Catholic Social Services opposes Dunleavy budget

ACTION ALERT SENT BY AGENCY SAYS ‘MORE FAMILIES WILL BE HOMELESS’

Catholic Social Services has sent a letter out asking the members of the faith to oppose the budget cuts of Gov. Michael Dunleavy.

The letter from Lisa Aquino, executive director, proposes no solutions to the lack of funding, but simply objections to budget cuts that she describes as ‘devastating’ and that will lead to more homelessness.

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The letter from Aquino reads:

Over the past five years at Catholic Social Services, we have been strengthening and fortifying our services for vulnerable people in Anchorage, particularly families and individuals who experience homelessness. We have made these changes out of necessity.

It all began when we noticed a change in our homeless population. Many were older, and more seemed to be struggling with untreated behavioral health challenges. We realized we had to modify our services to better address these problems.

So we expanded our programs that focus on transitioning clients to permanent stability in housing, income and social wellbeing. We increased our hours to create flexibility for our clients so they could meet with caseworkers without altering their job schedules, training programs or medically necessary appointments. We also added staff at Brother Francis Shelter and Clare House to assure safety for both our clients and employees.

These changes have resulted in thousands of changed lives. For instance, just since July 2018, we have housed over 200 families. Our housing model is an evidence-based model called Critical Time Intervention, and already in some of our housing programs we are seeing more than 80 percent of our clients remain in their new homes more than a year after being housed, despite their having often experienced a lifetime of trauma andchallenges. These results derive from a strong model, clients’ hard work and caseworkers’ support. They arealso a testimony to the impact of this work in Anchorage.

To do this work, Catholic Social Services receives nearly equal parts of our funds from grants, fees for service and donations from you in our community. All three components are critical. As an agency, we are committed to spending every dollar in ways that maximize serving our clients and providing the most we can to them, even while running very close to the margin. For this reason, when an unexpected loss comes, there are noeasy answers. Right now, we’re grappling with the possible loss of state grants for services related tohomelessness, due to the proposed changes in Alaska’s budget.

Investment in services, like case management for people experiencing homelessness and frontline services at Brother Francis Shelter and Clare House, make a difference in the lives of those we serve as well as in our community. Those 200-plus families who are now housed — and weren’t less than a year ago — can hold jobs, buy their own food and better support their family. Because of our programs, like Homeless Family Services, fewer people are standing on our street corners, needing help because of difficult life challenges, and struggling to keep their kids in school. Instead, they are working and contributing to Anchorage. That was not possible when they were homeless. The services that we and our partners provided supported these people as they moved to permanent stability.

Those who govern are being faced with challenging choices. They are all in my thoughts and prayers. I know they must consider numerous factors, and I hope that they consider both the return on their investment when homelessness is eradicated and the value of caring for the most vulnerable in our state — the sick, the elderly and the children — through a most difficult time.

The impacts of the proposed FY20 Alaska State budget cuts will be devasting. Some of the most vulnerable people in Alaska will lose homeless services. More families will be homeless. More people, including children, will live on the street. Lives will be lost.

Catholic Social Services provides homeless and shelter services to more than 3,000 men, women, and children each year. Catholic Social Services rebuilds lives by providing pathways to permanent stability for adults and children experiencing homelessness and poverty.

Clare House and Brother Francis Shelter are the two largest shelters in Alaska. They provide services to people in need 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Homeless Family Services provides housing case management to people experiencing homelessness citywide. They are the critical link to permanent stability. Caseworkers help move people out of homelessness and into permanent stability.

The proposed cuts to the Basic Homeless Assistance Program (BHAP), Human Services Community Matching Grant (HSCMG), and Special Needs Housing Grant (SNHG) will force Catholic Social Services and other homeless service providers to drastically reduce or stop offering services.

Proposed Fiscal Year 2020 Alaska State Budget Impact on CSS Programs and Budget

The proposed cuts eliminate day-shelter for women and children at Clare House and force Brother Francis Shelter to cap the number served every night at 100, instead of 240. The reduction means families with children outside on the streets all day and 140 adults who had been sheltered now being forced to sleep outside, adding to the nearly 100 who already are unsheltered in Anchorage.

The proposed cuts to Homeless Family Services reduce services to 193 households, causing them to potentially fall back into homelessness, and prevent more than 132 households from becoming homed. Progress addressing the homeless community’s needs will stall and reverse.

The proposed cuts will ultimately cost state and municipal governments more money, but you can make sure they don’t happen. Send a message to your legislators and Governor Dunleavy to restore BHAP to FY19 funding ($8 million), SNHG to FY19 funding ($1.75 million), and HSCMG to FY19 funding ($1.38 million, leveraged by a 30% match by municipalities).