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[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 452 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

<DOC>

117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 452

  Recognizing November 2021 as ``National Homeless Children and Youth 
                           Awareness Month''.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           November 16, 2021

 Mr. Manchin (for himself, Ms. Collins, Mr. Wyden, Ms. Cantwell, Mrs. 
   Feinstein, Mr. Coons, Mr. Peters, Ms. Hirono, Ms. Klobuchar, Ms. 
 Hassan, Mr. Van Hollen, Ms. Murkowski, Mr. Blumenthal, and Mr. Reed) 
 submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
  Recognizing November 2021 as ``National Homeless Children and Youth 
                           Awareness Month''.

Whereas, in the United States, public schools identified approximately 1,400,000 
        homeless children and youth during the 2018-2019 school year;
Whereas an estimated 1,300,000 children younger than 6 years of age in 2018-2019 
        and approximately 4,200,000 youth and young adults in 2017 experienced 
        homelessness, with many such children, youth, and young adults staying 
        on couches, in motels, in shelters, or outside;
Whereas infants experiencing homelessness are at a higher risk for certain 
        illnesses and health conditions, and families experiencing homelessness 
        are more likely to experience involvement in the child welfare system 
        and difficulty with school attendance;
Whereas more than 1 in 3 high school students experiencing homelessness had 
        attempted suicide, and nearly 1 in 4 high school students experiencing 
        homelessness had experienced dating violence;
Whereas individuals without a high school degree or general educational 
        development certificate (GED) are more than 3 times more likely to 
        report homelessness than their peers, making lack of education the 
        leading risk factor for homelessness;
Whereas, in 2018, the high school graduation rate for students experiencing 
        homelessness was 67.8 percent, compared to 80 percent for low-income 
        students and 85.5 percent for all students;
Whereas the rate of youth homelessness is the same in rural, suburban, and urban 
        areas;
Whereas 29 percent of unaccompanied homeless youth between 13 and 25 years of 
        age have spent time in foster care, compared to approximately 6 percent 
        of all children;
Whereas homelessness among children and youth is a complex issue that often co-
        occurs with deep poverty, low education and employment levels, substance 
        misuse and abuse, mental illness, lack of affordable housing, and family 
        conflict;
Whereas COVID-19 in the United States, which was declared a national emergency 
        under the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), has had a 
        disproportionate effect on children, youth, and families experiencing 
        homelessness; and
Whereas awareness of child and youth homelessness must be heightened to 
        encourage greater support for effective programs to help children and 
        youth overcome homelessness: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) supports the efforts of businesses, State and local 
        governments, organizations, educators, and volunteers dedicated 
        to meeting the needs of homeless children and youth;
            (2) applauds the initiatives of businesses, State and local 
        governments, organizations, educators, and volunteers that--
                    (A) use time and resources to raise awareness of 
                child and youth homelessness, the causes of such 
                homelessness, and potential solutions; and
                    (B) work to prevent homelessness among children and 
                youth;
            (3) recognizes November 2021 as ``National Homeless 
        Children and Youth Awareness Month''; and
            (4) encourages those businesses, State and local 
        governments, organizations, educators, and volunteers to 
        continue to intensify their efforts to address homelessness 
        among children and youth during November 2021.
                                 <all>
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