Sesany Fennie-Jones, CFTH Executive Director.
Rental assistance vital in homelessness fight
This blog originally appeared as an Op-Ed in The Columbian on April 10, 2023
By Sesany Fennie-Jones, Executive Director of Council for the Homeless
Solving the homeless crisis in Clark County represents a critical mission for our community.
Safe and secure homes promote individual and community well-being. Unfortunately, a huge gap exists in the need for, and availability of, affordable housing.
But winning the fight to end homelessness isn’t just about helping to house people living on the streets. Preventing homelessness by keeping people who are already safely housed from falling into homelessness is a major part of the solution.
Due to pandemic health and job loss, inflation, and increased housing cost, more people are at risk of being evicted. It is an uphill battle for renters. A renter must earn $29 per hour to afford a one-bedroom apartment in Clark County, according to the National Low Income Housing coalition. Current minimum wage is $15.74 an hour.
Rent assistance represents one effective way to prevent homelessness by keeping people in their homes. It is designed to help a household weather a temporary challenge in being able to pay their rent.
During the pandemic, government agencies released millions of dollars to help people pay their rent. Renters, landlords and property managers benefited.
However, those dollars are about to expire, though the conditions that led to the renters’ crisis continue to persist. In fact, they are worse than during the pandemic. Inflation has increased renting costs in Clark County, but wages have not kept pace. As a result, the need is greater than ever for us to support people who fall behind in rent.
Council for the Homeless, which serves as the hub for homelessness prevention and services for the unhoused in our community, distributes rent assistance on behalf of Clark County. We are facing the terrible truth that we are about to lose our ability to help renters due to limited funding. That funding will be exhausted June 30.
The rent assistance “lottery” can be very hard on people who need help and are turned down due to lack of funds. We have deep compassion for the individuals and families who do not receive assistance within the limits of available resources.
Key measures fail to pass
Advocates proposed remedies in the 2023 state Legislature to help stem the tide on the crisis. Unfortunately, lawmakers failed to pass two bills that would have made immediate and equitable impact:
- Stabilize yearly rent increases a landlord can charge a tenant to not exceed the rate of inflation, while also allowing for costs and improvements (House Bill 1389/Senate Bill 5435).
- Require landlords to provide six months’ notice of significant rent increases, provide tenants with the right to quit their fixed-term lease due to the rent increase, and cap late fees (HB 1125).
Council for the Homeless is concerned about the implications of so many families and individuals remaining behind on their rent. The instability and fear felt by these neighbors is a harsh truth. It illustrates that many in our community lack a safe place to live. Solutions require private and public collaboration across sectors and jurisdictions.
We must ask ourselves, “What type of community we want to be and what will it take to get there?” Please learn about the issues and contact your elected officials about the 2024 legislative session.
Above all, be compassionate to your neighbors in need. This is not an issue of individual failings but of systemic factors painfully unfolding in our daily lives.