Even though the recession officially ended a few years ago, the U.S. economy, from the municipal to the federal level, is retaining an air of sluggishness.

There’s greater demand for emergency services and fewer resources available to provide them. That’s the conclusion of the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ 25-city survey on hunger and homelessness that was released today.

Santa Barbara, Calif. Mayor Helene Schneider is co-chair of the mayors’ Task Force on Hunger and Homelessness.