That’s Victor on the couch in the image above. I found him nearly dead from using drugs and called police. Victor was doing OK when I first met him, however, his drug addiction worsened after he got a $25 per month apartment. The image literally shows the writing on the wall regarding Housing First.
People enduring homelessness and drug addiction are not the real problem. The problem is continuing failed public policies. The name Housing First comes off as humane, as it implies shelter. Don’t believe the hype — this policy enables the causes of homelessness.
How Did We Get Here?
In 2013, Congress passed legislation requiring all federally funded assistance programs apply the Housing First approach to solving homelessness. The idea caught on through states accepting the federal funding.
The federal government forbids taxpayer funding for any homeless housing assistance project that requires anything in return from participants. For example, taxpayer-funded housing programs cannot require recipients to stop taking drugs—which is often the reason they are homeless in the first place!
The California Policy Lab, a nonpartisan research institute based at the University of California, found 75 percent of the unsheltered population reported substance abuse conditions, and 51 percent reported that the use of drugs or alcohol contributed to their loss of housing.
California embraced Housing First in 2016 and now is experiencing the worst homelessness crisis in the nation.
Washington State policy makers and providers are all-in for Housing First — regardless of the reality of drugs and homelessness.
A Bad Deal
The sense of fairness is a fundamental human attribute. Here is why Housing First, which allows on-site drug abuse, arouses our sense of getting a bad deal: We are willing to help people, however, there is no transaction. The public pays for accommodations, yet nothing is expected in return from the recipient of aid.
Drug abusers using public accommodations pay for their habits mostly through crime. Yet again, another bad deal for the community at large.
Housing First springs the trap of dependency on drugs, and the resulting need for public services.
It is reasonable to expect individuals accepting public aid to not take drugs, and instead, work on their recovery.
Let’s help people out of crisis. I know many who have succeeded in beating addiction and get out of homelessness. It’s heartwarming to see lives turn around.
I am the only candidate in this race who will:
- Defund Housing First, not subsidize addiction with public funds.
- Advocate our federal representatives repeal HUD Housing First funding mandates.
- Fund Drug Court — recovery program for deferred prosecution.
- Fund Public Safety.
Since 2013, when Housing First was introduced, homelessness has exploded to crisis proportions. We need changes and I am ready to lead in Olympia. I will fund effective housing for the unsheltered, recovery programs and other opportunities for people to break free from the trap of dependency.
Please vote for me, Andrea Suarez, on November 5.