Today, the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty has reached a milestone. For over 16 years, we have responded to the growing outrage of homelessness in our country by harnessing the power of justice to protect the human rights of America's homeless and poor and shift public policy toward real, concrete solutions. We are moving in new directions and would like to keep you informed with the most up- to-date information about NLCHP successes and upcoming events. Through this and upcoming issues, you will receive monthly updates, invitations to upcoming conferences and events, legislative action alerts, and notices of internship and volunteer opportunities. We will notify you of new NLCHP publications and our work to end homelessness and poverty.

The federal Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) of 2005, introduced in the Senate as S. 1997 and in the House of Representatives as H.R. 2876, contains groundbreaking new housing provisions for battered women, says a national legal advocacy organization working against homelessness. According to NLCHP, one of the leading architects of the housing provisions contained in the bipartisan federal legislation, the bill significantly expands the housing rights of battered women and their families. A bipartisan effort to reauthorize the existing law and expand its protections, VAWA 2005, was introduced by Senators Joseph Biden (D-DE), Orrin Hatch (R- UT), and Arlen Specter (R-PA) in the Senate and by Representatives Mark Green (R-WI) and John Conyers (D-MI) in the House of Representatives.

"VAWA 2005 takes major new strides towards preventing and ending homelessness and violence against women in the U.S. The new housing and homelessness programs and legal protections available to homeless and low-income victims of domestic and sexual violence under the pending legislation represent groundbreaking inroads for victims whose housing status is vulnerable," says Naomi Stern, staff attorney with NLCHP's Domestic Violence Program.

Over the past year, NLCHP has received reports from advocates in Little Rock, Arkansas about police harassment of homeless persons. Recently, several homeless persons with bus tickets reported being kicked out of a main bus station in Little Rock by police officers. In response to these police actions, NLCHP Civil Rights Attorney, Tulin Ozdeger, wrote letters to the Little Rock Police Department and the Central Arkansas Transit Authority highlighting the legal problems with such activity and encouraging them to stop these practices. This letter was featured in the article "Not ejecting homeless, CATA, LR police say," in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on June 23, 2005. NLCHP continues to work with advocates and service providers in Little Rock to end police harassment of homeless Little Rock residents.

Battered immigrant women and their families may experience many barriers in gaining meaningful access to housing and shelter through the federal public and subsidized housing and shelter programs. Yet federal public and subsidized housing and shelter programs remain a badly needed resource for immigrant women who are experiencing or fleeing domestic violence. Federal law in some of these areas remains unsettled. Joyce Noche, Legal Momentum Immigrant Women Program staff attorney, and Naomi Stern, NLCHP Domestic Violence Program staff attorney, provided an overview of the federal housing and shelter landscape for battered immigrant women in an audio training. The training included a review of special issues for battered immigrant women in the major federal housing and shelter programs and applicable federal law, regulations, and guidance.

Missed an audio training? Copies are available for purchase. Visit our website at www.nlchp.org or contact NLCHP at (202) 638-2535.

NLCHP Pro Bono attorney and Goodwin Proctor partner Jeffrey Simes will be honored as the pro bono lawyer of the year at the ABA's annual meeting in August. Taking the lead on a case NLCHP filed in 2004, Jeffrey Simes works on behalf of homeless children in Suffolk County, New York. Under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, children and youth who are affected by homelessness have the right to go to school. Among its many benefits, McKinney-Vento requires immediate enrollment and necessary services. The children in Suffolk County faced difficulties enrolling in school, continuing their education in their school of origin, and obtaining transportation services. Simes continues to work closely with NLCHP, the Long Island Advocacy Center, and the children affected as the last details of a settlement are negotiated.

For an individual fleeing domestic violence, obtaining and maintaining housing independent from the abuser is a critical step towards safety. Many low-income domestic violence victims cite their fear of homelessness as the reason for remaining with the abuser. For low-income victims and victims with children, the process of obtaining and maintaining housing can be especially difficult. Local and national advocacy efforts to address these barriers are emerging. In collaboration with San Diego Family Justice Center in San Diego, NLCHP Domestic Violence Program staff attorney, Naomi Stern, explored policy and practice recommendations for local advocates. Stern's training discussed special issues for victims living in public and subsidized housing with specific attention to policy and practice recommendations in domestic violence and housing.

If you are in the San Diego area and would like more information about upcoming trainings, contact NLCHP at (202) 638-2535.

The U.S. Department of Education released draft regulations for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 2004. Responsive to NLCHP recommendations, the draft regulations include new provisions that affect services for unaccompanied youth. Final implementation of the regulations would lead to increased special education access for youth unwanted by their families and living on their own.

On July 14, the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty held a brown bag lunch for summer associates sponsored by NLCHP's LEAP program. The event was held at the law offices of LEAP chair Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson LLP.

Over 30 associates from firms participating in NLCHP's LEAP program RSVP'd for the event, showing the commitment of these young, future lawyers to the issues of homelessness and poverty. This commitment is exemplified by the firms at which these associates chose to spend their summers.

Firms participating in NLCHP's LEAP program lend financial and pro bono support to further the work of NLCHP to help homeless and poor Americans achieve self-sufficiency. Eleven outstanding firms currently participate in the program.

Ed McNicholas and Pat Linehan, attorneys at Sidley Austin Brown & Wood LLP, and Carolyn Rosenthal of Goodwin Proctor LLP, also attended the event and discussed their work with NLCHP. Both firms are LEAP members.