Center on Wealth & Poverty

In partnership with the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced the new “Best Practices Toolkit: Addressing Homelessness and Addiction Through Housing First.” From the press release: This first-of-its-kind resource provides communities with practical and proven strategies to help Americans transition from homelessness and addiction to recovery and self-sufficiency. This toolkit advances a “Treatment First” model that prioritizes coordinated and accountability-driven engagement in evidence-based treatment and recovery support services to ensure access to effective, comprehensive, and evidence-based care necessary for homeless individuals. “It’s a policy change many of us who have spent time on the frontlines serving the homeless have been arguing for,” Senior Read More ›

Kevin Dahlgren appeared on Newsmax on July 22, 2026, alongside Harrison Baum to discuss the suffering and exploitation of the homeless in Skid Row. Dahlgren described Skid Row as one of the worst and most corrupt places he has ever been. It’s “the embodiment of radicalized policies run amok,” he explained.

San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie signed legislation on July 29 to expand drug-free permanent supportive housing in the city. From The Voice of San Francisco, reporting back in April: The legislation would require all city-funded permanent supportive housing to be drug-free, adopting the same lease rules governing evictions for illicit drug use that apply to every standard residential lease in San Francisco. Of San Francisco’s roughly 9,000 site-based permanent supportive housing units, only 42 are designated as drug-free. Mayor Lurie said of the legislation: Our administration is transforming how the city confronts the homelessness and behavioral health crisis. We are not just getting people off the streets; we are helping them achieve long-term stability and recovery by standing up the Read More ›

KOMO News hosted a Town Hall on Western Washington’s homelessness crisis on July 13. The Town Hall panel included Daniel Malone, Executive Director of the Downtown Emergency Service Center (DESC); Andrea Suarez, Founder and Executive Director of We Heart Seattle; Jon Scholes, President and CEO of the Downtown Seattle Association; and Dominique Alex, CEO of Mary’s Place. Among the topics discussed were the root causes of chronic homelessness, whether current policies hurt or help the problem, Housing First and harm reduction, untreated mental illness and substance use disorder, and family homelessness. While Malone of DESC repeatedly emphasized the importance of housing and the role of affordability in homelessness, Suarez strongly advocated for a “treatment first” approach in order to tackle Read More ›

SEATTLE, WA — The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently released its 2026 grant criteria for $4 billion in homelessness funding, with a major shift toward treatment, recovery, and renewed self-sufficiency for all who are able. “Federal reforms have finally created space for local leaders to put treatment and recovery back at the center of homelessness policy,” says Discovery Institute President Steve Buri. “Real compassion means helping people reclaim stability and dignity, not leaving them trapped in addiction and illness without a path to restoration.” Discovery Institute has updated its essential policy brief, calling on local governments, Continuums of Care (CoCs), and service agencies to leverage these new federal reforms and make treatment and recovery central to Read More ›

SEATTLE, WA — “The homelessness crisis has been misrepresented as a housing problem. It’s not,” says Tom Wolf, homelessness and drug policy expert. “For many people living on the streets, the underlying issues are addiction, mental illness, or both.” Discovery Institute is pleased to announce that Tom Wolf has joined its Fix Homelessness initiative as a Senior Fellow. A leading advocate for treatment-centered responses to homelessness and addiction, Wolf brings both policy expertise and deeply personal experience to the role. Wolf’s journey into advocacy began with his own struggle. Following foot surgery in 2017, he was prescribed opioid pain medication. What began as a medical treatment developed into addiction, eventually leading to homelessness on the streets of San Francisco and Read More ›

The National News Desk just released an article that quotes Fix Homelessness Senior Fellow Tom Wolf. The article discusses the findings of the annual report on homelessness from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Wolf is a formerly homeless recovering Heroin and Fentanyl addict from San Francisco who is now an internationally recognized Recovery Advocate.

Jonathan Choe and Brandi Kruse give an inside look into the open-air drug use, mental illness, and sale of drugs/stolen goods plaguing downtown Seattle streets and parks — problems city leaders now appear eager to move out of sight before hundreds of thousands of visitors arrive. An estimated ~750,000 people are expected to visit Seattle during the FIFA World Cup beginning in June 2026. In preparation, Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson is accused of pushing homeless encampments and activity out of the downtown core and into surrounding areas. Former Mayor Bruce Harrell faced criticism for similar tactics, including downtown sweeps and distributing visitor maps highlighting “safe” routes for tourists to avoid areas overwhelmed by homelessness, drug use, and crime.

Kevin Dahlgren and Jonathan Choe recently appeared on Newsmax’s Finnerty, hosted by Rob Finnerty, to discuss their joint investigation with Frontlines TPUSA and other independent journalists into a cash-for-ballots scheme in Skid Row. Dahlgren and Choe explain how ballot initiative workers are paying the homeless to fraudulently sign petitions in Los Angeles’ notoriously drug-infested and crime-ridden Skid Row. Dahlgren called the scheme “irresponsible, exploitative, cruel, illegal.” Skid Row’s Cash-for-Ballots Scheme Watch the full investigative video here:

Update 3/5: The State Senate passed HB 2266, with amendments. The bill will now go back to the House to be reconsidered. A vote is expected the week of 3/9. Please call your local Representative today! Update 3/9: The House passed HB 2266. The bill will go to the Governor’s desk for signature. More than 20,000 people are living on the streets in Washington state, most of them suffering from an untreated mental illness and/or drug addiction. HB 2266 is currently moving through the Washington State legislature to make it easier to develop subsidized housing and emergency shelters in the style of the failed Housing First policy. This bill would override local ordinances and zoning laws, put residents in real Read More ›