NEW Testimony for the Committee on Human Services Budget Hearing (April 30th, 2026)

Watch on YouTube (start at 2:19:10)

New Endeavors by Women Executive Director, Wanda Steptoe

My name is Wanda Steptoe and I am the Executive Director of New Endeavors by Women. Together with Calvary Women’s Services, Catholic Charities, House  of Ruth, and N Street Village, we represent the full women’s homeless services continuum.

Today, I join my colleagues in respectfully urging the Council to restore $34.694 million to  DHS to preserve the full housing continuum as well as to reallocate the funding for a new  bridge housing program to help close the funding gap for existing housing and services. Together, the entire women’s homeless services continuum has a combined 231 years of  experience serving unhoused women in DC. We ask that the council fully funds programs with a proven track record of ending homelessness.

Our organization relies on funding from DHS for 48% of our housing services. Cuts would reduce and eliminate critical safety nets for residents with no other options than to return to living on the streets. When NEW opened our doors in 1988, it was because the District believed in the vision of a women’s-only transitional housing program. They understood that programs dedicated to serving women are a critical piece of the housing services ecosystem and remain vital to ending homelessness for hundreds of women every year.

This need has only deepened. Since 2021, the rate of women experiencing homelessness has increased almost 5%, despite an overall decrease in the number of homeless individuals and families.

In 2017, a survey led by The Community Partnership examined the needs of women experiencing homelessness in DC and found that gender specific women’s housing programs were just as necessary then as they were in 1988 when NEW first opened our doors. According to the survey, 76% of women indicated that they were survivors of violence or threats of violence and about one-third of women indicated that they were homeless because of gendered violence. The study also showed that many women who need supportive housing services will decline shelter to avoid retraumatizing circumstances with men. Sixty‐three percent (63%) of survey participants who had experienced violence in the past also reported experiencing at least one act of violence

against them during a period of homelessness.

Unhoused women have continued to advocate for gender specific housing that helps them feel safe and secure, so they can focus on rebuilding their lives. The Mayor’s proposed

spending on new non-gendered bridge housing will limit the number of women willing and able to receive services. Again, I ask the council to reallocate the funding for a new bridge housing program to existing, gender specific, housing and services.

Our programs act as a lifeline for women who have been chronically homeless. We provide safety and stability they need to learn critical life skills, increase their education, improve their employment, and move to permanent and stable housing. Our clients’ trust, knowing they are safe, is critical to the success of our programming. Without this, women seeking shelter will have nowhere to feel safe, no place to find support and resources. They will return to living on the streets and there will be dire consequences for them.

To conclude, I respectfully ask the Council to fully restore DHS funding and reallocate the new bridge housing program funding to programs with proven outcomes. Thank you for your time and leadership.