It’s a purposefully provocative question, but you must admit that not everyone does. Back in December, in the pages of the Dallas Morning News, we articulated, very clearly, why our values dictate that we count each and every person experiencing homelessness. However, counting these individuals and doing so accurately, is not just about valuing each individual; it is about problem solving. The only way we can solve a problem is if we know its nature and its scope. Certainly, the only way we can know if we are making progress in solving that problem, is through continuous, careful and evidence based measurement.
Now, absolute accuracy is usually theoretical, even when measuring objects scientifically, however to dismiss the importance of trying to reach results as accurately as we can because of this, would be nihilistic. Instead, we measure as accurately as we can, and we acknowledge our limitations, up front, before we even start to measure. If we properly minimize our limitations, as much as we can, we can reach valid numbers.
So, how many people do experience homelessness in Dallas, in 2019? It depends. There are two answers, because that one question is really two questions:
- How many people experience homelessness, at any one time? The homeless count gives us that number – 4,538;
- How many people will experience homelessness, throughout the year? The Homeless Management Information System (HMIS), the community-wide database, that drives improvement of homeless services programs, is the most comprehensive repository of data regarding homelessness in our community. It helps us estimate that number for 2019 – 12,600.
Obviously, the second number is always going to be larger than the first one. Think of it this way: The first number is one still frame, frozen in time, while the second number aggregates 365 still frames into a short video. In the still frame, everything is static, while in the video, there is movement, in and out of the purview of the camera lens. Some people are homeless for a day, while some are homeless for all 365 days, and whole lot of people are somewhere in between.
It is important to keep in mind the difference between the two numbers, because we have seen some confusion in this area, over the years. In fact, a claim that comes up again and again is that there are about 10,000 people in Dallas and Collin Counties who are experiencing homelessness, in the present tense. Though we are not totally sure where that number came from, it likely is the result of confusing the two very different numbers, above. There simply are not 10,000 people experiencing homelessness, currently, in our two counties. The data does not support such a number.
