1. HUD Homelessness Assistance Programs 101
IHFA Conference on Housing and Economic Development
March 2018
Mike Lindsay
Senior Technical Specialist

2. Agenda HEARTH Act Background
Overview of HUD Homelessness Assistance Programs
HUD Policy Priorities
How does HUD measure success and where do we go from here?

3. Background & Context: HEARTH ACT
The call to action of the HEARTH Act
“Transform homeless services into crisis response systems that prevent and end homelessness and rapidly return people who experience homelessness to stable housing.”
Purpose of the HEARTH Act
Consolidate homeless assistance programs
Codify the Continuum of Care planning process
Establish a goal of ensuring that families who become homeless return to permanent housing within 30 days
Goal: Develop a systemic response to ending homelessness is to plan as an entire community, not just with homeless service providers. 
Quick overview/review of HEARTH:
The 2009 Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act consolidated several of HUD’s separate homeless assistance programs into a single grant program, the Continuum of Care (CoC Program).

4. Moving to a Systems Approach for Ending Homelessness
Moving from:
Agency Performance
Unique Agency Intake
Planning in Silos
Haphazard Decisions
Housing Readiness
Automatic Project Renewal
Outdated Program Models
Housing the Next In Line
My Program
Transforming to:
System Performance
Coordinated Entry
System Action Plan
Data Driven Decisions
Housing First
Higher Performing Program Funding
Best Practices
Prioritizing/Serving the most Vulnerable
Our System
What we typically see in communities that haven’t really thought intentionally about a system wide approach to end homelessness is that there are a lot of different programs. Generally, what this means:
ad-hoc processes
dozens of intake and assessment protocols
different eligibility rules resulting in duplication of services
not a clear path to housing for those that present for assistance, especially for those that have the most severe service needs or have had the longest length of time homeless

5. Overview of HUD Homelessness Assistance Programs
Continuum of Care (CoC) Program
Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) Program
Role of the CoC for coordination with ESG recipients and systems planning
9/21/2018
2017 CoC Program All Grantees Training

6. CoC Program Overview CoC Program Characteristics Eligible Applicants:
Who may apply for CoC funding?
Non-profit organizations, States, local governments, and instrumentalities of State or local governments. 
Funding Allocation Process
Annual CoC Program Competition, dictated by the Fiscal Year Notice of Funding Availability
Types of Housing or Service Programs Funded
Permanent housing, transitional housing, supportive services, and Homeless Management Information Systems (HMIS).
Eligible Participants:
Who are these programs intended to assist and serve?
Individuals and families who meet the Definition of “Homeless” as defined by HUD and who meet the NOFA eligibility requirements
In order to apply for CoC Program funding you must be an eligible applicant as outlined in the CoC Program interim rule and must have been designated by the Continuum of Care to submit an application for grant funds. The CoC Program interim rule defines eligible applicants as nonprofit organizations, States, local governments, and instrumentalities of State or local governments.
In FY 2017, HUD awarded over $2 billion in funding to more than 7,300 local homeless housing and service programs across the U.S. and Guam.
CoC funds can be used for permanent housing, transitional housing, supportive services, and Homeless Management Information Systems (more on this in upcoming slides) 
In terms of eligible participants, it is important to note that the CoC Program Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) may impose additional eligibility requirements not reflected in the regulation. We’ll discuss what it means to meet HUD’s definition of Homeless, as well as examples of NOFA requirements on the next slide.

7. CoC Program Components
PH – permanent housing (PSH and RRH)
TH – transitional housing
SSO – supportive services only
HMIS – Homeless Management Information Systems
HP – homelessness prevention*
*Recipients and subrecipients located in HUD-designated High Performing Communities (HPCs) may use CoC Program funds for homelessness prevention assistance for individuals and families at risk of homelessness.
Permanent supportive housing means permanent housing in which supportive services are provided to assist homeless persons with a disability to live independently. Supportive services are designed to meet the needs of participants and must be provided for the entire duration that they are in that housing.
The CoC Program interim rule clearly states that for PH:PSH a lease is required and must be for a term of at least one year, renewable, and terminable only for cause.
Household must include a disabled adult or child.
RRH is designed to help persons achieve and maintain housing stability as quickly as possible.
Funds may be used to provide supportive services and short-term (up to 3 months) or medium-term (4-24 months) tenant-based rental assistance to homeless persons. Funds cannot be used to buy or renovate a building for the creation of units.
PH: RRH requires a lease that must be for a term of at least one year, renewable, and terminable only for cause.
Even in cases of short-term rental assistance, the lease still has to be for a year. So, even if the grantee is providing only six months of assistance, the lease between the client and the landowner has to be for the full year.
Overarching Principles of Transitional Housing: TH is housing with supportive services to facilitate the household’s successful movement to permanent housing within 24 months
Per the CoC Program, all program participants in TH projects must sign a lease or occupancy agreement for a period of at least one month. This lease must be automatically renewable upon expiration, except on prior notice by either party, up to a maximum term of 24 months. This requirement may be satisfied through attrition and as new clients enter the project. Attrition is defined as the conclusion of a current lease/sublease/occupancy agreement term. 
To facilitate movement into permanent housing, program participants in TH should have access to a wide range of supportive services the entire time they reside in housing. To help with the delivery and coordination of services, the recipient or subrecipient can require program participants receiving rental assistance in transitional housing to reside in a particular unit or building while receiving assistance.
SSO:
The CoC SSO program component is designed to allow recipients and subrecipients to provide services to homeless individuals and families, separate from housing. SSO projects may be in a structure at one central site, or in multiple buildings at scattered sites where services are delivered. SSO projects may also be operated independent of a building, like street outreach or mobile vans for health care, and in a variety of settings, including in homeless programs operated by other agencies.
Coordinated entry funded in recent years’ competitions by HUD through the SSO component
HMIS:
Costs associated with contributing HMIS data can be funded as an eligible activity under the program component in which the project is funded. For example, HMIS is an eligible activity under the TH program component.

