Agenda

Michele Thomas, Director of Policy and Advocacy

It has been quiet in Olympia lately. There are negotiations going on between budget writers, but the word is that there is still a great divide between the House and Senate. In order to pass a budget, they must bridge their differences on revenue and on which programs and services are funded. And we think it is a good thing that the special session is happening. To prevent it, the House would have had to cave to the Senate's horrific budget proposal. That would have been unacceptable. So we are thankful that the House along with the Governor are standing strong to demand significant revenue to fund their budget proposals. The negative talk in the media about "D.C.-style gridlock" misses the point and misleads the public about what is really going on. We invite you to join us in trying to reframe the situation. This will help encourage the House to stay strong and ease the pressure to go home before an acceptable compromise is reached. 

Meanwhile, many lawmakers are back home and some are available for meetings. This is a strategic time to schedule meetings and to explain our ask for the Housing Trust Fund (detailed below) and to advocate for the House's Operating Budget. Their budget restores the Senate's deep cuts to homelessness programs. Let us know if you'd like any assistance with these meetings. We are happy to help. If meeting with your lawmaker isn't possible, there are many other valuable advocacy strategies you can engage in.

Writing a letter to the editor, engaging your board in advocacy by asking them to make calls at your next board meeting, compiling stories from your clients on the importance of your programs that are funded by the Consolidated Homeless Grant, etc. We have a lot of ideas. Just give us a call, and we can share more.

What's Next?

Special session is scheduled to end on June 11, but it isn't clear if they will reach agreement by then. There is another official revenue forecast due on June 20. Since it is expected to be relatively positive, some are speculating that lawmakers will wait until then to make final budget decisions. This might be a sensible decision since more revenue coming in means less of a deficit to fill. And, the longer they wait, the more time we have to advocate!

We will be sending out an action alert next week. Please pledge to take action and to ask your board, your staff, colleagues, members, and clients to join you. We need to keep pushing.

And I hope to see many of you on Tuesday, June 11 for our 25th Anniversary Awards Dinner. Our keynote is the esteemed Peter B. Edelman. You may remember when he resigned from the Clinton administration in 1996 to protest the harmful welfare reform policies being planned. As he predicted, welfare reform eroded the safety net and set our nation backwards. Join your fellow advocates to learn more, to debate, to celebrate, and to grow our movement. It will be a fun and lively evening! Tickets are still available, but going fast. Click here to secure your spot.

Reminder of the Current Housing Trust Fund (HTF) Ask

1) Bring the allocation up to the Governor’s level of $65 million and maintain the House's additional $28.5 million allocation for other affordable housing projects*. Put that money into a competitive pool that all projects on the alternate list can apply for.

*Other affordable housing in the House's budget includes the following; $28.5 million = $4.5 million for public housing authorities' preservation funds, $14 million for Sand Point Building 9, and $10 million for Energy Matchmakers.

2) Expand the alternate list to all viable projects.

3) Un-rank the alternate list.

Click here for a pdf copy of the Housing Alliance's letter to elected officials that outlines our HTF ask.

Click here to send an email to your legislators demanding they pass a budget that creates more opportunites for safe, healthy, affordable homes!

Ben Miksch, State and Federal Policy Associate

You might have been hopeful when you heard the news earlier this week that Congress finally came together to do something about sequestration...and then have that turn to disappointment when you found they only passed a bill to ease air traffic delays while leaving the other much more brutal cuts in place. This inspired me to share the Coalition on Human Needs Weekly Sequestration Impact Reports. Every week they've been compiling lists of news articles about how sequestration is hurting people across the country. The article lists news stories of real people being impacted by the cuts, like the this one:

Virginia: Elmer Gilbert Winn, Jr., age 59, received a rental voucher from Fairfax authorities, but before he was able to find an apartment, they rescinded it as a result of sequestration cuts. Winn, who uses an oxygen tank and has had a collapsed lung four times, now pays $400 rent to a friend to sleep in the kitchen, out of his $710 in Social Security disability and $35 in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program/food stamps. Before that, he was sleeping on the streets, something he is now too ill to do. But his friend has been hospitalized, and that means Winn may no longer be able to stay in his apartment.

