WASHINGTON—Ranking Member Mike Lee (R-UT) released a new Joint Economic Committee report this week outlining policies to reduce homelessness. Driven by drug abuse, deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill, family instability, and high housing costs, homelessness is a growing problem in U.S. cities across the country. 

While federal and state governments have tried to address homelessness through a "Housing First" approach that provides permanent housing with low barriers to entry, the JEC's report finds that the Housing First approach is costly and has failed to address deeper problems that often drive homelessness.

The JEC's report provides policy recommendations that address the underlying causes of homelessness. Policymakers should stop prioritizing Housing First as a solution to homelessness and focus on approaches that lead to improved well-being, including addiction recovery, mental health, and employment.

Ranking Member Lee said, "Solutions to help the homeless build happy, healthy lives should focus on addressing addiction, severe mental illness, and other barriers that stand in the way of moving out of poverty and connecting with community." 

Read the full report here.

The Joint Economic Committee is Congress's bicameral economic research center and home of the Social Capital Project, led by Ranking Member Mike Lee.