8. CoC Program Eligible Costs
Eligible Activity
Acquisition
Up to 100% of the cost of acquiring property to provide one or more structures to provide housing or supportive services.
Rehabilitation
Up to 100% of the cost of rehabilitation of structures to provide housing or supportive services.
New construction
Up to 100% of the cost of new construction to be used as housing.
Leasing
100% of the costs of leasing a structure or part of a structure (i.e., units) in which supportive services or housing are provided to homeless persons.
Rental assistance
Rental assistance for homeless individuals and families. This can be provided on a short-, medium- or long-term basis.
Supportive services
The costs of eligible supportive services that address the special needs of the program participants.
Operating costs
The daily costs associated with operating transitional and permanent housing.
HMIS
The costs of contributing or reporting on data to the CoC-designated HMIS.
Project administration
Up to 10% of any grant amount to be used for costs related to the administration of the grant. This does not include costs directly related to delivery costs associated with the aforementioned eligible costs.
The CoC Program interim rule sets forth the costs eligible for each program component in § (a). 

9. ESG Program Overview ESG Program Characteristics Eligible Applicants:
Who may apply for CoC funding?
Eligible recipients generally consist of metropolitan cities, urban counties, territories, and states, as defined in 24 CFR  
Funding Allocation Process
Formula grant program: The percentage allocated is equal to the percentage of the total amount available under section 106 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 for the prior fiscal year that was allocated to the State, metropolitan city or urban county. (For more on the ESG formula, see 24 CFR )
Types of Housing or Service Programs Funded
Street Outreach, Emergency Shelter, Rapid Re-Housing, Homelessness Prevention, and HMIS
Eligible Participants:
Who are these programs intended to assist and serve?
Depending on the project type, eligibility is based on whether the household meets the definition of “at-risk” of homelessness (used for homelessness prevention) or households who meet the Definition of “Homeless”
The ESG program provides funding to:
Engage homeless individuals and families living on the street;
Improve the number and quality of emergency shelters for homeless individuals and families;
Help operate these shelters;
Provide essential services to shelter residents;
Rapidly re-house homeless individuals and families; and
Prevent families and individuals from becoming homeless.
ESG funds may be used for five program components: street outreach, emergency shelter, homelessness prevention, rapid re-housing assistance, and HMIS; as well as administrative activities (up to 7.5% of a recipient’s allocation can be used for administrative activities).

10. ESG Program Components
Street Outreach
Emergency Shelter
Essential Services & Operations
Rehab and Renovation
Rapid Re-Housing
Homelessness Prevention
HMIS
SO: Essential Services related to reaching out to unsheltered homeless individuals and families, connecting them with emergency shelter, housing, or critical services, and providing them with urgent, non-facility-based care. Eligible costs include engagement, case management, emergency health and mental health services, transportation, and services for special populations. See 24 CFR
Shelter: Emergency Shelter: any facility, the primary purpose of which is to provide a temporary shelter for the homeless in general or for specific populations of the homeless and which does not require occupants to sign leases or occupancy agreements.
Under this category, there are four Subcategories of activity types:
Essential Services (like case management, mental health services, etc.)
Shelter Operation
Shelter Renovations & Repairs
Assistance Required under Uniform Relocation Act (URA)
Rapid re-housing:
Purpose: To help homeless persons living on the streets or in an emergency shelter transition as quickly as possible into permanent housing, and then, to help such persons achieve stability in that housing
Eligible Participants: Category 1 – Literally Homeless or Category 4 – Fleeing/Attempting to Flee DV
Homelessness Prevention:
Prevent persons who are housed from becoming homeless and regain stability in their current housing situation
Eligible Participants: Individuals and families who are at imminent risk, or at risk, or homelessness

11. Examples of Eligible Costs for the ESG Program
Street Outreach
(unsheltered homeless persons)
Emergency Shelter Services
(sheltered homeless persons)
Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing
Essential services (e.g., Engagement, Case Management, Emergency Health Care, Transportation)
Essential Services (e.g., case management, legal services, life skills training)
Renovation, also including Major Rehab and Conversion
Shelter Operations (e.g., maintenance, rent, insurance, furnishings)
Assistance Required Under the Uniform Relocation and Real Property Acquisition Act of 1970 (e.g., relocation payments)
Rental assistance (e.g., arrears, short or medium-term rental assistance)
Financial assistance (e.g., rental application fees, security deposit, moving costs)
Services Costs (e.g., mediation, housing stability case management, legal services)
Important things to remember:
If it is not listed in the regulations it is not an eligible expense – look to the ESG interim rule
Just because something is listed as eligible, does not mean you are required to provide/support those services
While an activity may be eligible, there can be several other factors that determine if it can be supported with federal funds
For more information about eligible costs:
Refer to the program regulations at 24 CFR Part 576 for complete information about all eligible costs and program requirements.

