WASSP-13 Bill 111 (2024) BILL 111 (2024), TO ESTABLISH PROCEDURES FOR THE REMOVAL AND STORAGE OF PERSONAL PROPERTY IN PUBLIC PLACES AND A RIGHT TO SHELTER (WASSP-13)
The County should ensure that our public spaces are clean and safe for all. The County and State are shutting down so many parking areas, fishing areas, and shoreline access areas because of the all the houseless filing our shoreline areas with stolen cars, drug activity, urine and feces everywhere, feral dogs and cats, trash, causing fire hazards, threatening behavior, and scaring off hardworking folks who just want to be able to enjoy parks and shoreline areas after working hard to support our families. Most unsheltered are UNABLE to be housed within our community because of their life choices, they choose to do drugs and act nuts, no one wants to live with that behavior. Why is there this focus on those who don't work and just use drugs, rob and steal, to provide them housing options and services, there are more people who are struggling with 3 jobs and 3 kids and there's no mandatory requirement to help those to be housed?? This is ridiculous, help those who help themselves FIRST!!! Also is Gabe Johnson prepared to provide housing and services for all houseless in the world, because he is just inviting all the unsheltered in Hawaii and from America to come to Maui and use our services. Didn't he put forward a housing bill a couple of years ago to prioritize by length of residency? Does this houseless empowerment bill address providing services by length of residency? This just encourages fresh off the plane houseless to inundate our county. These lame so called advocates just advocate for houseless to remain status quo, not really helping to get them off the street. looks like all these so called advocates just want to post on social media when they drop a bottle of water and snack and act like they doing something while living off grants and making job security for themselves.
Hawai’i has an opportunity to be a leader Nationally when it comes to shelter services with all of the amazing number of advocates, supporting Ohana and the aloha spirit leading the way.
However, first, we need to put a few key structure pieces in place to ensure the safety, longevity, and success of the program.
Shelter Services need to be run by shelter programs including participating clinical support. Shelter programs and clinical support are already trained and versed in working with all phases of mental health including SDOH such as unsheltered individuals and families.
These programs and services do need oversight by State, County and regulation agencies.
A stakeholder group that consists of the above and advocates could do just that.
Shelter services can train and employ navigators to navigate the streets and offer placement.
This service would be conducted by the Navigation team and not referred as “sweep the streets.”
Their belongings will be taken to the shelter service, which will give each shelter participant the same amount of storage space for their stay during programming.
9.37.060 section of Bill #111 (2024) - Prior to removing an encampment, the county must identify alternative locations for encampment occupants.
Keeping the participants with their belongings in a new type of shelter that offers care, supports autonomy and hope, provides supportive services, works with individuals on their individual stages of change, and manages all aspects of the shelter life from navigator, case manager, counselor, coach, mentor to peer, lead training support and advocacy.
Evidence-based best and current measurements are crucial and need to be in place to document not only the success of the participants but tracking to make sure their personal individual treatment plans are in place, updated and followed by all participating providers.
HMIS tracking numbers and services required by HUD will be properly documented giving participants the potential ability to receive permanent housing per the BNL (by name list) a national record system that tracks homelessness from state to state and gives a clear picture of eligibility.
This also assists in the possibility of some participants may have been unsheltered in other States. This can open doors for more collaboration and possible funding sources.
Thank you for letting me share. We would like to be part of the new shelter planning in any capacity the Council sees fit.
We are requesting a meeting with the Council, if interested.
For consideration.
BILL 111 (2024), TO ESTABLISH PROCEDURES FOR THE REMOVAL AND STORAGE OF PERSONAL PROPERTY IN PUBLIC PLACES AND A RIGHT TO SHELTER (WASSP-13):
In order to stop moving this problem around, all financial resources need to be focused on actions which are proven to assist lifting those out of Maui County’s system generated circumstances. While I recognize the intent of Bill 111 comes from a place of concern and this is the basis for noble change, because the below answers have not been answered and have not influenced the structure/context of this evolution, the below questions need to be answered/incorporated before this Bill 111 moves out of committee. If they are not answered, AGAIN we simply push the problem onto the next group to figure out. As established in the successful argument by the ACLU HI at the Hawai’i Supreme Court last year in Davis vs Bissen for the removal of personal property and procedural deficits, the new version of Bill 111 continues allows for the violation of basic human and civil rights which the Justices did acknowledge in the County’s disregard of Ke Kānāwai Māmalahoe.
A. How does Maui county assess the efficacy of these actions? Where are the public reports to demonstrate how effective the methods used in sweeps are or are not?
How much is spent by the County each year on these actions including # of people housed or forced to relocate?
How many staff does it take? How many Department heads and other nonprofit staff members are involved?
How many county and nonprofit agencies are involved and why don’t they work to coordinate each time?
What is the amount spent on outreach workers vs police and sheriff presence?
What is the smoothest most effective, efficient method of housing people?
B. Why isn’t the county or the Council or the Maui Homeless Alliance focusing on:
1. The FACT that there is no available safe living/sleeping spaces? Period. Oahu has broad diversity in their approaches to exiting this system. Maui continues to be intentionally ignored.
