Hello shadowjack1-ga!
The "homeless" situation in New York City has been fraught with court
rulings, proposed legislation and ongoing political debate.
Are there less homeless people on the streets (at night)? Probably.
Are there more homeless people in New York City than ever before?
Yes.
Has the shelter program been successful? Opinions vary!
===============================
HOMELESSNESS IN NEW YORK CITY
===============================
Statistics from the Coalition for the Homeless:
http://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/advocacy/basic_facts.html
* In September 2003 nearly 38,300 homeless men, women, and children
were sleeping each night in the New York City shelter system,
including 16,800 children, 13,400 adult family members, and 8,100
single adults. Thousands more sleep on city streets, park benches, and
subway trains.
* Since 1998 the New York City homeless shelter population has
increased by 81 percent, from 21,000 people in shelters each night to
38,300 people per night currently.
* Over the past five years, the number of homeless families sleeping
in New York City shelters and welfare hotels has increased by 108
percent, from 4,429 families at the end of January 1998 to 9,221
families at the end of September 2003. The average stay for homeless
families in the municipal shelter system has more than doubled over
the past decade, from five months in 1990 to eleven months today.
* The number of homeless single adults sleeping in the New York City
shelter system has increased by 33 percent since 1994, from an average
of 6,100 people per night to 8,100 people per night this year. The
number of homeless single adults sleeping in shelters currently is at
the highest point since 1991.
===
The NYC Department of Homeless Services also keeps a daily tally of
homeless individuals using city shelters on the front page of the
their website.
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dhs/
A more comprehensive "Daily Report" is available at
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dhs/html/latestats.html
====================
HISTORICAL OVERVIEW
====================
The following document provides an historical overview of the Callahan
decision, subsequent court rulings and the current political debate
concerning homelessness in New York City. It is written by the
Coalition for the Homeless but the historical facts are accurate. I
have excerpted the most pertinent information:
==
"Modern Mass Homelessness in New York City: A Brief History and
Current Threats to Right to Shelter." Coalition for the Homeless
(updated September 2002)
http://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/downloads/callahanhistory2002.pdf
"Since 1979, more than half a million homeless men, women, and
children in New York City have been provided with vital emergency
shelter because of the legacy of the Callahan litigation, which was
settled as a landmark consent decree that established a "right to
shelter" for homeless New Yorkers. However, in the
twentieth-anniversary year of Callahan, and at a time when mass
homelessness was again on the rise, then-Mayor Rudolph Giuliani
proposed a plan to eject homeless families and individuals from
shelters. Fortunately, State courts blocked the plan but, two years
later, Mayor Michael Bloomberg has declared his intention to appeal
those court rulings and pursue a plan to eject homeless families and
individuals from shelters to the streets. For the first time in more
than two decades, New York City faces the prospect of homeless
families sleeping outdoors and rising numbers of homeless single
adults sleeping on city streets.
....
The Callahan Lawsuit:
"In 1979 a lawyer named Robert Hayes, who co-founded Coalition for the
Homeless, brought a class action lawsuit against the City and State
arguing that a constitutional right to shelter existed in New York
State. In particular, he pointed to Article XVII of the State
Constitution, which declares that "the aid, care and support of the
needy are public concerns and shall be provided by the state and by
such of its subdivisions...."
"Hayes brought the lawsuit on behalf of all homeless men in New York
City. The lead plaintiff in the lawsuit, Robert Callahan, was a
homeless man whom Hayes had discovered sleeping on the street during
his commute to his law firm. In 1981, the lawsuit, Callahan v. Carey,
was settled as a consent decree. (A consent decree, or consent order,
is a binding contract entered into by the plaintiffs and defendants in
a lawsuit.) The decree established a right to shelter for all homeless
men in New York City, and detailed the minimum standards which the
City and State must maintain in shelters, including basic health and
safety standards."