12. Participant Eligibility: Homeless Definition
Homeless definition has 4 categories:
Category 1: Literally homeless individuals/families
Category 2: Individuals/families who will imminently lose their primary nighttime residence with no subsequent residence, resources or support networks
Category 3: Unaccompanied youth or families with children/youth who meet the homeless definition under other federal statutes (Note: Serving individuals and families under this category requires prior HUD approval)
Category 4: Individuals/families fleeing or attempting to flee domestic violence
Why is this important?
To be eligible for housing and services in a CoC or ESG-funded program, each household must meet one of the four definitions of homeless.
For the CoC Program, HUD imposes additional eligibility criteria each year through the Fiscal Year NOFA. Example: In FY 2016 funded grants, PSH programs could only serve individuals and families who met the definition of chronically homeless.
The Homeless Definition Final Rule was published in the Federal Register on December 5, 2011 and became effective January 4, 2012.
The Definition of Homeless Final Rule defined four categories of homeless. It is important to know and understand HUD’s definitions and implications for participant eligibility compared with other definitions of homeless across other funding streams

13. Category 1 – Literally Homeless
An individual or family who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence
Resides in a public or private place not meant for regular sleeping accommodations including a car, park, abandoned building, bus or train station, airport, or camping ground
Resides in supervised publicly or privately operated shelters designated to provide temporary accommodations including:
Congregate shelters,
Transitional housing, and
Hotels/motels when paid for by charitable organizations/government programs
Exiting an institution where they resided for 90 days or less and resided in an emergency shelter or place not meant for human habitation immediately before entering that institution
The first category of the homeless definition is specific to individuals/families who are literally homeless. For this Category of Literally Homeless there are three possible circumstances that would fit in this Category 1.
The first of these three circumstances is:
Individuals or families who are sleeping in places not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation are defined as literally homeless. Examples of places not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation include the street, a car, a park, abandoned buildings, a bus or train station, or camp ground.
The second circumstance that falls under the Category 1 Literally Homeless are individuals or families who lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence including those who are living in a shelter, TH , or motel/hotel paid for by a third party.
The Homeless Definition clarifies that Individuals and families living in hotels and motels as a temporary shelter when that stay is paid for by charitable organizations or by federal, state, or local government programs. It is important to distinguish that individuals and families who are paying for their own hotels or motels are not included in this Category of Literally Homeless.
The final circumstance that falls under Category 1 literally homeless are individuals and families who are
Leaving an institution if their stay has been for 90 days or less AND
they were sleeping in an emergency shelter or place not meant for human habitation immediately before entering the institution.

14. Category 2 – Imminent Risk
An individual or family who will imminently lose their primary nighttime residence, provided that:
The primary residence will be lost within 14 days of the date of application for assistance
No subsequent residence has been identified AND
They lack the resources or support networks to obtain other permanent housing
Mike

15. Category 4 – Domestic Violence
Any individual or family who is fleeing, or is attempting to flee:
Domestic violence
Dating violence
Sexual assault
Stalking
Other dangerous conditions that relate to violence against,
That has either taken place within their primary nighttime residence or has made them afraid to return to their primary nighttime residence AND
Lacks the resources or support networks to obtain other permanent housing
Mike

16. Participant Eligibility: Chronically Homeless Definition
Chronically homeless means a homeless individual with a disability who currently lives:
In a place not meant for human habitation,
Safe haven, or
Emergency shelter
AND
Has been living in one of those locations for:
The last consecutive 12 months, or
On at least four separate occasions in the last three years where the combined occasion total at least 12 months
HUD published the Final Rule on Defining “Chronically Homeless” in December CoCs expected to comply by January 15, 2016
HUD Notice CPD (Also known as HUD’s “Prioritization Notice”) provides guidance to communities on prioritizing chronically homeless households for dedicated and non-dedicated PSH.
Also a template for prioritizing households for other project types
Emphasizes use of chronic homeless status, length of time homeless, and severity of service needs to determine priority
Chronically homeless means an homeless individual with a disability as defined in the act who currently lives in a place not meant for human habitation, a safe haven, or in an emergency shelter and has been living in one of those three locations so either a place that meant for human habitation, a safe haven, or an emergency shelter for at least the last 12 months, or on at least four separate occasions in the last three years where the combined occasion total at least 12 months. Occasions are separated by a break of at least seven nights and stays in an institution of fewer than 90 days do not constitute as a break.
As we’ll discuss more in the next section, understanding HUD’s definition of chronically homeless is important because it helps communities understand how they can end chronic homelessness in their community and be aligned with HUD’s policy priorities for ending homelessness among the chronically homeless.
Notice CPD was published in July 2016 and provides guidance to CoCs and recipients of CoC Program funding for PSH regarding the order in which eligible households should be served in all CoC Program-funded PSH—including both dedicated PSH (including PSH not awarded as dedicated but identified as prioritized) and for non-dedicated PSH— in light of the updated definition of chronically homeless in the final rule.
CoCs are encouraged to adopt HUD’s recommended orders of priority from the Notice and incorporate them into their written standards, however, CoCs were eligible to receive points outlined in the FY 2016 CoC Program NOFA for demonstrating adoption and incorporation of the orders of priority included in either Notice CPD or Notice CPD
In addition, the Notice clarifies:
Guidance that states projects located in CoCs with large geographic areas where a sub-CoC approach to housing and service delivery has been implemented (which may also be reflected in a sub-CoC coordinated entry process) need only to prioritize assistance within their specified area. For example, if a Balance of State CoC has chosen to divide the CoC into six distinct regions for purposes of planning and housing and service delivery, each region would only be expected to prioritize assistance within its specified geographic area.
Guidance regarding when a recipient/subrecipient may serve non-chronically homeless households in dedicated beds if there are no persons within the CoC’s geographic area that meet the definition of chronically homeless (we will discuss this more on subsequent slides)

