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RESEARCHED DATA SUPPORTS COMMUNITY CONCERNS ABOUT CRIME, DRUG AND ALCOHOL ADDICTION - HOMELESSNESS STUDIES AND RESEARCH CONFIRM RAMPANT CRIME, DRUG USE AND MENTAL ILLNESS (ALL CITED STUDIES ARE AVAILABLE ONLINE OR BY REQUEST)

 

  • Recognized research date rebuts the false narrative that homelessness is caused by unaffordable housing for working people- a fraction of the real problem: drug addition and mental illness.  The progressive homelessness industry and politicians conceal the facts.

  • Facing these facts head on is not cruel or compassionless. 

 

Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability (OPPAGA Homeless Sex Offender Data 2021, directed by Section 943.04353, Florida Statutes, OPPAGA studied the effectiveness of Florida’s sexual offender registration process and public notification provisions, citing FDLE data) 

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  •  “Approximately 6% of registered sex offenders living in Florida communities are homeless or transient, with rates varying by county and ranging from 0% to over 25%. Sheriffs’ offices reported that homelessness among sex offenders presents challenges to verifying offenders’ locations and determining compliance with residency requirements.” 

 

Homelessness & Addiction Statistics in Florida. Adam Sigel, Clinically reviewed by Olympic Behavioral Health. 2024

  • Homelessness among individuals with serious mental illness and substance abuse disorders in Florida rose by 35% from 2022 to 2023, increasing from 6,755 to 9,140 people.

  • 38% of homeless in Florida are alcohol-dependent

  • 26% misuse other drugs

  • In 2020, fentanyl led to the highest number of drug-related deaths in Florida, accounting for 5,302 fatalities. This was followed by cocaine, which cause 2,400 deaths, and ethyl alcohol, which resulted in 1,389 deaths. Report by Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services.

  • Homelessness and addiction are closely linked issues that impact many Floridians.

  • 61% of Floridians worry about their safety daily, ranking the state eighth in in safety concerns…75% believe crime is increasing in the state.

  • IT’S NOT ILLEGAL TO BE HOMELESS IN FLORIDA PER SE.

 

Substance Use Disorder and Homelessness. Addition Demographics, Edited by Amanda Lauteri, Sr. Web Content Editor at American Addiction Centers.

  • substance misuse can play a significant role in homelessness by making it difficult to perform well at a job.

  • NCH also lists domestic violence, addiction and mental illness as major factors that lead to the loss of permanent housing.  National Coalition for the Homeless.

  • 25% with a mental illness have a co-occurring substance abuse disorder. In the homeless population it is DOUBLE.  NCH.

  • KR or “spice” is highly prevalent among the homeless populations.

  • 20% of the homeless in the U.S. are severely mentally ill (schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, etc.)   HUD.

  • Homeless who receive mental health or substance abuse disorder treatment… have difficulty following through with a therapeutic program or complying with a medication regimen.  In general, drug treatment patients with dual diagnosis (approximately half the homeless people with substance abuse disorder) have poorer attendance and higher dropout rates than others.  HUD

 

How Common Is Illegal Drug Use Among People Who Are Homeless?, 2023 California Statewide Study of People Experiencing Homelessness (CASHEH), by Victoria Colliver.

  • 37% reported regular drug use in the prior six months.

  • 65% reported using illicit drugs regularly, or at least three times a week, at some point in their life.

  • 33% said they had used meth at least three times a week in the last six months.

  • 10% reported regular opioid use.

 

The Tragic Relationship Between Substance Use and Homelessness. 2025 Solutions for Change. Vista, Cal.

  • substance abuse and homelessness have had a mutually destructive relationship that has dragged and trapped millions of vulnerable people and families into a costly and deadly churn of recidivism.

  • “…science was thrown out and replaced with what is now becoming recognized as one of the worst policy mistakes around housing and humans since the failed tenement experiment that sprung from President Johnson’s war on poverty-HOUSING FIRST.

  • Housing alone will not solve homelessness unless we address the root causes of homelessness like substance use and codependency.

 

The Correlation Between Addiction and Homelessness (United States Conference of Mayors, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration SAMHSA), medically reviewed by Kent Hoffman, D.O. 2025 AddictionHelp.com

  • Homeless people suffer from alcohol and drug addition at a higher rate than those who have permanent residences.

  • Many homeless people find themselves in their current situation due to their addition. As a result of their addiction, they might have lost their houses because they could no longer pay their bills, or their partner or spouse might have thrown them out.

  • Approximately 38% of all homeless people abuse alcohol.

  • About 26% of all homeless people abuse drugs.

  • Close to two-thirds of homeless veterans suffer from alcohol or drug abuse.

