Boost in Homeslessness in the Greater Boston Area

Recently featured in The Salem Evening News has been stories drawing attention to the boost in homeless families in the greater Boston area. This spike in homeless families has been the largest the state has seen in some time because of the overwhelming number of unemployment rates and the growing number of foreclosure and evicted families. Stated in the article "3,507 families in Massachusetts were homeless, according to the Department of Housing and Community Development. The number of families living in motels in 28 communities peaked in October at 1,077." Recent data, as of January 6th, showed that 963 homeless families were living in hotels or motels.

An issue for many families moved to hotels and motels is where to sent their children to school. Will families enroll their children in the towns and cities school systems were they are currently housed at motels or hotels? Or another option under federal law is to bus these children to their home district?

Since these families are being housed in suburban areas, such as Danvers and Beverly, MA, I feel a lot of attention is being brought on the subject. The state has to guarantee housing to every eligible family; Massachusetts is the only state that provides this. "To qualify a homeless family must earn 115 percent of the federal poverty level or less, or a maximum of $25,368 for a family of four. They must have children or be expecting a child, and they must have been evicted and lack alternative feasible housing." While the state provides services to these families, such as signing up for food stamps, getting access to health care, etc., the problem of finding families low-income housing has been a problem.

Another area for concern is the cost the state pays to house all these families and the school expenses add up. The article lists some money set aside for the 2010 year for sheltering and homeless families in Massachusetts; the numbers are staggering!