Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Homelessness Policy topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commissioner presents models for a ‘Bill of Rights’ for people experiencing homelessness; board to study ordinance and policy options
Summary
Commissioner Kevin reported he compiled four models (two legislative, two policies/procedures) and discussed common elements—service access, reasonable accommodations, appeals and residency questions—asking the board to continue study and pull in the Homeless Solutions Division and affordable-housing partners.
Commissioner Kevin told the Human Relations Advisory Board he had collected examples of local approaches to a Bill of Rights for people experiencing homelessness and summarized the principal options: a legislative approach enacted by a city council or a nonlegislative package of policies, procedures and operational practices.
Kevin said he had found a range of provisions across models, including protections tied to equity and non-discrimination, explicit lists of services (shelter, food, case management), guidance on serving people who come from outside the jurisdiction, reasonable accommodations for disabilities, and appeal rights when services are denied.
“There's been an inconsistency in access to services,” Kevin said, relating community feedback that access varies by provider, by population (including transgender people, survivors of domestic violence and people with disabilities) and by whether an individual is from Lawrence or another area. He said community input raised constitutional concerns about outright denial of services to nonresidents and that the legal question should be researched.
Board members agreed that work on housing and homelessness overlaps with other advisory bodies. Commissioners asked staff to invite representatives from the Homeless Solutions Division and the affordable-housing advisory board for future meetings to clarify what the city already provides and where the Human Relations Advisory Board should focus. Several commissioners urged the board to begin by identifying whether the gaps they observe amount to unlawful discrimination under Chapter 10 of the municipal code; if patterns suggest discrimination, the board could recommend that the city attorney investigate and, if warranted, that the city commission adopt ordinance amendments.
Kevin said he will circulate the written research he prepared and expects the study to be a multi-meeting process. “I fully expect this to be a 1 to 2 year process,” he told the board.
