How is Utah achieving such success? It is providing permanent housing to the homeless. Those who choose to accept the offer of permanent housing pay either $50 per month or 30 percent of their income, whichever is greater. They also work with a social worker to begin transitioning into mainstream society.

The average cost of not building permanent housing for a homeless person (shelters, ambulances, sometimes even jail stays), is about $20,000 per year. The cost of providing permanent housing and a social worker is $8,000 per year. Providing permanent housing would actually be a superb example of curbing excessive government spending. And, there’s reason enough to embrace this policy if you believe our government should adhere to Judeo-Christian teachings. Isaiah 58:7 reads, “share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house … then shall your light break forth like the dawn.”

Try as I can, I can’t find a single verse in the Bible that tells believers to ignore the poor and homeless or blame them for their situation. I encourage my fellow citizens and political leaders of Durango to create a permanent housing complex to address this issue.

Matt Dooley

Durango