Homeless Coalition Pushing New Taxes To Alleviate ?Crisis?

[Gman]

Homeless Coalition Pushing New Taxes To Alleviate ?Crisis? (https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/news/homeless-coalition-pushing-new-taxes-to-alleviate-crisis/ar-BBZqgZi)

Sure. Just throw more money at it. That'll work.

DENVER (CBS4) ? Some Denver voters will soon be asked how they would feel about paying increased sales taxes, property taxes and other taxes to raise $50 million to $55 million a year to support Denver?s homeless population. The Colorado Coalition for the Homeless said Tuesday they are hiring a pollster to begin the process of getting a tax increase on the November 2020 ballot.https://c-5uwzmx78pmca90x24quo-a-uav-kwux2eisiuiqhmlx2evmb.g01.msn.com/g00/3_c-5eee.uav.kwu_/c-5UWZMXPMCA90x24pbbx78ax3ax2fx2fquo-a-uav-kwu.isiuiqhml.vmbx2fbmvivbx2fiux78x2fmvbqbgqlx2fJJ HycVk.quox3fpx3d788x26ex3d9376x26ux3d4x26yx3d48x26 wx3dnx26tx3dnx26q98k.uizsx3dquiom_$/$/$/$/$? Provided by CBS Denverhttps://c-5uwzmx78pmca90x24quo-a-uav-kwux2eisiuiqhmlx2evmb.g01.msn.com/g00/3_c-5eee.uav.kwu_/c-5UWZMXPMCA90x24pbbx78ax3ax2fx2fquo-a-uav-kwu.isiuiqhml.vmbx2fbmvivbx2fiux78x2fmvbqbgqlx2fJJ GPqbm.quox3fpx3d788x26ex3d9376x26ux3d4x26yx3d48x26 wx3dnx26tx3dnx26q98k.uizsx3dquiom_$/$/$/$/$? Provided by CBS Denver homeless sweep(credit: CBS)

?We really want to explore as many options as possible so voters can tell us whats the most palatable to them,? said Cathy Alderman, Vice President of Communications and Public Policy for the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless.

She said the agency plans to have a polling firm in place in February to begin surveying Denver voters about a potential tax increase.
https://c-5uwzmx78pmca90x24quo-a-uav-kwux2eisiuiqhmlx2evmb.g01.msn.com/g00/3_c-5eee.uav.kwu_/c-5UWZMXPMCA90x24pbbx78ax3ax2fx2fquo-a-uav-kwu.isiuiqhml.vmbx2fbmvivbx2fiux78x2fmvbqbgqlx2fJJ HyjF4.quox3fpx3d788x26ex3d9376x26ux3d4x26yx3d48x26 wx3dnx26tx3dnx26fx3d9098x26gx3d204x26q98k.uizsx3dq uiom_$/$/$/$/$? Provided by CBS DenverCathy Alderman (credit: CBS)

?I don?t think anyone could go outside and walk around and think we are spending enough in that area? she said.

Voters will be asked how they feel about each of the following:


A potential sales tax increase of ? of 1% or an extra .25 cents for every $100 spent
At least doubling Denver?s Occupational Privilege Tax also known as the head tax. Currently employers pay $4 per month for each employee and the workers themselves are liable for a fee of $5.75 per month.
Increasing Denver property taxes
Reallocating or increasing marijuana taxes to support the homeless

Estimates are that the city of Denver currently spends about $50 million per year on homeless services and other charities, and nonprofits contribute another $90 million, according to a 2019 report. Alderman says that?s not enough to help out the more than 5,300 people in metro Denver who are homeless.

She says on an annual basis, at least another $55 million is needed for programs and services, expanding shelter operations, housing subsidies and rental assistance.
https://c-5uwzmx78pmca90x24quo-a-uav-kwux2eisiuiqhmlx2evmb.g01.msn.com/g00/3_c-5eee.uav.kwu_/c-5UWZMXPMCA90x24pbbx78ax3ax2fx2fquo-a-uav-kwu.isiuiqhml.vmbx2fbmvivbx2fiux78x2fmvbqbgqlx2fJJ HyoHn.quox3fpx3d788x26ex3d9376x26ux3d4x26yx3d48x26 wx3dnx26tx3dnx26q98k.uizsx3dquiom_$/$/$/$/$? Provided by CBS Denver(credit: CBS)

Following the February polling, Alderman said she hopes Denver City Council will work on a ballot issue in April and May. She said if council balks at a proposed tax hike, the coalition itself will likely try to get enough signatures to put a tax increase on the November 2020 ballot.

