Letter in support of SB 914

The Honorable Senator Susan Rubio

1021 O Street, Suite 8710

Sacramento, CA 95814

Subject: Support Letter for SB 914 (Rubio) The HELP (Homeless Equity for Left Behind

Populations) Act

Dear Senator Rubio,

On behalf of San Francisco Black & Jewish Unity Coalition, we are proud to support your Senate Bill 914. SB 914 will reduce gender bias and disparities in outcomes in California’s response to homelessness by embedding a focus on domestic violence survivors and other vulnerable populations into state and local homelessness plans.

The San Francisco Black & Jewish Unity Coalition is a faith-based organization founded by Black and Jewish clergy which has around 100 social activists of all faiths who are committed to the causes of racial, social and economic justice and dismantling systemic racism in San Francisco, the Bay Area and the state.  Our Health and General Welfare Committee focus is to advocate for and partner with organizations to support local, underserved communities’ access to culturally appropriate health care, nutritional education, healthy foods, housing security, safe spaces for physical activity, mental health and substance abuse services.  We also focus on safety from violence and trauma in communities of color.

Domestic violence is one of the leading drivers of homelessness for women, with 57% of unhoused women reporting it as an immediate cause of their homelessness. Additionally, unaccompanied women experiencing homelessness without children or partners make up nearly one-in-three of all unhoused individuals and wait on average over 10 years to access stable housing, a rate 2.5 times greater than men.

Unaccompanied women, who are disproportionately women of color, particularly Black women, endure high rates of first-time homelessness, longer spells of homelessness, and higher barriers in accessing stable housing. They report extremely high incidence of trauma, whether physical, sexual or psychological in nature, that is compounded by their ongoing houselessness.

Despite making up a significant portion of the homeless population, our state’s homelessness response does not appropriately consider their needs. Due to confidentiality requirements for survivors of domestic violence, victim service providers are prohibited by federal law from entering client-level information into the federal Homeless Management Information System or the state’s Homeless Data Integration System. As a result, data about the number of survivors served, their needs, and program outcomes are not considered when measuring local responses to homelessness.

SB 914 will improve California’s response to homelessness by requiring cities, counties, and continuums of care that receive state funding to include domestic violence survivors and unaccompanied women within the vulnerable populations for whom specific system supports are developed. The bill also requires the California Interagency Council on Homelessness to set and measure progress towards goals to prevent and end homelessness for these groups.

For these reasons, The San Francisco Black & Jewish Unity Coalition is proud to support this important measure.

Sincerely,

Jason Mitchell and Suzanne Sande Mrlik

Co-chairs Health and General Welfare Committee

San Francisco Black & Jewish Unity Coalition

jason@mitchellgroupsf.com, zanne_mrlik@yahoo.com