Housing, homeless advocates meet with legislators on ‘NC Housing Day'

Yahoo

10-04-2025

Rev. Dr. Latonya L. Agard, executive director of the North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness. (Photo: Greg Childress/NC Newsline)
On Wednesday, affordable housing advocates and those who support people experiencing homelessness spent the day in Raleigh making the case for additional funding to increase the state's housing supply and to expand programs that serve unhoused families and individuals.
The goal of 'NC Housing Day' is to make housing a top priority for elected officials as they develop the state's two-year budget and legislative priorities for the rest of the year, advocates said during a press conference on Bicentennial Plaza.
'We're here talking to them [lawmakers] about funding housing and how these investments have to meet the scale of the need because currently, they do not,' said Stephanie Watkins-Cruz, director of housing policy for the N.C. Housing Coalition.
Advocates also spoke with lawmakers about equitable disaster recovery funding and removing barriers to land use and development, Watkins-Cruz said.
'We're making sure that they know that they have the power to protect homeowners and renters,' she said. 'There's so much work to be done and the folks in this building [the Legislative Building] that we've elected have the power to make a lot of good change.'
Samuel Gunter, executive director of the Housing Coalition, said there are 1.1 million families in North Carolina who are burdened by housing costs. According to the group's annual County Profiles, 48% of renters and 19% of homeowners in North Carolina pay more than 30% of their income on housing. Families that spend more than 30% of income on housing are considered cost-burdened.
'There are a lot of things that make housing and its affordability really complicated, but at its core, we're talking about a very simple math problem that has two variables; how much does your housing cost and how much does your household make?' Gunter said. 'That math gets impossible the further down you go on the income spectrum.'
Making the math work for low-income families is a challenge for housing advocates everywhere, Gunter said.
'We believe that every North Carolinian deserves access to safe, stable and affordable housing,' Gunter said. 'It's foundational to educational success, to economic stability, to well-being and investing in that housing means supporting those families and individuals and local economies and ensuring our communities thrive.'
Paul Reeves, interim president and CEO of Habitat for Humanity of North Carolina, said rising costs are pricing many families out of the housing market.
'Today many North Carolinians struggle to afford a safe place to call home and if they have a safe place to call home, they're struggling to stay in that safe place to call home,' Reeves said.
He said the Housing Day event gave advocates an opportunity to amplify the need for strong affordable housing initiatives and policies and to brainstorm with lawmakers about how to tackle the housing crisis in North Carolina.
The state is facing a five-year housing inventory gap of 764,478 units (322,360 rental units and 442,118 for-sale units), according to a recent statewide report commissioned by the NC Chamber Foundation, NC REALTORS and the N.C. Homebuilders Association.
Homeless advocates take aim at bills
Dr. Latonya Agard, executive director of the North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness, said one representative asked her if she knows how many people are struggling with housing because of mental illness or drug addiction.
'My response to that representative was that I think we need to invert the question,' Agard said. 'The truth of the matter is that when people are housed, they are able to manage so many of the things that we consider to be detriments to our health.'
Agard said the trauma of homelessness exacerbates underlying issues a person may have.
'That trauma leads to the other traumas people experience like increased mental illness or instability, like increased use of controlled substances or other things,' Agard said.
The solutions, she said, are an adequate supply of affordable housing and wraparound services to address addiction and mental health issues.
Agard noted that the Coalition to End Homelessness is advocating against House Bill 437, which establishes so-called drug-free homeless service zones and increases the punishment for committing certain drug offenses in such zones. The operators of facilities in such zones would also be subject to criminal charges and fines for violations, she said.
'I think this is unconscionable because it places an unfair burden on those facilities to increase security, to figure out what this means, to reestablish relationships that are trustworthy within the community,' Agard said.
HB 437 is cosponsored by Republicans Heather Rhyne of Lincoln County, Allen Chesser of Nash County and Ray Pickett of Watauga County.
The Coalition to End Homelessness also opposes Senate Bill 724, which would prohibit 'unauthorized street camping in public parks, rights-of-way, and other public spaces.'
'It's very important that we understand that the solution is not to sweep people out of encampments and place them in a designated area with no resources simply so they can be out of sight and out of mind,' Agard said. 'What we need is more affordable housing. What we need are wraparound services. What we need is compassion for those who are the least in our community.'
SB 724 was filed by Republican Senators Ted Alexander of Cleveland County, Brad Overcash of Gaston County and Mike Lazzara or Onslow County.
Counties or municipalities that do not comply with the law would not receive state funds for homelessness assistance, prevention or services.
'The General Assembly recognizes the risk presented by unauthorized street camping, including conduct that results in the proliferation of drugs and drug paraphernalia, threats of random acts of violence, and the spread of disease and detritus, a section of the bill reads. 'It is the intention of the General Assembly to protect the people of the State of North Carolina in public spaces and rights-of-way by enacting a prohibition on unauthorized camping in public spaces.'
A similar Republican-backed bill filed last week — House Bill 781 — would make it unlawful for local governments to allow or authorize any person to 'regularly engage in public camping or sleeping on public property, including, but not limited to, public buildings or grounds and any public right-of-way.'
HB 781 provides an exception that would allow local governments by 'majority vote' to designate local government-owned property located within its jurisdiction to be used for a 'continuous period of up to one year for public camping or sleeping purposes.'
'The criminalization of homelessness, even if unintentional, really is not addressing the problem,' Watkins-Cruz said during the Housing Coalition's weekly housing call. 'We need to be focusing on preventive solutions that meet the need rather than on outdated and ineffective policies that are actually more expensive and do not address the problem, which is access to safe and affordable housing.'
Critics believe that HB 781 is backed by the Cicero Institute out of Texas, which has supported such bills in other states. The institute was founded by billionaire tech entrepreneur Joe Lonsdale, who has been critical of what he contends is a 'homeless industrial complex' whose members he alleges don't want to end homelessness in order to keep their jobs.
HB 781 is cosponsored by four Republicans — Reps. Brian Biggs, Neal Jackson, Jennifer Balkcom and Mike Schietzelt — who represent parts of Randolph, Moore, Henderson, and Wake counties.
Under the bill, counties or municipalities designating property for encampments must establish and maintain minimum stands and procedures designed to:
Ensure the safety and security of the designated property and the persons lodging or residing on the property.
Maintain sanitation, including, at a minimum, by providing access to clean and operable restrooms and running water.
Coordinate with the county health department to provide access to behavioral health services, which must include substance abuse and mental health treatment resources.
Prohibit illegal substance use and alcohol use on the designated property and enforce the prohibition against such use.