?I don?t think the money we?re spending isn?t working,? said Alderman. ?It just hasn?t kept up with the pace of growth.?

She said if the proposed tax increase is approved, spending of the money would be left up to the city?s Department of Housing Stability.

Derek Friedman, who owns several downtown retail stores, said business owners are essentially already paying the equivalent of a higher tax to deal with homelessness in the form of fewer people shopping and decreased revenues because shoppers don?t feel safe, increased security costs and difficulty recruiting and retaining workers who don?t always feel safe downtown.

He said he is not opposed to an increased sales tax to alleviate the problems.
https://c-5uwzmx78pmca90x24quo-a-uav-kwux2eisiuiqhmlx2evmb.g01.msn.com/g00/3_c-5eee.uav.kwu_/c-5UWZMXPMCA90x24pbbx78ax3ax2fx2fquo-a-uav-kwu.isiuiqhml.vmbx2fbmvivbx2fiux78x2fmvbqbgqlx2fJJ HyjF7.quox3fpx3d788x26ex3d9376x26ux3d4x26yx3d48x26 wx3dnx26tx3dnx26fx3d915x26gx3d136x26q98k.uizsx3dqu iom_$/$/$/$/$? Provided by CBS Denver(credit: CBS)

?As long as there is firm and clear accountability and very firm goals. And if the goals aren?t achieved, the tax goes away.?

Friedman said he believed increasing the head tax didn?t make sense since the minimum wage in Denver was just increased, and increasing the head tax would be a financial hardship for the very employees who just saw their wages go up.

Alderman said there have been ongoing, informal discussions with some Denver city council members about a tax increase. She said she believed this was an appropriate time to ask voters to increase taxes to support the homeless although she said, ?I anticipate some push back and lively debates and discussion. But we think it?s time to come together as a community and do better.?

They currently have about $140 million being used, but need at least another $55 million.

$195 million divided by 5300 homeless people = $36,792.45 per person

[spqrzilla]

Denver's descent into shithole begins terminal phase.

[Great-Kazoo]

Look north to ft collins to see what's on the table. The numbers per "homeless" are staggering, knowing they sure as hell ain't getting anywhere near $36k, if even $100 of that. Perhaps an audit of that "Coalition" is needed.

[TEAMRICO]

So they are being asked how they want to be taxed? How absolutely it decrease federal workers pay to cover this!

[RblDiver]

Let's see, $50 million plus $90 million divided by 5300, that's about $26k per homeless. But sure, you need to "spend more" *rolleyes*

[ray1970]

If I were homeless I might spend my summers here but would definitely migrate south before winter set in. Maybe go to Florida until spring and then come back here. Maybe this homeless coalition would give me some travel money to make my journey easier?

[Gman]

California probably has better freebies.

[Little Dutch]

The raw numbers make the whole exercise appear stupid. Throwing money away supporting the homeless obviously hasn't shown any real-world results or they would have been touting the successes they've had in the article.

[Gman]

Come on, throwing money at the problem has worked for public education. [Sarcasm2]

[Eric P]

How about $0.00 per homeless. Stop being a homeless magnet.

No support, they die off or migrate to magnets.

[ray1970]

The best use for that money would be to hire a squad of mercenaries to eliminate the homeless problem.

[Irving]

The huge camp to the Northwest of the highway at the transition from I-25 SB to I-76 WB was just cleared out and all the trees clear cut. Now those tents are just moving around to areas like down by the Pull n Pay down on Broadway.

[gnihcraes]

Homeless storage lockers being built in the lobby of my building downtown. It will be shopping cart graveyard soon. Smelly and nasty. Yay.

Some city council person seems to think its a great idea that has failed aeveral times already.

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[FoxtArt]

As other posts have mentioned it would be $36-37 thousand per "homeless" person, e.g. higher than poverty annual income for an individual. Equal to like a $19 or $20/hour full time job. Definitely insane amounts of corruption underlying those funds. Then of course you look at basic math... if you currently have 5,300 homeless, and increase money for the homeless by 33%, how many homeless do you now have?

