From February 9 to February 10, 2012, the Alliance will host the National Conference on Ending Family and Youth Homelessness in Los Angeles, CA.
Online Registration Ends Thursday
President's Budget Proposal Briefing Webinar
Having an accurate count of homeless youth helps a community to understand the scope of the problem and to design solutions. The District of Columbia Alliance of Youth Advocates (DCAYA) is leading the effort to deepen understanding about the prevalence and needs of homeless youth in Washington, DC.
Alliance Releases The State of Homelessness in America 2012
During this webinar, Alliance staff will review the key homelessness and low-income housing elements of the President's FY 2013 Budget Proposal, which is expected to be released on February 13.
This calendar provides a timeline and key dates in 2012 for advocates wishing to work on federal homelessness and housing policy.
President's Budget Proposal Briefing Webinar
A video recording of the webinar entitled, "Putting the Pieces Together: Primary Care and Behavioral Health Services in Permanent Supportive Housing."
On January 18, 2012, the Alliance released the second annual The State of Homelessness in America 2012 report.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has issued a final regulation to implement changes to the definition of homelessness contained in the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act. The new definition is outlined here.
Chapter Three of The State of Homelessness in America 2012 report shows changes in each of the demographic categories examined: doubled up households, people discharged from prison, youth aged out of foster care, and uninsured people.
A review of the changes in the economic risk factors described in the first section of this chapter—severely cost burdened poor renter households, unemployed people, average income of working poor people, and housing units in foreclosure—provides insight into the impact of the recent recession on homelessness.
Chapter One of The State of Homelessness in America 2012 report on homelessness counts.
Alliance Publishes Draft Comments on ESG Regulation
The State of Homelessness in America 2012 examines homelessness between 2009 and 2011, a period of economic downturn in the nation.
This is the media advisory for the second annual The State of Homelessness in America 2012 report.
The Alliance has prepared draft comments on HUD's interim rule for the Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) program as part of the HEARTH Act. The interim rule went into effect on January 4, and final comments are due to HUD by February 3.
Best Practice for justice system outreach from Micah Project (IAEH Partners) in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
On Thursday, January 12, the Alliance hosted a webinar to go over the major findings of and potential media/advocacy opportunities around the release of the State of Homelessness in America 2012 report.
Please use this form if you would like to contribute to the National Alliance to End Homelessness via mail or fax.
Alliance Releases ESG Recommendations
This brief distills the Alliance's findings on how HPRP and other initiatives were implemented in numerous communities. It provides six recommendations for implementing the new ESG program.
Register for Primary Care and Behavioral Health Services in PSH
Housing First Europe: Testing a Social Innovation in Tackling Homelessness in Different National and Local Contexts
This brief summarizes the interim rule for the Emergency Solutions Grant program.
Media Campaign to Increase Awareness of Homelessness
Alliance Releases New Brief on Successful Prevention Targeting
Quarterly Report: Announcements and Recap
Federal programs aimed at rapid re-housing, homelessness prevention stemmed homelessness despite struggling economy
Nan Roman, President and CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness has been selected as one of the 17 members serving on the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) Housing Commission.
HUD Releases 2011 Point-in-Time Count
This brief is a concise “how-to” guide on how communities can begin or improve efforts to identify and effectively assist the households who are most likely to become homeless and serve them appropriately.
Hundreds of thousands more people could experience homelessness as a result of next year’s cuts to the federal budget.
Sequestration, an initial 9.1 percent across-the-board cut to discretionary federal funding, could mean significant reductions in resources serving homeless and at-risk people and a potential rise in homelessness across the country.
VA Announces SSVF Funding Availability
On November 29, 2011, the Alliance hosted a webinar reviewing the recently released Emergency Solutions Grant regulations issued by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The recording, along with the PPT presentation, are available here.
Super-Committee Fails to Produce a Deal
This letter, being circulated by the Congressional Mental Health Caucus Co-Chair Grace F. Napolitano, to be sent to House leaders, calls for reduced cuts to mental health and substance abuse programs within the Department of Health and Human Services.
Last Week for Early Registration
The Joint Committee on Deficit Reduction failed to come up with a plan to reduce the nation's deficit by the needed $1.2 trillion. This inaction will put sequestration into effect over the next nine years. This brief explains what this means for homelessness programs.
This page provides a summary of the interim Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) rule, as well as resources for implementing the rule and maximizing the impact of your community's ESG resources.
Focus: Veteran Research
Webinar on Implementing the New ESG Rule
FY 2012 HUD Budget Passed into Law
Congress Releases Final FY 2012 HUD Funding Bill
The Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development estimate that 76,329 veterans were homeless on a given night in 2010. This map shows how many veterans are estimated to be homeless in each state.
HUD Releases New ESG Regulations and Remaining 2011 ESG Funds
This is the PPT presentation to the webinar held on November 8, 2011, Family Intervention to Address and Prevent Homelessness Among LGBTQ Youth.
New York City is working to prevent and end homelessness for LGBTQ homeless youth. Recognizing that most runaway and homeless LGBTQ youth will return to their family, New York City is funding two community-based organizations to strengthen youth’s connections to families to prevent and rapidly end their homelessness.
