STAFF REPORT

January 25, 2000

To: Community Services Committee

From: Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services

Subject: Toronto Report Card on Homelessness 2000

Purpose:

To report on the findings and recommendations of Toronto's first annual report card on homelessness.

Financial Implications and Impact Statement:

There are no unbudgeted for financial implications arising from this report.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that:

(1) Council adopt the recommendations of the Toronto Report Card on Homelessness 2000, specifically that the City of Toronto:

(a) forward this report card to the federal and provincial governments, municipalities in the GTA and community stakeholders, including non-profit funders and service providers;

(b) urge the federal government to:

(i) implement the recommendations of the FCM Quality of Life Infrastructure Budget Proposal related to housing;

(ii) provide additional support for new affordable rental housing development in the upcoming federal budget; and

(iii) expedite the process to make federal lands available for affordable housing development;

(c) urge the provincial government to:

(i) increase the shelter component of social assistance to reflect local market conditions as recommended by the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force;

(ii) create a new shelter allowance program for the working poor as recommended by the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force;

(iii) create 5,000 new supportive housing units in Toronto over the next five years and 9,000 new units in the rest of the province, as recommended by the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force;

(iv) ensure that definitions of special need and eligibility for supportive housing are broad enough to include "hard-to-house" homeless people;

(v) appoint a senior representative from the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care to work with the Homeless Health Strategy Reference Group;

(vi) provide quarterly data on the disposition of all applications for eviction through the Rental Housing Tribunal; and

(vii) make provincial land available for affordable housing development as per its commitment in March 1999;

(2) the Mayor, the Chair of the Community Services Committee, and the Chair of the Advisory Committee on Homeless and Socially Isolated Persons work with the federal and provincial governments to establish a high-level, tripartite committee to ensure effective, timely implementation of homeless and housing initiatives;

(3) the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services convene a meeting with the provincial and federal governments and key community stakeholders to establish a collective commitment to reduce homelessness with established benchmarks to measure progress;

(4) the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services work with the federal and provincial governments to establish an agreement or protocol that sets out how federal homeless and housing funding will be used in Toronto;

(5) the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services continue to implement its strategy, with clear timelines, to maintain a maximum 90% occupancy rate in the emergency shelter system as established by City Council in June 1999;

(6) the Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services:

(a) consult with key community stakeholders on an appropriate approach to undertake a "census" to determine the number of homeless people living on the street;

(b) provide further information on the impacts of homelessness on vulnerable groups, ncluding lone parents, youth, seniors and minorities;

(c) provide further information on the impacts of government policy and program decisions on homelessness with a specific emphasis on the Tenant Protection Act;

(d) report back to the appropriate Community Services Committee by June 2000 on the progress of recommendation 6 (a, b & c);

(7) that Toronto Public Health continues to work with the homeless population and community agencies to address the health needs of homeless and under-housed people. This includes ensuring that:

(a) all homeless people with active TB receive Directly Observed Therapy;

(b) the deaths of homeless people continue to be tracked;

(c) the incidence of reportable infectious disease among the homeless and under-housed population is systematically tracked as a key indicator of health in this population;

(d) the Homeless Health Reference Group works to develop an infirmary for homeless and under-housed people who no longer need primary hospital care;

(e) the Homeless Health Reference Group develops a discharge strategy for homeless people who are leaving institutions; and

(f) the Homeless Health Reference Group works with key stakeholders to establish additional harm reduction facilities for homeless people with substance addictions; and

(8) the appropriate City Officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary action to give effect thereto.

Background:

As part of the response to the Mayor=s Homelessness Action Task Force report last Spring, City Council directed the Chief Administrative Officer to produce an annual report card on homelessness. The report card is to document the state of homelessness in Toronto and to outline action taken by the each level of government to alleviate the problem.

Council approved the framework for the report card in October 1999. The Chief Administrative Officer directed the Commissioner of Community and Neighourhood Services to oversee the development and production of the report card. An interdepartmental staff group produced the report card in consultation with a reference group from the City's Advisory Committee on Homeless and Socially Isolated Persons, as directed by Council in October 1999.

A series of indicators were chosen that together describe changes in the causes and profile of homelessness. They include data on the use of emergency shelters, Out of the Cold programs, calls to the Street Helpline, people living on the street and use of food banks. Indicators related to causes of homelessness focus on economic security and affordable and supportive housing. The indicators are drawn from a variety of public, institutional and community sources and as much as possible reflect the most current data available.

This committee report provides an overview of the key findings of the Toronto Report Card on Homelessness 2000 and makes recommendations for action.

Comments:

The State of Homelessness in Toronto:

The report card clearly demonstrates that homelessness in Toronto is getting worse not better, especially for families with children. While it is true that Toronto is in the midst of an economic boom, those most vulnerable to homelessness, those with the lowest incomes, are not reaping the benefits. The number of jobs is increasing, but there are still issues of under-employment. For example many people are holding down more than one job to make ends meet. In addition, youth unemployment remains high. There is growing evidence of an increasing gap between rich and poor incomes. Many of the new jobs do not pay enough to make ends meet. Employment earnings, especially for families, do not always provide enough income to escape poverty.

Toronto has a large number of people living in poverty at a time when rents are rising and the supply of affordable rental housing is falling. Tenants in our city tend to have lower incomes than homeowners do. Growing numbers spend more than 50% of their income on rent placing them at serious risk of losing their housing.

The demand for subsidized housing keeps growing, but no new units are being built. Governments got out of the business of building affordable housing expecting the private sector to step in. This is not happening. And, not enough new supportive housing is being built, even though we know that this is key to reducing homelessness.

More people are turning to our emergency shelters. The fastest growing group of shelter users is now two-parent families with children. The rise in the number of children staying in shelters is alarming -- up from 2,700 in 1988 to 6,000 in 1998. Families are staying for longer periods in shelters. This can negatively affect children's development, disrupting the family's social and school life.

The rise in homelessness is linked to a number of government policy decisions such as the withdrawal from funding new social housing by senior levels of government and reductions in social assistance (21.6% in 1995). There remains a lack of community-based mental health supports to help people who have been discharged from institutions. Although we do not have conclusive information, anecdotal accounts from tenant and community legal sources report a rise in evictions since the Tenant Protection Act was enacted in 1998. All of these factors are made worse by low rental vacancy rates, especially among affordable units, and the lack of affordable private rental housing production.

The City's Action Plan to Reduce Homelessness:

The Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force proposed an action plan with six key strategies that together address the main barriers to solving the problem of homelessness. The success of the plan is depends on implementing the whole package. The strategies include the following:

(1) Reduce poverty;

(2) Preserve existing and create new affordable and supportive housing;

(3) Adopt a comprehensive service planning approach and develop specific strategies for high risk groups;

(4) Shift from an emergency focus to prevention;

(5) Implement a comprehensive health strategy; and

(6) Commitment by all levels of government to work together to develop solutions.

Progress in Reducing Homelessness:

The report card outlines the progress made by each level of government under each of the six strategies. The main focus is on action taken since the release of the Mayor's Task Force report in January 1999. Full details on these responses are discussed in the report card. A summary that includes the financial commitments of each level of government is provided in the appendices to this report.

Some positive steps have been taken over the past year to address homelessness. The City of Toronto has implemented the key recommendations of the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force directed to the municipality. The provincial and federal governments have each taken some action in response to the Task Force recommendations. However, much of that response involves targeting funds to homeless services. A service response is only one piece of a much larger strategy. Sustainable solutions must target the root causes of homelessness - poverty and the lack of affordable and supportive housing.

Many of the initiatives announced over the past year have yet to be implemented, in particular the federal initiatives announced in December 1999. Many of the initiatives that are underway are new, prompted in part by the Mayor's Task Force report and were put in place during the last six months. Therefore, the results of these initiatives are preliminary.

Long-term strategies, such as the production of new affordable housing, require time to implement. It is unlikely that impacts of programs such as the City's Let's Build program will be felt before 2001. However, it is clear that more resources must be invested into long-term solutions that address the root causes of homelessness. Without immediate action, it is expected that homelessness in Toronto will continue to get worse.

The City is doing what it can given its limited financial resources. Senior levels of government must take immediate action in their respective areas of responsibility to ensure people have access to an adequate income, to a range of employment opportunities, and safe and affordable housing so they can provide for themselves and their families.

The recommendations of the report card outline the action required by each level of government. The focus is on long-term strategies to reduce the current homeless crisis, and, more importantly, to prevent more people from becoming homeless. A key theme of the Mayor's Task Force is that everyone, each level of government and the community, must take responsibility for addressing homelessness if any progress is to be made. Governments are working more collaboratively to address the problem. We need to build on these efforts.

Evaluation of the Report Card:

In spring of 2000, the City will conduct a formal evaluation of the report card to find out if it is a useful tool for monitoring homelessness in Toronto. It will consult a broad range of municipal and community stakeholders. In addition to evaluating the year 2000 report card, stakeholders will provide information for the next report card. A key area for input is how best to include community voices in future report cards.

Conclusions:

The report card clearly shows that despite improvements in the economy, homelessness is getting worse in Toronto -- particularly for families with children.

The City of Toronto has implemented the key recommendations of the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force directed to the municipality. However, it cannot tackle the larger issues -- poverty and the lack of affordable and supportive housing - these areas are the responsibility of the provincial and federal governments. Senior levels of government have each taken some action to alleviate homelessness. However, much of that response involves targeting funds to homeless services. A service response is only one element of the overall strategy. Addressing poverty and the lack of affordable housing continue to be the priority areas for government action.

The recommendations of the Toronto Report Card on Homelessness 2000 highlight the urgent action needed by each level of government to reduce and prevent homelessness. It is, therefore, recommended that City Council adopt these recommendations as part of its ongoing commitment to respond to this growing crisis for our city.

Contact:

Derek Ballantyne, Acting General Manager, Shelter, Housing & Support Division

Phone: 392-7885/Fax: 392-0548

Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services

List of Attachments:

Appendix A: Summary of the City of Toronto Response to the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force Report.

Appendix B: Summary of the Province of Ontario Response to the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force Report.

Appendix C: Summary of the Government of Canada Response to the Mayor's Homelessness Action Task Force Report.