Contact: Michael Stoops, mstoops@nationalhomeless.org, 202.462.4822 ext. 19

NCH Calls on Congress to “Bring America Home”
at National Event Commemorating the 20th Anniversary of
The Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act

Washington, DC – The National Coalition for the Homeless, the nation’s oldest national homeless advocacy organization, commemorated the upcoming 20th anniversary of passage of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act by calling on Congress to pass the Bringing America Home Act, a comprehensive measure designed to end homelessness once and for all by addressing its root causes and its tragic effects.

The McKinney Act (now named the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act), passed in 1987, is the first – and only – coordinated, federal response to homelessness in the United States. The National Coalition for the Homeless was the lead organization in the fight to pass the McKinney Act during the 1980s.

NCH made its call to action on the Bringing America Home Act at a Capitol Hill event convened by national organizations to commemorate the McKinney Act Anniversary.

The Bringing America Home Act, which will be re-introduced by Representative Julia Carson (D-IN) later this year, focuses on the systematic and programmatic public policy changes necessary to end poverty and its most extreme manifestation, homelessness. Representative Carson has introduced the Bringing America Home Act since the 108th Congress, and several of its provisions, such as a National Affordable Housing Trust Fund, are making their way through Congress as independent measures.

“The McKinney Act anniversary allows us to reflect on what we are still lacking in this nation for our poorest neighbors – a guarantee of permanent affordable housing; incomes at livable wages; affordable and comprehensive health insurance; and protections of the civil rights of those current experiencing homelessness,” said Michael Stoops, Acting Executive Director of the National Coalition for the Homeless.

“The McKinney Act, when first adopted, was intended to be just the first step in a larger homelessness response plan. It’s time for Congress to complete the job from 20 years ago and Bring America Home,” said Stoops.

Please download "10 Steps to Prevent and End Homelessness Right Now."

For more information, please visit the website www.mckinney20th.org.