17. Role of the CoC
Planning
Systems Operations
Coordinate implementation of housing and service system
Plan and conduct PIT count
Participate in Consolidated Plans
Consult with ESG recipients
Establish performance targets, monitor performance, evaluate outcomes and take action against poor performers
Evaluate ESG and CoC project outcomes
Establish a coordinated entry system
Develop written standards for providing assistance
How to allocate funds
Development of project performance standards, including outcome measures for projects and activities
Funding, policies and procedures for HMIS administration and operation
It is important to first identify all the planning and system operations responsibilities that the CoC is required to take on to establish what the CoC will be governing. The planning responsibilities are on the left side of the slide, and the systems operations responsibilities are on the right.
Consulting with ESG recipients:
Part of the reason we have CoCs is to help make sure that services to prevent and reduce homelessness are coordinated. CoC must consult with ESG recipients that serves the same geographic area. CoCs can only play this role effectively if everyone involved in serving those who are homeless, or at risk of homelessness, actively consults with the CoC.
There are three types of programmatic things CoCs and ESG recipients need to consult about.
The first is how to allocate ESG funds . Recipient decisions about resource allocation can be most strategic when they are established with good information about what other service providers are doing. Recipients can make sure they put their funds to the most vital areas by consulting about which components and which activities they in the best position to serve, given what others within the COC are doing.
The second is how to develop performance standards, including outcome measures, for projects and activities. Multiple service providers work within any given CoC’s geographic area. It often doesn’t make sense to think about outcomes from the perspective of a single service provider, since multiple providers may affect outcomes for any given program participant, and for the community as a whole. Since outcome measures can’t be thought about in isolation, it only makes sense to coordinate about them, and the CoC is the place to do that.
ESG recipients must have performance standards for evaluating ESG activities
These must be developed in consultation with the CoC
Standards should take into account differences between target populations of subrecipients
Finally, the third type of consultation involves developing funding, policies and procedures for HMIS administration and operation. As a data collection system, an HMIS is going to be most effective when everyone contributing to it provides information in a consistent way. Inconsistent data submission will lead to unreliable data – and clear, accurate data is essential for looking at the impact that we are having, and the remaining needs in our communities. The best way to ensure that we have really good data is to make sure that all providers involved fully understand the HMIS policies and procedures, and have systems in place to provide that high-quality data. That’s why this third consultation point is so important.
While the role of consulting with the CoC is ultimately a recipient requirement, we wanted to give you this background so you have a better understanding of how the homeless services system should be functioning.

18. CoC Membership Defined
A CoC is established by representatives of relevant organizations within a geographic area to carry out the responsibilities set forth in the CoC program rule.
A CoC is intended to be a large, representative group (membership) ranging from:
Non profit homeless providers
Victim services providers
Faith based organizations
School districts
PHAs
Advocates
Governments
The CoC Program interim rule formalizes the role of the Continuum of Care as the planning body responsible for meeting the goals of ending and preventing homelessness.
Each CoC is expected to be tailored to its unique community circumstances, to the extent possible involving all of the players required to further local efforts to end homelessness. The purpose for including stakeholder representation from a wide range of organizations within the CoC’s geographic area is to ensure that all community stakeholders participate in developing and implementing a range of housing and services

19. Organizational Structure of a CoC
Continuum of Care
CoC Board
HMIS Lead
Collaborative Applicant
CoC Committee
CoC Committee
CoC Committee
The CoC is ultimately responsible for all duties assigned in the CoC Program interim rule.
Two activities ‐ compiling and submitting the CoC application and operating the HMIS ‐ must be done by eligible applicants; therefore, the CoC must designate eligible applicants to serve these functions.  The CoC may formally assign some of its responsibilities to other entities, such as a CoC board or committees, if desired. 
 It is ultimately up to the CoC to determine how it would like to function, but all of the assignments need to be documented in writing

20. 2017 CoC Program All Grantees Training
HUD Policy Priorities
Coordinated Entry
Prioritization of chronically homeless individual and families
Housing First
9/21/2018
2017 CoC Program All Grantees Training

21. Coordinated Entry Background
Coordinated entry helps communities systematically assess the needs of program participants and effectively match the needs of each individual or family that presents for assistance with the most appropriate resources available.
Establishing a Coordinated Entry System has been a requirement since 2012 (CoC Program interim rule)
HUD has established a deadline of January 23, for CoCs to establish or update their Coordinated Entry System (Notice CPD-17-01)
The purpose of a coordinated entry system is help communities systematically assess the needs of program participants and effectively match the needs of each individual or family that presents for assistance with the most appropriate resources available. It’s moving from assessing performance from the project or agency level to a system wide level. It’s a process of moving from housing households at first come, first serve basis to now prioritizing and serving the most vulnerable. Ultimately, it’s giving people that present for assistance a clear path to permanent housing.
Establishing a Coordinated Entry System was a requirement in the CoC Program interim rule, which means it has been a requirement since Though the general purpose of a CoC has always been to coordinate the housing and services available in the geographic area of the Continuum, the requirement has now been formalized in the statute and the regulation.
In addition, HUD just published Notice CPD (Notice Establishing Additional Requirements for Coordinated Entry) in January Through the CPD Notice, HUD established the deadline of January 23, 2018 for CoCs to establish or update their Coordinated Entry System.
2012: CoC Program Interim Rule; ESG Program Interim Rule
2014: PSH Prioritization Notice
2015: Coordinated Entry Policy Brief
2017: Coordinated Entry Notice
Updated in 2016; New CH definition

