End of Legislative Session - Results of Our Advocacy

June 8, 2023

Dear Columbus House Community, 

 

The legislature has passed a budget for the next two years. It is not a budget that reflects our values or values our work. However, while the outcome was not what we hoped it would be, we collectively raised our voice against homelessness and should be proud of our effort. 

 

We focused on the funding we need to provide our clients excellent service in our existing programs. To that end, the legislature allocated $5 million to fund housing and homeless services programs through the Department of Housing, and an additional $2 million for a flexible funding pool we can use to meet client needs that are not otherwise supported. They also passed a 2.5% increase on all state social-services contracts in the next year.  

 

I hope the many of you who contributed to our legislative advocacy feel proud of how far we have come. You embraced an audacious goal and you ended up achieving MILLIONS of dollars that would not otherwise have gone to address homelessness. Columbus House turned out more testimony, more one-on-one meetings with legislators, and more phone calls than ever before. We are building our strength and it shows!  

 

We all know that achieving the end of homelessness is a marathon, not a sprint. This agency has been in this fight for over four decades and we will be here until everyone in our community has a home. THANK YOU for your time, your words, and your fortitude in the face of a frustratingly slow process. We pushed hard this session, we’ll catch our breath, and then we’ll start up again.  

 

Yours, 

Margaret Middleton

CEO

 

 

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