US homelessness up 18% as affordable housing remains out of reach for many people

The United States saw an 18.1% increase in homelessness this year, a dramatic rise driven mostly by a lack of affordable housing as well as devastating natural disasters and a surge of migrants in several parts of the country, federal officials said Friday. The U.S. Department of...

The U.S. saw an 18.1% increase in homelessness this year, with more than 770,000 people counted as homeless

Portland, Oregon, swears in new government and mayor who campaigned to end homelessness

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A businessman with no experience in public office is taking over as mayor of Oregon’s biggest city as it embraces an entirely new system of government — one that’s so different, the City Council chambers had to be completely renovated. Portland voters...

A man has pleaded guilty to the death of a 5-year-old girl living in their Kansas homeless camp

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A man who lived in a makeshift camp with a homeless 5-year-old Kansas girl and her father pleaded guilty Friday to first-degree murder and rape in connection with the child’s death. Prosecutors said Mickel Cherry, 26, admitted under questioning to suffocating...

Can ordinary citizens solve our toughest problems?

BEND, OREGON (AP) — Eliza Wilson is a little nervous as she draws the microphone close, but she is determined to share her life story. “My father was a disabled veteran,” she says. “I first experienced homelessness when I was 5 years old.” Wilson, who’s 36, leads programs...

Judge says Louisiana State Police must follow city law to conduct homeless sweeps

A New Orleans judge on Tuesday indefinitely prohibited the Louisiana State Police from conducting sweeps on homeless encampments in New Orleans without issuing adequate notice, as required by city law. The preliminary injunction, issued by Civil District Court Judge Ethel Julien,...

Northern Virginia high school AD implicated in scheme to exploit homelessness to recruit players

RESTON, Va. (AP) — A high school athletic director in northern Virginia has been implicated in a scheme to use homelessness as a way to recruit more football players. The Fairfax County Times newspaper reported it has obtained a series of text messages that implicate Hayfield...

Busing people out of homelessness: How California’s relocation programs really work

Mayor London Breed, outgoing mayor of San Francisco, made waves recently with a major policy shift: Before providing a shelter bed or any other services, city workers must first offer every homeless person they encounter a bus or train ticket to somewhere else. But while San...

Louisiana judge halts state police plans to clear New Orleans homeless camps before Thanksgiving

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A Louisiana civil court judge on Monday halted state agencies' plans to forcibly clear homeless encampments in New Orleans. Orleans Parish Civil District Court Judge Ethel Julien issued a temporary restraining order blocking state police and two other agencies...

Massachusetts will phase out use of hotels and motels to shelter homeless families, governor says

BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts' reliance on hotels and motels to shelter homeless people will be phased out in the next couple of years, Gov. Maura Healey said Friday, outlining changes to the state's emergency family shelter system. The Democratic governor said the changes would help...