1. ETH Grant Process 2017-2018 Gordon LevinE, ETH Grant Specialist, DEHCR
Carrie Poser, COC Director, WI Balance of State COC
Tuesday, April 4, 2017

2. Overview of the Presentation
Introduction
Allocation Formula
ETH Grant Application
Changes from to
Balance of State Request for ETH Certification Process
Balance of State Coordinated Entry and ETH grantees
Questions & Answers

3. What is ETH?
The Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG), Transitional Housing Program (THP), and Homeless Prevention Program (HPP) are collectively referred to as the ETH Program.
ESG is Federally Administered by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). HUD awards ESG funding to the State of Wisconsin Department of Administration Division of Energy, Housing, and Community Resources (DEHCR) to distribute to eligible applicants.
Eligible projects include: Rapid Re-Housing (RRH), Homelessness Prevention, Emergency Shelter, Street Outreach, and HMIS.
Authorized by 1991 McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. Amended in 2009 by Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act of 2009
HPP is a State of Wisconsin funding source.
Eligible projects include Rapid Re-Housing (RRH) and Homelessness Prevention.
Authorized by WI Statute §
THP is a State of Wisconsin funding source.
Eligible projects are Transitional Housing (TH).
Authorized by WI Statute §

4. Eligibility
Each application has a lead applicant who acts as the fiscal agent and is DEHCR’s grantee. Lead applicants are designated by the HUD or local COC; they can be any public or private not-for-profit agency participating in the COC planning process. The lead applicant will be responsible for implementation of the grant and the proper use of grant funds. Most applications also have sub-recipient applicants who also apply for ETH funding but are technically grantees of the lead applicant.
All applicant agencies must have current, direct experience in delivering services to people who are homeless. Agencies must meet the following eligibility criteria:
They must be an active/participating member of the local COC having served the homeless with housing related activities for at least one year prior to the application deadline;
They must be a local unit of government OR a public or private not-for-profit agency providing housing related services and/or shelter specifically targeted to people who are homeless;
Applicants which are not-for-profit agencies must be incorporated as a public or private not-for-profit agency in the State of Wisconsin as of the application date;
Applicants which are faith-based not-for-profit agencies are eligible to apply but must comply with rules and restrictions regarding religious institutions established in HUD’s governing regulations;
Applicant agencies must have the capacity to either offer or connect clients to services that will increase their stability and link them to safe, affordable, and permanent housing.

5. Continuum Performance
Each HUD or local COC will decide how best to allocate funding to participating agencies by considering local needs and project performance. HUD and local COCs are required to use data and/or evidence in their funding allocation decisions. HUD and local COCs may choose which data or evidence to use in making these decisions. DEHCR does not mandate the use of any specific data type.
The Continuum Performance section of the application explains this requirement in further detail. Each HUD or local COC must complete the Continuum Performance section with input from the entire COC (not just ETH funded agencies).

6. Allocation of Funds
ESG funding is federal funding and therefore contingent on HUD’s award to DEHCR.
DEHCR anticipates the HUD funding award to be released after grantee applications are due.
HUD’s ESG award for the contract year was $3,235,663.
DEHCR anticipates a similar ESG award for , but has reduced the estimated available amount by 20% from to ensure budgets have room to grow once HUD’s award is released.
HPP funding is state funding and allocated by formula.
THP funding is state funding and allocated by portion to Dane, Milwaukee, and Balance of State COC.
The amount of funding allocated to each Funding Area can be found in the ETH Allocation Table.
AVAILABLE ETH FUNDS (estimated)
ESG Funding Formula Allocation
$2,588,530
HPP Funding Formula Allocation
$1,515,000
HPP Special Allocation
$120,000
THP Allocation (see THP Application)
$300,000
TOTAL
$4,523,530

