A federal worker who advised Bangor on how to address its homelessness crisis was placed on administrative leave on Monday, alongside every other employee in their agency.
Nichele Carver, who represented New England, New York and New Jersey for the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, was placed on administrative leave on Monday. Most recently, she was a resource for Bangor as the city worked to close its largest homeless encampment located in a wooded area behind the Hope House Health and Living Center.
Nate Cavanaugh, the new director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, emailed agency staff on Monday to announce they were being placed on administrative leave, effective immediately, the New York Times reported. Cavanaugh is also an employee of the Department of Government Efficiency.
The loss of experts on addressing homelessness is the result of one of many staffing cuts the Trump administration has made since taking office.
In March, Trump issued an executive order demanding that the agency’s staff be cut to “the maximum extent” allowed by law. At the time, the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness had fewer than 20 employees, the New York Times reported.
U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness is a federal agency aimed at preventing and ending homelessness in the country. The agency published a guide, called 19 Strategies for Communities to Address Encampments Humanely and Effectively, which Bangor referenced when closing the homeless encampment between Texas Avenue and Cleveland Street in February.
Carver was also responsible for organizing a “peer-to-peer call” in which municipalities across New England could discuss their challenges and successes in addressing homelessness so community leaders could learn from one another, said David Warren, spokesperson for Bangor. With Carver on administrative leave, those calls are paused.
The dismantling of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness’ staff does not affect Bangor financially, Warren said, because the city did not receive any financial support from the agency.
