My group house usually (including this last year) has some residents who've previously been homeless, and the process of getting them the benefits they're eligible for is always exhausting and infuriating.
Without a fixed address, ID docs, + computer access, it's really hard to apply for the stuff you're eligible for. + after time and time again of applying and being rejected for random, poorly communicated, confusing reasons, lots of people just conclude the system isn't for them.
I wrote this article about how homeless people can claim their stimulus check: vox.com/future-perfect…, but my own homeless friends don't have their checks yet. Filling out a tax return is hard and annoying enough to be a barrier.
This is an absurd way to run a national government! Every step is a failure of our state to serve its citizens. Filing taxes shouldn't be so hard. Filing taxes shouldn't be the only way to get benefits. It shouldn't be so hard to get a bank account.
The people we most want to help are often going to have barriers in their life to keeping important documents, getting things mailed places, paying for new copies of documents, filing tax returns, etc. Help for them shouldn't make those problems worse.
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