It is commonly estimated that 100,000 children are victims of commercial sexual exploitation each year. In this brief, the Alliance examines the relationship between commercial sexual exploitation of children and youth homelessness.
House McKinney Sign-On Letter Circulating
Alliance Releases Brief on Veterans Homelessness
Sign On Letter circulated by Reps. Alcee Hastings, Gwen Moore, and Eddie Bernice Johnson to support increased McKinney-Vento funding for FY 2012.
This one-page brief shows the number of veterans experiencing homelessness in the United States and the annual reductions in homelessness necessary in order to end veterans homelessness in five years.
Use these talking points as a guide for contacting your senators and representatives to ask them to support as much funding as possible and include an increase to HUD's McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants programs in fiscal year (FY) 2012.
Senate Passes HUD Funding Bill; Negotiations with House to Start Right Away
Alliance Comments on Medicaid Regulations
The mission of the International Alliance to End Homelessness is to assist and enhance the work of national governments, local communities, and nongovernmental organizations to end homelessness through a shared passion and commitment to high quality policy, practice and research.
This document offers a summary of the International Alliance to End Homelessness, including its founding, focus, and proposed activities.
List of IAEH participants, including their country and organization. Please be advised that this list may grow and change as the IAEH evolves.
Online Registration Now Open for 2012 National Conference
Help Us Improve Our Newsletter
Please use the talking points to contact your Members of Congress who sit on key committees (Senate Finance, Senate HELP, and House Energy and Commerce) that will weigh in with the “Super-Committee” regarding whether and/or how to make changes to Medicaid in order to reduce the federal deficit.
Ask the Congressional Super-Committee to Protect Resources for Ending Homelessness
Alliance Releases Youth Typology Paper
Keynote remarks by Nan Roman, president and CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, at the Domestic Violence Housing First Symposium: Building on Our Past, Learning as We Go, sponsored by the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Updates and Announcements
Annual prevalence estimates for homeless youth in the U.S. have ranged as high as 1.6 million among those aged 13-17 (Ringwalt et al., 1998). In this report, researchers present a history of typologies of homeless youth and also suggest recommendations for further research on this population.
Alliance Releases Research Brief that Projects Increases in Homelessness
National Call-In Week Happening THIS WEEK!
This section includes additional resources that may be helpful to communities.
Coordinating Intake and Assessments through Housing Resource Centers, PowerPoint presentation given by Kathy Wahto of Serenity House of Clallam County.
This section includes materials that discuss specific communities’ models or were provided directly by communities that have implemented a coordinated intake process.
This survey can be used as an evaluation tool to determine if coordinated entry is creating a shorter path for consumers between intake and permanent housing. The questionnaire also ties into the Coordinated Entry Evaluation Tool, but can be used independently.
Communities can use this tool as a quick way to assess how well their coordinated entry system is functioning.
Along with performance outcomes, these tools can help communities evaluate the success of their coordinated entry in creating a more efficient, HEARTH-friendly system.
This Excel sheet provides a template in which important program information can be stored for the use of intake workers.
This Excel sheet provides a template in which important program information can be stored for the use of intake workers.
Communities can use these additional tools to help them run their coordinated entry system.
This assessment tool, based off of Minneapolis/Hennepin County, MN and Columbus, OH’s assessment forms, will be of use to communities attempting to determine if a household needs prevention or diversion assistance. This should be administered as soon as a family enters the intake center to determine if they will need shelter or other provisional help or if they can be assisted without having to enter the homeless assistance system.
This tool may help determine which services a rapid re-housing eligible household needs. Communities would ideally use this tool only after prevention or diversion had been ruled out as options for a household and before or very shortly after admitting them to a shelter program if they have no place else to stay.
These assessment tools can be used at the front door to help communities determine the best programmatic fit for each household. Before using these tools, communities should develop a screening process that gives them some idea of what kind of intervention, and what intensity of services, a household may need.
National Organizations Sponsor Congressional Call-In Week
Use this sample action alert as a guide for asking your network to contact their senators and representatives to ask them to support as much funding as possible and include an increase to HUD's McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants programs in fiscal year (FY) 2012.
Based on new evidence about increased poverty and future economic trends, the Alliance estimates that in the next three years homelessness in the United States could increase by 5 percent, or 74,000 people.
Reallocating and Repurposing CoC Funds Webinar Now Available
New Webinar from the Alliance and USICH
This short paper will provide recommendations for how the Select Committee can assist in the work to end homelessness and identify decisions that would make the work more difficult and that should be avoided. It will also cover the impact that sequestration would have on nearly all key federal programs to end homelessness, should the Select Committee fail to identify sufficient reductions in the deficit.
Use these talking points as a guide for contacting your senators to ask them to support a funding level of about $135 million in fiscal year (FY) 2012 for HHS' Runaway and Homeless Youth Act programs.
Webinar on Re-Tooling Homeless Assistance Programs
Congress should provide at least $75 million for the EHCY program. This modest increase is necessary to assist school districts to identify and assist the increasing numbers of youth experiencing homelessness.