McCain Lawsuit:
"In 1983 the right to shelter was extended to homeless women, and
later to homeless families with children by the McCain lawsuit. A 1986
decision in McCain by the State Appellate Division found that the
State Constitution, Federal and State Equal Protection Clauses, and
State Social Services Law require the provision of emergency shelter
to homeless families with children. Subsequent court rulings
prohibited the City from forcing families to sleep overnight in intake
offices, and eliminated the use of welfare hotels as shelters.
Although three mayoral administrations have defied some court orders
and have refused to comply with some rulings - leading to contempt
rulings against City officials on several occasions - standards in
family shelters have improved substantially since the early 1980s due
to the McCain litigation."
"Since 1979, hundreds of thousands of homeless New Yorkers have been
provided shelter because of the legacy of the Callahan consent decree.
Indeed, each night in 1999 around 23,000 men, women, and children
slept in the municipal shelter system, including nearly 9,000
children. However, one tragic footnote to the history of the
litigation is the fate of Robert Callahan himself. The winter before
the consent decree with his name was signed, Callahan died while
sleeping outdoors, one of the last victims of an era with no formal
right to shelter."
===
The article highlights attempts by former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and
Governer George Pataki to amend the legislation by proposing time
restrictions on shelter stays. These attempts included a 1993 campaign
platform aimed at limiting shelter stays to 90 days. In 1999, Giuliani
moved foward with his attempt to implement shelter termination
regulations, including a plan to require shelter residents to perform
mandatory work assignments. The Coalition for the Homeless opposed the
Administration's restrictions and another Court battle ensued.
Judge Sklar's Ruling:
"On February 18, 2000, State Supreme Court Justice Stanley Sklar
issued a decision in Callahan prohibiting the City from implementing
the 1995 State shelter termination and denial regulations. The
decision declared the regulations "null and void" for homeless single
adults in New York City. The strongly-worded decision affirmed the
importance of the Callahan decree in preventing the death and injury
of homeless individuals. Moreover, it recognized the dangers inherent
in the Giuliani Administration’s proposal to link the welfare system
to the provision of emergency shelter for homeless New Yorkers, and to
deny shelter to all homeless people who have a welfare sanction or
case closing."
"As Justice Sklar wrote about the City’s plan, "bureaucratic error is
as much a part of bureaucracy, as human error is a part of life."
Therefore, his decision continued, "the simple bureaucratic error
which might send an individual out into the street, because he or she
was unable to understand or cooperate with these requirements, might
be the error which results in that individual’s death by exposure,
death by violence, or death by sheer neglect. The risk is simply too
great to take." Justice Sklar’s decision concluded with this powerful
statement: "If [the City and State] defendants sincerely want to
create a system in which our homeless citizens can rejoin, and
contribute to society, as is evident, they should do so by means which
do not endanger those very persons. The court is confident that such a
goal can be accomplished. This was, in fact, the goal of the Consent
Decree, and still is."
==
Giuliani did not give up, however. Just weeks before leaving office,
the Administration filed an appeal to the February 2000 Callahan
decision blocking the implementation of shelter restrictions. This
action effectively left the door open for the incoming Bloomberg
Administration to decide whether to pursue the appeal. Bloomberg took
up where Guiliani left off!
==
"On June 28th, the New York Times reported, "Mayor Michael R.
Bloomberg will appeal a state court ruling that barred the Giuliani
administration from ejecting homeless families from shelters and
putting their children in foster care..... Linda I. Gibbs, Mr.
Bloomberg’s commissioner for homeless services, called the appeal
‘critical in achieving the kind of goals we want to achieve.’ " That
same day, the Department of Homeless services released a new strategic
plan that also declared Mayor Bloomberg’s intention to move forward
with a plan to eject some homeless families and individuals from
shelters under the State shelter termination regulations. Although the
Bloomberg plan apparently does not include linking shelter termination
to welfare eligibility, it appears to continue with mandated
compliance with shelter rules and social service plans as a condition
for receiving emergency shelter, and would also bar sanctioned
families and individuals from shelter for a minimum of thirty days.
Under the plan, sanctioned families could also have their children
removed from their custody and placed into some form of foster care.