A) 7,050 homeless. Oh shit, now we need more money again. That multiple people are getting 85% skim off the top of...

[FoxtArt]

The best spent budget is on nothing but one-way bus tickets to San Francisco, since the prime utopia has the whole homeless thing figured out so well.

[Zundfolge]

Without TABOR this would be a fait accompli.


Homeless storage lockers being built in the lobby of my building downtown.
wouldn't it be cruel to stuff the homeless into lockers?

[Gman]

I did the math for individuals based on current spending plus the minimum they expect to need for a reason. When I lived in Dallas, TX, they did the math on what was spent on Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) and their ridership. They found it would have been cheaper to buy every rider a car. That goes without the issues that plague "the homeless", but it illustrates the problem when government decides to solve a problem.

You could eventually spend enough taxpayer money to buy homes for all of "the homeless", and you would have done nothing to solve the actual problem.

[ray1970]

Did they break down how they wanted to spend this money? I mean what percentage is going towards heroine and opiates to keep the homeless in the lifestyle they?re accustomed to?

[Zundfolge]

When I lived in Dallas, TX, they did the math on what was spent on Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) and their ridership. They found it would have been cheaper to buy every rider a car ... it illustrates the problem when government decides to solve a problem.

You're assuming that you know what "problem" government was actually trying to solve.

The "problem" that mass transit is meant to solve is the problem of the people not being dependent on the political class for their very freedom of movement. The problem is independent citizens that don't need nor want to be benevolently controlled by the State.

The "problem" this tax increase to "help" the homeless is meant to solve is the problem of not enough indigent people living in your area to skew the voting patterns in the nanny state schmucks' favor. So you tax the productive (thus reducing their ability to remain self sufficient, if only by a little bit) and attract more non-productive people to the area with your generous entitlements and you get lots of people that will vote for you (or allow your operatives to vote in their stead) keeping you in power ... this is also the idea behind open borders.

[Irving]

You think homeless people are a significant percentage of any voting population?

[gnihcraes]

Without TABOR this would be a fait accompli.


wouldn't it be cruel to stuff the homeless into lockers?

Yep, not my terminology. That's what the city folk supporting it call it. Eventually dogs, cats, various other critters get stuffed into those lockers from what I've heard. Should be interesting times.

[Zundfolge]

You think homeless people are a significant percentage of any voting population?

No, but I believe people dependent on government handouts ARE a significant percentage of the voting population.

[hatidua]

-sounds like Denver took some notes on how Boulder fleeces their residents [Mad]

[Ah Pook]

-sounds like Denver took some notes on how Boulder fleeces their residents [Mad]

They have to pay for bus tickets to Nederland somehow. [sheepshagger]

Watching the spiral of Seattle, Portland, San Francisco...it's sad to see the same thing coming to/in Colorado.

[Gman]

Solving the problems of broken people are hard and actually doing the right thing isn't "compassionate".

Enabling them to wallow in their own filth is a much better answer.[Sarcasm2]

[theGinsue]

Homeless Coalition Pushing New Taxes To Alleviate ?Crisis? (https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/news/homeless-coalition-pushing-new-taxes-to-alleviate-crisis/ar-BBZqgZi)

Sure. Just throw more money at it. That'll work.


They currently have about $140 million being used, but need at least another $55 million.

$195 million divided by 5300 homeless people = $36,792.45 per person

Even without any NEW taxes, the $140M they are currently spending on their estimated 5300 homeless gets $26,415/homeless person. My son is employed and earns less than that and pays for his own apartment (not a nice one, but...) and his own food, utilities vehicle fuel and maintenance (I own the vehicle, so I register and insure it). I'm calling BULLSHIT on all of this as I see lazy assed people who expect others to pay for their poor choices, drugs, and potentially a good lifesytle.

[hurley842002]

Even without any NEW taxes, the $140M they are currently spending on their estimated 5300 homeless gets $26,415/homeless person. My son is employed and earns less than that and pays for his own apartment (not a nice one, but...) and his own food, utilities vehicle fuel and maintenance (I own the vehicle, so I register and insure it). I'm calling BULLSHIT on all of this as I see lazy assed people who expect others to pay for their poor choices, drugs, and potentially a good lifesytle.