The National Alliance to End Homelessness recommends that Congress appropriate a small amount of funding to carry out Congress’s requirement of a study of homelessness among youth. This study would contribute to the effectiveness and efficiency of bipartisan efforts to protect these uniquely vulnerable young people.
House HUD Funding Bill Released
Alliance Hiring a Capacity Building Associate
House Scheduled to Release HUD, HHS Funding Bills This Week
The week of August 29, 2011, the Alliance concluded a two-part series of webinars on rapid re-housing. Information from the two-part series is available here.
This document contains various charts showing Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (RHYA) utilization, statistics, and efficiency.
This policy guide provides information about the most important federal programs, policies, and legislation affecting homelessness.
HUD Releases CoC NOFA
Form 990 submitted to the IRS by the National Alliance to End Homelessness in 2009. The 990 is submitted to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by nonprofit organizations and provides information on the filing organization's mission, programs, and finances.
This document outlines the Alliance's activities and accomplishments in 2010.
Alliance Releases Capitol Hill Day Report
This report includes an overview of Capitol Hill Day 2011, a review of some of the key offices with which advocates met, and a summary of the impact that participants’ meetings have already had on federal policy.
A City of Sydney, Australia resolution by the City Council and Lord Mayor to involve Sydney in the International Alliance to End Homelessness.
Use this sample letter as a guide for contacting your Senators to invite them to visit your program and to ask them to support a funding level of $135 million in fiscal year (FY) 2012 for Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (RHYA) programs.
Use this sample letter as a guide for contacting your Senators to ask invite them to visit your program and to support a funding level of $2.4 billion in FY 2012 for McKinney-Vento programs.
Use this sample action alert as a guide for asking your network to invite their Members of Congress to visit their program and meet with them over the current congressional recess.
Advocates will try to urge Congress to provide $2.4 billion in FY 2012 for McKinney-Vento programs.
Use this sample letter as a guide for contacting your Representatives to invite your Member to visit your program and to ask them to support a funding level of $135 million in FY 2012 for RHYA programs.
Advocates will try to urge Congress to provide $135 million in FY 2012 for RHYA programs.
Use this sample letter as a guide for contacting your Representatives to invite them to visit your program and to ask them to support a funding level of $2.4 billion in FY 2012 for McKinney-Vento programs.
New Tool for PSH Advocacy
Learn More About Using Shelter Diversion to Reduce Homelessness
Diversion is a strategy that prevents homelessness for people seeking shelter by immediately identifying alternate housing arrangements. Diversion programs can reduce family homelessness, demand for shelter beds, and program wait lists.
Alliance Releases New Permanent Supportive Housing Tool
Policymakers seeking strategies to manage health care costs often look at ways to reduce unnecessary emergency room visits and hospital stays. Frequently overlooked in this approach are community-based solutions that offset health care costs associated with homelessness.
Debt Agreement's Impact on Homelessness and What You Can Do!
1.10 New Research on Homelessness among Veterans
Alliance Releases New Economy Bytes Brief
2.7 Early Childhood Home Visiting: New Opportunities
Improving Our Response to Commercially Sexually Exploited Youth
4.10 Improving Employment Outcomes: The Role of TANF and WIA
Policymakers seeking strategies to manage health care costs often look at ways to reduce unnecessary emergency room visits and hospital stays. Frequently overlooked in this approach are community-based solutions that offset health care costs associated with homelessness.
Data Point: Homeless Assistance Program Funding: Federal Versus State and Local Assistance
In the third installment of the Homelessness Research Institute’s (HRI) Economy Bytes series, the intersection between state and local budget cuts and homelessness is examined. Many states and localities are cutting the budgets of their homeless assistance programs in fiscal year (FY) 2012, which is elevating vulnerability and putting more and more people at risk of experiencing homelessness.
