. >> patrick markee is one of new york's leading advocates for the homeless. >> the cost of shelter is exorbitant. the city now spends more than a billion dollars a year just in shelter and emergency services for homeless people. >> today new york operates over 250 homeless shelters. but still, about half of the families who apply for shelter are rejected. >> the city has put in place these kind of bureaucratic barriers that wrongfully and unlawfully deny shelter to many needy families. >> we met melissa rivera at path. she's twenty-five, and has three kids. >> i go through this every single day when i come home. [come here. come sit with mommy. stop crying] she's my little mini-me. she looks just like me. >> these kids mean everything to you, huh? >> yes they're my life. i love them dearly. they're my babies. >> melissa has been homeless for three years. she and her kids now sleep in the living room of her grandmother's public housing unit. >> this is it right here. i put this couch i bring it over, put it together with that one, put the blankets on there. >> so you all sleep right he