The Emergency Solutions Grants Program (ESG): An Overview

COSCDA Conference 2012

Washington, DC

Michael Roanhouse, HUD

March 12, 2012

The Emergency Solutions Grants Program (ESG):

An Overview

Topics

• Overview of the ESG Regulation

• Components and Administration of ESG

• Program Requirements

• Building the Bridge: HPRP vs. ESG

• Substantial Amendment Process

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Overview

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Status of Regulatory Process

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Overview of Homeless Definition

Homeless definition has 4 categories:1) Literally homeless individuals/families

2) Individuals/families who will imminently (within 14 days) lose their primary nighttime residence with no subsequent residence, resources or support networks

3) Unaccompanied youth or families with children/youth who meet the homeless definition under another federal statute and 3 additional criteria

4) Individuals/families fleeing or attempting to flee domestic violence with no subsequent residence, resources or support networks

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At-Risk of Homelessness definition has 3 categories applicable to:

1) Individuals and Families

2) Unaccompanied Children and Youth

3) Unaccompanied Children and Youth and their

Families

Overview of At Risk Definition

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FY 2012 Funding Allocation

FY 2012 Allocation: $286 million

* FY 2012 appropriations directed HUD to fund the ESG program for at least $250 million

Priorities in Developing the ESG Regulation

• Broaden existing emergency shelter and homelessness prevention activities.

• Emphasize Rapid Re-Housing.• Help people quickly regain stability in permanent

housing after experiencing a housing crisis and/or homelessness.

• Enhance alignment of ESG regulations with other HUD programs – including CDBG, HOME, and Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program.

• Support more coordinated and effective data collection, performance measurement, and program evaluation.

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HEARTH Focus on Outcomes

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• CoC: performance measurement will focus on CoC performance as a system

• ESG: performance will impact CoC performance• Length of time homeless

• Recidivism (subsequent return to homelessness)

• Access/coverage (thoroughness in reaching persons who are homeless)

• Overall reduction in number of persons who experience homelessness

• Job and income growth for persons who are homeless

• Reduction in first time homeless

• Other accomplishments related to reducing homelessness

Components and Administration of ESG

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1) Street Outreach

2) Emergency Shelter

3) Homelessness Prevention

4) Rapid Re-Housing

5) HMIS

The 5 Components of ESG

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• Serves unsheltered homeless persons • Essential Services include street outreach

services for: • Engagement• Case management• Emergency health and mental health services• Transportation• Services for special populations*

*Special Populations include Homeless Youth, Homeless Persons with HIV/AIDS, and Homeless Victims of Domestic Violence, Sexual Violence, and Stalking.

1. Street Outreach Component

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• Serves people staying in emergency shelters

• Essential Services include:• Case management• Child care, education, employment, and life skills services• Legal services• Health, mental health, and substance abuse services• Transportation• Services for special populations

• Shelter activities include: • Renovation (including major rehab or conversion)• Operations (e.g., maintenance, utilities, furniture, food)

2. Emergency Shelter Component

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• Street outreach and emergency shelter expenditures are capped

• Combined street outreach and emergency shelter expenditures from each fiscal year's ESG grant cannot exceed the greater of:

― 60% of that fiscal year's total ESG grant award

― The amount of FY 2010 grant funds committed to street outreach and emergency shelter activities

Street Outreach and Emergency Shelter Funding Ceiling

3. Homelessness Prevention Component

• Available to persons: – Below 30% of AMI

– Homeless or at risk of becoming homeless

• Can be used: • To prevent an individual or family from becoming

homeless• To help an individual or family regain stability in

current housing or other permanent housing

• Eligible activities: • Housing Relocation and Stabilization Services• Short- and Medium-Term Rental Assistance

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4. Rapid Re-Housing Component

• Available to those who are literally homeless

• Can be used:

• To help a homeless individual or family move into permanent housing and achieve housing stability

• Eligible activities:

• Housing Relocation and Stabilization Services

• Short- and Medium-Term Rental Assistance

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Housing Relocation and Stabilization Services

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Allowable activities for both Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-housing components:

Financial Assistance* Services

• Moving costs• Rent application fees• Security deposit

• Last month's rent• Utility deposit• Utility payments

• Housing search / placement• Housing stability case

management • Mediation and legal services• Credit repair/ budgeting/

money management

*No financial assistance to a household for a purpose and time period supported by another public source.

