Homelessness

Nobody should be forced to sleep on the streets in the richest country in the world. Yet across this country, over 700,000 people are unhoused. Here in San Francisco, over 8,000 of our neighbors are homeless — a 50% increase over the last 20 years. Thousands more are just one financial disaster away from finding themselves in that same position. This is despite San Francisco, and the nation as a whole, spending billions of dollars trying to end homelessness.

One reason we keep failing is that we treat homelessness as a single problem with a single solution. It is not. People become homeless for many different reasons and for different lengths of time, and the government needs tailored interventions. A one-size-fits-all approach will always fail. In Congress, I will fight for federal investments that address the entire spectrum of homelessness:

• Stop the inflow. For every household San Francisco permanently houses, four new ones enter homelessness. Yet there are no dedicated federal programs aimed at keeping people housed before they fall. I will fight to create a dedicated homelessness prevention grant within the Department of Housing and Urban Development, expand housing vouchers so all qualified families can access them, and build thousands of units of affordable housing in San Francisco.
• Quickly rehouse people experiencing homelessness for the first time. For most people, homelessness is caused by an unexpected financial crisis and is brief — but the longer it lasts, the more likely they are to develop substance abuse issues or become chronically homeless. I support increased federal funding for interim housing solutions like hotel conversions and tiny home communities that connect people to services and get them back on their feet fast.
• Provide long-term care for the chronically homeless. About 35% of San Francisco's homeless population is chronically homeless with disabling health conditions. One-time interventions do not work for this group. Permanent supportive housing (PSH) is the most evidence-backed solution, with 86% of participants remaining stably housed for years. I will fight to expand PSH funding, protect it from Trump's budget cuts, and integrate substance abuse treatment directly into housing programs.