Cutbacks pinch homeless programs
August 25, 2009
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August 24, 2009
The homeless are having more trouble getting help because of state budget cuts, and federal stimulus funding in September will fill only part of the gap, service providers for the homeless say.
"It's a perfect storm" of falling revenue and rising need, says Joel John Roberts of PATH Partners, a group that advises communities on services for the homeless. "The holes in the safety net are getting bigger."
All but a handful of states are facing deep shortfalls in their fiscal 2010 budgets, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a private research group.
"This is the most perilous time I've seen," says Nancy Radner of the Chicago Alliance to End Homelessness.
An extra $1.5 billion in federal stimulus funds becomes available next month. It is meant to prevent homelessness by helping people pay rent, utility bills, moving costs or security deposits.
"We'll use it to plug some of the holes" created by state cuts, says Cathy ten Broeke, coordinator on homelessness in Minneapolis and Hennepin County.
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