HUD and VA Announce $46.2 Million in HUD-VASH Vouchers
Howard County's Plan to End Homelessness
Tuscarawas County Plan to End Homelessness
One Person, One Family at a Time: The Plan, Michigan's Campaign to End Homelessness
2.4 First Served: Prioritizing Tenants for Permanent Supportive Housing
5.8 All About Benefits: Maximizing Income for Homeless Households
3.11 Lessons Learned: Transitional Employment for Families, Singles, and Youth
5.12 Funding Strategies for Programs Serving Homeless Youth
6.12 Creating a Local Housing Trust Fund
6.8 Improving the Response to Youth In and Out of the Juvenile Justice System
1.8 Closing in on Zero: Lessons from Worcester, MA
3.5 Prevention: Targeting the Imminently Homeless
3.8 Meeting People Where They Are: Homeless Individuals with High Service Needs
5.6 Performance Improvement: Strategies from Communities that Have Reduced Homelessness
5.7 Collaborating with Law Enforcement – Promising Strategies for Working with the Police
1.12 Innovative Housing Interventions for Survivors of Domestic Violence
3.13 Collaborating with Schools to Serve Children and Youth
3.6 Learning Labs: Using Stakeholder Workgroups to Improve Community Interventions of Your Homeless Assistance System
6.9 Working with Employers to Increase Job Opportunities
2.8 Designing Rent Subsidy Programs: Lessons Learned
3.4 Voluntary Service Models: Serving Families in Their Own Homes
4.12 Strategies for Working with Undocumented Families and Individuals
4.5 Serving Families Outside the Shelter System: Identification, Outreach, and Engagement Strategies
4.7 Transitional Living Programs for Youth: What Works
5.5 Accommodating All Families: Addressing Substance Abuse
Conference Workshop Materials Available Online
1.2 Engaging Local Political and Community Leaders
1.1 Strategies for Engaging Congress
1.3 Basics of Rapid Re-Housing
4.8 Preventing Recidivism and Homelessness: Housing Strategies for Ex-Offenders
6.13 A Different Perspective: International Models for Ending Youth Homelessness
Medicaid: Tools and Information for the Fight Against Homelessness
3.2 Retooling the Crisis Response System
6.3 Preventing Homelessness among Veterans
1.7 LGBTQ Youth: Improving our Response and Gaining Community Support
2.10 First Contact: Creating a Front Door to Your Homelessness System
4.3 Child Welfare's Response to End Youth Homelessness
6.6 Working with Local Social Services to Meet the Needs of Families
Pre-Conference: Evidence-Based Practices for Serving Runaway and Homeless Youth
1.11 Data and Performance Simplified
6.2 Making the Case: Effective Advocacy Strategies for Youth Providers
6.7 Advanced Re-Housing Strategies
1.13 Expanding Housing Options for Youth: HPRP Innovations
2.1 Federal Strategic Plan Update
2.11 Serving Homeless Veterans 101
4.2 How to Navigate Media Relations
4.4 Coming Together: Engaging Faith-Based Providers
6.4 Governance Strategies for Improving Community-Wide Outcomes
2.5 Shifting Gears: Options for Transitional Housing
5.4 Local Research on Homelessness
1.4 A Beginner’s Guide to Affordable Housing Development
4.9 What’s New in Homelessness Research
6.5 Effective Strategies for Outreach to the Street and Abandoned Buildings
1.6 Supported Employment: Strategies for Employing People with Disabilities
5.3 Using Data to Spur Systems Change
2.13 Perfecting Rapid Re-Housing: How to Leverage Landlord Relationships
3.10 Public Housing Authorities: Partners in Ending Homelessness
5.9 Creating Successful Exits from Permanent Supportive Housing
4.11 Using Diversion to Reduce Homelessness
5.10 Understanding Rural and Tribal Homelessness
2.12 Creating a Yardstick: Developing a Performance Measurement System
2.2 How to Create a Communications Strategy
3.7 What Do We Know About Aging and Vulnerability to Homelessness?
3.9 Civil Rights and Housing for Homeless Individuals with Disabilities
6.1 How to Maximize the Impact of Social Media
6.10 Targeting for Success: Serving Homeless Families with the Highest Needs
6.11 Serving Older and Disabled Homeless People
4.6 Service Priorities for Homeless Veterans – How Does VASH Fit?
2.9 Services in PSH: Medicaid Makes a Difference
This sign-on letter was circulated by Senators Reed (D-RI), Snowe (R-ME), and Schumer (D-NY) to their colleagues in the Senate. It requests that the Senate HUD Appropriations Subcommittee strongly support HUD's McKinney-Vento programs in its FY 2012 funding bill.
Follow the National Conference on Ending Homelessness Online
On July 7, 2011, the Alliance hosted a webinar to go over 2011 Policy Priorities in preparation for Capitol Hill Day visits.
House HUD Appropriations Committee to Release Bill Next Week
Sam Tsemberis and Derek Douglas to Keynote Alliance Conference
Approximately 2 million households receive rental assistance through Section 8 tenant-based rental assistance (Housing Choice Voucher program). Congress should fund all existing vouchers and provide $132 million for additional vouchers for VASH and the Demonstration.
In order to continue the progress toward ending homelessness for America's veterans, Congress should continue to fund HUD-VASH vouchers to provide housing, coupled with services, to chronically homeless veterans.
The President’s FY 2012 budget request included $89 million for SAMHSA Homeless Services. This increase includes funding for the HUD/HHS Housing and Services for Homeless Persons Demonstration Initiative.
The Demonstration requests $57 million from the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program within HUD to be coupled with services provided through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Medicaid, and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs within HHS, as well as with Department of Education resources.
The HEARTH Act expands investments in solutions to homelessness. Congress should fund those investments without shifting significant resources from existing homeless assistance programs. The Homeless Assistance Grants program will require an increase of 21% percent to approximately $2.4 billion in FY 2012.
Congress could offer necessary, crisis services for homeless youth by appropriating $135 million in fiscal year (FY) 2012 for the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (RHYA) programs.
Alliance Releases Year One Progress Report on the Federal Strategic Plan to End Homelessness
This webinar entitled "Coordinated Entry Part II: Serving Singles and Families in Columbus, OH," was held on June 23 about coordinated entry. Lianna Barbu, Operations Director at Community Shelter Board discussed the Columbus coordinated intake system for singles and for families.
This Quarterly Report includes a preview of key upcoming activities and issues for advocates, as well as a review of major developments from the last quarter.
On the one-year anniversary of Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness, the Alliance offers an evaluation of the progress made thus far.
| On the one-year anniversary of Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness, the Alliance offers an evaluation of the progress made thus far.