A higher Congressional priority than caring for the elderly & disabled.

We continue to advocate that Congress address the entirety of sequestration, especially the parts are hurting our most vulnerable neighbors. In the meantime, you can read this week's latest Sequestration Impact Report here.

NPR also just produced an excellent story yesterday explaining how the federal sequester is reducing housing vouchers in every state, with some personal quotes from people who are homeless as a result. You can read/listen to it here: Sequester Puts Some Needing Housing Aid 'Back To Square One.

Just more reminders that sequestration is already resulting in more households being at risk of homelessness, which makes our budget fight in Olympia all the more important. If you haven't already, don't forget to take action now!

Michele Thomas, Director of Policy and Advocacy

If the Senate budget passes, state homelessness programs will be cut by 50%.

The legislature ended the regular session on Sunday, April 28, without a resolution on the budget. Governor Jay Inslee has announced that he’ll call them back into special session on Monday, May 13 to finish budget negotiations. There are significant differences between competing budget proposals and much at stake for people struggling with homelessness or housing insecurity. 

The Senate’s Operating Budget proposal, which passed out of their chamber with bipartisan votes, makes deep cuts to virtually every state homeless program:  

• The Consolidated Homeless Grant (CHG), which funds emergency shelter, domestic violence shelters, provides rent assistance and more is cut by 50%.
• The Aged, Blind, and Disabled (ABD) program, which provides modest cash assistance to people who are permanently disabled and unable to work is eliminated.
• The Housing and Essential Needs (HEN) program, which provides rent and utility assistance to temporarily disabled people is cut by 57%.
• Operations and Maintenance (O&M) support for affordable housing programs that serve extremely low income households exiting homelessness is eliminated. This is funding that helps pay for basic operations since the deeply affordable rent levels can’t provide enough to support day to day functions.
• Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), which provides cash assistance and access to other childcare and vocational programs for very low income parents with dependent children is cut deeply cut.

At a time when we need to do more to prevent and end homelessness, the Senate proposes to set us back even further. Enacting their budget would cause at least 20,500 more people to experience homelessness over the next two years.

Protecting services that prevent and end homelessness is impossible without enacting new revenue. Please tell your lawmakers that protecting the most vulnerable is more important than tax beaks for special interests.

Michele Thomas, Director of Policy and Advocacy

If the Senate budget passes, state homelessness programs will be cut by 50%.

The legislature ended the regular session on Sunday, April 28, without a resolution on the budget. Governor Jay Inslee has announced that he’ll call them back into special session on Monday, May 13 to finish budget negotiations. There are significant differences between competing budget proposals and much at stake for people struggling with homelessness or housing insecurity. 

The Senate’s Operating Budget proposal, which passed out of their chamber with bipartisan votes, makes deep cuts to virtually every state homeless program:  

• The Consolidated Homeless Grant (CHG), which funds emergency shelter, domestic violence shelters, provides rent assistance and more is cut by 50%.
• The Aged, Blind, and Disabled (ABD) program, which provides modest cash assistance to people who are permanently disabled and unable to work is eliminated.
• The Housing and Essential Needs (HEN) program, which provides rent and utility assistance to temporarily disabled people is cut by 57%.
• Operations and Maintenance (O&M) support for affordable housing programs that serve extremely low income households exiting homelessness is eliminated. This is funding that helps pay for basic operations since the deeply affordable rent levels can’t provide enough to support day to day functions.
• Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), which provides cash assistance and access to other childcare and vocational programs for very low income parents with dependent children is cut deeply cut.

At a time when we need to do more to prevent and end homelessness, the Senate proposes to set us back even further. Enacting their budget would cause at least 20,500 more people to experience homelessness over the next two years.

Protecting services that prevent and end homelessness is impossible without enacting new revenue. Please tell your lawmakers that protecting the most vulnerable is more important than tax beaks for special interests.