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Estimates of Homeless People by state, 2016: HUD's 2016 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress.

(U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development)

While homelessness across the nation continues to decline, Oregon has the highest percentage of homeless families with children not living in a shelter, according to the latest national estimate by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

The 2016 Annual Homeless Assessment Report estimates that 59.1 percent of Oregon's homeless families with children spent the night on the street or in a car, park or another public or private place that is not normally seen as sleeping accommodations.

And while the number of people experiencing homelessness as part of a family

with children decreased in 41 states from 2015 to 2016, the report says Oregon had a 2.5 percent increase, the fifth highest in the nation.

Overall, 60.5 percent of Oregon's estimated 13,238 homeless people were unsheltered, the second highest after California. Almost 84 percent of chronically homeless people, 64.4 percent of unaccompanied homeless youth and 55 percent of homeless veterans live on the streets in Oregon, according to the report.

The report, released Nov. 17, is based on a survey taken on one night in January of people living on the streets or in emergency shelters and transitional housing programs in 3,000 cities and counties across the nation.

Unlike some cities, a Point-In-Time Report is conducted every two years in Multnomah County. The last one was in 2015 and the next one is set for January 2017.

The national one-night snapshot is reviewed with data from the U.S. Housing Survey, Department of Education and other sources to estimate the scope of homelessness and progress toward reducing it.

When compared to past nationwide results, the number of homeless families, veterans and people with long-term disabilities in the U.S. has been reduced, as has the number of people who are considered chronically homeless.

HUD's 2016 report to Congress found that 549,928 people across the U.S. experienced homelessness, which is a drop of 14 percent since 2010, the year the Obama Administration launched Opening Doors, a joint action by federal agencies and local and state partners in the public and private sectors.

Opening Doors works to create a national strategy to connect mainstream housing, health, education and human service programs to prevent and end homelessness.

Despite declines in homelessness, HUD Secretary Julian Castro said in a news release that the number of "doubled up" or rent-burdened families remains a problem.

Oregon has the highest percentage of families with children living unsheltered

In a separate report released by the Oregon Department of Education on Nov. 22, the number of Oregon students who can't go home to a safe place they call their own has grown to a record 21,340, or 3.7 percent of the state's public school enrollment.

Children First for Oregon recently reported that rising rents and slow-to-recover earnings were to blame for many Oregon children and their families' dire economic circumstances.

According to HUD's 2016 Annual Homeless Assessment Report, on a single night in January 2016, state and local planning agencies reported:

Most homeless people (373,571) were located in emergency shelters or transitional housing programs while 176,357 persons were unsheltered.

The number of families with children experiencing homelessness was 61,265, a 23 percent decrease since 2010. The report attributed this to the expansion of Rapid Rehousing Programs and local planners reallocating resources.

Veteran homelessness fell by nearly 50 percent since 2010 mainly due to collaboration between HUD and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' HUD-VA Supportive Housing program, which issues rental vouchers. On a single night in January 2016, 39,471 veterans were experiencing homelessness.

Chronic or long-term homelessness among individuals declined by 27 percent (or 77,486 persons) since 2010 due to an increase in permanent supportive housing opportunities.

The number of unaccompanied homeless youth and children appeared to decline in 2016 to 35,686 though HUD will take a more targeted survey in January 2017.

Half of all people experiencing homelessness did so in one of five states: California (22% or 118,142 people); New York (16% or 86,352 people); Florida (6% or 33,559 people); Texas (4% or 23,122 people); and Washington (4% or 20,827 people).

In four states, more than half of all people experiencing homelessness lived in unsheltered locations: California (66%), Oregon (60.5%), Hawaii (54%), and Nevada (53%).

- Janet Eastman

503-799-8739