A year after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated already impoverished areas in the Gulf region, many of the victims of the disaster are still without adequate housing, school access or stability. Rebuilding efforts now underway often ignore or exclude poor current and former residents. Much work remains to be done to protect basic rights and address immediate, ongoing needs.

Katrina also exposed the underlying deep poverty that made so many of the regions residents so vulnerable in this natural disasterand that affects so many Americans across the country. Despite the shock and promises of reform in the immediate aftermath, a year later there is little debate and no action. Yet what Katrina exposed is a human rights crisis that should not exist in our country.

On September 21, NLCHP is holding a National Forum on the Human Right to Housing in the United States, focusing attention on human rights strategies to address homelessness and poverty here in this country. The Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions and The George Washington University Law School are co-organizers, and over a dozen organizations are co-sponsoring. By viewing American homelessness and poverty in a human rights perspective, we hope to strengthen our advocacy and offer a framework for mobilizing to end the kind of extreme poverty the world witnessed a year ago and that remains today.

Please join us.

Maria Foscarinis, Executive Director

On August 10, 2006, in an important step for victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the US District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana issued its final judgment in the case of Beatrice McWaters et al. v. FEMA et al. The class action lawsuit, filed in October 2005 by NLCHP and its co-counsel, challenged FEMAs policies and procedures in distributing temporary housing assistance to victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Plaintiffs in the lawsuit had previously won a temporary restraining order in which the court prohibited FEMA from carrying out its plan to evict individuals and families being housed in hotels as part of FEMAs emergency assistance program unless the households were given at least two weeks to remain in the hotels after they received a decision approving or denying their application for further assistance.

In its final judgment, the Court permanently extended its earlier ruling regarding the termination of short-term lodging assistance. It also ordered FEMA to clarify its requirements for temporary housing assistance, including prohibiting FEMA from requiring evacuees to first apply for a loan from the Small Business Administration (SBA) in order to obtain temporary housing assistance, and requiring FEMA to notify applicants who had been misinformed about the connection between obtaining temporary housing assistance and applying for an SBA loan.

The Judge dismissed the plaintiffs' remaining claims, citing a lack of legal authority to require FEMA to take certain steps, but strongly criticized FEMA for failing to communicate clearly with hurricane victims about its assistance programs and participation requirements.

Finally, in an important step for this case and with respect to the future provision of federal disaster assistance, the court found that those eligible to receive FEMA aid have a constitutionally protected property interest in the receipt of temporary housing assistance.

The lawsuit has already resulted in significant improvements in FEMAs provision of assistance. In addition to the changes in FEMA practices mandated by the court, discussions among the parties while the lawsuit was pending, led FEMA to take additional steps to modify its practices to eliminate some of the problems that have arisen.

NLCHP thanks the W. K. Kellogg Foundation and The Sullivan & Cromwell Foundation for their support of this program.

As part of a larger effort to get homeless and low-income people more involved in the democratic process, NLCHP and the National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH) released a voting manual this week, intended as a resource for advocates and service providers. The manual contains information about the legal issues facing homeless voters, how to conduct voter registration drives, how to host a candidate forum, and more.

NLCHP is also co-sponsoring National Homeless and Low Income Voter Registration Week (NHLIVRW), to be held September 24 - 30. Other co-sponsors include the National Coalition for the Homeless, the National Low Income Housing Coalition, and the National Health Care for the Homeless Council.

For more information about NHLIVRW, or if your organization would like to host an event, please contact Tulin Ozdeger at tozdeger@nlchp.org or 202-638-2535.

In early August, the United States Department of Education (DOE) released regulations sought by NLCHP and its partners. The new regulations implement the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the primary federal law governing pre-K-12 special education.

The regulations include an important new clarification regarding unaccompanied youth, a group defined as students who are living apart from their parents. One of the provisions specifically allows staff of emergency shelters, transitional shelters, independent living programs, and street outreach programs to temporarily make decisions related to special education for unaccompanied youth. This change will allow young people to receive necessary services more quickly, avoiding delays caused by searches for adults to act as surrogate parents for special education purposes.

The preamble to the regulations further voices a willingness by the DOE to develop future guidance on the connection between special education and homelessness. Such guidance would be directed towards educators and could provide valuable information about homeless education law (the McKinney-Vento Act) and offer ideas about best practices.

Advocates have been pushing for regulatory changes since winning legislative amendments to benefit homeless children and youth in 2004. NLCHP submitted two sets of detailed recommendations to the DOE and testified at a public meeting held in Washington, DC.

On September 21, 2006, NLCHP will hold the Third National Forum on the Human Right to Housing, together with co-organizer the Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE). The Forum, hosted by the Human Rights Clinic and Human Rights Law Society of The George Washington University Law School in Washington, DC, builds on the momentum created by last years event. Service providers, housing advocates, attorneys, homeless persons, and others concerned with the right to housing in the United States are invited to attend.

