Re-Entry Partnership Housing (RPH) Erin Anderson, Housing Coordinator Department of Community Supervision

RE-ENTRY PARTNERSHIP HOUSING Collaboration between Department of Community Supervision and the Department of Community Affairs Works with a network of 24 pre-approved housing providers throughout Georgia Originally created to provide housing assistance to Problem Residence Inmates; now expanded to include probationers

RE-ENTRY PARTNERSHIP HOUSING Allows inmates who would otherwise max out their sentences to be released Frees up beds for Department of Corrections, allows halfway houses to receive compensation, and saves the state money in supervision costs Cost per day to supervise a parolee: $4.32 Cost per day to house an inmate: $51.19

RE-ENTRY PARTNERSHIP HOUSING From FY2011 – FY2015, RPH has saved the state $42 million in supervision costs RPH only pays for housing and food Housing providers can be faith-based or secular. Faith-based activities/services must be optional for RPH placements

WHO ARE PROBLEM RESIDENCE INMATES? Inmates who have reached their Tentative Parole Month (TPM) but do not have a valid residence Eligible inmates are offered housing under the RPH program, which pays $600 per months for their first three months’ rent and food

WHO ELSE IS ELIGIBLE FOR RPH? Problem Residence inmates Returning citizens on parole or probation who have been released within the last 90 days and lack stable housing (field placements) Individuals in Transitional Centers are eligible, but are not given top priority for placement, especially if they are currently employed

RE-ENTRY PARTNERSHIP HOUSING & MENTAL HEALTH For inmates with moderate mental illnesses (Mental Health level 3), RPH pays $675 per month for 4 months $675 = the approximate amount of an SSI check Average amount of time for disability benefits to be secured in GA = 118 days

LIMITATIONS Registrable sex offenders are not currently eligible for funding Most housing providers will not accept them Providers who would otherwise accept them cannot due to 1000-foot restrictions Creates a public safety issue if the parolee cannot find employment within 90 days and has no other support

LIMITATIONS MH level 4 and above are not eligible, as they require highly specialized care Max-outs (those without any parole or probation supervision upon release) are not eligible

FAITH-BASED ORGANIZATIONS FBOs are eligible for RPH just as any other non-profit organizations FBOs may not engage in inherently religious activities such as worship, religious instruction, or proselytization as a part of programs or services funded under any part of a required program Religious activities must be offered separately in time or location from other programs or services, and must be voluntary

APPLICATION PROCESS Providers submit applications to Erin Anderson for initial review & background check If application is complete, it is forwarded to DCA for review of financial documents Once DCA approves, a site visit is conducted Once site visit is completed, DCA sends the provider a contract to sign. When contract is signed, the provider may begin accepting placements

APPLICATIONS Information on the application process is available at http://dcs.georgia.gov/housing-programs – applications are accepted on a case-by-case basis. The site has downloads for the RPH Guidelines and application forms.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

ARE RPH PLACEMENTS REQUIRED TO STAY FOR THE FULL 90 DAYS? No. As long as the CSO approves the move, an RPH resident can move out any time.

ARE PROVIDERS REQUIRED TO KEEP A CERTAIN NUMBER OF BEDS OPEN? No. We only request that providers keep us notified when they have changes in the number of vacancies.

CAN WE GUARANTEE PLACEMENTS TO ANY HOUSING PROVIDER? No. It is stated clearly in the Guidelines that we do not guarantee any number of placements to any provider. RPH is not intended to be a housing provider’s sole source of funding.

ARE RPH PROVIDERS REQUIRED TO PROVIDE ANY ADDITIONAL PROGRAMMING? No. RPH only pays for housing and food; providers are not required to provide programming, job placement, or transportation.

WHAT HAPPENS IF AN RPH PLACEMENT HAS NO PLACE TO GO AFTER 90 DAYS? The returning citizen should work with his or her CSO to find available housing. In case of an emergency, call Erin Anderson.

I’VE RECEIVED A COMPLAINT REGARDING AN RPH PROVIDER. WHAT SHOULD I DO? Contact Erin Anderson, Tammy Herring, or Stuart Holt via telephone or at housing@dcs.ga.gov.

AN RPH PLACEMENT IS BREAKING THE PROGRAM’S RULES AN RPH PLACEMENT IS BREAKING THE PROGRAM’S RULES. CAN THE PROVIDER ASK THEM LEAVE? Yes. A provider can ask a returning citizen to leave the program if they violate house rules. Please contact the RPH staff and we can move them to a different program if possible.

Main e-mail: housing@dcs.ga.gov CONTACT Main e-mail: housing@dcs.ga.gov Lisa Brown 404-274-9266 Lisa.Brown@dcs.ga.gov Erin Anderson 770-639-8517 Erin.Anderson@dcs.ga.gov