Lindsay Bill Eliminating Voucher System for Homeless Sex Offenders Passes Legislature

In a move to protect children in Suffolk's communities, County Legislature Presiding Officer William J. Lindsay (D-Holbrook) earned approval Tuesday for his legislation ending the voucher system for housing homeless sex offenders and calling on the County Department of Social Services to implement a plan developed by Lindsay to settle the issue once and for all.

"There is no good answer to the problem of housing homeless sex offenders but this law passed tonight is as close as we've gotten so far," said Legis. Lindsay in a statement. "The voucher system is unacceptable. We can not continue to turn a blind eye to allowing unmonitored sex offenders in our neighborhoods. Vouchers undermine the central goal of Megan's Law--to allow residents to be aware of the presence of sex offenders in their community. It also makes it possible for sex offenders to be housed in motel settings in close proximity, within a few feet, of families with children."

The voucher system is a policy for sex offender emergency housing in Suffolk, in which the Department of Social Services gives a homeless sex offender a daily voucher of $90 and the sex offender is responsible for finding their own housing, Lindsay's office said in a statement.

State law mandates that Suffolk County, through its Department of Social Services, provides housing for all homeless individuals, including sex offenders. For the past several years and with much controversy, the Department has housed most homeless sex offenders in trailers in Riverhead and Westhampton.  Residents of the towns of Riverhead and Southampton have complained that it is inequitable to house all homeless sex offenders in their communities.  The County has also incurred large costs transporting sex offenders to and from these trailers, and the condition of the trailers has is the subject of ongoing litigation.

The plan:

-No more than six shelters be established, shelters to be run by experienced group home providers.

-No more than one such shelter shall be included in any township or legislative district.

-The shelters would be monitored 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Shelters must be located in non-residential neighborhoods.

"It is just lunacy to give these people $90 a night to go wherever they want," Lindsay said. "We will now have residences for these homeless sex offenders in the safest locations we can find, away from residential neighborhoods, and monitored 24/7."