06-23
RESOLUTION NO. 06-23
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF CLEARWATER,
FLORIDA, EXPANDING HUD'S DEFINITION OF
HOMELESSNESS: PROVIDING LOCAL FLEXIBILITY,
RESPONDING TO FAMILIES, CHILDREN, AND
YOUTH; PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, in the overwhelming majority of towns, cities and states in
America an individual or family working full-time and earning the minimum wage,
or receiving assistance under the Supplemental Security Income or Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families programs, cannot afford a one- or two- bedroom
apartment at the fair market rental rate established by the United States
Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD); and
WHEREAS, in its "Status Report on Hunger and Homelessness in
America's Cities," the United Sates Conference of Mayors reports that requests
for shelter by families with children went unmet 32 percent of the time in 2005;
and 57% of reporting cities stated that homeless families may have to break-up
in order to find shelter; and
WHEREAS, it is reported that at least 3,500,000 persons in the United
States are likely to experience homelessness during a year, 40 percent of whom
are children; and
WHEREAS, families and children who cannot access shelters do not
consider the streets an option due to child welfare concerns, and therefore stay
temporarily with friends or relatives or in motels, frequently moving between
multiple locations; and
WHEREAS, children and youth in these living situations face serious risks
to their health and well-being, including safety issues and high rates of mobility
that disrupt child development; and
WHEREAS, families without stable housing face transportation barriers
which make job retention and children's educational continuity difficult; and
WHEREAS, the United States Department of Housing and Urban
Development definition of homelessness excludes people who stay temporarily
with others and in motels, thereby denying communities flexibility to address
locally assessed needs, and preventing vulnerable populations for receiving the
housing assistance they need; and
WHEREAS, the federal definitions of homelessness, such as the
education subtitle of the McKinney-Vento Act and Violence Against Women Act,
Resolution 06-23
are responsive to families and youth by expressly including people who stay
temporarily with others and in motels; now therefore
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF CLEARWATER, FLORIDA:
Section 1. That the United States Conference of Mayors does hereby
request that the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development
include within its definition of homelessness people who are sharing the housing
of others due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or similar reasons, and
those who are staying in motels because of the lack of adequate alternative
accommodations.
Section 2. This resolution shall take effect immediately upon adoption.
PASSED AND ADOPTED this 16th day of March
,2006.
-~,-~ ;( ~
Ffl(nk V. Hibbard
Mayor
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Bry .. D. RUff
Assistant City Attorney
Attest:
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Resolution 06-23