Coordinated Entry Webinar on Thursday, June 23
The Alliance analyzed changes proposed by the Section 8 Savings Act of 2011 (SESA) and how they differ from the current law, and the previous attempt to reform Section 8, known as the Section 8 Voucher Reform Act.
First Place for Youth is a nonprofit organization that serves youth who are preparing to age out of foster care or who have recently aged out of care and are experiencing a housing crisis.
The Alliance responds to the Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress released by the Department of Housing and Urban Development on Tuesday, June 14.
The Alliance is Pleased to Announce our 2011 Award Recipients
These are resources from the webinar on coordinated entry that took place on Thursday, June 9, 2011. The PowerPoint presentation and a Q+A document are included.
The Alliance Remembers Bob Hohler
| Bob Hohler, Executive Director of the Melville Charitable Trust, passed away suddenly while hiking with his family in England last Thursday, June 2. The Alliance remembers his life and work.
Find your State Captain for the 2011 Capitol Hill Day!
Alliance Releases New Paper on Coordinated Entry
| By centralizing intake and program admissions decisions, a coordinated entry process makes it more likely that families will be served by the right intervention more quickly. This brief will go over coordinated entry principles and models.
Awards Ceremony Tickets Now on Sale
This is a schedule of policy and advocacy-related workshops and activities at the annual conference.
Capitol Hill Day is always held on the last afternoon of the Alliance's annual National Conference on Ending Homelessness in July in Washington, DC. This toolkit provides step-by-step information to help you maximize your effectiveness in organizing Capitol Hill Day.
This list of policy issues are high priority items on which Congress is currently working and we can make significant progress during Capitol Hill Day at our Annual Conference, July 13-15, 2011. This is not a complete list of the policy initiatives that the Alliance supports.
Sign On Letter circulated by Rep. Gwen Moore to support about $2.4 billion for HUD's McKinney-Vento programs in FY 2012.
House McKinney Sign-On Letter Deadline Approaching!
HUD Provides Clarification for FY 2011 Plans
This letter was circulated by Reps. Biggert (R-IL) and Davis (D-IL) in support of robust funding for RHYA and EHCY programs in FY 2012.
The National Advisory Council on LGBTQ Homeless Youth was created to address these concerns and improve the nation’s response to homelessness among LGBTQ youth.
Advocates are gearing up for Capitol Hill Day, July 12-14, 2010. Advocates from across the country will meet with Members of Congress to urge them to make ending homelessness a federal priority. This contains all of the information you need to participate!
House McKinney Sign-On Letter Circulating
HUD to Host Webinar for HPRP Grantees
For More Information about the Affordable Care Act, please use the following links.
Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), starting on January 1, 2014, Medicaid eligibility will expand to include all individuals under 133% of the federal poverty. This brief is a guide to Sample Health Care Benefits Packages created under the health care reform bill.
Listen to a recording of Talking Medicaid, the May 4 webinar sponsored by the Alliance. The slide presentation is also available for downloading.
Conference Scholarship Applications Accepted until May 11
On Monday, May 2, the Alliance hosted a webinar to launch the fiscal year (FY) 2012 campaign to increase funding for the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act Programs.
New CoC Grant Awards Announced
This map serves as a database of media articles about state and local budgets that have proposed cuts to homeless programs in the most recent fiscal year (2011 or 2012).
To kick off our RHYA appropriations campaign, we are launching an RHYA letter writing campaign to send as many letters as possible to Members of Congress.
HUD Releases 2010 PIT Counts
This brief outlines who to contact in the office of your Member of Congress (Member) and how to get your message across by phone or email.
Upcoming Webinars for Advocates: RHYA and Medicaid
The first of the HEARTH Academy webinars is called "Improving Your Prevention Targeting Efforts," and was held on April 20th. Cathy ten Broeke, Director of the Office to End Homelessness in Minneapolis/Hennepin County, MN, talked about that community's strategy for refining and evaluating their prevention targeting efforts.
This document is a tool Hennepin County officials use to determine eligibility for family homelessness resources.
The Alliance and Cathy ten Broeke summarize, in a 4-page document, ways Hennepin County is working to best use homelessness prevention resources.
Communiqué: International Alliance to End Homelessness through Research, Policy and Practice
The Alliance strongly urges Congress to provide a $1 billion mandatory allocation for the National Housing Trust Fund and identify additional funding sources to reach its goal of creating 1.5 million affordable housing units over the next 10 years.
Tomorrow: Webinar on Improving Prevention Targeting Efforts
In November 2009, the Rockefeller Foundation sponsored a meeting at its Bellagio Center in Italy, bringing together 18 recognised social innovators working to ensure that marginalized and vulnerable people are not only decently housed, but can also feel welcome and lead a dignified life in the communities in which they live. This is not an Alliance-authored publication.
