07:09 PM CDT on Monday, June 26, 2006

By Doug Miller / 11 News

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Maybe you’ve seen Joyce Bonham. “I’ve been coming out here for about four years, off and on.”

Maybe you’ve given her change.

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Panhandlers are seen everywhere in Houston, but Mayor White has introduced plan to discourage drivers from giving directly these individuals

And if Houston’s mayor has his way, she and her fellow panhandlers will make even less money on the streets of Houston.

That’s because the mayor’s sending out fundraising letters stating, “I write to request your financial support for a campaign urging Houstonians to refrain from giving money to panhandlers or street solicitors...”

Mayor Bill White said the idea is easy, “Don’t fight the impulse to give.  But don’t give to people who are out there begging on the streets.  We don’t know what happens to all that money.  We know that a lot of it doesn’t fight the root causes of homelessness.  Plus it’s an annoyance.”

But this new initiative doesn’t stop with stopping people cadging change.

Aides to the mayor said this is not just about discouraging panhandlers. 

He also wants private contributors to give more money to help non-profit agencies that help the homeless.

“Instead of giving money to someone out there on the street, giving it to an agency goes a longer way, it provides a better bang for your buck, if you will, in terms of helping someone turn their life around,” said Anthony Love with Coalition for the Homeless.

White plans to launch a broadcast campaign similar to his commercials advising consumers to shop around for electricity.

But instead of TV commercials, drivers listening to their radios will be targeted.

The mayor’s outreach to panhandlers and their donors is expected to begin next month.