Alabama Gov. Riley: "I don't know how to solve all of the problems of homelessness..."

192 miles from Nashville to Birmingham and folks come up here all the time from Alabama because they've heard that Nashville is "homeless friendly." They're always so surprised to discover that our governor, mayor and city officials also "don't know how to solve all the problems of homelessness" either.... Published Tuesday, March 25, 2008 Report finds 5,391 homeless people in Alabama on average night By BOB JOHNSON Associated Press Writer MONTGOMERY, Ala. - A new report released Monday shows that on an average night in Alabama there are 5,391 homeless people on the streets or in shelters. The report by the Governor's Statewide Interagency Council on Homelessness is the first statewide survey of homelessness in Alabama. The report was presented Tuesday to Gov. Bob Riley and to Philip Mangano, director of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness. Mangano, known as the homeless czar for the Bush administration, was in Montgomery for a meeting of the state council. The report shows that 2,177 of the homeless are substance abusers, 1,077 are in families with dependent children, 1,494 are severely mentally ill and 974 are military veterans. Riley said it concerns him to know there are that many people in Alabama with no place to call home. "I don't know how to solve all of the problems of homelessness, but hopefully we can make a dramatic difference in their lives," Riley said. Mangano praised Riley's work to curtail homelessness in Alabama and said the governor will receive the national "A Home for Every American Award" on April 10 in a ceremony at the National Press Club in Washington D.C. He said Riley would be the fourth governor to receive the honor. Riley will be in China on a trade mission on that day, but will appear at the award ceremony through a television hookup. Mangano said federal officials are asking governors and local officials to show the political will needed to end homelessness. He said the Bush administration's goal is to end homelessness by finding homes and other services. "The intent now is to end the disgrace of homelessness," Mangano said. He said the intent of the national effort is to not just to find a home for people, but to also meet their other needs, such as finding them treatment for drug abuse and other problems. He said it currently costs the government and social service agencies from $35,000 to $150,000 a year per person to take care of the homeless, more than it would cost to find them permanent housing. The survey released Tuesday found that 70 percent of Alabama's homeless are men. The survey found that 64 percent of the homeless are black and 34 percent are white.