The right to adequate housing is clearly established under international human rights law. The United States recognition and ratification of international declarations, treaties, and covenants commit the U.S. to fulfilling housing needs for all on a non-discriminatory basis. Many housing advocates are exploring international law as a framework for ensuring the right to adequate housing in a domestic context.

The Forum will examine the international sources of the right to adequate housing and the issues involved in utilizing those sources domestically, whether in the courtroom or in the streets. Participants will engage in workshops with fellow practitioners to discuss how they can apply the successful rights-based strategies used by housing advocates such as litigators, legislative reform advocates, and community outreach programs to promote adequate housing for all.

NLCHP thanks the Mertz Gilmore Foundation and the US Human Rights Fund for their support of the Human Rights Program.

This summer, Las Vegas and Orlando became the latest cities to pass laws severely restricting private groups ability to share food with poor and homeless people in public spaces.

Las Vegas new ordinance prohibits sharing food with homeless or indigent persons in public parks. Orlandos ordinance requires groups wishing to share free food with 25 or more people in downtown parks to purchase a permit from the Citys parks department and limits the number of times a group may do so to only twice a year.

Unfortunately, Las Vegas and Orlando are hardly alone in this trend. A 2005 Dallas law punishes groups or individuals serving food to the needy outside of designated areas of the city, while Fort Myers, Florida, is presently considering a law very similar to Orlandos restriction.

Cities need to realize that placing these kinds of restrictions on groups trying to help homeless people will not make homelessness go away, said Tulin Ozdeger, NLCHP Civil Rights Staff Attorney. Instead of punishing people for their good work, cities should be looking at ways to solve the underlying causes of homelessness.

NLCHP has been encouraging Fort Myers and Orlando to pursue more constructive approaches to homelessness, such as those highlighted in NLCHPs 2006 report A Dream Denied. NLCHP is also working with pro bono counsel, Howrey LLP, to convince Dallas to change the restrictions it has placed on providers of food.

NLCHP thanks Capital One for their support of this project.

Last month, DC law firm Baker & Hostetler LLP became the newest member of NLCHPs Lawyers Executive Advisory Partners (LEAP) program, a national network of law firms dedicated to ending homelessness. Baker & Hostetler partner Bruce Casino, who is also a NLCHP Board Member, has worked with Executive Director Maria Foscarinis since NLCHPs founding, and Baker & Hostetler has been a strong NLCHP supporter for many years.

LEAP is a national legal philanthropic effort to help homeless and poor Americans achieve self-sufficiency. LEAP partners provide both financial and pro bono support invaluable to the work of NLCHP.

NLCHP thanks our LEAP partners for their commitment to ending homelessness in America.

Melanie Williams has been chosen as the recipient of NLCHP's 2006 Personal Achievement Award. Ms. Williams and other honorees will be recognized on October 3 at the 2006 McKinney-Vento Awards Event in Washington, DC.

Ms. Williams was born in San Francisco. As a young adult, she started using drugs and became homeless. Four years later she entered a drug treatment program and found supportive housing for herself and her two children. On December 23, 1999, she moved to Treasure Island, a former Navy base converted into housing and other services for homeless and formerly homeless individuals and families. As a resident of the new community, Ms. Williams helped establish weekly AA and NA meetings, advocated for additional community services, and spoke to groups about her own struggles. Ms. Williams is an active and involved parent of her three children.

Treasure Island's creation was in part the result of NLCHP's work in the mid-1990s. Under a law that NLCHP was instrumental in passing, the redevelopment of surplus military property must consider the needs of the local homeless population. When local service providers were applying for the Treasure Island property, they worked closely with NLCHP Policy Director Laurel Weir, who gave advice and brought the planners in contact with other service providers applying for base closure property.

The 19th Annual Fannie Mae Foundation Help the Homeless Walkathon will be held on Saturday, November 18, 2006 on the National Mall in Washington, DC  rain or shine. Each year, NLCHP staff and friends participate in the Walkathon, raising awareness and funds to prevent and end homelessness.

NLCHP Board Member Pamela Malester, an active supporter of the Walkathon, comments, "It is incredible walking with thousands of people who care about those who are without a home. What a thrill to know that there are so many who support the work of NLCHP and other organizations who are working to end homelessness.

Contact Amy Warnick at awarnick@nlchp.org or (202) 638-2535 for more information. Corporate partners can designate NLCHP as their beneficiary organization here.

NLCHP is looking for law student interns to work during the Fall Semester. To apply, submit a resume, cover letter, and brief writing sample to Nstern@nlchp.org.

We recently expanded our offices and have space available to sublet. Located at McPherson Square, we are in the heart of downtown at K and 14th Streets NW. Metro accessible on Red, Orange, and Blue lines. For more information about the office space, contact Michele Frome at mfrome@nlchp.org.

Visit our website at www.nlchp.org! Contact us at (202) 638-2535 or email us at network@nlchp.org