2. The actual methods to house people? The County deemed the pallet housing project during Covid as a success and yet it was removed and never set up again. Why, when there has been no increase in sheltering beds/spaces (since the fires a decrease) has the county refused to put these funds into evidence-based methods which were proven to be successful? Why are they continuing to engage in harmful practices instead?
C. The National Center for Disease Control - CDC has for years reported on the harm of sweeps, there is no evidence these actions do more good than harm. There is evidence of the harm they cause, by breaking up support networks, interrupting agency connections, reducing the amount of community support such as food delivery and health and hygiene assistance which deters hospital visits, and the needed sense of routine which guides our every day. There is no evidence these aggressive interactions produce successful housing connections as they were originally designed.
D. FYI - designed under the Arakawa administration with leadership from every department head and a representative from most of the active Maui Homeless Alliance HUD funded agencies in the county over the course of about 8 meetings, some several hours in length, sweeps started over 10 years ago. I participated I believe in all but one and attended and documented my first sweep on Baldwin beach in 2012.
E. The County has spent years breaking up “encampments” and scattering people. No resources have been spent to determine where people are scattered to and whether they will be in more danger than previously noted. In the evolution of Bill 111, it notes and encampment of 5 or more. That gives the county permission to wipe out anyone who is in a group of 4 or less with no paper trail or designated supports. The Maui Homeless Alliance has not addressed one of these issues in years. Evidence shows people who congregate together are able to share resources and improve stability. The Maui Homeless Alliance agencies are receiving funds while actively supporting practices which the Department of Housing and Urban Development openly advise against...with no other alternatives established.
F. When we say “The County” it defers any responsibility that there is any one person who is making these decisions, when indeed the buck does stop somewhere. Where is the Director of the Human Concerns Department on this? Why is the Director and the numerous staff not fighting for the rights and safety of these residents? Why do they never show up when invited to attend sweeps either before or during or after? Why are they not considered beloved and respected for supporting the health and safety or all residents?
Bottom line is that this Bill attempts to address a much broader and complicated problem which plagues and taxes ALL of our resources unnecessarily. Maui county needs to have been setting up culturally based safe sleeping options a decade ago and now continues to turn a blind eye the dangerous and violent actions normalized in the county and agency neglect and processes. This Bill eliminates protections, it does not increase them. Keep it in committee or kill the bill. Moving it forward will cost us in more lives lost unnecessarily and a far greater financial burden to continue to bear.
Today is a new day. If you want a different result, try something different. Share Your Mana is here to guide new procedures and processes which strengthen the individual and the community.
Mahalo,
Lisa Seikai Darcy
Share Your Mana
lisa@shareyourmana.org
The County should ensure that our public spaces are clean and safe for all. The County and State are shutting down so many parking areas, fishing areas, and shoreline access areas because of the all the houseless filing our shoreline areas with stolen cars, drug activity, urine and feces everywhere, feral dogs and cats, trash, causing fire hazards, threatening behavior, and scaring off hardworking folks who just want to be able to enjoy parks and shoreline areas after working hard to support our families. Most unsheltered are UNABLE to be housed within our community because of their life choices, they choose to do drugs and act nuts, no one wants to live with that behavior. Why is there this focus on those who don't work and just use drugs, rob and steal, to provide them housing options and services, there are more people who are struggling with 3 jobs and 3 kids and there's no mandatory requirement to help those to be housed?? This is ridiculous, help those who help themselves FIRST!!! Also is Gabe Johnson prepared to provide housing and services for all houseless in the world, because he is just inviting all the unsheltered in Hawaii and from America to come to Maui and use our services. Didn't he put forward a housing bill a couple of years ago to prioritize by length of residency? Does this houseless empowerment bill address providing services by length of residency? This just encourages fresh off the plane houseless to inundate our county. These lame so called advocates just advocate for houseless to remain status quo, not really helping to get them off the street. looks like all these so called advocates just want to post on social media when they drop a bottle of water and snack and act like they doing something while living off grants and making job security for themselves.
Hawai’i has an opportunity to be a leader Nationally when it comes to shelter services with all of the amazing number of advocates, supporting Ohana and the aloha spirit leading the way.
However, first, we need to put a few key structure pieces in place to ensure the safety, longevity, and success of the program.
Shelter Services need to be run by shelter programs including participating clinical support. Shelter programs and clinical support are already trained and versed in working with all phases of mental health including SDOH such as unsheltered individuals and families.
These programs and services do need oversight by State, County and regulation agencies.
A stakeholder group that consists of the above and advocates could do just that.
Shelter services can train and employ navigators to navigate the streets and offer placement.
This service would be conducted by the Navigation team and not referred as “sweep the streets.”
Their belongings will be taken to the shelter service, which will give each shelter participant the same amount of storage space for their stay during programming.
9.37.060 section of Bill #111 (2024) - Prior to removing an encampment, the county must identify alternative locations for encampment occupants.
Keeping the participants with their belongings in a new type of shelter that offers care, supports autonomy and hope, provides supportive services, works with individuals on their individual stages of change, and manages all aspects of the shelter life from navigator, case manager, counselor, coach, mentor to peer, lead training support and advocacy.
