Homelessness is on the rise in Vermont, according to the most recent federal data.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) last week released its annual report, which tallies homelessness across the nation on a single day in January.
The 2013 count found 1,454 homeless people in Vermont, 184 of whom had no shelter. Nearly a third of the total group — 418 — were severely mentally ill, while 128 were veterans and 217 were classified as “chronically homeless.”
The overall number of homeless people rose by 300 people from 2012 to 2013 — a 25 percent increase. An outsized portion of that was driven by an increase in homeless families, as opposed to individuals. In 2012, there were 172 homeless families, and in 2013 there were 262.
Department for Children and Families (DCF) Commissioner Dave Yacovone warns that those numbers should not be taken as absolute.
“It’s a rough indicator. I don’t think it’s very scientific,” Yacovone said, describing the HUD report. Nevertheless, he doesn’t discount the results. “I look at it seriously. I know we have a real problem.”
The uptick revealed in the HUD report is surprising, Yacovone said, in light of Vermont’s comparatively low unemployment rate. He also pointed out that the department is spending $3 million more than it was two years ago on housing programs to prevent homelessness.
According to a report submitted to the Legislature on Nov. 15 by the Agency of Human Services (AHS), which houses DCF, the agency has budgeted roughly $34 million on housing initiatives. Seventy percent of that is drawn from the state’s General Fund.
A squeeze on federal funding is probably partially to blame for any increase in homelessness, according to the commissioner. The state has lost nearly 800 Section 8 housing vouchers as a result of sequestration, and if Congress fails to avoid a second round of cuts early next year, the impact will be greater.
DCF uses a different data set to keep tabs on homelessness in Vermont. It keeps track of the number of homeless people who pass through shelters each year by gathering information from roughly 40 nonprofit shelters or housing organizations that receive state and federal money.
According to state data, 4,285 people were sheltered during FY 2013 for a total of 131,535 nights. That group included 816 children under the age of 18.
The number of people staying in shelters has remained fairly steady for the last three years, but that doesn’t mean the facilities aren’t overburdened, Yacovone said.
“If you asked anyone in the housing industry, they would tell you, ‘Our shelters are full almost every night.’”
The department’s figures don’t include those who haven’t sought assistance, and they don’t include people who’ve been put up in motels through the General Assistance program, which is recorded separately.
That program has grown in recent years, and DCF is facing the prospect of having to ask the Legislature for another $3 million to cover the cost of putting homeless people up in motels for the current fiscal year. They’ve given out roughly 200 fewer vouchers this year than they did during the same time period last year (600 instead of 800), but people have been staying longer, according to Yacovone, which has kept costs high.
At Gov. Peter Shumlin’s behest, in September a group of 14 nonprofits provided the administration with a number of recommendations on how to reduce poverty.
Their proposals to address homelessness include sizeable investments in the programs DCF already operates — doubling the funding for the Vermont Rental Subsidy Program and putting $400,000 more into the grant program that supports shelters, transitional housing, and other groups, among other solutions.
Yacovone said he also thinks the state should expand its rental subsidy program, but budget constraints will make it challenging to secure new funds.
“I think the Vermont Rental Subsidy Program has been highly effective. It’s a smart thing to do to,” Yacovone said. But, he added, “There is no printing press. I know that. Government leadership is about making hard choices.”