The City of Columbus-Muscogee County ten year plan to end homelessness has envisioned that their community will "eradicate homelessness in Columbus, Georgia within ten years." Their mission is as follows: "To make homelessness ATYPICAL: To develop a prevention program that reorients Columbus’ service system from managing homelessness to one that prevents and eliminates homelessness. To make homelessness TEMPORARY: Develop a system that responds rapidly to homeless situations. To make homelessness NON-RECURRING: To provide housing and support services that allows individuals and families to return to self sufficiency with dignity." Their guiding principles are as follows: "Successful implementation of this plan will require the efforts of many organizations and individuals: local and state government, the business community, faith-based organizations, foundations, homeless service providers, volunteers, donors, landlords, employers, health care organizations and, of course, the people experiencing homelessness themselves. This plan will be: • Community Driven • A Service Provider Collaborative • A Care Approach • Measureable in Outcomes • Focused on Housing First"
For more information, interview requests, background or data, please contact the communications department.
Nan Roman, Steve Berg, and M William Sermons serve as the Alliance's main spokespersons.
Congress Releases Details of FY 2011 Budget Deal
FY 2011 Budget Released
The National Alliance to End Homelessness and Homelessness Research Institute logos are available here.
Supplemental information from Phil Brown on the Toronto Housing, Support & Shelter Administration.
Alliance Releases Fairfax-Falls Church Community Snapshot
Congress Likely to Reach Deal on Final FY 2011 Funding
| By focusing on permanent housing and creating a centralized intake system, the Fairfax-Falls Church community reduced family homelessness in their community.
Congress Drafting Final FY 2011 Bill
Alliance President Honored by National Low Income Housing Coalition
Announcements and Updates
Clearly health care reform creates opportunities to improve assistance to chronically homeless people. Those concerned to combine housing and services should get involved early to ensure that the interests of people they care about are protected.
Alliance Releases Brief on Rapid Re-Housing for Survivors
House Sign-On Letter Deadline Extended!
Alliance Releases Eviction Prevention Series
| Communities are increasingly using homelessness prevention and rapid re-housing to meet the needs of domestic violence survivors. These brief goes over some effective strategies to assist survivors.
Advocates Urged to Schedule Congressional Meetings and Site Visits
House Homelessness Funding Sign-On Letter Deadline Approaching!
This one-pager provides background information on SAMHSA's Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH) program. It also explains the Alliance's recommendation that in FY2012 the PATH program receive at least $75 million in appropriations.
Alliance Unveils 2011 Counts Media Map
his brief - one in a three-part series - explores the way Malden Housing Authority and Housing Families, Inc. curb evictions in Middlesex County, Massachusetts.
This brief - one in a three-part series - explores the way Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority and EDEN, Inc. curb evictions in Cleveland, OH.
This brief - one in a three-part series - explores the way King County, WA implemented strategies to curb evictions from the King County Housing Authority.
Senate to Release New FY 2011 Proposal
New Issue Brief on Opportunities in Healthcare Reform
Update: Action Needed to Protect FY 2011 Funding for Federal Homelessness Programs
A grouping of interesting articles on a new funding initiative from the US and Australia.
| As parts of the Affordable Care Act are phased in, state leaders are facing complex decisions on issues. This issues - as well as possible solutions - are discussed in this brief about applying the ACA to benefit at-risk and homelessness populations.
This map serves as a database of January 2011 point-in-time counts that have been reported in media reports or on Continuum of Care/government websites. Red markers indicate reports of increases and green markers indicate reports of decreases. Stories of partial counts (e.g. unsheltered only or families only) are not included. Links to the report are included.
Sign On Letter circulated by Reps. Susan Davis and Al Green to support funding for HUD-VASH vouchers
New Toolkit on Key Strategies for Conducting Advocacy
This brief explores lessons learned from several pilot programs designed to aid PSH tenants who are ready to transition into other housing opportunities in Chicago, IL; Seattle, WA; and New York, NY.
HUD and VA Issue New Report on Veteran Homelessness
This comprehensive toolkit is designed to provide you with all of the tools that you might need to engage in advocacy around elevating solutions to homelessness as a federal policy priority.
These additional resources supplement the resources found in the Advocacy Toolkit.
This toolkit reviews ways in which your organization might utilize social media platforms in order to mobilize advocates.
This toolkit examines some of the common ways and best times to engage the media for advocacy purposes.
his toolkit suggests key strategies and tips for mobilizing your network, colleagues, and others to get involved in advocacy.
This toolkit provides the tools and strategies necessary to set up a meeting with your congressional offices.
This toolkit will provide you with all of the strategies and tools you need to plan and host an effective site visit for your elected official.
This toolkit is designed to help you make the most of the many quick calls, letters, emails, and faxes you might send to your congressional office each year.
This toolkit offers some suggestions for mapping out a strategy for your advocacy efforts over time in order to establish a strong relationship with your elected officials.
This toolkit covers some of the legislative basics, including key committees and staff positions, how an idea is turned into federal policy, the appropriations process, and common terminology.
This toolkit is designed to help nonprofit organizations, designated as 501(c)(3) organizations by the IRS, understand what constitutes lobbying and how to measure and report on lobbying activities.
This toolkit is designed to provide you with all of the tools that you need to advocate to make preventing and ending homelessness a federal priority.
This page includes a copy of the draft agenda and other information you will need for planning content.
