U.S. Mayors Seek Help for Homeless

Mayors of the nation’s largest cities said Saturday they are considering a request from the Bush administration to endorse a 10-year plan to end chronic homelessness with federal help to provide permanent housing and services.

City leaders meeting at the U.S. Conference of Mayors said demands on social services have increased as the national economy has worsened, and they need help.

The conference is scheduled to vote Monday on a resolution supporting the Bush proposal, which calls for 100 cities to submit plans to the federal government by January.

The Interagency Council on Homelessness estimates that 2 million people are homeless each year. The Department of Housing and Urban Development estimates that about 10% of homeless people are chronically homeless -- people with mental illnesses or other disabilities who have spent a year or more without a home.

The Bush administration plan aims to provide permanent housing and services to chronically homeless people, freeing up resources for people who are temporarily homeless.

HUD Deputy Secretary Alphonso Jackson said his agency is willing to consider any legal proposal to improve housing.

“Our cities are on the front lines in our effort to confront homelessness and meet the needs of our most vulnerable mayors. We sincerely hope the U.S. Conference of Mayors becomes an enthusiastic partner with us as we work toward breaking the cycle of homelessness,” Jackson said.

Last year, HUD awarded more than $1.1 billion in homeless assistance to more than 2,000 local projects. Next year, the agency plans to spend about $1.5 billion.

A dozen communities, including Chicago, Memphis, Indianapolis, Phoenix and Atlanta, already are adopting their own 10-year plans.

Chicago Mayor Richard Daley said a new flexibility by the federal government helped his city bring together nonprofit organizations, private businesses and people who had sued the city to put together Chicago’s plan.

Daley said many nonprofits were faith-based organizations previously denied federal funding. In December, President Bush signed an executive order allowing religious groups that hire based on religion to receive federal contracts.

“We wanted money going to not-for-profit organizations. Many were faith-based. We’ve been doing faith-based work in Chicago for 80 or 90 years,” said Daley, a co-sponsor of the resolution to support Bush’s plan.