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Housing and Community Development Network Criticizes SCOTUS Decision 6/28/2024 Today, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in City of Grants Pass, Oregon v. Johnson that cities can make it illegal to sleep outside, allowing police to arrest and ticket people experiencing homelessness, even in areas with no shelter available. Staci Berger, president and chief executive officer of the Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey (the Network), made the following statement: “The Supreme Court’s decision this morning is beyond disappointing. It is a policy choice that will harm our most vulnerable neighbors, a disproportionate share of whom are Black and brown as a direct result of systemic and institutional racism, for the ‘crime’ of being victims of poverty in America. As scores of housing advocates across the United States – including the Network’s 270+ member organizations in New Jersey –work to help people sleeping on the street find a safe, stable places to go, this decision attempts to undo their efforts. “Research shows that arrests and fines are not solutions to the homelessness crisis that we face in the United States. We already know what will really end homelessness. Only proven solutions, like funding housing security, stability, and affordability programs to build healthy, affordable homes, will keep people stably housed in the long-term. We must hold elected officials accountable and demand that they work to address homelessness with investments in affordability and other supportive measures, not criminalization. “According to the Network’s national partner, the National Low Income Housing Coalition, affordable rents have never been more out of reach for renter households in the Garden State, who must earn nearly $80K a year to afford Fair Market Rent for a modest two-bedroom apartment. Criminalizing homelessness will not change that fact. All of us at the Network urge elected officials across the Garden State to reject the counterproductive policies sanctioned today by the U.S. Supreme Court ruling, and encourage New Jerseyans to contact their representatives to share why our state and local governments must use all the tools available to address the affordability crisis that contributes to homelessness. Regardless of this ruling, together, we can HouseNJ!” Read the statement issued by the Network's national partner, the National Low Income Housing Coalition. About the Housing and Community Development Network of NJ |
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