HUD Continuum of Care

Introduction

Each year, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) solicits applications from communities to address the needs of those experiencing homelessness. This process, known as the Continuum of Care (CoC), facilitates a set of three competitively-awarded grants created to address the problems of homelessness in a comprehensive manner with other federal agencies. Homeward manages the CoC grant application process for the Greater Richmond continuum, whcih includes the following localities: the city of Richmond, and the counties of Chesterfield, Hanover, Henrico, Powhatan, Goochland, New Kent and Charles City.

History of the Continuum of Care (CoC)

Prior to 1987, most funding for homeless programs was handled at the local level. With pressure on Congress to address rising problems with homelessness, Congress approved the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, under which the three Continuum of Care Programs (Supportive Housing Program, Shelter Plus Care Program, and Single Room Occupancy Program) provide funding for entities that serve the homeless population.

Since 1994, the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has encouraged communities to address the problems of housing and homelessness in a coordinated, comprehensive, and strategic fashion. With input from practitioners throughout the country, HUD introduced the Continuum of Care concept to support communities in this effort. This concept is designed to help communities develop the capacity to envision, organize, and plan comprehensive and long-term solutions to addressing the problem of homelessness in their community.

Homeward has taken this charge seriously and in 2007 led a regional effort to come up with a “Ten Year Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness in the Richmond Region.” Our CoC is well established and maintains a good relationship with HUD.

Funding Eligibility

Who can apply for these funds?

Eligible applicants include States, local governments, other government agencies (such as public housing agencies), private nonprofit organizations, and community mental health associations that are public nonprofit organizations.

Can CoC funds be used by faith-based agencies?

CoC funds are open to faith-based agencies that have IRS 501(c)3 non-profit status, however, funds can not be used to fund any program that requires religious attendance or adherence as part of the program.

What kinds of programs are eligible under this grant application?

The COC provides funding for three types of grants that address homelessness:

Supportive Housing Program (SHP): SHP features six components—or approaches—to help homeless people achieve independence. Applicants may choose the approach that best suits the needs of the people they intend to serve.

  1. The Transitional Housing component facilitates the movement of homeless individuals and families to permanent housing. Homeless persons may live in transitional housing for up to 24 months and receive supportive services such as childcare, job training, and home furnishings that help them live more independently.
  2. Permanent Housing for Persons with Disabilities: This component provides long-term housing with supportive services for homeless persons with disabilities. This type of supportive housing enables special needs populations to live as independently as possible in a permanent setting.
  3. Supportive Services Only (SSO) projects address the service needs of homeless persons. Projects are classified as this component only if the project sponsor is not also providing housing to the same persons receiving the services. SSO projects may be in a structure or operated independently of a structure, such as street outreach or mobile vans for health care.
  4. Safe Haven is a form of supportive housing that serves hard-to-reach homeless persons with severe mental illness and other debilitating behavioral conditions who are on the street and have been unable or unwilling to participate in
    housing or supportive services. A Safe Haven project that has the characteristics of permanent supportive housing and requires clients to sign a lease may also be classified as permanent housing when applying for HUD funds. It is expected that clients will be re-engaged with treatment services as they become stabilized and learn to trust service providers.
  5. The Homeless Management Information Systems (HMIS) is a data collection software designed to capture information over time on the characteristics of persons experiencing homelessness.
  6. The Innovative Supportive Housing component enables the applicant to design a program outside the scope of the other components. In particular, a proposed innovative project must demonstrate that it represents a distinctively different approach when viewed within its geographic area, is a sensible model for others, and can be replicated elsewhere. An applicant should not propose a project under this component

Shelter Plus Care (S+C) This program provides rental assistance for homeless people with disabilities that together with other social services will provide permanent supportive housing. Eligible applicants include units of general local government and public housing authorities. There are four components: TRA (tenant based rental assistance), SRA (sponsor based rental assistance), PRA (project based rental assistance) and SRO (single room occupancy dwellings).

Section 8 Moderate Rehabilitation Single Room Occupancy for Homeless Individuals (SRO) Under the SRO program, public housing authorities and private non-profit organizations are allowed to apply for rental subsidies for homeless individuals. There is no disability requirement under Section 8 funding.

Who can be served by these grant funds?