That's some crap right there, but good on your son for being a productive member of society. I agree with Ray's solution.....


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[Eric P]

Why must we solve this?

Stop feeding the rats and they go away or die off.

[Gman]

I remember my bachelor days scraping by. Able to afford one meal a day. Do I keep the lights on or pay the phone bill? I also remember having a good month and being able to buy a 1lb. chub pack of ground beef at the grocery store (the stuff they won't put under cellophane). Guy in front me at the register is buying steak after steak after steak...and pays with food stamps. [Mad]

[Gman]

Now the "homeless" are "long-term campers".

Denver public area temporarily closed for cleanup of trash, human waste left by long-term campers (https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/denver-public-area-temporarily-closed-for-cleanup-of-trash-human-waste-left-by-long-term-campers/ar-BBZHFLa)

DENVER – The public right of way known as Sand Creek near Stapleton is closed until further notice due to public health hazards.

Denver Public Health and Environment announced Wednesday morning plans to temporarily close the area because of trash, human waste, food waste and drug paraphernalia.

Sand Creek has a bicycle path for public use but it also largely used for long-term camping.

“We look at the nature of that area in terms of waste being washed into the creek, the types of biohazard that are out there and certainly the magnitude of things that are out there,” Bob McDonald, executive director and public health administrator for Denver’s Department of Public Health and Environment said.

According to McDonald, DPHE is concerned about infectious diseases, pests and blood-borne illnesses spreading because of the waste long-term campers are leaving in the public space.

“I like living on the land and with the exception of the extreme cold, I like living outdoors,” a camper named Yeti told FOX31.

He is just one of several permanent campers who will now need to move.

Floyd Stolin and his wife Katrina have been living in a tent at Sand Creek for about a year. They say they try to keep their area clean, but it often doesn’t stay that way because other travelers dump their belongings and never return to pick them up.

“There’s a lot of stuff going on out here that shouldn’t be going on,” Stolin said. “If people were more conscientious about being cleaned up and having their area cleaned up, I don’t think it’d be that big of a problem.”

The Colorado Department of Transportation will soon begin clearing out anything left behind in Sand Creek like tents, bicycles and shopping carts. Then, DPHE will evaluate the land’s condition so CDOT can begin restoring it to a safe condition.

DPHE says the process could take up to several weeks.

[TRnCO]

what is the old saying, if you want the birds to stop coming to the feeder, stop filling the feeder.....kind of applies to many of the homeless.

[Irving]

It's easy to say that the homeless should be kicked out of cities, but I HATE seeing homeless camps when I'm out in the woods where things are supposed to be wild. Rather see them in the cities personally.

[ray1970]

I say we should give the homeless their own state. I?m thinking maybe something on the west coast. Every homeless person in the country could just migrate west until they hit the ocean and that could be their new home. Problem solved for forty-seven states. (We won?t include Alaska and Hawaii since those homeless migrating west to the ocean wouldn?t get them to the new promised land.)

[FoxtArt]

It's easy to say that the homeless should be kicked out of cities, but I HATE seeing homeless camps when I'm out in the woods where things are supposed to be wild. Rather see them in the cities personally.

It's just like garbage dumps. Each individual wants them exactly where they're personally not living or recreating. I think in a lot of ways, it should be treated as garbage dumps. Zone it, segregate it, and punish people who dump shit on the street or in the woods. Yup, that spot will look like crap, just like the county dump. But at least you can manage it. Yeah, homeless people won't like being there... but being uncomfortable with their situation leads to fewer homeless.

And yeah, just like a dump, it has to go somewhere. Neighbors could seek some compensation for property value loss or sell to the county. Deputies could pick up transients and instead of the catch-and-release waste of time, drive them over to the transump and kick them out of the car with their dump. Homeless facilities could setup there instead of next to (formerly public) parks. You could also regulate it so homeless facilities could *only* setup near the homeless zone. I bet you'd have a much higher rate of return to semi-productive society.

[Irving]

Not saying I have the answer, just my opinion that it feels worse in the woods than it does the city. Can't be great for surrounding businesses.

Every dump I've ever seen looks nicer than whatever that area in Denver is called.

[Gman]

I wonder how long it will take for enough people to figure out that getting rid of institutionalizing the mentally ill was a bad idea and much more costly to society as a whole?