Step One to Helping Homeless: Get Facts : * County Survey Could Pay Back Far More Than It Costs

The Orange County Health Care Agency did the smart thing in commissioning a survey on the homeless problem in the county. The study was part of a five-report package that cost $150,000, and may pay back far more than that if the surveys help win public or private money to assist in coping with homelessness.

The evidence of homelessness is all too plain to anyone visiting the Civic Center area in Santa Ana, or spending time in parking lots and campgrounds in public parks in the county. Anecdotes about the homeless are plentiful too, usually dealing with panhandling or obnoxious behavior. But merely seeing the homeless can lead to the wrong conclusions, and anecdotes don’t get people anywhere in seeking grants from government or social service agencies. Data is needed, and that’s what the county has now.

In a good example of using community resources, the Health Care Agency had the study’s field work done by Cal State Fullerton’s social science research center. Researchers crawled through drainage pipes, walked freeway underpasses and rode mountain bikes to rural canyons to locate the homeless. Four hundred people were interviewed, in shelters and on the streets.

Among the findings: 85% were born in the United States; 77% were Orange County residents before becoming homeless; 50% received no government assistance. So much for the myth of homeless immigrants collecting welfare handouts. When asked what was the most useful thing someone could do to help, the most frequent answer was a job, followed by housing.

The unfortunate tendency of many of the homeless to turn to alcohol was also documented. Nearly one-third of the homeless reported what the study characterized as binge drinking--five or more drinks on at least one occasion in the previous month. Many also reported drinking beer and wine with high alcohol content. A large number said they had suffered alcohol-related injuries.

One of the report’s authors said he hoped it would dispel outsiders’ images of Orange County as a land of Disneyland and affluence. And if those perceptions are held in Washington, they must change.

The homeless problem is likely to worsen as the state budget cuts lead to cuts in services in counties, which in turn can lead to greater homelessness. Congress could help ease the desperate shortage of affordable housing in the county by making the low-income housing tax credit permanent. That would generate investment for building or renovating low-rent housing.

Having commissioned the report, the county showed it wants to use it wisely. The homeless issues coordinator properly called the study a tool for planning how to tackle the problem. And she said the county will use the findings to seek increased federal funds for more affordable housing in Orange County. That’s a good goal, and one the county should pursue vigorously.

Underlining the importance of the report was the decision by a state appellate court two days earlier to stop Santa Ana from enforcing its anti-camping ordinance aimed at homeless people. The city may eventually have the ordinance’s constitutionality upheld, but it will not solve the problem.

Santa Ana still must develop a plan to deal with its large homeless population, especially the several hundred who were living in the Civic Center area. Some groups and individuals have tried to help the homeless there with everything from Alcoholics Anonymous meetings to better living quarters, but they need help from the city.