The Bloomberg Administration announced its plan despite opposition
from shelter providers; the New York Times article quoted Fred Shack,
president of the Tier II Coalition of family shelter providers, saying
"The idea of discharging families to the streets we believe is
unacceptable." Coalition for the Homeless and the Legal Aid Society
declared their intention to challenge the Bloomberg appeal, expected
to be filed in the autumn of 2002."
(Read more.........
THE SQUABBLE CONTINUES UNDER BLOOMBERG
======================================
From a 2002 editorial in the New York Times:
"The Bloomberg plan - the first in history to create a clear route to
permanent housing - is essentially what advocates have been asking for
since they first brought the lawsuits that have governed homeless
policy in New York for more than 20 years."
"New York City is struggling to cope with the largest caseload of
homeless families in its history. Faced with a staggering deficit and
system wide budget cuts, Mayor Michael Bloomberg has nonetheless
beefed up the Department of Homeless Services and committed more than
$100
million to a new plan aimed at finding permanent housing for women and
children who might otherwise spend years moving from one homeless
shelter to the next."
"The Bloomberg plan - the first in history to create a clear route to
permanent housing - is
essentially what advocates have been asking for since they first
brought the lawsuits that have governed homeless policy in New York
for more than 20 years."
"The two sides are closer together than they have ever been, but they
are stuck on a city-proposed regulation that would allow shelter
providers to temporarily eject people who refuse to obey rules or who
refuse to accept an apartment that is offered to them. The city argues
that the new measures are necessary to enforce discipline in the
shelters and to make its new plan work. Lawyers for the homeless raise
the specter of families driven back into the streets, and perhaps even
children separated from their parents and placed in foster care."
"Both sides actually agree that new methods are needed to make it
clear to families that they must take an active role in finding
permanent housing and move on as soon as possible."
"The question is whether the two sides will compromise on the details
of the plan, or miss the moment by resorting to a new round of court
battles."
"The Bloomberg administration has come so far and done so much on this
issue that it is disturbing to see its representatives frittering away
their achievements with what appears to be needless grandstanding."
"The city has refused to work with Barbara Cutler, who has given eight
years of distinguished service as court master. It regards Ms. Cutler,
who is responsible for mediating city disputes with the advocates for
the homeless, as too close to the other side."
"But her departure could cause advocates to revert to the kind of
round-the-clock legal warfare over every minor dispute that
characterized the 1980's, when the court first found the city liable
for sheltering homeless citizens."
"After 20 years of court rulings and consent decrees, the city is
understandably eager to regain full control of what it regards as city
business. But there is no magic way to make the court rulings and
consent decrees vanish. The city successfully worked its way out from
under court supervision of its prison system. We would like to see the
same thing happen here. But to do that, the city attorneys are going
to have to show respect for the court
and the advocates. Otherwise, a story that seems so close to having a
satisfactory ending will degenerate into just another unending New
York City squabble."
From "Squabbling Over the Homeless." By Editorial Staff. The New York
Times (10/19/2002)
http://projects.is.asu.edu/pipermail/hpn/2002-October/006812.html
RECENT RULINGS - BLOOMBERG APPEAL WINS
======================================
"Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Department of Homeless Services (DHS)
Commissioner Linda Gibbs today announced that the Appellate Division
has reversed a February 2000 lower court ruling in Callahan v. Carey.
Today’s decision clarifies the consent decree signed in 1981 and
clearly states that the City did not forfeit its management authority
to establish rules and regulations that assure "that temporary housing
resources are not squandered on those having no real need of them and
to the related, equally legitimate objective of attempting to reduce
prospective reliance upon temporary housing provided at public
expense."
Read more.....
From "Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg And Homeless Commissioner Linda Gibbs
Announce Court Victory For City's Homeless." DHS (June 10, 2003)
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dhs/html/pr061003.html
==============================================================
HOW SUCCESSFUL HAS NEW YORK CITY BEEN IN HOUSING THE HOMELESS?
==============================================================
The following excerpts are from a CBS News Report defining the
current homeless situation in New York City.
