there is sooo many homeless people there!

I know this is the program, but I doubt its success. The homeless usually have a medical or behaviorist problem, and need more than just a place to flop.

This controversial intiative did get rid of all the free loaders who didn't even live in SF - or even were homeless - but who would bus into town once a month to collect their little check

When the city of San Francisco stopping giving free money to vagrants, the homeless population suddenly dropped abruptly! Apparently leeches from all over the state were registered here and would come twice a month to get that free $400.

The idea behind Care Not Cash is to spend the same amount per homeless head, but instead of giving cash - which often turned into drugs / alcohol - give services. Stuff like shelter, counseling, clothes. Apparently it's been successful here in San Francisco, but I haven't seen any decrease in the number of homeless.

Sy's comment, while undisputably only showing one point of view, very much seems to show what happens when you only focus on one part of the problem. And actually, in this case, you're really focusing on one part of the solution. Unless the care involves dedicated housing, and therapy and rehabilition, and some job training, the homeless are being set up to fail under this kind of system. Care doesn't pay the rent, or the utilities, or buy food. That takes money, money that, realistically, a recently homeless person isn't likely to have for some time. Without some form of government assistance, they are almost destined to miss a rent payment and end up back on the streets, placing even more burden on an already burdened system. This approach doesn't seem balanced, and I can't support it.

Most the homeless are those suffering from long term mental disorders. I work in a mental health facility and I would venture to say that almost all of these people would be homeless without government assistance(SSD OR SSI MONEY). Working can be a very effective form of therapy for some of these folks;TRUE; provided that their job does not involve a lot of stress and allows for them to take time off when they get really sick. Problem is that very few employers are this understanding and willing to hang on to a person that sometimes just cannot work for periods of time( sometimes weeks at time). Those with mental illness have a hell of a time keeping jobs and there are times when they cannot work. The jobs these people get don't pay crap so even if their employer gave them time off when they are ill; I highly doubt that they would get paid for that time off; so how do you propose those people pay for things like rent,utilities etc.... Government assistance for things like this are at a standstill; at least they are in Indiana. The government prefers to throw money into state hospitals; which by the way are much more expensive then giving these people a monthly income and access to a local non for profit mental health facility. So, you take away the money and you actually would increase the number of homeless; PERIOD.

This is exactly what needs to be done. Homeless people have the idea that they can use welfare and charity to eek out a living. By taking those benefits away, they will realize they have no choice but to shapen up. This problem cannot be solved by just throwing money around.

Care Not Cash Fact Sheet Proposition N (Care Not Cash) was passed by voters in November, 2002. It cut public assistance payments (CAAP) to homeless adult welfare recipients by up to 85% in exchange for services offered by the City. It was implemented May, 2004. We have been monitoring the implementation through data gathering, surveys of homeless people, and interviews with service providers. Result One: Care Not Cash Recipients Primarily Warehoused in Shelters Under Care Not Cash (CNC), the County may reduce the individuals check by up to $348 simply by offering them a shelter bed. That bed is reserved for them up to 45 days whether they show up to sleep there or not. Most Care Not Cash recipients are offered shelter, not housing as promised in campaign literature. Result Two: Empty Shelter Beds This system results in 60 80 empty shelter beds a night (Shelter Directors Meeting 9-20-04.. Homeless people who are not receiving CAAP, such as those receiving veterans or disability benefits, those with earning and undocumented immigrants, can not access CNC beds on a regular basis. If CAAP clients do not show up, their beds can only be released for one night to others There are now vacancies almost every night at every shelter. Many of these vacancies are the result of Care Not Cash bed reservations. Some shelters such as Hospitality House never had vacancy issues prior to Care Not Cash implementation The Daily Grind: One-night beds mean a daily trip to a crowded resource center for an assignment. This presents considerable hardship for disabled people, as well as those many who carry their belongings with them. This causes instability, anxiety and there is no guarantee anyone will get a bed in a shelter they can get to. Late Night bed assignments: These one night beds are assigned at 8:30pm 10:30pm 11:30pm and 12:30am These times are too late for many homeless people to access them, especially working people, undocumented immigrants, seniors, women and persons with disabilities. It is also too late to access belongings stored at 150 Otis and too late to secure a decent outdoor sleeping spot if no shelter bed is accessible. Our outreach survey results indicate that this has led to an increase in the number people sleeping on the streets. Missed Dinner, services and Medical Care: People assigned one-night beds often miss dinner and (if provided by the shelter) medical care. (discussions with resource center and shelter directors and homeless persons who utilize shelters). Non-CAAP homeless clients who are receiving outpatient treatment for substance use disorders or on waiting lists for residential treatment are required to attend meetings daily. This obligation makes it difficult to go to resource centers in order to be assigned one-night beds. Transportation Issues: Many one night beds are located across town from resource centers and two way transportation is rarely provided, which makes it difficult and dangerous for people to get to and from the shelter. Empty Beds Not Being Filled On Site To Shelter Seekers: There is no clearly recognized policy allowing shelters with empty beds to fill them on the spot. Shelters may have vacancies and homeless people may be outside requesting to stay there but the shelters often believe they are not allowed to fill the vacant beds without sending people to the Resource Centers first. Shelter directors have expressed frustration over this. Prior to Care Not Cash and CHANGES these beds could be easily filled on the spot. Result Three: Undocumented Immigrants Displaced From Shelter System Since CNC was implemented there has been displacement of undocumented Latinos from shelters because they are ineligible for GA or other CAAP programs and are excluded from long-term shelter placements (El Tecolote 7/20-8/10, 2004; Laura Guzman, Director of Mission Resource Center). Day Laborers can not access shelters due to their work schedule, as the one-night beds are made available late at night and require successive trips during the day to resource centers to seek shelter. There is insufficient bilingual staff. Many English language learners do not feel comfortable or safe at these facilities. This results in more people on the streets. Brought to you by the Coalition on Homelessness 468 Turk Street San Francisco, CA 94102 (415) 346-3740

Care is important, but cash can be an awfully good way of caring. I know I feel cared for when somebody gives me money when I need it, so I'm sure the homeless definitely feel it.

Caring for them would be a good thing. I've given cash to the homeless before and sometimes they bought food and clothes; sometimes they bought alcohol. But what can you do? Life's not made to be fair.

The SF homeless used to get $400+ per month from the government. Generally this was used to buy crack - the dealers would be right outside the door for the homeless to spend all their money on drugs. Mayor Gavin Newsom was elected primarily because of his plans to significantly reduce the homeless problem. His idea of Care Not Cash cut this check down to $70/month and instead used to money to turn some of the sketchy hotels in the Tenderloin into homeless shelters. I think this is a positive alternative. It gives the homeless a better chance to get back on their feet and gets them off the street, at least part of the time.