Louisiana Governor Vetoes $1 Million for Catholic Charities Homeless Shelter in Lafayette, Louisiana

State funding cuts of $1 million for emergency homeless shelter services run by Catholic Charities of Acadiana in Louisiana have left the agency with a significant funding gap. Gov. Jeff Landry, R-La., vetoed the funds on June 24. The same line item veto also struck $1 million for the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities.

The Catholic Charities of Acadiana had requested the state money to support its overall emergency shelter operations in Lafayette. Those operations include programs for families and individuals, as well as an outreach for veterans run in conjunction with the Alexandria Veterans Administration Medical Center.

In a statement to the local outlet KATC, Landry, who is Catholic, did not specify the work of Catholic Charities of Acadiana. He later cited the wider work of Catholic Charities, the domestic charitable arm of the Catholic Church in the U.S., in serving migrants as his reason for the veto. He also made a general accusation that Catholic Charities supports illegal immigration, a charge that the church’s leaders have vigorously denied. Landry stated: “Taxpayers should never foot the bill for nonprofits who are contributing to the illegal immigration crisis our nation is facing.”

Lafayette Bishop J. Douglas Deshotel told the local station News 15 that the veto removed money for what he called “really the only shelter in town” serving the region’s homeless population with “some amount of decency and human dignity” during cold winters and hot summers. He argued that the church’s broader ministry to people in need is being associated with, and scapegoated for, the nation’s legislative failures on immigration. Deshotel said Landry had been an ally in the “respect life field,” and that this commitment should also extend to caring for people who are homeless and hungry, citing Catholic social teaching on caring for those in need in one’s own community.

In a statement to OSV News, Catholic Charities of Acadiana, which is part of the Diocese of Lafayette, said it was “deeply saddened” by the veto. The agency said the cut “will have a crippling impact” on its “ability to sustain shelter services” over the coming fiscal year, which began July 1. CEO Kim Boudreaux said: “Our shelter serves as a critical lifeline for 87 individuals each night who have nowhere else to turn. We face an uncertain future for those who seek shelter with us as a last resort.” The shelter’s work of standing with people who have no other place to go is a picture of speaking up for the vulnerable (Proverbs 31:8-9).

The agency said it had sheltered 410 individuals in its emergency shelter. Of those, 81 percent came from the surrounding Acadiana region, 10 percent from another part of Louisiana, and 9 percent from out of state. Before admitting someone to the shelter program, staff conduct an assessment to determine the possibility of reconnecting the person with natural supports, given the traumatic nature of homelessness. The agency said it diverted 60 households from homelessness last year by helping reconnect them with those support systems, and returned 135 individuals from its shelter to permanent housing.

The agency said it urgently advocates for local, state and federal funding to address the root causes of homelessness, meet basic needs such as shelter and food for Lafayette’s homeless population, and invest in evidence-based solutions that move people into affordable, stable housing with community-based supports. Separately, its website says the agency “provides low-cost legal aid services to immigrants, and newcomers to this country, all within the confines of the law.” The website also states: “We affirm the inherent dignity bestowed by God on every human person, including immigrants and refugees, no matter the circumstances that compel a person to begin a new life in our community.”

Source: Read the original report