22. Why Coordinated Entry?
Coordinated Entry is a way to coordinate and manage the crisis response system -
Reorient service provision, creating a more client-focused environment
Identify which strategies are best for each household based on knowledge of and access to a full array of available services
Improves system efficiency
Fosters more collaboration among providers
The coordinated entry process is a way to coordinate and manage crisis response system’s resources that allows users to make consistent decisions from available information to efficiently and effectively connect people to interventions that will rapidly end their homelessness.
A CE process will allow us to:
Reorient service provision, creating a more client-focused environment
Identify which strategies are best for each household based on knowledge of and access to a full array of available services
Improves system efficiency
Fosters more collaboration among providers

23. Coordinated Entry System in Context
Rapid
Re-housing
Temporary Shelter
Market Rate Housing
Community-Based Housing, Services and Supports
Diversion
Street Outreach
Permanent Supportive Housing
Transitional Housing
Coordinated Entry Core Components –
Access
Assessment
Prioritization
Referral and Housing Placement
Households avoid homelessness
Targeted Prevention
Core components of Coordinated Entry:
Access is the engagement point for persons experiencing a housing crisis. This could look and function differently in different communities – particularly in rural or BOS CoC’s.
Upon initial access, the individual or household will likely begin some type of assessment – assessing the person’s housing needs, preferences, and vulnerability. This element is known as Assessment.
During assessment, the person’s needs and level of vulnerability will be documented for purposes of determining Prioritization, which helps the CoC manage resources and ensures that every person receives the supports they need to resolve their housing crisis, and that those with the greatest need and vulnerability are prioritized.
The final element is Referral and Housing Placement, where persons are referred to available CoC housing resources based on the CoC’s documented policies and guidelines.
Also on this slide you’ll see an example of what a community’s coordinated entry might look like and how people move through the system. This graphic represents a well-functioning coordinated entry, where many households are diverted from homelessness altogether, or receive targeted prevention and may never have to enter the crisis response system at all, which means that the crisis response system can operate more effectively for households who really need it.
You can see Coordinated Entry is not just the access point, or entry way, into the crisis response system; it’s also a process with an intentional “flow” of participants from initial triage through housing and service projects until people are back on their feet in permanent housing.
The graphic gives you a sense of how your system’s components fit together to end homelessness as quickly as possible. I know you’re used to seeing these component types, but what might be new is seeing how they interact with each other (or how they SHOULD interact with each other). As you work in your CoC, you’ll have to figure out how your system currently works, find the parts that result in cycling between projects and not exiting to housing, and start working to plan more intentional pathways through the system so that people don’t get stuck.

24. Basics of Prioritization
Prioritization ensures that:
Vulnerable households with severe service needs have first access to housing and services
Wait times for most vulnerable individuals and families are reduced
Highest need households experiencing homelessness are matched to the most appropriate and available intervention
Increases responsiveness of homeless system
Prioritization must be based on a specific and definable set of criteria that are documented, made publicly available, and applied consistently.
Prioritization must be consistent with the written standards for the CoC and ESG recipients
Aligned with CPD-16-11(HUD’s Prioritization Notice) if the CoC chose to adopt the Notice
Prioritization must be based on level of need for the type of assistance being offered
Standardized and Consistent Prioritization Criteria:
Prioritization is based on a specific and definable set of criteria that are documented, made publicly available, and applied consistently
Consistent with CoC Written Standards
In all cases, nondiscriminatory prioritization practices must be implemented
Prioritizing based on severity of service needs is acceptable and recommended
Prioritizing based on specific disabilities (kidney disease, psycho-social disorders, etc.) is neither acceptable, recommended, nor legal

25. USICH Benchmarks and Criteria for Ending Chronic Homelessness
In Opening Doors, the nation’s comprehensive federal strategy to prevent and end homelessness, a goal was set to prevent and end chronic homelessness by USICH provided specific criteria and benchmarks to help communities achieve this goal of ending chronic homelessness.
Criteria that helps assess whether communities have achieved the criteria for ending chronic homelessness:
Identifying and providing outreach to all individuals experiencing or at risk for chronic homelessness, and prevented chronic homelessness wherever possible
Having the ability to provide access to shelter or other temporary accommodations immediately to any person experiencing unsheltered chronic homelessness who wants it
Implementing a community-wide Housing First orientation and response that also considers the preferences of the individuals being served
Assisting individuals experiencing chronic homelessness to move swiftly into permanent housing with the appropriate level of supportive services and effectively prioritized people for permanent housing
USICH also released Criteria and Benchmarks for Achieving the Goal of Ending Veterans Homelessness ( v3 released February 2017), Ending Family Homelessness (July 2017), and Ending Youth Homelessness (Revised February 2018)
As a background to the Criteria and Benchmarks for Ending Chronic Homelessness, the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) and its 19 Federal member agencies have adopted a vision of what it means to end all homelessness and have provided specific criteria and benchmarks to help communities achieve this goal of ending chronic homelessness.
Operational definition of an end to homelessness: when every community has a systematic response in place that ensures we can prevent homelessness whenever possible or when it can’t be prevented, it is a rare, brief and non-recurring experience.
An end to homelessness does not mean that no one will ever experience a housing crisis again. Changing economic realities, the unpredictability of life and unsafe or unwelcoming family environments may create situations where youth could experience or be at risk of homelessness
Defining an end to homelessness:
This means that every community will have a systematic response in place that ensures homelessness is prevented whenever possible or is otherwise a rare, brief, and non-recurring experience. This does not mean that no one will ever experience a housing crisis again!

