REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
December 5, 2023
FROM
DIANE RUNDLES, Assistant Executive Officer, Community Revitalization
SUBJECT
Title
Grant Agreements from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development for the Continuum of Care Planning and Homeless Management Information System Grants
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
1. Authorize the Director of the Community Development and Housing Department, on behalf of the San Bernardino City and County Continuum of Care, to accept and approve the following grant award agreements from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development for the Continuum of Care Planning and Homeless Management Information System grants, in a combined total amount of $681,477, for the one-year period beginning November 1, 2023 through October 31, 2024:
a. Grant No. CA2183L9D092200 for the Continuum of Care Planning Grant, in the amount of $431,319.
b. Grant No. CA0939L9D092213 for the Continuum of Care Homeless Management Information System, in the amount of $250,158.
2. Authorize the Chief Executive Officer, Chief of Homeless Services, or Director of the Community Development and Housing Department, to execute and submit any subsequent non-substantive amendments and all other ancillary supporting documents necessary for the administration of these grants, on behalf of San Bernardino County and the San Bernardino City and County Continuum of Care, subject to review by County Counsel.
3. Direct the Chief of Homeless Services to transmit all grant award agreements and amendments in relation to the Continuum of Care Planning and Homeless Management Information Systems grants to the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors within 30 days of execution.
(Presenter: Marcus Dillard, Chief of Homeless Services, 501-0610)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
Pursue County Goals and Objectives by Working with Other Agencies and Stakeholders.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
This item does not impact Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The total combined grant awards of $681,477 includes $431,319 for the San Bernardino City and County Continuum of Care (CoC) Planning funding and $250,158 for the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) funding. The grants require a minimum of 25% cash and/or in-kind match. The County, as the lead agency of the CoC, is required to provide a 25% total match of $107,830 for Planning and $62,540 for the Homeless Management Information System, that will be provided in the form of salaries funded from non-federal sources. Adequate appropriation and revenue have been included in the Office of Homeless Services (OHS) 2023-24 budget and will be included in the 2024-25 recommended budget.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
As the Administrative Entity for the CoC, OHS will utilize the CoC Planning and HMIS grants to provide essential administrative support to the CoC and maintain the Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-mandated county-wide HMIS.
The CoC program is designed to promote community-wide planning and strategic use of resources to address homelessness, improve coordination and integration with mainstream resources and other efforts targeted to people experiencing homelessness, and improve data collection and performance measurement.
The CoC works to ensure community-wide commitment to ending and preventing homelessness in all areas of the county through the inclusion of representation from the entire CoC geographic area. Membership includes a variety of other community stakeholders who are invested in resolving homelessness and located in the CoC geographic area. Stakeholders include representatives of organizations, including non-profit homeless providers, victim service providers, faith-based organizations, local governments, businesses, advocates, public housing agencies, school districts, social service providers, mental health agencies, hospitals, universities, affordable housing developers, law enforcement, organizations that serve homeless and formerly homeless veterans, and homeless and formerly homeless persons.
The CoC Planning grant program is designed to promote community-wide commitment to the goal of ending homelessness by providing regional funding for efforts by state governments, nonprofit providers, and local governments to provide permanent housing to homeless individuals and families to minimize the trauma experienced as a result of literal homelessness. The awarded HUD Planning grant funds will be used to continue a partnership with the Institute of Urban Initiatives, who have and will continue to assist OHS and the CoC with a variety of planning-related activities. These activities include improving the design and integration of information needed to complete and submit the most competitive HUD collaborative grant applications, assistance with grant writing, providing assistance and technical expertise for the administration of the annual Point-In-Time Count and Housing Inventory Count and producing related reports for each. Activities may also include conducting the Annual Performance Report, homeless assistance trainings for the CoC, providing guidance, analysis and annual reviews of the Coordinated Entry System, technical support for the HMIS, and the development and update of the Homeless Strategic Action Plan. Planning grant funds will also be used for the planning, coordination, and staffing costs associated with the annual Homeless Summit and Housing Conference.
The HMIS is a local information technology system used to collect data related to the provision of housing and services to individuals and families at risk of and experiencing homelessness, as well as demographic data for individuals and families receiving such services. The Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing Act of 2009 requires each local jurisdiction to have an HMIS software solution with the capacity to collect unduplicated counts of individuals and families experiencing homelessness and that complies with HUD data collection, management, and reporting standards. HMIS is also required to provide annual reports to HUD demonstrating the progress that each community is making to prevent and end homelessness. Reports generated by the HMIS system include data on the number of individuals engaged, racial and ethnic data, services provided, outcomes, and when the individual exited the program. The system also includes the number of shelter beds available and the length of time it takes to provide services towards transitional and permanent housing.
The HMIS grant funds will be used to continue the maintenance and operation of Bitfocus, Inc.’s Clarity Human Services database, on behalf of the CoC. Clarity Human Services is a web-enabled database used by homeless service providers throughout the county to capture information about the individuals they serve. The data is utilized to evaluate performance metrics to ensure outcome goals are achieved and to strategically implement programs and services that reduce homelessness and increase housing and economic stability. Currently, the Clarity Human Services database has 254 active users, 44 active agencies, 229 projects, and has collected data on 51,968 homeless individuals since the system was implemented in January of 2022. HMIS grant funds also support the software costs and staffing needed to accommodate the proper application of data collection of the homeless community and meet HUD data standard reporting.
On June 26, 2023, acting as the lead agency on behalf of the CoC, OHS received HUD’s Fiscal Year 2022 CoC Program Standard Agreement for the HMIS renewal grant award (Project No. CA0939L9D092213) in the amount of $250,158 and on June 28, 2023, the Standard Agreement for Planning grant award (Project No. CA2183L9D092200) in the amount of $431,319, for a total grant amount of $681,477. The Board of Supervisors (Board) has been accepting and approving these Planning and HMIS grants since 2013.
The planned expenditure of these funds will be as follows:
|
Expense |
Cost |
|
Homeless Management Information System |
|
HMIS Software |
$132,600 |
|
Staffing |
$117,558 |
|
Planning Grant |
|
Institute for Urban Initiatives (consultant) |
$199,100 |
|
Homeless Summit |
$35,000 |
|
Project Connect |
$10,000 |
|
Staffing |
$187,219 |
|
Total |
$681,477 |
Approval of this item will allow OHS to accept the HUD grant awards for the period November 1, 2023, through October 31, 2024, and authorizes the Chief Executive Officer, Chief of Homeless Services, or the Director of Community Development and Housing Department to execute and submit the grant agreements and any subsequent non-substantive amendments and ancillary supporting documents for administration of these grants, on behalf of the County and CoC, subject to review by County Counsel.
Although the grant award agreements were received on June 28, 2023, additional agreements necessary for the execution of work under the grants needed to be resolved prior to seeking approval from the Board. This item is being presented at this time after extensive analysis, re-evaluation, and after the necessary program, fiscal, and legal reviews. Approval at this time will not impact OHS’ services or activities. HUD requires the authorized Grants be executed and returned within three months of the HUD fiscal year beginning November 1, 2023.
PROCUREMENT
N/A
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Suzanne Bryant, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on November 16, 2023; Finance (Christopher Lange, Administrative Analyst, 386-8393) on November 17, 2023; County Finance and Administration (Cheryl Adams, Deputy Executive Officer, 388-0332) on November 17, 2023.