A recent Georgia Senate study committee focused on veterans’ mental health and housing issues. According to a point in time count by the U.S. Department of Veterans affairs, there are more than 70,000 homeless vets in the nation and more than 2,000 in Georgia. Attorney and Public Policy Advocate Elizabeth Appley says mental health and substance abuse problems contribute to the situation.
“But we are housing them, quote unquote, in the most expensive and least effective way possible,” according to Appley. “Because they’re in our jails, they’re in our prisons, they’re in our emergency rooms they’re in our hospitals. But they don’t have the housing that they need in order to leave homelessness and to return to their communities in health.”
Appley says the state is in a position to help combat homelessness among veterans, thanks to millions in ARPA (American Rescue Plan) funding and billions in surplus funds.
“That’s money that OPB (Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget) and the Governor’s office is controlling. They have spent some money for homelessness out of the initial allocation, but $472 million is a lot of money that we could access.
She said state funds could be used in addition to the federal money.
“In addition, I don’t need to tell you that we had over $11 billion in unobligated state surplus funds last year. So, we’re not adequately funding homelessness.”
Georgia currently has two state veteran homes, with a combined capacity for 486 patients.
