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Minutes for HB2723 - Committee on Welfare Reform

Short Title

Making appropriations for the department for aging and disability services for FY 2025 and creating a program for cities to improve and develop infrastructure for homeless shelters.

Minutes Content for Tue, Mar 5, 2024

Chairman Awerkamp called the meeting to order at 1:31 p.m. and invited Iraida Orr, Kansas Legislative Research Department, to provide an answer to a member's question regarding whether there remained any unobligated funds from the federal American Rescue Plan Act.  She reported that the remaining $79.7 million had been allocated by the Governor and the House Appropriations Committee (Attachment 1).

The Chairman opened the hearing on HB2723.

Jessie Pringle, Assistant Revisor, Office of the Revisor of Statutes, explained that the bill proposes an appropriation of $40 million from the State General Fund in order for the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services (KDADS) to administer a program addressing homeless shelter infrastructure (Attachment 2).  She said Section 2 of the bill establishes a grant program to award funds for local governments to build/improve congregate and non-congregate shelters to serve homeless individuals.  The program is restricted to FY2025 and stipulates that local government entities meet specific requirements and provide 1/1 matching funds.  Ms. Pringle noted two technical amendments to eliminate private organizations from the bill.  Responding to a question, she replied that wraparound services are not defined in the bill; local units of government would determine these services.

The following individuals testified as proponents of the bill:

Representative Leah Howell, District 82, stated that the Housing First program has not been effective; the bill addresses gaps in federal programs for the homeless--the critical issue of shelter infrastructure (Attachment 3).  She noted the emphasis on wraparound services and the claw-back feature to hold local governments accountable, and she addressed the multifaceted safety challenges regarding the environment as well as citizen welfare.  Responding to a question, she replied that grants are individualized to allow local governments more latitude.

Andrew Brown, Deputy Secretary of Programs, KDADS, explained that homelessness is a multifaceted issue that requires a comprehensive approach, and he recommended broadening the scope of the bill to include infrastructure development for all parts of the housing service continuum: expanding funding eligibility, prioritizing permanent solutions, promoting collaboration, and emphasizing priority populations (Attachment 4).

Amanda Stanley, City Attorney, City of Topeka, said that, while she supports the bill, homelessness is such a complex societal problem that sustainable solutions will require adaptation; she urged members to make the grant program as flexible as possible (Attachment 5).  She commented that Topeka is working on a one-stop approach to address the various needs of the homeless.  Responding to a question, she replied that the city uses various federal funds as well as city funds for a wide variety of Continuum of Care services.  She defined "shelter" as having a place to sleep at night; the term transitional housing has a wide application.  To another question she replied that the Topeka Police Department enforces vagrancy restrictions in selected areas.

Alan Howze, Wyandotte Unified Government, commented that the Point-in-Time (PIT) homeless count has increased: 81 unsheltered individuals in 2019 and 125 in 2023, an increase that has strained the government's resources (Attachment 6).  He reported that the unified government is working with other entities to identify and address the wide range of needs presented by the homeless population; he noted that increased funds were needed to do so.  Answering a question, he replied that the cost of incarceration for misdemeanor violations is significant.

Amy Campbell, Kansas Mental Health Coalition, expressed gratitude for the bill and noted the paucity of available housing for those with disabilities even if they are given vouchers to access shelter (Attachment 7).

Bonnie Lowe, President, Lawrence Chamber, spoke in support of the bill, but said staffing for housing and wraparound services are also needed, needs that will require additional funding (Attachment 8).  Responding to a question, she replied that she was not sure if there is a city ordinance about unsanctioned camps, but there’s been grace given to many of those individuals, grace that has been a frustration to the business community.

Nathan Eberline, Executive Director, League of Kansas Municipalities (LKM), praised the bill and assured members that the LKM is ready to work with cities and counties to decrease the rates of homelessness across the state (Attachment 9).

Randy Callstrom, Wyandot County Behavioral Health Network, acknowledged the growing problem of homelessness for cities.  He reported the work of the Network to serve this population, and he cited the needs for shelter and transitional housing in the Kansas City area (Attachment 10).

Nathanial Blank, City of Liberal, related the work of the city's shelter services and recommended amending the bill to define wraparound services and assure that smaller communities receive a stated percentage of the grant funds (Attachment 11).

Troy Anderson, Housing Community Services, Wichita, told of the city's plans to build a Multi-Agency Center to provide comprehensive services; he said the bill aligns with the city's plans to deal with homelessness (Attachment 12).

Bill Persinger,  CEO, Valeo Behavioral Health Care, reviewed what Valeo is currently doing to help the unsheltered (e.g., work with the Mobile Access Partnership), what is trending in Topeka (e.g., dealing with an aging homeless population), and what is needed (e.g., low barrier housing, increased funding for behavioral health, more transitional housing).  He cited the Mobil Access unit that has positively impacted the homeless community (Attachment 13).

Via Web-ex Renita Butler, HSH Homeless Ministry, commented on her services to homeless individuals and noted the opportunities to expand services if the bill passes (Attachment 14).

Ryan Baty, Chairman, Sedgwick County Commission, commented that communities are being overwhelmed by the negative impact of homelessness and cited the PIT in his area of 2500 homeless individuals.  He referenced the issues of safety, of substance abuse, and the economic challenges as ongoing needs for the bill (Attachment 15).

The following individuals submitted proponent written-only testimony:

  • Jay Leipzig, Director, Planning, Housing, and Community Development,  Johnson County Government (Attachment 16);
  • Russ Kesler, Mayor, Haysville (Attachment 17); and
  • Becky Gray, Executive Director, Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas (Attachment 18).

The following individuals testified as neutral on the bill:

Andrew Wiens, Cicero Action, referencing the federal Housing First initiative, commented that the program not only did not reduce homelessness, but made it worse.  He recommended significant policy changes. He said he supports the additional funding to address shelter for the homeless, but he commented that citizen safety concerns should require public officials to enforce existing laws and prohibit cities from transporting their homeless population to other cities.  He suggested a writ of mandamus as a legal remedy (Attachment 19).

Christina Ashie Guidry, Director of Policy and Planning, United Community Services of Johnson County, offered four recommendations to improve the bill:

  • Expand the scope of emergency housing infrastructure;
  • Clarify collected data as to geographic areas;
  • Enforce local ordinances; and
  • Add a severability clause (Attachment 20).

Via Web-ex Rob Santel, CrossLine Community Outreach, stated that funding for shelter infrastructure is critical to end homelessness, and he recommended local control for priorities and the inclusion of a severability clause (Attachment 21).

Via Web-ex Kayla Knier, Special Projects Coordinator, Kansas Statewide Homeless Coalition, expressed concern that the bill could create silos for emergency shelters and could unintentionally exclude many rural areas (Attachment 22).

Via Web-ex Matthew Faulk, Program Director, Kansas Balance of State Continuum of Care, expressed concern that the bill was insufficient, a one-time funding, when homeless issues cannot be addressed with temporary funding (Attachment 23).  He urged members to honor local control of policy and programs when receiving state funding.

Via Web-ex Christy McMurphy, Kansas Statewide Homeless Coalition, stated that the bill falls short of solutions and recommended extending the matching grant to HUD's (U.S. Housing and Urban Development) Continuum of Care programs and the Emergency Solutions Grants; a research component should also be included in the bill (Attachment 24).

The following individuals submitted neutral written-only testimony:

The Chair closed the hearing on HB2723.

The Chair adjourned the meeting at 3:10 p.m.  The next meeting is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, March 7, 2024.