[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 43 (Thursday, March 17, 2016)]
[House]
[Page H1451]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1315
     DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT'S STRATEGY TO END 
                              HOMELESSNESS

  (Mr. LaMALFA asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. LaMALFA. Mr. Speaker, in 2015, the Department of Housing and 
Urban Development released a new strategy that will affect ending 
homelessness and the programs involved. However, this top-down approach 
is forcing homeless shelters to change the way they serve the most 
vulnerable members of their communities or risk losing access to 
Federal grants.
  In my district, at least two different homeless shelters have lost 
hundreds of thousands of dollars in grant funding that they once 
received. The Esplanade House has provided a housing option to homeless 
families with children in Chico, California, for over 25 years. The 
programs they have put in place for their residents have achieved 
remarkable success rates. Because of HUD's new approach, the Esplanade 
House's ability to continue to help the less fortunate members of their 
community is in jeopardy.
  I have sent a letter to Secretary Castro and plan to meet with his 
staff to make sure our concerns are heard and that this new approach is 
revised. Indeed, it has taken away accountability of their clients, and 
now just makes handouts.
  A Washington-knows-best approach that doesn't take into consideration 
the impact it has at the local level is the wrong way to fight 
homelessness. We need to empower these local entities to be more 
effective in fighting homelessness in the future.

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