Driving the increased food problems, according to the survey, are low pay for jobs, unemployment, cuts in food stamp contained in last year's welfare reform law, high housing costs and low benefits in public assistance programs. Requests for emergency shelter increased by three percent in 1997, the smallest increase in the history of the annual survey. Both of these estimates are the highest ever reported, and for homeless families, the estimates are higher still. The year before they decreased by an average of 2.5 percent. In addition, no new Section 8 certificates which subsidize rents for low income households are being funded by the federal government, and this is translating into longer waits for assisted housing, more overcrowding and increased homelessness, according to officials surveyed.
Causes of homelessness are diverse and complex, based on responses to the survey.
This year, substance abuse and the lack of needed services were identified by 81 percent of the cities as one of the main causes of homelessness. Lack of affordable housing was cited as a main cause in 78 percent of the cities. The composition of the homeless population has changed little in recent years, the survey shows, with single men, at 47 percent, continuing as the largest group seeking help and families with children, at 36 percent, continuing to represent a significant portion of the population. Substance abusers, officials estimate, constitute 43 percent of the population. No cities expect demand for food or shelter to be lower.