26. Housing First Overview
What does it mean to be Housing First?
Few barriers to admission
Supportive services are voluntary
Used to persistently engage tenants to ensure housing stability 
Tenants have full rights, responsibilities, and legal protections
No conditions of tenancy beyond those included in the lease
Practices and policies to prevent lease violations and evictions 
Applicable in a variety of housing models:
Permanent supportive housing (PSH) - targeted to individuals and families with chronic illnesses, disabilities, mental health issues, or substance use disorders who have experienced long-term or repeated homelessness. Long-term rental assistance and supportive services are provided.
Rapid Re-Housing (RRH) - to help households obtain housing quickly, increase self-sufficiency, and remain housed. Short to medium-term rental assistance and services are provided.
Housing First is an approach to quickly and successfully connect individuals and families experiencing homelessness to permanent housing without preconditions and barriers to entry, such as sobriety, treatment or service participation requirements. Supportive services are offered to maximize housing stability and prevent returns to homelessness as opposed to addressing predetermined treatment goals prior to permanent housing entry.
Guided by the belief that people need basic necessities like food and a place to live before attending to anything less critical, such as getting a job, budgeting properly, or attending to substance use issues.
Client choice is valuable in housing selection and supportive service participation, and that exercising that choice is likely to make a client more successful in remaining housed and improving their life.
Key components of this model include a simple application process, a harm reduction approach, and no conditions of tenancy beyond those included in the lease. This approach i\s highlighted in Opening Doors as a core strategy for ending homelessness. 
Outcomes:
There is a large and growing evidence base demonstrating that Housing First is an effective solution to homelessness
Studies have been completed on PSH finding that clients report an increase in perceived levels of autonomy, choice, and control in Housing First programs. A majority of clients are found to participate in the optional supportive services provided, often resulting in greater housing stability. Clients using supportive services are more likely to participate in job training programs, attend school, discontinue substance use, have fewer instances of domestic violence, and spend fewer days hospitalized than those not participating.
Shift in Policies & Procedures:
Adopting HF approach requires significant modification of program policies and procedures. Because front-line staff are most often responsible for the implementation of policies and procedures and consumers are the ones most impacted by them, the development or revision A simple way to involve staff is to present initial policy and procedure drafts at regular staff meetings (or to host separate meetings) for review and feedback. In addition to garnering constructive feedback and suggestions from an “on-the-ground” perspective, this process often reveals issues which may generate the most resistance, as well as staff from whom resistance may be experienced.

27. Housing persons with no to little income: Strategies from the Field
Ongoing landlord recruitment and engagement
Understanding rent is priority for landlords: How can you convince them to be a partner and work with you and program participants?
Increase understanding of HUD programs: use data, messaging
Case management
Case manager does not expect or require that the participant meet certain behavioral or economic preconditions (such as an income threshold or sobriety) to be able to obtain housing and exit homelessness.
Strategic partnerships in community
Connection to mainstream resources
Coordinate closely with employment service providers in their community to ensure participants have ready access to those resources.
Strategies:
 Ongoing landlord recruitment and engagement:
A primary priority for landlords is rent payment: This could be challenging for persons with no to little income, particularly in time-limited programs such as RRH. PH Programs subsidize the tenants’ rents for some period of time, essentially guaranteeing property revenue.
For RRH projects, there is flexibility in program design. Depending on funding parameters, RRH programs can pay several months of rent up front for participants who may have a poor rental history. RRH programs also can provide assistance with creating monthly budgets and helping participants increase income so they can work toward eventually paying the rent on their own. For landlords who are concerned that the program is paying only a few months of rent, RRH programs can use national and local data, as well as program participant success stories, to show landlords that a majority of RRH program participants maintain permanent housing on their own once the RRH subsidy ends.
Using Housing First approach for Case management: The case manager’s primary focus is ending the crisis of homelessness by assisting participants to obtain and retain permanent housing. This means the case manager does not expect or require that the participant meet certain behavioral or economic preconditions (such as an income threshold or sobriety) to be able to obtain housing and exit homelessness.
Case managers must become extremely knowledgeable about a wide variety of benefits and the best pathways to secure them for the participant. For example, many effective RRH programs coordinate closely with employment service providers in their community to ensure participants have ready access to those resources. Case managers should foster and improve connections with key resource providers that participants need. This can improve the long-term housing stability and well-being of participants and facilitate a responsible closure of RRH case management services.
9/21/2018

