Senate Concurrent Resolution 14 - Introduced

PAG LIN





  1  1          SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO.    
  1  2     BY  HATCH, DANIELSON, DOTZLER, WARNSTADT, SENG,
  1  3      HANCOCK, RIELLY, WOOD, SCHOENJAHN, CONNOLLY,
  1  4      COURTNEY, QUIRMBACH, GRONSTAL, FRAISE, BLACK,
  1  5       STEWART, RAGAN, BEALL, KREIMAN, and DVORSKY
  1  6 A Concurrent Resolution designating November 13
  1  7    through 19, 2005, as Iowa Homeless Awareness Week.
  1  8    WHEREAS, the Iowa Homelessness Study conducted in
  1  9 2001 concluded that over 18,000 homeless people, with
  1 10 4,300 in Des Moines alone, and over 7,000 near=
  1 11 homeless people live in Iowa; and
  1 12    WHEREAS, the 2001 report indicates that nearly 60
  1 13 percent of those homeless and near=homeless people are
  1 14 children, over 11 percent of those homeless and near=
  1 15 homeless people are less than five years of age, and
  1 16 unaccompanied children represent more than 10 percent
  1 17 of the homeless population; and
  1 18    WHEREAS, 82 percent of the homeless and 90 percent
  1 19 of the near=homeless single adult households with
  1 20 children are headed by a woman; and
  1 21    WHEREAS, family breakup, potential utility
  1 22 disconnection, and job loss are consistently the
  1 23 leading causes of homelessness; and
  1 24    WHEREAS, Iowa's homeless and near=homeless people
  1 25 exist in rural and urban areas, and in low=poverty and
  1 26 high=poverty communities; and
  1 27    WHEREAS, the poverty level population is defined by
  1 28 the federal poverty line, $19,350 in income for a
  1 29 family of four, which equates roughly to between 30
  1 30 percent and 50 percent of the median income in most
  2  1 Iowa counties; and
  2  2    WHEREAS, the lack of living wage jobs and
  2  3 affordable housing are reported as the most
  2  4 significant barriers to resolving homelessness in
  2  5 every type of community, and long=term economic
  2  6 solutions that create living wage jobs and affordable
  2  7 housing seem necessary to solve this crisis; NOW
  2  8 THEREFORE,
  2  9    BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE, THE HOUSE OF
  2 10 REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING, That the General Assembly
  2 11 designates the week of November 13 through 19, 2005,
  2 12 as Iowa Homeless Awareness Week, and invites the
  2 13 citizens of Iowa to increase their awareness of the
  2 14 causes of homelessness and seek to implement solutions
  2 15 to homelessness; and
  2 16    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the General Assembly
  2 17 requests that the Governor issue a proclamation
  2 18 calling upon the people of Iowa to observe Iowa
  2 19 Homeless Awareness Week with appropriate programs,
  2 20 ceremonies, and activities.
  2 21 LSB 2761SS 81
  2 22 jr:rj/sh/8