Evidence-based best and current measurements are crucial and need to be in place to document not only the success of the participants but tracking to make sure their personal individual treatment plans are in place, updated and followed by all participating providers.
HMIS tracking numbers and services required by HUD will be properly documented giving participants the potential ability to receive permanent housing per the BNL (by name list) a national record system that tracks homelessness from state to state and gives a clear picture of eligibility.
This also assists in the possibility of some participants may have been unsheltered in other States. This can open doors for more collaboration and possible funding sources.
Thank you for letting me share. We would like to be part of the new shelter planning in any capacity the Council sees fit.
We are requesting a meeting with the Council, if interested.
Mahalo,
Josette Sullins – Josette@godehp.com, admin@dehpcare.com
Aloha Chair Sinenci and Committee members,
For consideration.
BILL 111 (2024), TO ESTABLISH PROCEDURES FOR THE REMOVAL AND STORAGE OF PERSONAL PROPERTY IN PUBLIC PLACES AND A RIGHT TO SHELTER (WASSP-13):
In order to stop moving this problem around, all financial resources need to be focused on actions which are proven to assist lifting those out of Maui County’s system generated circumstances. While I recognize the intent of Bill 111 comes from a place of concern and this is the basis for noble change, because the below answers have not been answered and have not influenced the structure/context of this evolution, the below questions need to be answered/incorporated before this Bill 111 moves out of committee. If they are not answered, AGAIN we simply push the problem onto the next group to figure out. As established in the successful argument by the ACLU HI at the Hawai’i Supreme Court last year in Davis vs Bissen for the removal of personal property and procedural deficits, the new version of Bill 111 continues allows for the violation of basic human and civil rights which the Justices did acknowledge in the County’s disregard of Ke Kānāwai Māmalahoe.
A. How does Maui county assess the efficacy of these actions? Where are the public reports to demonstrate how effective the methods used in sweeps are or are not?
How much is spent by the County each year on these actions including # of people housed or forced to relocate?
How many staff does it take? How many Department heads and other nonprofit staff members are involved?
How many county and nonprofit agencies are involved and why don’t they work to coordinate each time?
What is the amount spent on outreach workers vs police and sheriff presence?
What is the smoothest most effective, efficient method of housing people?
B. Why isn’t the county or the Council or the Maui Homeless Alliance focusing on:
1. The FACT that there is no available safe living/sleeping spaces? Period. Oahu has broad diversity in their approaches to exiting this system. Maui continues to be intentionally ignored.
2. The actual methods to house people? The County deemed the pallet housing project during Covid as a success and yet it was removed and never set up again. Why, when there has been no increase in sheltering beds/spaces (since the fires a decrease) has the county refused to put these funds into evidence-based methods which were proven to be successful? Why are they continuing to engage in harmful practices instead?
C. The National Center for Disease Control - CDC has for years reported on the harm of sweeps, there is no evidence these actions do more good than harm. There is evidence of the harm they cause, by breaking up support networks, interrupting agency connections, reducing the amount of community support such as food delivery and health and hygiene assistance which deters hospital visits, and the needed sense of routine which guides our every day. There is no evidence these aggressive interactions produce successful housing connections as they were originally designed.
D. FYI - designed under the Arakawa administration with leadership from every department head and a representative from most of the active Maui Homeless Alliance HUD funded agencies in the county over the course of about 8 meetings, some several hours in length, sweeps started over 10 years ago. I participated I believe in all but one and attended and documented my first sweep on Baldwin beach in 2012.
E. The County has spent years breaking up “encampments” and scattering people. No resources have been spent to determine where people are scattered to and whether they will be in more danger than previously noted. In the evolution of Bill 111, it notes and encampment of 5 or more. That gives the county permission to wipe out anyone who is in a group of 4 or less with no paper trail or designated supports. The Maui Homeless Alliance has not addressed one of these issues in years. Evidence shows people who congregate together are able to share resources and improve stability. The Maui Homeless Alliance agencies are receiving funds while actively supporting practices which the Department of Housing and Urban Development openly advise against...with no other alternatives established.
F. When we say “The County” it defers any responsibility that there is any one person who is making these decisions, when indeed the buck does stop somewhere. Where is the Director of the Human Concerns Department on this? Why is the Director and the numerous staff not fighting for the rights and safety of these residents? Why do they never show up when invited to attend sweeps either before or during or after? Why are they not considered beloved and respected for supporting the health and safety or all residents?
Bottom line is that this Bill attempts to address a much broader and complicated problem which plagues and taxes ALL of our resources unnecessarily. Maui county needs to have been setting up culturally based safe sleeping options a decade ago and now continues to turn a blind eye the dangerous and violent actions normalized in the county and agency neglect and processes. This Bill eliminates protections, it does not increase them. Keep it in committee or kill the bill. Moving it forward will cost us in more lives lost unnecessarily and a far greater financial burden to continue to bear.
Today is a new day. If you want a different result, try something different. Share Your Mana is here to guide new procedures and processes which strengthen the individual and the community.
Mahalo,
Lisa Seikai Darcy
Share Your Mana
lisa@shareyourmana.org