2020 Policy and Budget Advocacy to Prevent and Reduce Youth Homelessness
California is in the midst of a housing crisis, with both housing costs and homelessness reaching record levels in 2019. This crisis impacts youth and extends to youth in foster care, particularly youth aged 18 to 21, who live in the Transitional Housing Placement for Non-Minor Dependents (THP-NMD). John Burton Advocates for Youth is working in coalition to advance funding dedicated to address youth homelessness in this year’s budget and is co-sponsoring a bill authored by Assemblymember Phil Ting. The bill will provide a THP-NMD housing supplement to address the high cost of housing and growing homelessness crisis among youth in care. In California, the cost of housing has increased by 64 percent since 2012 while the monthly THP-NMD rate has increased 19 percent. The failure of the THP-NMD rate to keep pace with the cost of housing has caused increased homelessness, exclusion of parenting youth and youth with disabilities, moving young people away from family and community, and providing fewer supportive services. This webinar provides details about these two legislative efforts, why they are crucial to prevent and reduce the experience of youth homelessness, and information about how you can help to turn them into law.