Contents

• Opposition to President’s Section 8 Proposals Escalates
• HUD Releases New Study on Reducing Street Homelessness
• SAMHSA Announces New Substance Abuse Treatment Project Grants
• Meet With Your Congressmen During Scheduled Recesses
• NCHV Presents Workshops at American Legion Leadership Conferences
• NCHV on the Move
• Reminder

Opposition to President’s Section 8 Proposals Escalates

House and Senate staff recently attended a meeting on Capitol Hill organized by housing and public services advocates to discuss President Bush’s proposed FY2005 budget that calls for immediate reductions in Section 8 funding and a restructuring of the housing voucher program. Their testimony soundly rejected most of the Administration’s claims about the need and effects of the proposed changes in the program. The president requested $2 billion less than HUD’s proposed funding for the housing voucher program, which was already deemed by advocates as critically inadequate.

Barbara Sard of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities claimed the voucher program is $1.6 billion short of the funding needed to maintain the current level of service and would result in the loss of 250,000 vouchers in FY 2005 alone. Inflation and rent increases would further reduce voucher availability. Housing advocates will be planning more informational meetings to persuade Congress to reject the president’s proposals as budget negotiations continue. A briefing for the Senate has been scheduled on March 29 at 2 pm in Room 538 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building. For more information, see http://www.nlihc.org.

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HUD Releases New Study on Reducing Street Homelessness

HUD has released the findings of a recent study of what the department deems as successful approaches to combating homelessness through coordinated assistance networks that place people into permanent housing without the traditional attendant requirements of enrollment in substance abuse treatment or other supportive service programs. The cities in the study include Boston, Philadelphia, San Diego, Los Angeles, Seattle, Birmingham, AL, and Columbus, OH. Most of the programs rely on discharge planning from mental health and correctional facilities, housing placements that are not dependent upon involvement in rehabilitation or other supportive service programs, and effective outreach policies. The full HUD study “Strategies for Reducing Chronic Street Homelessness” can be viewed at http://www.huduser.org/publications/homeless/chronic_homeless.html

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SAMHSA Announces New Substance Abuse Treatment Project Grants

SAMSHA has announced the availability of substance abuse treatment vouchers. States may receive up to $15 million each year for this three-year demonstration project. The vouchers can be used to develop or purchase community-based treatment and recovery services. The grant program is intended to promote individual choice for substance abuse services including access to faith-based treatment programs. Grant applications are due by June 4, 2004. For more information, visit: http://www.atr.samhsa.gov

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Meet With Your Congressmen During Scheduled Recesses

Homeless veteran service providers and advocates will have several opportunities to meet with their Senators and Representatives during upcoming Congressional recesses. Most elected officials will be returning to their home districts during the breaks. This is the time of year when the federal budget – and funding for domestic assistance programs – is being finalized, and it is your best chance to gain their recognition of and support for your work. It is especially important this year, with proposed budget cuts and stagnant revenues threatening discretionary spending for public assistance programs. Call your representative’s district office now and arrange for a meeting. Review the NCHV 2004 Legislative Agenda at http://www.nchv.org/content.cfm?id=25 before your visit.

Senate Recesses – March 15-19; April 12-16; May 24-31; June 28-July 5; July 26-September 6; and October 1.
House of Representatives Recesses – April 5-16; May 24-31; June 28-July 5; July 26-September 6; and October 1.

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NCHV Presents Workshops at American Legion Leadership Conferences

Under the direction of Executive Director Linda Boone, NCHV will once again conduct workshops on homeless veterans at eight American Legion National Leadership and Information Conferences across the country this year. Boone will conduct six of the workshops. NCHV President Dr. Charles Haenlein will preside over the April 23 program in Springfield, IL; and Jack Downing, Executive Director of United Veterans of America, will conduct the April 16 workshop in Springfield, MA. All programs are scheduled for 1 p.m. For more information about the conferences and hotel locations, visit http://www.legion.org.

March 19 - Macon, GA. Presenter will be Craig Burnette, VA CHALENG Program Director.
April 16 - Omaha, NE. Presenter will be Linda Boone, Executive Director, NCHV.
April 16 - Springfield, MA. Presenter will be Jack Downing, Executive Director, United Veterans of America.
April 23 - Phoenix, AZ. Presenter will be Linda Boone.
April 23 - Springfield, IL. Presenter will be Dr.Charles Haenlein, NCHV President, Executive Director of the Hoosier Veterans Assistance Foundation.

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NCHV On the Move

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has appointed retired Army Gen. John Altenburg Jr. to serve as the appointing authority of military commissions. Altenburg, vice president of the NCHV Board of Directors, will oversee the military tribunals of terrorist suspects being held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The decision to approve specific charges against any of the suspects, and to refer cases to trial, will rest with Altenburg. He will take a leave of absence from his current duties as an attorney with Greenberg Traurig’s Washington, D.C., Governmental Affairs practice during the assignment. Before retiring from the military, Altenburg served for 28 years as an Army and Special Forces lawyer, including a tour in the Gulf War, and served as Deputy Judge Advocate of the Army from 1997-2001.

Jill Mueller, former Events Director for NCHV, is assisting in the implementation and monitoring of Africare supported activities in Guinea, West Africa. A former Peace Corps volunteer who returned to NCHV after assignment in Madagascar, Mueller will focus on HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention programs, but is also involved with nutritional programs for women and children in the city of Dinguiraye. Before leaving for Africa, Mueller helped organize the 2004 NCHV Annual Conference, produced the conference brochure, and authored “Planning for Your Release: A Guide for Veterans Incarcerated.”

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Reminder

Check the NCHV website often for late-breaking news, and available resources to help you manage your organization, increase capacity and improve programs. Visit the “Help for Community-based Organizations” feature often for weekly updates on grants and other available resources, as well as leads on organization management and governance tools.

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