Letters to the 108th Congress

June 16, 2003

The Honorable Christopher S. Bond
Chairman
Subcommittee on Veterans Affairs,
Housing and Urban Development, and
Independent Agencies
Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510-6032

The Honorable Barbara A. Mikulski
Ranking Member
Subcommittee on Veterans Affairs,
Housing and Urban Development, and
Independent Agencies
Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Mr. Chairman and Senator Mikulski:

We understand that you are in the midst of the appropriations process for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for FY 2004. For many years, the American Bar Association has supported initiatives and legislation designed to increase the availability of affordable transitional and permanent housing for homeless, low-income, and moderate-income people. At a time when our Nation has suffered at the hands of terrorists who seek to destroy our way of life, it is more important than ever that we maintain a strong social safety net for our country. As a result, we urge your support for increased funding for the programs discussed below.

Homelessness

The statistics regarding homelessness are staggering. On any given night, between 600,000 and 800,000 people are homeless. In addition, the Urban Institute reported that approximately 3.5 million Americans will be homeless at some point this year. The reasons for homelessness are varied and include unemployment, lack of affordable housing, poverty, domestic violence, mental illness, and addiction disorders. The situation is dire and becoming worse, so we urge you to appropriate FY 2004 funds for HUD’s targeted homeless programs, in order to help eradicate homelessness.

The McKinney-Vento Act provides a federal legislative response to homelessness by supplementing "mainstream" federally funded housing and human services programs
with funding that is specifically targeted to assist homeless people. The HUD McKinney-Vento programs include the Emergency Shelter Grant, Supportive Housing, Shelter Plus Care, and Section 8 Moderate Rehabilitation Single Room Occupancy for Homeless Individuals. These essential programs provide homeless people with access to emergency shelter, transitional housing, and permanent housing, as well as support services. Yet while 20 percent of qualified HUD McKinney-Vento project applications went unfunded in the last round of appropriations, the U.S. Conference of Mayors recently reported the steepest rise in a decade in requests for emergency shelter in its annual 25-city survey. While the Administration has requested $1.325 billion in funding for HUD McKinney-Vento programs, we urge Congress to increase that amount in order to equip HUD with the proper resources to meet the rising needs of the homeless.

Another program of importance to the homeless community is the Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP). EFSP allocates federal funds for the provision of food and shelter for homeless and hungry people throughout the U.S through food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, and the like. In fact, the U.S. General Accounting Office has referred to EFSP as "the only source of funding for the prevention of homeless[ness]" in many parts of the nation. In light of the current economic challenges facing our nation, it is imperative that our nation's homeless and poverty-stricken populations receive food and shelter. Yet the U.S. Conference of Mayors survey showed an increase of 19 percent over the past year in requests for emergency food assistance. While the Administration has proposed to maintain current funding of $153 million for EFSP, we urge you to increase this figure because additional funds desperately are needed.

Public Housing

The Administration’s proposed budget for FY 2004 calls for a significant reduction in funding for the Public Housing Capital Fund program (the Capital Fund), which is administered by HUD. The ABA strongly urges you to oppose any such reduction in funding. The ABA strongly supports increased funding for public housing, subsidized housing and the development of well-managed and secure public housing. The Administration’s FY 2004 budget proposal would cut funding for the Capital Fund from $2.730 billion for FY 2003 to $2.641 for FY 2004. The proposed cut of $89 million comes on the heels of the cut already made in the current year of $113 million. We urge you to support restoring funding to $3 billion for FY 2004.

As the world’s largest voluntary professional association, with over 400,000 members, the American Bar Association urges you to support increased funding for programs for those who are homeless or who rely on public housing. We firmly believe that everyone in the United States should have a decent place to live. We also believe that the relatively modest cost of these expenditures will be more than returned by avoiding larger societal costs. Finally, as we battle against terrorism and those who would malign the American way of life, we should make every effort to ensure that our country’s social safety net is as strong as it can be.

Sincerely,

Robert D. Evans

cc: Members of the Subcommittee

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