by Jim Hajny, Executive Director
July 30, 2024
About a month ago the US Supreme Court ruled communities can cite and fine homeless individuals for sleeping outside. This ruling empowers city and county commissioners in Montana to implement a ban on sleeping outside such as in a tent, in a park or on the street. The ruling was 6-3 so it was not unanimous. This ruling overturns the 9th Circuit Court which rules over the following states, Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon and Washington. All these states all have high housing prices, a lack of services and tend to lean towards anti homelessness. In Montana we have seen a number of communities such as Kalispell and Lewistown become very vocal when nonprofits have attempted to implement services or temporary shelters for homeless individuals, with a, “Not in my town!” attitude. This of course begs the question. If not in your town, then where? Where exactly should individuals go if they cannot afford housing? This is a complex issue for sure. It seems to me that our leaders lack insight into that complexity. We can’t just move people down the road. The road only leads to another town. Where is issue starts all over again.
Instead of creating laws that say what citizens “can’t do.” Maybe we need leaders who have a “can do” approach to issues such as homelessness. For example, how about we build apartment complexes subsidized by the state of Montana to house homeless individuals in all major communities. This would stimulate the economy. The residence would be mostly on Section 8 assistance, so the rent is guaranteed to the landlord. The building trade would benefit, there would be tax revenue coming back and we wouldn’t have so many homeless individuals. There could even be a requirement of employment and or recovery to live in these apartment complexes. Some individuals may choose not to live there because of the requirements but I would imagine that the vast majority would. Very few people want to live outdoors. Shelters or temporary housing is an option and is being implemented successfully in Missoula, for example by Hope Rescue Mission. They have 30 pallet homes. Each home costs about $15,000 which is about the cost of a year’s rent for a studio apartment, if we had rent controls in Montana. We don’t of course and rent is now double that is some communities. Yet, the wages don’t support that level of rising costs. Pallet homes are temporary, and we have to remember that. The shelter is temporary. The apartment complex is permanent. We need long term solutions to address this growing issue. But pallet homes and shelters are a start until we build more apartments. This is innovation. We are building rockets to Mars, but we can’t solve homelessness here on Earth.
Many homeless individuals are impacted by mental illness and substance use. According to SAMHSA, 21% report having mental health issues and 16% report having a substance use issue. These numbers seem rather low, but we have to consider the source. The federal government. If you look at other studies by non-government entities such as Rebecca Barry, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Calgary in Canada who studied data from many countries besides the US found the number to be 67% of homeless individuals suffer from mental illness. My experience tells me 67% is more accurate than a mere 21%.
Which leads me to the second part of the homelessness issue. Mental health services. We have a severe lack of mental health services for this population. Homelessness only compounds the mental health issues. Isolation, poverty, lack of medical care, hygiene, exposure to the elements, can all be traumatic. This compounds the existing mental health issues. There are very few mental health services available to homeless populations. Outreach is mostly done by people in recovery or caring individuals who work for nonprofits in Montana. These are underpaid, overworked individuals who are doing amazing work but lack the support in the form of resources, funding, respite and credentialed professional such as doctors, social workers and counselors to make deep impacts. If our leaders don’t want to address the issues, then make adequate funding available. There is a major disconnect between our leaders and the citizens. The last thing we need is another committee to discuss the issues. We all know what the issues are. The citizens have been telling the leaders for a long time.
Before this gets out of hand with city and county commissioners creating all types of “bans” on homelessness how about our leaders allow its citizens the right to sleep outside if they choose, no it can’t be anywhere. This could be added to our state constitution. There could be parameters in town. Such as private property or with businesses. An adjustment to the state constitution would be a bold move in the right direction and prevent local community leaders from creating ordinances banning homelessness while they sit in their air conditioned offices.
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