From "NYC Homeless Audit Reveals Rats, Roaches and Misspent Millions",
by Jeff McKay at http://www.crosswalk.com/news/1223708.html
"While New York City's homeless population is reportedly at an
all-time high, an audit has found that the city spent $96 million in
2002 to get those individuals off the streets and into apartments.
That same audit discovered that many of those apartments were infested
with rats and cockroaches, and yet some of them cost the city nearly
$3,000 per month."
"The audit revealed that the worst problems were the result of the
city's scatter-site program, borne from a 2000 court order issued to
then-Mayor Rudy Giuliani, stating that any person requesting shelter
by 10:00 p.m. on any given night had to be given a place to stay that
night. This court order, once challenged, remains in effect."
"We have reached the conclusion that it is time to regularize our
relationship with these providers," said New York City Mayor Michael
Bloomberg during a press conference with the city's comptroller and
the head of the city's Office of Homeless Services. "We must bring
order, transparency and accountability to a system that for too long
has been defined by crisis."
"One of Bloomberg's first moves will be to require hotel operators and
shelters to competitively bid on contracts. Until now, the city has
not used contracts or bidding because hotels, privately run shelters,
or scatter-site apartments were intended to be used as temporary
housing."
...
"The city has also begun the process of phasing out the scatter-site
program. Department of Homeless Services Commissioner Linda Gibbs said
that so far, nearly 150 scatter-site residences have been removed from
the program."
"Critics had argued that the lack of contracts enabled the landlords
to provide sub-standard housing with no accountability."
"City officials Have long argued that due to the court orders and
population of homeless in New York City, they could not be bound by
contracts."
...
"A 1999 court order against the city stipulates that it must respond
to any request for housing of a homeless person with HIV/AIDS within
12 hours, and must provide housing in all cases."
"An April, 2001 CNS News.com story documented how the city, due to the
2000 court order requiring all homeless persons seeking lodging to
receive it, in some cases had placed homeless people in luxury hotels
complete with marble baths and stunning city views, costing taxpayers
over $300 per night for each room."
"The review by Bloomberg and the New York City comptroller follows a
report released in Albany, which stated that the homeless in New York
City must meet certain standards in order to receive room and board."
"The changes in New York City rules will mirror statewide standards
for welfare recipients, including that they be employed, enrolled in a
job-training program, address substance abuse or other personal
problems which prevent them from getting jobs, and pay child support
when applicable."
"While both city and state officials believe these standards will
improve safety in the shelters and the quality of homeless care,
others believe the new standards will be a step backwards."
"This will only make matters worse," said Steve Banks, legal counsel
for the Coalition for the Homeless. "When the city initiates its plan,
the result will be more homeless people on the streets and more
homeless people who will die or suffer serious injury."
"According to figures supplied by the Coalition for the Homeless,
37,570 homeless adults and children were sleeping each night in
shelters and welfare hotels in New York City during July. Children and
their families represent 79 percent of the New York City shelter
population, according to the coalition."
"The coalition also reported that the number of homeless families
sleeping in New York City shelters and welfare hotels increased 106
percent between January 1998 and the end of August 2003."
"In addition, July statistics showed that 9,135 families slept in New
York City shelters, a record for any month, and an average of 7,954
single adults stayed in shelters on a daily basis, according to the
Coalition for the Homeless."
"Rising rents, the economy and social program cutbacks are being
blamed for the rise in homelessness."
"Overall, New York City spent over $390 million on housing the
homeless in 2002, nearly double the figure spent in 1999."
=========
Homeless Families:
"The Mayor's Management Report, New York's annual statistical
self-analysis, paints a picture of a city and a mayor struggling to
get out of the doldrums."
"The report painted a bleak picture of life at or near the poverty
line. The city Department of Homeless Services saw a record high
increase in its daily census of homeless families to 16,332."
"The number of families seeking shelter for the first time has risen
35 percent since 1999 to 7,087 in fiscal year 2003."