7. 2017-2018 ETH Allocation Formula
The ESG/HPP Funding Formula distributes funds between HUD and local COCs. In some cases, funding is further broken down by HPP Area.
State statutes require that HPP funds be divided in three equal parts between Milwaukee Metro counties, Other Metro counties, and Balance of State counties (not the same as the Balance of State COC).
Because a few COCs contain counties from both the Other Metro and Balance of State categories, they must apply for funding for both an Other Metro allocation and a Balance of State allocation.
Allocation is derived from a formula that weighs 50% on population (need) and 25% on performance. The remaining 25% is stabilized (prior year’s allocation).
Population (need) is divided between: Total Clients Served (HMIS) and Average Clients Served (Housing Inventory Chart)
Performance reflects 5 system performance metrics; may shift year-to-year but will always reward high performers
Stabilizing Measure

8. Performance measures
Each of these system performance measures are weighted equally on a scale of 0 – 1.5.
Each of them are listed in conjunction with the HUD System Performance Measure metric.
Measure #1 – Average length of time persons remaining homeless (metric 1)
Measure #2 – Reoccurrence within 2 years (metric 2b)
Measure #3 – Number of persons first time homeless (metric 5) – compares previous year to current year
Measure #4 – Successful permanent housing placement/retention (metric 7)
Measure #5 – Postiive employment and income growth (metric 4) - Rapid re-housing only

9. ETH Allocation Table
ESG administration = amount listed is the maximum available
HPP administration = no more than 10% of HPP allocation may be requested for HPP admin
Shelter & Outreach = maximum amount listed, comprises 60% of allocation. There is a cap of $25,000 for each shelter or outreach project.
Rapid Re-Housing = minimum amount listed, comprises 30% of total ESG allocation and 30% of total HPP allocation must be requested. There is no maximum. DEHCR STRONGLY ENCOURAGES MORE MONEY SPENT ON RAPID RE-HOUSING. At least 50% of Rapid Re-Housing funding request must be for Housing Payments.
Homeless Prevention = at least 50% of the total Homeless Prevention funding requests must be for Housing Payments.
HMIS = no more than $10,000 can be requested.

10. ETH Application Applying for grant year: July 1, 2017 – June 30, 2018
Deadline is Monday, May 1, 2017 by 4:00 PM.
Required to submit one electronic copy of each section and all attachments and one paper copy (postmarked or hand delivered by deadline)
Electronic:
Paper Copy: ETH Application, C/O Gordon Levine, DEHCR, PO Box 7970, Madison, WI
State THP Application is submitted by the HUD recognized COC in a separate process.

11. Components of the ETH Grant Application
Required Sections:
Lead Applicant Page
Consolidated Budget
Consolidated Match
Rapid Re-Housing
Homeless Prevention (if requesting funds)
Emergency Shelter (if requesting funds)
Street Outreach (if requesting funds)
HMIS
Continuum Performance
Attachments:
Environmental Review or Exemption Form
ESG Certification
Certification from a Local Unit of Government (new projects only)
Certification of HUD-COC
Written Standards (COC or for each agency submitting a project)
BOS – RRH
Each agency must provide: Prevention, Shelter, & Outreach written standards
Termination Procedures
Documentation of Match

12. Special Allocation What is the purpose of the special allocation?
Rewards creative, data-driven programming
Fosters experimentalism for grantees and DEHCR
This year’s special allocation winners can be next year’s regular process applicants
Incorporating special allocation winners ( ) into regular programming

13. Changes from 2016-2017 to 2017-2018 Shorter timeline
Unknown funding allocation, current budget allocation table reflects a 20% reduction to ensure cuts are budgeted for by agencies
Appeals process simplified – remove DEHCR from process

14. Balance of State Request for ETH Certification Process
To request ETH Certification, all agencies (lead and sub-recipients) must complete an ETH certification application and submit in PDF format to Carrie Poser, COC Director, at by Friday, April 14, 2017 at 5:00 PM.
Any request received after the deadline above will not be considered and a denial letter will issued.
Each agency will receive a denial letter no later than Monday, April 17, 2017.
Approval letters will be sent by Friday, April 21, 2017.
Key changes to requirements include: committee involvement and Balance of State meeting attendance