28. How does HUD measure success and where do we go from here?
System Performance Measures
Data informed planning

29. Types of HUD Reporting System Performance Measures
Point-in-Time (PIT) Count:
Counts the number of sheltered and unsheltered persons experiencing homelessness
APR: Annual Performance Report
Number of persons served
Data quality
Income outcomes
Bed utilization
Housing outcomes
Housing Inventory Count (HIC):
Counts an inventory of housing such as bed or unit count by each program type in a CoC
Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR): Reports nationwide estimates of homelessness to the U.S. Congress
System Performance Measures
Length of Time Homeless
Returns to Homelessness
Number of Homeless Persons
Employment and Income Growth
Persons who Become Homeless for the First Time
Homeless Prevention and Housing Placement of Persons defined by category 3 of HUD’s Homeless Definition.
Successful Placement - from Street Outreach or in PH
Let’s go over the different types of CoC reporting requirements, how they might differ, and where the SPMs come into play.
A CoC is used to evaluating project-level performance by looking at individual outcomes such as exits to and retention of permanent housing, length of stay in the project, and increase in income (APR data). These reports measure the effectiveness of a project at serving participants while they are enrolled, BUT they do not tell the whole story. Individual projects may have high performance on their defined outcomes even while the system as a whole does a poor job of preventing and ending homelessness in the community. An individual project cannot measure participants’ overall experience of homelessness and the homeless system as they move from one project to another, nor can it measure whether persons assisted by a project later return to another project elsewhere in the system.
Regarding the performance measures, each of the seven measures tells a different piece of the story, and all seven together will help communities make informed and balanced choices. As our core outcome of ending homelessness, we directly measure a community’s progress by counting the NUMBER of people experiencing homelessness… both at a point in time and over the course of a year. The other measures all help communities understand how well they are doing the things necessary to REDUCE the number of people who become homeless and help those who DO become homeless return to stable housing. The performance measures are all interrelated and, when you analyze them relative to each other, they can provide a pretty complete picture of system-level performance. For example, the length of time homeless measure encourages communities to QUICKLY re-house people, while measures on returns to homelessness and successful housing placements encourage communities to ensure that those placements are also STABLE. Taken together, these measures allow communities to dig deeper into the factors that will ultimately contribute to ending homelessness.
Other types of HUD reporting (among others):
Housing Inventory Count (HIC): An inventory of housing conducted annually during the last ten days in January
AHAR: The Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) is a report to the U.S. Congress on the extent and nature of homelessness in the United States. The AHAR is based on local data from Point-in-Time (PIT) counts, Housing Inventory Counts (HIC), and Homeless Management Information Systems (HMIS).
9/21/2018

30. Diagnosing System Performance
Analysis of performance data tells us:
Extent to which homelessness is rare, brief and non- recurring
Where to target efforts to become more effective
How to prioritize system and program resources
How to achieve continuous improvement
System performance measures data will enable communities to evaluate and improve their performance. Because these are system-level measures, they can reveal significant information about how well homelessness assistance programs are functioning as a whole and where improvements are necessary. The data will also help CoCs identify gaps in data and services. CoCs should be using system performance measures such as the average length of homeless episodes, rates of return to homelessness, and rates of exit to permanent housing destinations to determine how effectively they are serving people experiencing homelessness.
Note: It is critical for CoCs to consider the populations they are serving when evaluating their performance and potential system changes. Populations such as youth, victims of domestic violence, and people experiencing chronic homelessness might have unique circumstances. In comparing services in their system, CoCs should strive to ensure comparisons are made among projects with similar target populations.
What do the System Performance Measures help us understand?
Data serves as objective criteria to understand how effective your CoC is in making homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurring across the homeless system.
Helps identify gaps in your system
Helps to inform planning decisions and how resources should be allocated
The SPM report is a starting point for performance analysis, which can be conducted in conjunction with other available reports (e.g., the Annual Performance Report (APR), the Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR), Point-in-Time (PIT) count data) and local data sources (e.g., coordinated entry data, vendor- and CoC-designed reports) to identify factors contributing to performance results. L

