Each January, the number of homeless people in sheltered and unsheltered locations across America are counted. Despite efforts to reduce homelessness, more than a million people are homeless each year. The 2014 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress reported that 578,424 people were homeless on a given night in January 2014. The report noted that 31 percent (177,3731) were without shelter in locations such as “under bridges, in cars, or in abandoned buildings.” The 69 percent counted in shelters were only counted in emergency shelters, transitional housing programs, or safe havens, whereas, persons in other permanent housing, permanent supportive housing, and rapid rehousing were not counted.
The 2014 report states that there were 772,788 year-round beds. Unfortunately, this number was not enough to provide assistance to the number of homeless persons on a given night in January 2014 and the number of persons already being assisted with permanent supportive housing, safe havens, other permanent housing, or rapid rehousing.
To identify the number of additional beds needed to assist the 578,424 homeless persons on a given night, the Center on Homelessness, Health, and Employment Law & Policy analyzed the data on the number of unsheltered homeless persons in each Continuum of Care (CoC) area and the number of unoccupied total beds at each shelter project in each CoC to identify the number of additional beds that are needed.
In State Factsheets, we provide information on the number of homeless persons and the number of additional beds needed for unaccompanied homeless children, unaccompanied homeless youth age 18 to 24, adult individuals age 24 and older, families, persons experiencing chronic homelessness, and persons experiencing domestic violence. This information is provide for each CoC and the state totals are summarized to provide a guide to where additional resources are needed so that unsheltered homelessness can be eliminated.
The number of unsheltered homeless persons in each state was highest in California, where 71,437 homeless persons were without shelter, and lowest in Rhode Island, where 20 homeless persons were without shelter. The ten states with the largest number of unsheltered homeless persons included Florida, Texas, Georgia, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, New York, Hawaii, and Tennessee. Nine of the ten states with the largest number of unsheltered homeless persons also have the largest number of additional beds that are needed to provide shelter for all of the homeless persons that were without shelter in January 2014.
In the 50 states and the District of Columbia, the 173,054 homeless persons without shelter comprised, 4,271 unaccompanied homeless children (including those living with another child), 17,638 unaccompanied homeless young adults, 128,035 adult individuals, and 23,110 persons in families. Upon evaluating the number of additional beds that are needed so that all 173,054 unsheltered homeless persons would have access to shelter, 3,686 to 3,810 additional beds are needed for unaccompanied homeless children, 16,345 to 16,789 additional beds are needed for unaccompanied homeless young adults, 84,735 to 95,378 additional beds are needed for adult individuals, and 9,876 to 12,178 additional beds are needed for adults and children in families. Congress should appropriate the money for these beds so that no adult or child is without shelter in America.
In a series of forthcoming blogs, further insight will be provided on youth and young adult, adult individual, and family homelessness and the state of chronic homelessness and domestic violence homelessness will be described.
1The 177,373 homeless persons without shelter included 173,054 persons in the 50 states and the District of Columbia and 4,319 persons in the U.S. Territories of Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.