15. Lead Requirements (BOS - ETH Certification)
The application must contain minutes from a local continua meeting that includes the following: date & location of the meeting, people and agencies in attendance (must include some non-ETH funded organizations), and results of a vote to determine the ETH lead applicant for the grant year).
Participation on the BOS Board or committee
Active participation is defined as attending meetings, no more than 1 unexcused absence, no more than 3 excused absences without pre-approval by committee chair (i.e. parental leave), and completion of tasks as assigned by the committee chair. The committee chair also reserves the right to add to this definition and will include it in the minutes prior to implementation.
Attendance at Balance of State meetings
Feb – Feb. 2017: must have attended 2 business meetings (at minimum)
May 2017 – Feb. 2018: must attend 3 of the 4 business meetings
Active participation in the semi-annual overnight street count for the Point in Time. Active participation is defined as actually helping to count people sleeping in places not meant for human habitation during the overnight hours.

16. Sub-Recipient Requirements (BOS - ETH Certification)
Participation on the BOS Board or committee
Active participation is defined as attending meetings, no more than 1 unexcused absence, no more than 3 excused absences without pre-approval by committee chair (i.e. parental leave), and completion of tasks as assigned by the committee chair. The committee chair also reserves the right to add to this definition and will include it in the minutes prior to implementation.
If the agency was not a sub-recipient during the grant year, they have until June 1, 2017 to join a committee.
Attendance at Balance of State meetings
Feb – Feb. 2017: strongly encouraged
May 2017 – Feb. 2018: must attend 1 of the 4 business meetings
Active participation in the semi-annual overnight street count for the Point in Time. Active participation is defined as actually helping to count people sleeping in places not meant for human habitation during the overnight hours.

17. Balance of State Coordinated Entry and ETH
The Balance of State Coordinated Entry process includes 4 parts:
Pre-screen
Assessment (VI-SPDAT, VI-F-SPDAT, TAY-VI-SPDAT)
Referral to the HMIS or Non-HMIS Prioritization list
Follow-up
Documents that must be signed: Agency agreement and staff agreements
Projects required to participate include: ESG or HPP funded Rapid Re-Housing and ESG funded Emergency Shelter (or motel vouchers)
In the Balance of State, it is prohibited for any HUD-funded homelessness assistance programs to serve individuals and/or families experiencing homelessness or who are at imminent risk of homelessness, without the household first going through the Coordinated Entry System and receiving a referral to the Prioritization List.

18. Role of Emergency Shelters
Every ESG-funded Emergency Shelter and Homeless Motel Voucher program is required to participate in the Coordinated Entry process.
To participate means:
You signed the Agency Agreement, staff signed the Staff Agreement, and you are handing out Client Rights and Responsibilities forms.
You are completing a Pre-Screen Form on all households (or unaccompanied youth) in the shelter or motel voucher program and retaining the form in a client file.
You are completing the VI-SPDAT or VI-F-SPDAT assessment tool with all willing clients and documenting any refusals.
You are referring all of those clients to the prioritization list in Service Point (or the Non-WISP list if applicable).
You are the point of contact for those clients whether they remain in your shelter or not.
You are actively helping clients to secure housing.
You will conduct follow-ups on those clients remaining on the prioritization list for 90 days or more.

19. Exception for Shelters
If an emergency shelter and housing provider have established an official MOU that meets the following criteria, then the emergency shelter is exempt from the participation requirement.
The MOU criteria includes:
A signature from the housing provider director and the emergency shelter director,
Specific responsibilities of the housing provider that includes –
Completing the pre-screen on all shelter clients and retaining in a client file
Completing the VI-SPDAT or VI-F-SPDAT on all willing clients and documented refusals
Completing the Service Point referral to the prioritization list
Agreement to be the ongoing point of contact for the client
Conduct required follow-ups
Specific responsibilities of the emergency shelter that includes –
Referring every client to the housing provider and maintaining documentation of that referral, date, and details
Maintaining communication regarding each client with the housing provider, including an ROI signed by client
Dated after 4/1/17 but before 6/30/17,
Required annual reauthorization
A requirement that the document be retained by both the housing provider and the emergency shelter,
A copy submitted to Carrie Poser at and DEHCR at for approval.
See SAMPLE

20. Questions And Answers

21. Contact Information
Gordon Levine, ETH Grant Specialist, DEHCR
Phone number:
Carrie Poser, COC Director, Balance of State COC
Phone number: