NEWS HEADLINES

1 in 50 Children is Homeless

By Donna Kimura

More than 1.5 million children are homeless each year in the United States—one in every 50 American children, according to a new report by the National Center on Family Homelessness.

America’s Youngest Outcasts: State Report Card on Child Homelessness offers the first comprehensive state-by-state data on homeless children and ranks the states from top to bottom.

Connecticut was the overall top-ranked state, and Texas, the worst.
The states were evaluated in four major areas—extent of child homelessness, child well-being, risk of child homelessness, and state policy and planning efforts.

Children without homes have twice the rate of moderate to severe health problems compared to middle-class children, and they struggle in school, with an average 16 percent lower proficiency in math and reading, according to the report, which is available at www.HomelessChildrenAmerica.org.

A number of policy recommendations are offered, ranging from keep homeowners stably housed by requiring banks and other mortgage holders to approve affordable loan modifications to capitalize the new National Housing Trust Fund at $10 billion for two years to build or rehabilitate 100,000 rental homes for the lowest-income households.