From "Report: Poor Economy Slams Poor", by Glenn Thrush. New York
Newsday (9/17/2003)
http://216.239.57.104/search?q=cache:jy6ODWIu1ukJ:www.nynewsday.com/news/local/newyork/politics/nyc-rept0918,0,395852.story+%2B2003+statistics+%2Bhomeless+%2Bnyc&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
=========================================
HOMELESS POLICIES IN OTHER JURISDICTIONS
=========================================
I know of no other jurisdictions that mirror the New York court
mandates concerning shelter for the homeless. That doesn't mean they
do not exist. However, it would involve an exhaustive search of each
state and city.
Apparently, Washington D.C. had a similar shelter policy in place in
the past but it has now been dismantled:
"The experience of Washington, D.C., demonstrates the high price paid
for losing the right to shelter. The legal right to shelter in the
nation’s capital was eliminated in 1990, and since then the number of
shelter beds citywide has fallen despite increases in homelessness."
http://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/downloads/callahanhistory2002.pdf
The National Coalition for the Homeless would likely be the best
source of information about what is happening in other states and
cities. http://www.nationalhomeless.org/
There is a Yahoo group that deals specifically with homelessness in
the United States. The group compiles news articles on homelessness
throughout the country. A posting on the site might bring information
from individuals closely connected to homeless policies in other
cities.
The Homeless News
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HomelessNews/
======================================================
ORGANIZATIONS IN THE FIGHT AGAINST HOMELESSNESS IN NYC
======================================================
Coalition for the Homeless
http://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/home/index.html
National Coalition for the Homeless
http://www.nationalhomeless.org/
New York City Department of Homeless Services
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dhs/
Housing First
http://www.housingfirst.net/
The Legal Aid Society
http://www.legal-aid.org/indexStatic.htm
New York Office Locations:
http://www.legal-aid.org/DocumentIndex.htm?docid=38&catid=14
New York City Government Agencies
http://www.nyc.gov/portal/index.jsp?pageID=nyc_home
Office of the Mayor
http://www.nyc.gov/portal/index.jsp?pageID=nyc_mayor&catID=1194
New York State Government Homepage
http://www.state.ny.us/
Governor's Office
http://www.state.ny.us/governor/
=====================
ADDITIONAL REFERENCES
=====================
NEW YORK STATE CONSTITUTION
----------------------------
http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?co=0
ARTICLE XVII - Social Welfare
-----------------------------
Section 1. The aid, care and support of the needy are public concerns
and shall be provided by the state and by such of its subdivisions,
and
in such manner and by such means, as the legislature may from time to
time determine.
http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?co=19
==
TEXT OF CALLAHAN V. CAREY DECISION
-----------------------------------
See "Ensuring the Right to Shelter: The First Court Decision in
Callahan v. Carey Requiring the Provision of Shelter for Homeless Men
in New York City."
http://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/downloads/callahanfirstdecision121979.pdf
==
AN ARGUMENT AGAINST CALLAHAN V. CAREY:
---------------------------------------
"Another example of how decrees tie officials to flawed policies is
Callahan v. Carey, the consent decree that grew out of a lawsuit
brought by the Coalition for the Homeless, which requires New York
City to provide free shelter for all homeless men. Since the late
1970s, when Callahan v. Carey was filed, the number of homeless single
adults seeking shelter from the city has grown from about 2,000 to
7,000; the city spends between $18,000 and $20,000 sheltering each of
them. Despite these expenditures, most observers agree conditions in
the shelters are terrible. But the city's ability to make changes is
constrained by the decree, which spells out the city's obligations in
great detail, leaving officials little flexibility in implementing
policy and allocating limited resources."
From "GOVERNMENT BY DECREE: THE HIGH COST OF LETTING JUDGES MAKE
POLICY." Manhattan Institute for Policy Research. Vol.1 (1994)
http://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/research_memorandum_1.htm
==
"Once Again, Trying Housing as a Cure for Homelessness", by Nina
Bernstein. New York Times. (June 23, 2002)
http://www.nationalhomeless.org/housing/nyt23.html
****************
I hope the information I have provided helps to answer your question.
Homelessness in the United States is an ongoing dilemma that appears
to be increasing rapidly. The New York City example certainly serves
as a testimony to the fact that there is no easy answer!
umiat-ga
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New York State Constitution
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