Sacramento homeless advocates speak out against new shelter voucher program

There are growing concerns and confusion over Sacramento's new emergency shelter voucher program that helps homeless families.

Advocates are demanding change after they say more families were forced to leave their motels.

"I'm calling friends and I'm like, 'Hey, can we stay here for a while?' " Amy Heckart, a program participant, said in early June. "You can't beat on the heat. It's crazy. We just want some answers from somebody, just an explanation, you know?"

This is what many unhoused families were facing at the beginning of the month when Sacramento transitioned to its new shelter voucher program.

Twenty-eight days later, advocates say it's happening again.

"The human impact, the harm is immeasurable at this point," said Niki Jones, director of the Sacramento Regional Coalition to End Homelessness. "We're trying to think of what could happen, or what we should do as a community to repair the harm. There has to be accountability."

The Sacramento Homeless Union posted on social media saying those who were placed on the 28-day voucher cycle are being forced to leave participating motels again.

The city's new program is run through a contracted organization, Step Up On Second, that aims to quickly shelter and support families with minors, with room for 200 families.

Advocates say it's just not working.

"We're really investing in a system of coercion, a system of repeated displacement, property destruction, arrests, while 88% of the people who are on the voluntary shelter wait list, on average, don't get a call back," Jones explained. "It's a policy problem."

The city says the majority of families have successfully had their second vouchers accepted at motels, but acknowledged that motels may decide whether or not to accept these vouchers since they are privately owned.

In a statement, the city said, "The Department of Community Response is aware of approximately a dozen families that have not had their second voucher accepted by certain motel owners because of violations of a motel's policies and rules." BUT 

They continued to advise participants in the program to work with case managers to ensure placement at another location. 

Advocates say that's the exact issue and they want it solved fast.

"The people in our programs deserve much better," Jones continued. "We cannot be having people exited to the streets on the whim of a hotel manager. That's not an emergency shelter program. It's something different entirely and it's not working."

According to the city, the vouchers have a $55 value and they can be renewed five times for a total of six months in the program.