Short/Medium-Term Rental Assistance

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Allowable activities for both Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-housing components:

Rental Assistance

• Definition:

– Short-Term = up to 3 months– Medium-Term = 4 to 24 months

• Duration: Up to 24 months of rental assistance during any 3-year period, including one-time payment for up to 6 months of rent arrears on the tenant’s portion of the rent

• Type: Tenant-based or project-based

Short/Medium-Term Rental Assistance

Standards for Both Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Components:

• FMR limits

• Rent reasonableness

• Minimum habitability standards

• Rental assistance agreement and lease

• No rental assistance to a household receiving rental assistance from another public source for same time period (except a one-time payment of up to 6 months of arrears)

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Administrative Activities

• Eligible Administrative costs include:– Providing management, oversight, and coordination– Monitoring programs and evaluating performance– Training on ESG requirements– Preparing ESG & homelessness-related sections of the

Consolidated Plan – Carrying out environmental review responsibilities

• State recipients must share a reasonable amount of funds for administrative costs with subrecipients that are units of general purpose local government

• Staff /overhead costs directly related to one of the program components are NOT subject to the administrative cost limit 20

Administrative Activities Amounts

• Up to 7.5% of grant may be used for administrative costs

• The 7.5% is calculated based on the entire FY 2011 allocation.

• IDIS will be set to allow draws up to 7.5% of the entire FY 2011 allocation.

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Program Requirements

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Program Requirements

• Required to use centralized/coordinated intake, implement ESG in coordination with CoC

• Coordinate with Continuums of Care on allocation of funds and performance measurements

• Consistency with Consolidated Plan

• Connecting participants with mainstream resources

• Regularly re-evaluating participant eligibility23

Program Requirements

• Written standards are required to ensure consistent program administration

• Dollar-for-dollar match (cash or in-kind)

• HMIS Participation

• Financial reporting in IDIS

• Performance reporting

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Obligation & Expenditure Deadlines for States:

• 60 days to obligate funds to subrecipients (for 2nd allocation of funds, this is 60 days from date HUD signed grant agreement amendment)

• Then, any subrecipients that are local governments have 120 days to obligate funds (to any non-profits or designate the local gov’t department to administer)

ESG Process Overview/Timeline

Building the Bridge: HPRP vs. ESG

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Building the Bridge: HPRP vs. ESG

• Communities will be able to draw upon their knowledge of and experience with HPRP to implement the new ESG. A few similarities between the two programs include:• Promotion of homelessness prevention and rapid re-housing

activities• HPRP partners are already participating in ESG-required

HMIS • Both are bridge programs for the clients• Emphasis on performance• Larger goals of lessening the length of stay in shelters and

reducing recidivism 27

Building the Bridge: HPRP vs. ESG

• Some of the important differences to note between

the programs include:• HPRP was a short-term stimulus program targeting individuals and

families hit by the economic downturn, whereas ESG is a permanent

program targeting those who are homeless for a variety of reasons• ESG covers some activities not eligible under HPRP, such as emergency

shelter and street outreach• ESG uses the new homeless definition• ESG requires greater collaboration with CoCs• HPRP came with a greater level of funding

ESG comes with a greater push for rapid re-housing over

other program activities, such as homelessness prevention.28

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• HUD strongly encourages jurisdictions to target new funds toward assisting individuals and families living on the streets or in emergency shelter– Effective Rapid Re-housing can transition people out of

homelessness quickly and decrease the overall number of people that are homeless in the community

– Homelessness prevention is difficult to strategically target and potentially inefficient in reducing homelessness

• Rapid Re-housing should be given highest priority under ESG to ensure that existing resources – within and outside the homeless assistance system – are used as efficiently as possible

Focus on Rapid Re-Housing

Next Steps

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• What can we (as a community) learn from experience with Emergency Shelter Grants, and from HPRP best practices?

• What can we learn from challenges in implementing HPRP?

• What has HPRP taught us about our community’s needs?

• How can ESG address these needs?

• How will we consult and coordinate with CoC(s)?

• How will we ensure satisfactory HMIS participation by ESG subrecipients?

• How will we address unsatisfactory levels of HMIS participation?

Implementation Questions

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• HUD’s Homelessness Resource Exchange:

www.hudhre.info– The published ESG Interim Rule with Consolidated Plan changes– Consolidated Plan Regulation (highlighting changes from the

ESG Interim Rule)– Notice on application requirements FY 2011 ESG Second

Allocation – ESG Helpdesk– Webinar recordings and slides– Additional guidance regarding the Consolidated Plan Regulations

(user guide, FAQ, etc.) will be posted to HUD’s HRE in the near future

Additional Resources

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Questions?