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Columbus Council Approves Funding For Fighting Homelessness

voa.org

Columbus City Council last night approved legislation giving 4.3 million dollars to the Community Shelter Board for programs to fight homelessness. 

The board's Michelle Heritage says 1.5 million goes to fund the crisis response system to help homeless men, women and children transition  to permanent housing.

And 2.8 million goes to the board's Safety Net program. 

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Meanwhile, a  new report by advocates for low-income Americans shows 67 percent of Ohio's poorest households spend more than half of their income on rent. The National Low Income Housing Coalition says the study underscores the affordable housing crisis in the state and the nation. Bill Faith of the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio says 67 percent of low-income households equates to more than 290 thousand families.

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Faith says children are among the fastest-growing segments of Ohio's homeless population.

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The study shows 43 rental units are affordable for every one hundred low-income Ohio households. Governor Mike DeWine's state budget plan calls for increasing funding for the Ohio Housing Finance Agency by 4.5  percent over the next two years. Faith wants to see a 20 thousand dollar annual expansion of the Ohio Housing Trust Fund and 25 million dollars in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funding.

 
 

Jim has been with WCBE since 1996. Before that he worked as a reporter at another Columbus radio station, and for three newspapers in Southwest Florida.
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