Was the long-term—and ongoing—rise in household income inequality a contributor to the recent financial crisis and subsequent recession? This is the question Matthew Drennan of UCLA proposes to explore in his analysis of changes in household income, consumption, assets, and liabilities during the period from 1984 to 2008. To frame his analysis, Drennan points to a number of substantive shifts in household economic characteristics over the past several decades. In addition to the rise in U.S.
Supplemental Appropriation 2010--$5,000
In 2009, the Russell Sage Foundation funded the research project “Cross-National Research on the Intergenerational Transmission of Advantage” (CRITA).
The undocumented immigrant population in the United States grew from approximately four million at the time of the last major immigration reform in 1986 to an estimated 12 million in 2008. In the absence of new immigration reform at the federal level, some states have created their own interior enforcement mechanisms to deter the employment of undocumented immigrants. Arizona’s Legal Arizona Workers Act (LAWA) is perhaps the most restrictive of those state efforts.
The United States is experiencing the most severe economic downturn since the Great Depression. Despite signs of recovery, millions of Americans remain out of work, out of savings, and near the end of their employment benefits. And the U.S. work-based safety net seems increasingly vulnerable to failure at a time when jobs are scarce. Numerous studies have demonstrated the negative impact on health that job loss can create – from overall poorer health status to increased risk of heart attack and stroke in older workers.
Books
How to House the Homeless
About This Book
How to House the Homeless, editors Ingrid Gould Ellen and Brendan O’Flaherty propose that the answers entail rethinking how housing markets operate and developing more efficient interventions in existing service programs. The book critically reassesses where we are now, analyzes the most promising policies and programs going forward, and offers a new agenda for future research.
How to House the Homeless makes clear the inextricable link between homelessness and housing policy. Contributor Jill Khadduri reviews the current residential services system and housing subsidy programs. For the chronically homeless, she argues, a combination of assisted housing approaches can reach the greatest number of people and, specifically, an expanded Housing Choice Voucher system structured by location, income, and housing type can more efficiently reach people at-risk of becoming homeless and reduce time spent homeless. Robert Rosenheck examines the options available to homeless people with mental health problems and reviews the cost-effectiveness of five service models: system integration, supported housing, clinical case management, benefits outreach, and supported employment. He finds that only programs that subsidize housing make a noticeable dent in homelessness, and that no one program shows significant benefits in multiple domains of life.
Contributor Sam Tsemberis assesses the development and cost-effectiveness of the Housing First program, which serves mentally ill homeless people in more than four hundred cities. He asserts that the program’s high housing retention rate and general effectiveness make it a viable candidate for replication across the country. Steven Raphael makes the case for a strong link between homelessness and local housing market regulations—which affect housing affordability—and shows that the problem is more prevalent in markets with stricter zoning laws. Finally, Brendan O’Flaherty bridges the theoretical gap between the worlds of public health and housing research, evaluating the pros and cons of subsidized housing programs and the economics at work in the rental housing market and home ownership. Ultimately, he suggests, the most viable strategies will serve as safety nets—“social insurance”—to reach people who are homeless now and to prevent homelessness in the future.
It is crucial that the links between effective policy and the whole cycle of homelessness—life conditions, service systems, and housing markets—be made clear now. With a keen eye on the big picture of housing policy, How to House the Homeless shows what works and what doesn’t in reducing the numbers of homeless and reaching those most at risk.
INGRID GOULD ELLEN is professor of public policy and urban planning at the New York University Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.
BRENDAN O’FLAHERTY is professor of economics at Columbia University.
CONTRIBUTORS: Ingrid Gould Ellen, Jill Khadduri, Brendan O’Flaherty, Edgar O. Olsen, Stephen Raphael, Robert Rosenheck, Sam Tsemberis