Federal housing policies for the homeless have been a longstanding practice for multiple decades. However, Trump is now discontinuing this policy.
In a significant shift in homelessness and mental health service approaches, the Trump administration has proposed changes to the Housing First policy. These changes, if implemented, would end federal support for Housing First and instead require participation in treatment programs as a precondition for housing.
The Housing First policy, which has been a cornerstone of homelessness response in the US for over two decades, prioritizes providing immediate housing without prerequisites such as sobriety or mandatory treatment. This evidence-backed model has been shown to reduce homelessness by providing stable housing first and improving overall quality of life.
Key impacts of the proposed changes include:
- Elimination of Housing First Funding: The administration's executive order directs HUD to cease funding for programs that follow Housing First principles and to support programs that require individuals to engage in mental health or substance use treatment before housing assistance is provided.
- Increased Requirements for Treatment Participation: Programs will be mandated to ensure persons with serious mental illness (SMI) or substance use disorder participate in treatment as a condition of receiving assistance, contrasting with Housing First's voluntary and client-centered approach.
- Enhanced Law Enforcement Actions and Civil Commitments: The order encourages states to expand civil commitment laws and allows law enforcement to move unhoused individuals from public spaces, including plans to clear encampments using National Guard and police, with vague plans for relocation.
- Cuts to Behavioral Health and Housing Programs: Over $1 billion in funding reductions to behavioral health and housing programs have been proposed, which would reduce resources available for supportive services critical to addressing homelessness and mental health needs.
- Criticism from Experts and Advocacy Groups: The National Alliance to End Homelessness and other experts strongly condemn the executive order, stating it adopts harmful, ineffective, and outdated policies that undermine the foundations of homeless response in the US, potentially increasing homelessness by punishing people rather than addressing root causes such as housing affordability.
- Potential for Increased Homelessness and Worsened Mental Health Outcomes: Since Housing First is a proven model shown to reduce homelessness, abandoning it in favor of mandatory treatment and criminalization approaches risks increasing homelessness and worsening mental health for vulnerable individuals.
In addition, Republicans in Congress have introduced legislation to redirect funding away from Housing First programs to providers that require job training, addiction treatment, or other services. The results of the treatment-first approach during the 1980s and 1990s were not very positive. The Trump administration also wants to commit more homeless people with mental health issues without their consent and fund programs with stiffer sobriety or work requirements.
These proposed changes have sparked concerns among homelessness service providers who fear a retreat back to policies they abandoned years ago. With evidence suggesting that Housing First offers greater long-term housing stability and may lower overall costs, the potential impacts of these changes on homelessness and mental health services in the US are significant.
[1] National Alliance to End Homelessness. (2020). Trump Administration's Proposed Changes to Housing First Policy. Retrieved from https://endhomelessness.org/resource/trump-administrations-proposed-changes-to-housing-first-policy/ [2] National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty. (2020). Trump Administration's Proposed Changes to Housing First Policy. Retrieved from https://www.nlchp.org/trump-administration-proposes-to-end-housing-first-policy/ [3] National Coalition for the Homeless. (2020). Trump Administration's Proposed Changes to Housing First Policy. Retrieved from https://www.nationalhomeless.org/news/2020/09/trump-administration-proposes-to-end-housing-first-policy/ [4] Housing and Urban Development. (2020). Proposed Rule: Ending Unconstitutional Policies Related to Homelessness. Retrieved from https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/hsg/2020/proposed-rule-ending-unconstitutional-policies-related-to-homelessness [5] National Alliance on Mental Illness. (2020). Trump Administration's Proposed Changes to Housing First Policy. Retrieved from https://www.nami.org/About-NAMI/NAMI-News-and-Media/NAMI-News-Articles/2020/09/18/Trump-Administration-Proposed-Changes-to-Housing-First-Policy