HUD Releases Worst Case Housing Needs Report
Home For Good
Ten-Year Plan To End Homelessness in Palm Beach County, Florida
Alliance to Host Webinar on President's FY 2012 Budget Proposal
Call to Communities Successfully Implementing HPRP for Youth
HUD Announces Over $1.4 Billion for Continuum of Care Projects
Center for Capacity Building Introduces New Evaluator Tool
The Center for Capacity Building developed a Homeless System Evaluator Tool. This tool is designed to help communities determine how well they are preventing and ending homelessness based on data from their system.
The fourth chapter of The State of Homelessness in America report explores states that experienced multiple risk factors of increased homelessness between 2008 and 2009.
Make Sure Congress Protects Homelessness Programs
This brief provides some suggested strategies for educating new and returning Members of Congress about the importance of efforts to end homelessness.
The State of Homelessness in America, the first report of its kind, investigates the changes in homelessness across the country. In addition, the Alliances examines economic indicators and demographic drivers of homelessness, examining how eight factors contribute to increased risk of homelessness among vulnerable populations.
Alliance to Release The State of Homelessness in America Tomorrow
Average Real Income of Working Poor People by State - State of Homelessness 2011
Discharges from Prison by State - State of Homelessness 2011
Doubled Up People by State - State of Homelessness 2011
Family Homeless Population by State - State of Homelessness 2011
Foreclosed Housing Units by State
Severe Housing Cost Burden Among Poor Households by State - State of Homelessness 2011
Unemployed People by State - State of Homelessness 2011
Uninsured People by State - State of Homelessness 2011
Unsheltered Homeless Population by State - State of Homelessness 2011
Youth Aged Out of Foster Care by State - State of Homelessness 2011
Chronic Homelessness by State
Overall Homelessness by State, 2008 - 2009
This document profiles how Hennepin County, MN began to assess how it was targeting its homelessness prevention resources.
HUD to Host Point-in-Time Count Webinar on Tuesday
On Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2011, the Alliance hosted a webinar to kick off this month's media campaign around an upcoming Alliance report. Alliance staff members Amanda Krusemark, Pete Witte, and Catherine An were panelists on the webinar to go over the report's findings, advocacy opportunities, and strategies to pitch the report to local, state, and national media.
Advocacy Update: Quarterly Report
Promising Strategies for Building a Successful Relationship with a Local VA
This brief identifies five promising strategies that homelessness assistance systems have used to create or strengthen their relationship with their local VA Medical Center.
Congress Expected to Pass Short-Term FY 2011 Funding Measure
Senate Releases Draft FY 2011 Appropriations Bill - Action Needed!
The Strengthening At-Risk and Homeless Young Mothers and Children Coordinating Center sponsored a webinar on Wednesday, Nov. 10 at 3 p.m. ET on Critical Time Intervention (CTI) for young mothers.
Dr. Judy Samuels will present on the CTI model that focuses on providing rapid re-housing assistance to young families while offering intensive, time-limited supportive services. One of the features of the model is the provision of clinical supervision to frontline providers which enriches the services offered to promote stronger family outcomes.
New Rapid Re-Housing Clinic Offered At Alliance Conference
This webinar offers an overview of Hennepin County's youth goals and implementation.
NHTF Congressional Sign-On Letter Circulating - Deadline TODAY
Urge Your Senators to Fund Key Homelessness Programs
Alliance Releases Second Economy Bytes Installment on the Working Poor
Congress Considering Cuts That Could Mean 65,000 More People Homeless
Working Poor Population by State
| In the second of our Economy Bytes series, the Alliance examines the characteristics of the working poor population. The brief reflects on the how the recession and it's economic impacts affect this population and it's risk for experiencing homelessness.
This is an example of what a Goals and Objectives Chart within a strategic advocacy plan might look like.
This is an example of what a "Timeline" within a strategic advocacy plan might look like.
Encouraging representatives from the media to attend a site visit can give both your organization and the Member of Congress positive press attention. Send out a media advisory like the one below to let members of the media know the event is happening.
You can use this sample thank you letter as a template for the letter thanking your Member of Congress for visiting your program.
You can work the agenda items into the conversation as the senator/representative tours a program facility, OR you can do a separate presentation before or after the tour is completed.
You should fax or email this after the Member agrees to participate in a site visit, and at least a week prior to the event.
You can use this sample letter of support as a template to provide to other organizations and individuals in your community to send letters in support of your site visit request.
To invite your Member of Congress to do a site visit, send a formal invitation. You can use the sample invitation below as a template.
To help plan your site visit, consider making a work plan like the one below. You can even print this work plan out and use it to guide your planning and implementation process.
When creating your own action alerts, you can use this sample format to guide your efforts.
You can use this chart as a guide for creating your own mobilizing tracking sheet. Simply fill in the name, contact information, and notes fields for each member of your network who takes action.
You can use this letter as a template for drafting your note of thanks for the congressional meeting.
You can fill in this worksheet to plan out specific talking points for your congressional meeting.
Columbus Model Materials Now Available
The sample agenda below can be used to help you outline the planned agenda for your congressional meeting.
You can use this sample letter of support as a template to provide to other organizations and individuals in your community to send letters in support of your meeting request.