31. HUD System Performance Measures Overview
System Performance Measure Criteria
Goal of capturing this data
1. Length of Time Homeless
Seeing a reduction in the average and median lengths of time people are experiencing homelessness from one year to the next
2. Returns to Homelessness
Seeing people exit your homeless system and not return
3. Number of Homeless Persons
Seeing reductions total number of people who are homeless from one year to the next.
4. Employment and Income Growth
Measuring increases in employment income and other sources of cash income.
5. Persons who Become Homeless for the First Time
Reducing the number of people who become homeless for the first time every year
6. Homeless Prevention and Housing Placement of Persons defined by category 3 of HUD’s Homeless Definition*
*Note: As of now data is not being collected for Measure 6
7a. Successful Placement from Street Outreach
7b.Successful Placement in or Retention of Permanent Housing
Measuring how successful street outreach projects are at helping people move off the “street” and towards permanent housing
Measuring successful housing outcomes for people served in permanent housing projects other than rapid rehousing
The purpose of these system performance measures is to provide a more complete picture of how well a community is preventing and ending homelessness. The performance measures are interrelated and, when analyzed relative to each other, provide a more complete picture of system performance. For example, the length of time homeless measure (#1) encourages communities to quickly re-house people, while measures on returns to homelessness (#2) and successful housing placements (#7) encourage communities to ensure that those placements are also stable. Taken together, these measures allow communities to more comprehensively evaluate the factors that contribute to ending homelessness.
Measure 1: Length of time homeless
One of the most critical signs that your homeless service system is working efficiently is that people who experience homelessness are able to move quickly into a permanent housing situation. HUD measures this by looking at the average and median length of time people spend in homeless situations and then looks to see if that time period is getting shorter, staying the same, or getting longer. The basic approach for this measure is to count up the number of days recorded in HMIS that a person has spent in emergency shelters and safe havens during a one year period and then find the average and median lengths of time for everyone in your system. Then separately, we look at the time a person has spent in emergency shelters, safe havens, AND transitional housing. This measure is particularly useful for informing system planning because we’re not looking at individual projects, but instead looking across all the emergency homeless interventions to understand how your system as a whole is functioning.
Measure 2: Returns to Homelessness
The goal for this measure is pretty simple—we’d like to see people exit your system and not return. Obviously, this concept is key to reducing overall homelessness. So the question is “what percentage of people who move to permanent housing after being homeless end up experiencing homelessness again within the next 6, 12, and 24 months?” We’re looking for reductions in that percentage from one year to the next.
Here’s an example of how you can analyze your local data. Let’s say you look at the permanent housing destinations that people are exiting to. In this example, notice that a lot of the people who return to homelessness had originally exited to housing with family and friends. That may indicate, for example, that more follow up services are needed to make those housing placements work. It’s up to each community locally to discuss the information and decide if results are appropriate for those being served or whether results can be improved.
Measure 3. Number of Homeless Persons
In this measure, homelessness is counted in two ways. The first is usually referred to as a point-in-time count. That tells us how many people are homeless on a single day. The second is an annual count. That tells us how many people are homeless over the course of a year. We rely on HMIS and point-in-time count data for this measure, and the goal is to see reductions total number of people who are homeless from one year to the next.
Measure 4. Employment and Income Growth
In this measure, we’re looking at employment income and other sources of cash income. We know that most homeless projects primarily focus on housing placement, but we’re also interested in whether people increase their income during their time in the homeless system. When your system is able to help people maximize their income, then they’re better able to stay in their housing.
This measure uses HMIS data on adults’ or heads of households’ income when they enter projects, compared to their income at annual assessments, or when they exit. It’s a little different than some of the other measures, because tracking income is only required for projects funded through the CoC Program, so only CoC Program-funded permanent supportive housing, rapid re-housing, and transitional housing projects are included in this measure.
Measure 5. Persons who Become Homeless for the First Time
The goal of this measure is to reduce every year the number of people who become homeless for the first time. To end homelessness we have to ensure that all currently homeless people are stably housed and do not return to homelessness, but we also have to reduce the number of people who become homeless in the first place through successful prevention.
Measure 6. Homeless Prevention and Housing Placement of Persons defined by category 3 of HUD’s Homeless Definition.
Measure 6 helps communities understand both of these goals for families and youth defined as homeless under other federal laws. No CoC has been approved to serve this group of persons so data is not being collected for Measure 6. Time Persons Remain Homeless
7a. Successful Placement from Street Outreach
We are measuring how successful street outreach projects are at helping people move off the “street” and towards permanent housing, recognizing this process may be direct or may involve other temporary situations along the way. This is important because we know that people living on the street and other places not meant for human habitation are at an increased risk of death. In this part of the measure a lot of places in addition to permanent housing are considered successful destinations, such as emergency shelter, foster care, temporarily staying with family or friends, safe havens, and transitional housing.
The measure is looking for an increase in the percentage of people who exit to positive destinations from a street outreach project during the reporting period.
7b.Successful Placement in or Retention of Permanent Housing
This measure calculates successful housing placement in two ways – when people move from the homeless system into permanent housing, and when people enrolled in permanent housing programs like PSH remain housed either in the housing program or move to other permanent housing. For people living in permanent housing, successful housing outcomes are defined in two ways -- retaining their unit in the project or moving to other permanent housing. Remember, permanent supportive housing projects typically aim to stabilize people in permanent housing with supports, and people are allowed to stay as long as they need to, so it’s a positive outcome if they remain. But it’s also a good outcome if people don’t need the PSH environment anymore and decide to move on to other forms of permanent housing.
How you could use the data: In general, we are looking for an increase in the percent of persons who are successfully housed in permanent housing, so after the first year we will be able to look at whether the system is making progress. With the focus on system improvement over time, your CoC could set targets to improve placement in or retention of permanent housing expecting that overall performance would increase by a certain percentage a year. You could also look at performance by project type to see if there is an area that needs additional focus, for example building housing retention capacity of PSH providers.

32. Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR)
Through the AHAR, HUD reports nationwide estimates of homelessness to the U.S. Congress
Includes information about the demographic characteristics of homeless persons, service use patterns, and the capacity to house homeless persons
Report is based primarily on Homeless Management Information Systems (HMIS) data about persons who experience homelessness during a 12-month period
Good data quality is critical to reflect an accurate picture of communities’ achievements and service and housing gaps
The Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) is a HUD report to the U.S. Congress that provides nationwide estimates of homelessness, including information about the demographic characteristics of homeless persons, service use patterns, and the capacity to house homeless persons. The report is based primarily on Homeless Management Information Systems (HMIS) data about persons who experience homelessness during a 12-month period.

33. Why Data Quality Matters
Central to HUD and federal partners’ work to end homelessness, is the ability to demonstrate progress towards the key indicators in the federal strategic plan to end homelessness (Opening Doors)
Quality data allows HUD and communities to identify what strategies to end homelessness are working effectively, and to anticipate and identify trends in the effort to end homelessness
It is essential for CoCs to talk openly and regularly about data quality and its impact in understanding homelessness in a community.
HUD is committed to ending homelessness for individuals and families as laid out in Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to End Homelessness. To do this, communities on the front line of this work often need to change how housing and service resources are delivered. High quality data is essential to developing an accurate picture of the health of your community's homeless services system and to knowing where improvements are needed.
When working to make data quality a central part of the CoC and HMIS efforts, consider the impact that poor data quality has on the HUD System Performance Measures

34. Questions?
Contact Information: Michael Lindsay