WASHINGTON - June 22 - The U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) has released a plan that would put the United States on the path to ending homelessness among veterans and chronically homeless individuals by 2015 and among children, youth, and families by 2020.

Opening Doors: The Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness was released at a White House press event on Tuesday, June 22. USICH said the plan calls for “a fundamental shift in the way that the federal government and communities across the country respond to homelessness” and will create “collaborative partnerships both between agencies and levels of government to enable the Administration to approach the key goal of preventing Americans from experiencing homelessness.” 

“We commend the USICH for the plan’s emphasis on measurable goals. The plan’s declaration that the country will end homelessness among certain populations is extremely important,” said NLIHC President Sheila Crowley. “We appreciate the plan’s acknowledgment of the need to fund the National Housing Trust Fund, which, once funded, will play an important role in providing stable housing options for people with the lowest incomes who are most at risk of homelessness.”

“Now that the plan is in place, we must work together to implement it,” Ms. Crowley added. “NLIHC would like to see more specific information about the additional federal funding that will be required to implement the plan’s goals. We look forward to working with the Administration over the coming year to identify funding sources that will help communities provide homes and needed services to homeless families and individuals.”

The creation of the plan by USICH was mandated by the HEARTH Act, which was signed into law by President Obama in May 2009. The USICH is comprised of cabinet secretaries and department heads of federal agencies that deal with issues relating to homelessness, including HUD Secretary and USICH Chair Shaun Donovan, and Labor Secretary and USICH Vice Chair Hilda Solis.

The release of the plan follows the publication of The 2009 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress (AHAR), released by HUD on June 18. The report finds an increase in homelessness among families from 2007 to 2009, and points to an increase in job loss and foreclosures accompanying the downturn in the economy as a cause. There were almost 62,000 more family members who were in a shelter at some point in 2009 than there were in 2007, an increase of 30%.

The AHAR is available at: http://www.hudhre.info/documents/5thHomelessAssessmentReport.pdf

Opening Doors: The Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness is available at www.usich.gov and www.hud.gov