This program serves the needs of the homeless and chronically homeless as defined by HUD. Note that this definition may differ from the definition used by other agencies, mostly notably that of the Department of Education. The defintion used by HUD specifically excludes people who are "doubled up" (living in shared accomodations) and those at risk of becoming homeless.

Who is homeless?

According to HUD, a person is considered homeless only when he/she lives

  • on the street,
  • in a place not meant for human habitation (e.g. cars, campsites, and abandoned buildings),
    in an emergency shelter,
  • in transitional or supportive housing (for people coming from streets or shelter), or
  • in any of the above places prior to entering a hospital/institution for short-term (30 days or less).

A person is also considered homeless if he/she is being

  • evicted within a week from a private dwelling, or
  • discharged within a week from an institution where they stayed long term, 31 days or more, and a housing plan is not provided as part of discharge planning.

Who is chronically homeless?

A Chronically Homeless Person is an unaccompanied homeless individual with a disabling condition who has either been continuously homeless for a year or more, OR has had at least four (4) episodes of homelessness in the past three (3) years. A disabling condition is defined as a diagnosable substance use disorder, serious mental illness, developmental disability, or chronic physical illness or disability, including the co-occurrence of two or more of these conditions. In defining the chronically homeless, the term ‘‘homeless’’ means a person sleeping in a place not meant for human habitation (e.g., living on the streets) or in an emergency homeless shelter.

Applying for Funding

How does this application process work?

The formal application process begins with a well-produced application with supporting materials that are reviewed by our local Ranking Committee. Those projects that are selected for funding will create an online application to HUD. The application process was made entirely electronic in 2008, with applications submitted through the HUD ESNAPS system. Once applications are ranked and submitted, HUD establishes a graded score for the community's application and selects projects for funding within commnities that achieve a sufficient score.

What types of forms are applicants required to complete?

Specific requirements for each year's funding are detailed in the SuperNOFA (Notice of Funding Availability) for that year. Though these requirements often change slightly from year to year, they generally include similar elements. To prepare for upcoming rounds of funding, the following steps are recommended:

What is the timeframe?

The timeframe for applications begins when the SuperNOFA is published in the Federal Register. Historically the SuperNOFA has been released in the spring to late summer with a 90 day application turnaround. HUD attempts to announce its grant awards by year end with initial draws occurring in the first quarter of the next year.

Does an applicant agency need cash to receive CoC funding?

Yes. The percentage amount of cash depends on the type of program and the use of funds. The cash match can range from 20% to 50%, depending on the type of program and the use of funds. Both the Ranking Committee and HUD look at the financial strength of the organization and the amount of the cash match when they review applications. Applications for rehabilitation, acquisition and new construction should probably figure on having a 50% cash match. While operating costs and supportive services require a lower match, new applications for those purposes will NOT be reviewed as favorably as applications that increase the amount of housing.

Definitions

The following are several definitions that are commonly referred to during the application process.

SuperNOFA - Notice of Funding Availability - Annually, the US Government publishes a Notice of Funding Availability in the Federal Register that announces a multitude of funding opportunities, one of which is the HUD Continuum of Care Homeless Assistance Programs announcement. This entire document and process has become known as the SuperNOFA and the specifics of these funding opportunities are found in this legal document.

Continuum of Care (CoC) - The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act programs administered by HUD that award funds competitively require the development of a "Continuum of Care" system in the community where assistance is being sought. A CoC is a group of service providers that collaboratively work to organize and deliver housing and services to meet specific needs of people who are homeless.

It has also come to be known as the collaborative funding plan that communities use to address the needs of the homeless, and, in some cases, an abbreviation for this grant application. Localities that participate in our local CoC are the city of Richmond and the counties of Henrico, Chesterfield, Charles City, New Kent, Powhatan, Goochland and Hanover.

Homeward Community Information System (HCIS) – is an online client tracking and case management program that allows our community to input and compile demographic data on clients and services. HCIS is our region's adoption of the nationally mandated Homeless Management Information System (HMIS). The Department of Housing and Urban Development requires the use of an HMIS database for providers and communities receiving HUD funds. All organizations receiving COC funds are required to participate in HCIS.

Additional information

  • National Alliance to End Homelessness: Explainer on CoC