Washington, April 27 -- Congressman Troy A. Carter, Sr issued the following news release:
Today, Congressman Troy A. Carter, Sr. (D-LA) released the following statement:
"Let us be clear about what we are discussing. Homelessness is not a crime. It is a condition. It is the visible evidence of systems that have failed too many of our people. Failed access to affordable housing. Failed mental health care. Failed substance abuse treatment. Failed economic opportunity. And, at times, a failure of compassion.
"We should not criminalize the consequences of those failures.
"HB 211 does not solve homelessness. It relocates it. It hides it. It pushes people from one block to the next, from one parish to another, from one jail cell to the next. ...