County sees increase of homeless people seeking assistance
NORWICH - As a result of an executive order put into effect by Gov. Cuomo this year which states that homeless people be directed to shelter in the event that temperatures reach 32 degrees or lower, the county has been picking up slack financially.
According to a quarterly report from Social Services, the county was responsible for paying for nearly double the amount of ‘homeless days paid’ this year than they had last year at this time. Homeless days paid refers to the amount of nights that the county was responsible for putting up people who identify as homeless. According to Social Services Commissioner Bette Osborne, this is both a result of the executive order – which allows anyone to walk into the Department of Social Services when temperatures are 32 degrees or lower, claim homelessness, and receive housing – as well as a few ongoing cases where people are either abusing the system or are unable to find housing elsewhere.
Since Chenango County is without a homeless shelter, people are typically put up in hotel rooms at the expense of the county. While this may seem inequitable, Osborne asserts it actually costs the county less to put someone up in a hotel room than it would to put them up in a homeless shelter. This creates a conundrum, though, because it also offers little incentive for people to extend their search for housing proactively elsewhere.
While New York State has acknowledged Chenango County’s credibility in handling homeless people in years past, Osborne said that this year has seen more and more cases of hard to place people. Since the community is short on spaces for rent as is, landlords can pick and choose who they rent out their housing to and thus are not inclined to take in some people who have identified as homeless in the past for various reasons.
While the Family Assistance Program fully reimburses the county for putting up homeless people who have families, Osborne acknowledges that these cases are rare – making up roughly one in 25 cases that the county sees. The bulk of cases concern people who are single adults or childless couples, and the county is responsible for picking up 71 percent of the expenses in these instances.
As the year progresses, Osborne suspects that the problem will get worse, citing declining temperatures as well as the tendency of people to be more likely to take in homeless friends and family in summer months than in winter months.
According to a quarterly report from Social Services, the county was responsible for paying for nearly double the amount of ‘homeless days paid’ this year than they had last year at this time. Homeless days paid refers to the amount of nights that the county was responsible for putting up people who identify as homeless. According to Social Services Commissioner Bette Osborne, this is both a result of the executive order – which allows anyone to walk into the Department of Social Services when temperatures are 32 degrees or lower, claim homelessness, and receive housing – as well as a few ongoing cases where people are either abusing the system or are unable to find housing elsewhere.
Since Chenango County is without a homeless shelter, people are typically put up in hotel rooms at the expense of the county. While this may seem inequitable, Osborne asserts it actually costs the county less to put someone up in a hotel room than it would to put them up in a homeless shelter. This creates a conundrum, though, because it also offers little incentive for people to extend their search for housing proactively elsewhere.
While New York State has acknowledged Chenango County’s credibility in handling homeless people in years past, Osborne said that this year has seen more and more cases of hard to place people. Since the community is short on spaces for rent as is, landlords can pick and choose who they rent out their housing to and thus are not inclined to take in some people who have identified as homeless in the past for various reasons.
While the Family Assistance Program fully reimburses the county for putting up homeless people who have families, Osborne acknowledges that these cases are rare – making up roughly one in 25 cases that the county sees. The bulk of cases concern people who are single adults or childless couples, and the county is responsible for picking up 71 percent of the expenses in these instances.
As the year progresses, Osborne suspects that the problem will get worse, citing declining temperatures as well as the tendency of people to be more likely to take in homeless friends and family in summer months than in winter months.
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