HARTFORD — A new report shows the lowest total number of homeless in Connecticut since officials began counting the population in 2007.
The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requires applicants for homeless assistance grants to count the number of people experiencing homelessness in their communities on one night during the last ten days of January.
On the night January 22, 2019, the Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness conducted its annual “Point In Time” count. They counted 3,033 homeless people, a 10% drop from last year’s total, and a 32% decrease from 2007. The coalition says chronic homelessness – long-term homelessness accompanied with a severe disability – has decreased 75% since 2014.
The count found a small increase in the number of youth (24 and younger) who are homeless.
Coalition CEO Richard Cho says in the report that “Connecticut appears to be maintaining its progress on ending veteran homelessness as the number of homeless veterans remains low, and homeless veterans that are identified continue to be reconnected to stable housing quickly (e.g., within 90 days).”
Cho also says “the coordinated system we are building to prevent and end homelessness is working.”
