Council On Homelessness Set To Finalize Plan

Print More

The number of homeless people in Vermont increased by one percent in the past year.

A Council on Homelessness appointed by Governor Peter Shumlin was given the task of drafting a plan for ending homelessness.

They’re nearly ready to vote on a final version of the plan, which calls for a five percent decrease in the numbers of homeless people in the next year.

Angus Chaney is director of housing for the Agency of Human Services and chairman of the Council on Homelessness. He says the federal fiscal cliff has affected how the plan is put together.

"We have to be honest about the federal picture and what some of those contractions could mean in terms of affordable housing. And that’s why we’ve picked a modest goal in the first year," Chaney said. 

Chaney emphasizes that homelessness is a complex problem, but something the state is tackling at many levels.

"Is it challenging? Absolutely. Is it impossible? No. I think really one of the big solutions is going upstream. And if you look at that sort of upstream prevention, just about every department in the Agency of Human Services, whether they know it or not, is doing homelessness prevention," Chaney said. 

The Council on Homelessness will vote on a draft of its Plan to End Homelessness on December 20th.

Comments are closed.