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Texas hold ’em
-- the flop on
homeless funds

Changing the rules in the middle of a game is generally met with much disdain. Strategies are implemented based on certain known rules. Attempts to alter midway are often thought of as, well, just plain cheating. In cards, changing the rules would most likely be met with more than just dismay -- without getting into details. But if you're holding the deck, there is not much the opposition can do.

The recent announcement of the Bush administration's desire to eliminate more than 20 HUD programs, including the venerated Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), does exactly that -- changes the rules of the federal homeless funding game midstream.

Since 2001, the administration's argument for not significantly increasing McKinney -Vento homeless funding, the primary federal source of dedicated homeless dollars, was buoyed on the principle that communities should tap into other "mainstream" federal funding sources such as CDBG. Proposing to eliminate CDBG then becomes particularly infuriating to communities like Hawaii that have been playing by the rules and prioritizing and allocating mainstream dollars like CDBG to reduce homelessness.

In Hawaii, CDBG has been an integral piece of homeless funding since the 1990s. Annually, between $1.5 and $3 million (depending on yearly needs) of the total $15 million Hawaii CDBG allocation directly supports homeless services. CDBG provides nearly $500,000 per year in match funds for federal Emergency Shelter Grants, funds program and operations for many organizations, and provides monies to repair and renovate homeless and substance abuse facilities such as the Institute for Human Services and Hina Mauka. The remaining funds typically support affordable housing projects for families, seniors and individuals with disabilities as well as community youth services centers, Meals on Wheels facility needs and expansion of community health clinics.

The Community Services Department of the City and County of Honolulu, which is tasked with disbursing the bulk of Hawaii's CDBG, has done an excellent job at prioritizing homeless services while funding other essential community services. CDBG is often the only fund that has enough flexibility to help when no other monies are available. In Honolulu, as in many cities, there are no city-generated revenues that fund homeless services. CDBG has also typically been the "match of last resort" for many services and project. Eliminating CDBG would necessitate cutting into the City and County budget to replace this source of money. Failing that, Hawaii could witness a significant cut back in services, facilities repair and renovation projects. The Center for Budget Policy and Priorities has estimated that the Bush plan would cut nearly $9 million per year in CDBG and related funding.

Hawaii's ability to use CDBG to target homeless service and related community needs was the equivalent of holding a full house. The Bush administration's proposal is equivalent to changing the flop in favor of the house, turning away from their responsibilities to communities while significantly draining the homeless funding river. In Texas, I hear that would get you shot. I guess that's why they're trying to do it from Washington, D.C.

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