Advocates for the homeless want the D.C. Council to slow its consideration of an emergency mayoral proposal that would limit homeless benefits to only D.C. residents and make it easier to turn away nonresidents seeking shelter in the city.
In a joint letter Wednesday to city lawmakers, the Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless, Bread for the City, the Children’s Law Center and other advocacy groups said they share Mayor Muriel Bowser’s goal of ensuring shelter for D.C. residents. But they said the legislation should go through public hearings rather than be rushed through the council.
“There is no emergency that supports moving forward such a potentially problematic bill with no community input,” the groups wrote. “While we appreciate the agency’s concern about spending dollars wisely, and support such efforts, there has been no data provided to support a claim that these provisions would lower costs.”
Miss Bowser touted the measure Tuesday at a mayor-council breakfast.
With its right-to-shelter law and emergency housing plans, the District has become a haven for the homeless, with some venturing from far afield to reap the benefits the city freely offers.
Recent studies show that homelessness is up in the District and down in its suburbs, and the D.C. Department of Human Services notes that 12 percent of families seeking shelter in Washington are not city residents.
“We have an obligation to serve our residents. But we cannot serve the entire region. We’re serving everybody else’s residents,” Miss Bowser said at the breakfast Tuesday. “Our own residents are standing at the back of the line.”
Statistics from a Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments report in May are telling. Between 2007 and 2013 the total number of homeless people rose by 14 percent in the District. The city provides 682 beds for homeless singles and 405 family units with a total of 1,312 beds. Emergency shelters offer 2,256 single beds and 406 family units with a total of 1,295 beds. Transitional housing facilities have 950 single beds and 428 family units with a total of 1,190 beds.
But in the suburbs, total homelessness fell by:
• 13 percent in Prince George’s County, which offers 337 year-round beds for families, 153 year-round beds for singles and 68 beds specifically during winter months.
• 11 percent in Montgomery County, which has 556 beds for singles, 417 beds for families year-round and 354 beds for the winter.
• 12 percent in Fairfax County, which provides 424 year-round individual beds, 762 beds for families and 245 beds exclusively for winter use.
• 24 percent in Arlington County, which offers 117 beds for individuals, 88 beds for families and 25 set aside for winter.
According to D.C. Human Services Director Laura Zeilinger, the District has to spend about $80,000 a night on motel rooms for homeless families because its shelters are full.
At Tuesday’s breakfast, council member Jack Evans said it is fiscally irresponsible for the city to shoulder the homeless burden for the whole region.
“Our shelters are for District residents. They are not for non-District residents,” the Ward 2 Democrat said, conceding that his statement isn’t the “humanitarian” response people might want to hear.
Interim council member Robert White disagreed, saying homelessness “doesn’t know jurisdiction.”
“People who come to our shelters for shelter need shelter,” the at-large Democrat said. “We have an obligation to people even if they happen to sometimes live across the border. I don’t know that we can turn our backs on them.”
A staffer for D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson said the bill would not move before year’s end and the chairman plans to hold hearings it in January. Miss Bowser had wanted the council to move the bill as emergency legislation, which doesn’t require public hearings or a second vote, but only lasts for 90 days.
The District already requires that those seeking shelter be residents, but the new measure would require two documents to prove residency. Some of those documents, such as pay stubs or utility bills, might not be viable options for those without homes to prove D.C. residency.
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