care process noted that this approach to implementing the programs has "given localities and states new tools for addressing the problem of homelessness" (Fuchs and McAllister, 1996). Similarly, a 1995 evaluation of the Health Care for the Homeless (HCH) program found that HCH programs "represent innovative and effective efforts to improve access to health and health-related services for homeless people in the United States" (Cousineau, 1995). And a 1995 evaluation of the Education for Homeless Children and Youth program found that homeless children's access to school has improved significantly since passage of the McKinney Act, and that "state coordinators and local school district administrators have worked hard, with limited resources, to ensure homeless children's and youth's access to a free, appropriate education" (Anderson et al., 1995). All of these evaluations noted, however, that the resources allocated to the McKinney programs are insufficient to meet demand, and that lack of adequate funding limits the programs' success.
While inadequate funding clearly impedes the effectiveness of the McKinney Act programs, the McKinney Act's greatest weakness is its focus on emergency measures -- it responds to the symptoms of homelessness, not its causes. The McKinney Act was intended as a first step toward resolving homelessness; in the absence of legislation containing farther reaching measures, homelessness can only be expected to increase. In speaking on the floor of the Senate when the McKinney Act was first introduced, then Senator Albert Gore (D-TN), one of the bill's chief sponsors, said:


"(McKinney) is an essential first step towards establishing a national agenda for action to eradicate homelessness in America... No one in this body should believe that the legislation we begin considering today is anything more than a first step towards reversing the record increase in homelessness" (Congressional Record, p. S3683, March 23, 1987).
The McKinney Act was, and remains, landmark legislation. The programs created by the McKinney Act are needed now more than ever, as homelessness shows no signs of abating. However, after more than a decade of an emergency response to a long-term crisis, it is clear that only by addressing the causes of homelessness -- lack of jobs that pay a living wage, inadequate benefits for those who cannot work, lack of affordable housing, and lack of access to health care -- will homelessness be ended.




RESOURCES
Adler, Wendy Chris. Addressing Homelessness: Status of Programs Under the Stewart B. McKinney Act and Related Legislation, 1991. Available for $5.00 from the National Coalition for the Homeless, 1012 14th Street, NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20005; 202/737-6444.
Anderson, Leslie et al. An Evaluation of State and Local Efforts to Serve the Educational Needs of Homeless Children and Youth, 1995. Available, free, from the U.S. Department of Education, 600 Independence Ave., SW, Room 4168, Washington, DC 20202-8240; 202/401 0590.

Cousineau, Michael et al. A Study of the Health Care for the Homeless Program: Final Report, 1995. Available, free, from the National Clearinghouse for Primary Care Information, 2070 Chain Bridge Rd., Suite 450, Vienna, VA 22182-2536; 800/400-2742. In the Washington, DC metro area: 703/902-1248.

Foscarinas, Maria. "The Federal Response: The Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act," in Homelessness in America, 1996. Available for $43.50 from the National Coalition for the Homeless, 1012 14th Street, NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20005; 202/737-6444.

Fuchs, Ester and William McAllister. The Continuum of Care: A Report on the New Federal Policy to Address Homelessness, 1996. Available from Community Connections, PO Box 7189, Gaithersburg, MD 20898-7189; 800/998-9999.

Hombs, Mary Ellen. American Homelessness: A Reference Handbook. Second Edition, 1994. Available for $39.50 from ABC-CLIO, Inc., PO Box 1911, Santa Barbara, CA 93116 1911. 800/422-2546.

National Coalition for the Homeless. Necessary Relief: The Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, 1988. Available for $1.00 from the National Coalition for the Homeless, 1012 14th Street, NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20005; 202/737-6444.

National Coalition for the Homeless. Unfinished Business: The Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act After Two Years, 1990. Available for $3.00 from the National Coalition for the Homeless, 1012 14th Street, NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20005; 202/737-6444.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Review of Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Programs Administered by HUD: Report to Congress, 1995. Available, free, from HUD User, P.O. Box 6091, Rockville, MD 20849; 1-800-245-2691.

People Need Education.
-Education prevents homelessness by providing opportunities for people to obtain livable income jobs.
-Children need to go to school.


(click here to download factsheet in .pdf format)

The number of children and youth experiencing homelessness is increasing.

The number of children and youth in homeless situations (PreK-12) identified by State Departments of Education increased from approximately 841,700 in 1997 to 930,200 in 2000 (U.S. Department of Education, 2000).
The Urban Institute estimates that an estimated 1.35 million children will experience homelessness over the course of a year (Urban Institute, 2000).
Preschool and elementary age children comprise the largest numbers of children experiencing homelessness reported by the State Departments of Education (U.S. Department of Education, 2000).
Children and youth experiencing homelessness face barriers to school enrollment, attendance, and success.

Transportation to and from school, as well as to and from before- and after-school activities, remains the biggest barrier for children and youth in homeless situations (U.S. Department of Education, 2000).
Children and youth experiencing homelessness often do not have the documents ordinarily required for school enrollment. Domestic violence, natural disasters, evictions and unstable living situations can make it impossible for parents to retain documents. As a result, many districts still turn away children and youth from a new school until these issues are resolved (U.S. Department of Education, 2000).
Many children and youth experiencing homelessness are unable to participate in federal and State programs due to challenges created by high mobility (U.S. Department of Education, 2000).
Only 15% of preschool children identified as homeless by State Departments of Education were enrolled in preschool programs in 2000 (U.S. Department of Education, 2000). In comparison, 57% of low-income preschool children participated in preschool in 1999 (National Center for Education Statistics, 1999).
Federal legislation protecting the educational rights of children and youth experiencing homelessness was greatly strengthened in 2001, but Congress has not adequately funded state and local efforts to implement the legislation.

The recently reauthorized McKinney-Vento Act requires school districts to stabilize children in their original schools, including providing transportation so they can continue their education without disruption; it also requires that children experiencing homelessness be immediately enrolled in school if they are moving to a new school.
The McKinney-Vento Act's Education for Homeless Children and Youth (EHCY) program provides financial grant assistance to states and local school districts to implement provisions guaranteeing school access and stability. Funds are used to help schools provide and coordinate critical services such as identification, enrollment assistance, school supplies, and transportation.
Congress appropriated $55 million for the EHCY program in FY2003; this number is $15 million less than the current authorized amount of $70 million.
Education prevents homelessness by helping people obtain jobs with higher wages and benefits.

A woman with a high school degree earns barely over the poverty line for a family of three. This is, on average, half as much as a woman with a bachelor's degree (National Urban League Report, June 2002).

Sources:

National Center for Education Statistics, National Household Education Survey, 1999. Available at nces.ed.gov.

National Urban League. National Urban League Institute for Opportunity and Equality, June 2002. Available for download for a charge at www.nul.org.

U.S. Department of Education. Education for Homeless Children and Youth Report to Congress, 2000, www.ed.gov.

Urban Institute, The. A New Look at Homelessness in America. February 01, 2000. Available from the Urban Institute, 2100 M Street, N.W. / Washington, DC 20037 or on the website at www.urban.org.

Assemblyman Scott Stringer's Report on Homeless Kids and Their Rejection By the New York City Department of Education

Homeless are Attacked in Fresno