Congress Should Act to Reduce Child Homelessness in 2017

As Congress begins work this week on the Department of Housing and Urban Development's 2017 budget, it should place a high priority on meeting the President's request for $88 million to fund 10,000 new housing vouchers for homeless families.  A strong body of evidence shows that vouchers reduce homelessness and can help children in poor families grow up in better neighborhoods that boost their chances of long-term success. 

Of the 1.5 million people who spent at least part of 2014 in a homeless shelter, nearly 315,000 were children.  Indeed, children under age 5 are at greater risk of homelessness than people at any other age.