CHICAGO — Today, Mayor Brandon Johnson signed an executive order to establish a Chief Homelessness Officer for the City of Chicago to address the current homelessness crisis in Chicago. The position will be the first of its kind for the City.   

“It’s long overdue to provide solutions for stable, permanent and affordable housing for more than 68,000 of our unhoused neighbors,” said Mayor Brandon Johnson. “By establishing a Chief Homelessness Officer for the City of Chicago, we will have a critical point of contact to coordinate efforts and leverage the full force of government to provide shelter for all people.”    

“This issue is personal to me and to so many others in our city, so it was imperative that we create this position to address the impact of homelessness on our lives. I look forward to working closely with our new Chief Homelessness Officer to create policy and solutions to provide the strength and support that our unhoused neighbors deserve, so they can live with dignity in the greatest city in the world.”    

The City of Chicago Chief Homelessness Officer will be responsible for addressing the complexities of homelessness and housing insecurity in Chicago, fostering greater policy and operational coordination across City departments and sister agencies, and providing strong leadership to effect improvements in this realm.   

“Chicago Funders Together to End Homelessness is so pleased to partner with Mayor Johnson to create the first-ever Chief Homelessness Officer position for the City of Chicago,” said Emily Krisciunas, Executive Director of Chicago Funders Together to End Homelessness. “A dedicated, senior-level role within the Mayor's Office will help advance sustainable, long-term solutions to expand access to housing for all and help end homelessness in Chicago.”   

 The City’s Department of Family and Support Services’ (DFSS) 2023 Point-in-Time Count, an annual federally required assessment of sheltered and unsheltered people experiencing homelessness at one moment in time, found 6,139 residents were experiencing homelessness in homeless shelters, encampments, and unsheltered areas on one night in January of 2023.    

According to the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, an estimated 68,440 Chicagoans were experiencing homelessness at the beginning of 2022. This estimate is inclusive of more than 44,000 people experiencing an often-hidden form of homelessness: doubling up, or temporarily staying with others.    

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