  • Homeless people are nine times more likely to die from an opioid overdose than the general population.

 

 

Toward a New Understanding-California Statewide Study of People Experiencing Homelessness.  June 2023, University of California San Francisco Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative:

  • The research team used best practices to recruit a representative sample of all adults experiencing homelessness in California, whether they be young or old, in family units with children or single, sheltered or unsheltered, and using services or not.  [The study used] questionnaires… in-depth interviews…[and] community advisory boards…p. 12.

  • Participants reported high lifetime rates of mental health and substance use challenges.  The majority (82%) reported a period in their life they experienced a serious mental health condition.  More than a quarter (27%) had been hospitalized for a mental health condition…[n]early two thirds (65%) reported having had a period in their life where they used illicit drugs. 

  • Almost two thirds (62%) reported having had a period in their life with heavy drinking (defined as drinking at least three times a week to get drunk, or heavy intermittent drinking). 

  • More than half (57%) who ever had regular use of illicit drugs or regular heavy alcohol use had ever received treatment.  P. 5.

  • 60% reported chronic disease. P. 7

  • Two third(66%) noted symptoms of mental health conditions currently, including serious depression (48%), anxiety ( 51%), trouble concentrating or remembering (37%), and hallucinations (12%).  P. 7.

  • Almost one third (31%) reported regular use of methamphetamines, 3% cocaine, and 11% non-prescribed opioids.  Sixteen percent reported heavy episodic drinking.  Nearly one quarter ( 24%) noted that substance use currently caused them health, legal, or financial problems.  P. 8. 

  • More than one third (36%) of participants met criteria for chronic homelessness. P. 24.

  • 23% reported having experience hallucinations…in their lifetime.  P. 26

  • One in three participants (31%) attempted suicide at some point in their lifetime. P. 26.

  • Nearly two thirds (65%) or participants reported ever using either amphetamines, cocaine, or non-prescribed opioids regularly(at least three times a week).  More that half (56%)  reported having had a period where they used amphetamines regularly, one third (33%) reported lifetime regular cocaine use, and one in five (22%) reported regular non-prescribed opioid use in their life…26% had used injection drugs. P. 27.

  • 62% reported they drank alcohol three or more times a week to the point where they felt buzzed or drunk…p. 28.

  • Nineteen percent of all participants entered homeless directly from an institutional setting; 8% entered from a prolonged jail stay and 6% from prison. P. 35.

  • Twenty-two percent reported that lost or reduced income was the reason for losing their last housing. P. 37.

  • 13% of participants reported violence or abuse as a reason for leaving their last housing ( “20% of all cis-women and 9% of all cis-men”). P. 39.

  • Social reasons for leaving last housing: 38% conflict among residents; 20% conflict with property owner’ 14% violence or abuse in the household; 10% substance abuse in the household; 6% conflict with neighbors/concerns about neighborhood safety. P. 40. 

  • Participants residing in congregate shelters reported…burdensome rules about securing a bed, curfews, and the need to vacate during the day as disincentives to shelter stays. Those living in unsheltered settings perceived the case management services offered in shelters to be ineffective for securing permanent housing. P. 53.

  • Sixty percent of participants reported having at least one chronic health conditions and 28% at last two (diabetes, cancer, HIV/AIDS, chronic kidney disease, hypertension, heart problems or stroke, liver disease, asthma or COPD).  P. 54.

  • 38% of participants reported a visit to the ED that did not result in hospitalization. P. 58.

  • 21% reported an inpatient hospitalization in the last six months. P. 58.

  • Of all participants, 45% currently used either methamphetamines, cocaine or non-prescribed opioids three or more times weekly or engaged in heavy episodic drinking (6 drinks) at least once a month. P. 63.

  • 70% smoke cigarettes. p. 64.

  • 13% were under community supervision, either parole (from prison) or probation (from jail).  Nearly a third (30%) of participants reported a jail stay during their current episode of homelessness. P. 65.

  • Seventy percent reported that it had been longer than two years since they last worked a paying job for 20 hours a week or more. P. 67.

  • 52% of participants indicated that they were unable to work due to problems related to their older age, health or disability. P 68.

  • 53% reported a lack of documents as a barrier to finding permanent housing.  P. 77.

  • 37% of participants spent time in prison and 77% spent time in jail at some point in their lifetimes. 30% of all participants had a jail stay during their current episode. P. 87.

 

State of Homelessness: 2024 Edition (Soucy, Janes and Hall)

  • the homeless population is growing as the system is overwhelmed by a constant stream of new people. P. 4

  • shortage of affordable housing drives homelessness. P. 10 (no mention of mental health or drug addition at all).

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