You can use this sample meeting request as a template for your formal request for a congressional meeting.
To help plan your meeting, consider making a work plan like the one below. You can even print this work plan out and use it to guide your planning and implementation process.
Urge Congress to Prevent Cuts to Homelessness Programs
This webinar is the second in a series providing strategies and tips for including youth in your community's HUD-mandated January 2011 point-in-time count. This webinar is designed for both all Continuum of Care and youth-specific providers in communities who have either never made a targeted effort to count youth or who wish to improve the accuracy of their count in January 2011.
Alliance Conference News: Robert Reich to Be Keynote Speaker
Urge Congress to Fund NHTF This Year
This is another part of the Columbus Model. These are examples of performance-based contracts for practitioners and providers.
2011 Families Conference Volunteer and Scholarship Opportunities
This document is part of the "Columbus Model" toolkit. This document is the Performance Outcome Plan (POP) Overview.
This document is part of the "Columbus Model" toolkit. This document is a sample Performance Outcome Plan (POP).
This document is part of the "Columbus Model" toolkit. This document is an example of a System and Program Level Indicator Report.
This document is part of the "Columbus Model" toolkit. This document offers the definitions and methodology for measuring system performance.
This document is part of the "Columbus Model" toolkit. This document goes over the administrative and program standards set by the Community Shelter Board (CSB).
This document is part of the "Columbus Model" toolkit. This document examines the methodology used by the Community Shelter Board in FY 2010 - FY 2011 to evaluate homeless assistance programs in Columbus, OH.
This document is part of the "Columbus Model" toolkit. This document goes over the program performance standards set by the Community Shelter Board.
Second Webinar on Including Youth in Point-in-Time Counts Announced
Urge Congress to Approve $2.2 Billion McKinney Funding THIS Year
The Homelessness Research Institute released the Fall 2010 Research Newsletter with a focus on international research.
Nebraska’s Action Plan for Increasing Access to Mainstream Services for People Experiencing Chronic Homelessness
Ten Year Strategy to End Homelessness in San Bernardino County
The Center for Capacity Building has developed and tested three survey tools to help your community assess the quality of homelessness assistance. This is a survey analysis tool outlining some of the answers you should be examining as you go over your survey results.
The Center for Capacity Building has developed and tested three survey tools to help your community assess the quality of homelessness assistance. This survey is intended for community leaders and executive directors.
The Center for Capacity Building has developed and tested three survey tools to help your community assess the quality of homelessness assistance. This survey is intended for direct service providers.
The Center for Capacity Building has developed and tested three survey tools to help your community assess the quality of homelessness assistance. The surveys are designed for consumers, providers, and community leaders.
The Center for Capacity Building has developed and tested three survey tools to help your community assess the quality of homelessness assistance. This survey is intended for consumers.
One of the most remarkable approaches used in Columbus to help agencies strengthen their performance is CSB’s Quality Improvement Intervention Program (QII). The QII covers the following core areas: problem identification, collaborative goal setting and improvement planning, responsibility assignment, and progress updates.
Columbus, OH has consistently performed well on outcomes in the HEARTH Act, including reducing length of homelessness, new, repeat, and overall homelessness.
The HEARTH Act requires communities to strengthen their capacity to collect data and information across programs and improve overall system performance. The following document outlines tips and strategies for communities to maximize the use of existing data-related tools and reports for these purposes.
A system assessment tool from the Center for Capacity Building is coming soon! Please check the Alliance website regularly - or sign up for the Alliance newsletter to get regular updates!
This resource describes the "point-in-time counts" - the regular count of people experiencing homelessness. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development requires communities to submit these counts as part of their application for federal homeless assistance funds.
| This webinar, the first in a series from the Alliance and the National Network for Youth, will feature tips for including youth in your community's point-in-time count.
HUD Publishes Proposed Rule for NHTF
Ten to End Homelessness
Ending Youth Homelessness - Strategies for Increasing Community Support and Improving Your Ten Year Plan.
The third webinar in the HEARTH Academy series has two parts. The first provides tools for assessing the impact of your community’s homelessness assistance. The second part describes important concepts for designing your homelessness assistance to better prevent and end homelessness.
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
HUD Releases Quarterly Report on Homelessness
| The Alliance and the National Network for Youth recommend that communities fully include homeless youth in their local January 2011 Point in Time (PIT) counts by using the strategies in this brief.
Congress Continues Work on McKinney-Vento Funding
National Conference on Ending Family Homelessness Registration Period Opens
The second webinar in the HEARTH Academy Series focuses on performance measurement and performance improvement strategies that can reduce homelessness. This presentation featured a performance model used in Columbus, Ohio.
Columbus’ homeless assistance system is funded, managed, and evaluated by the community’s lead Continuum of Care (CoC) agency, the Community Shelter Board (CSB). CSB operates an outcomes-based funding model that uses measurable performance standards to monitor and evaluate agencies’ and system progress toward community goals. The performance standards reinforce an overall vision and strategy for improving the homeless services system and working toward the eventual elimination of homelessness.
HEARTH Academy Performance Improvement Webinar TOMORROW
Alliance Announces Winner of First Photo Contest
TANF ECF Expires in Many States
The following is Notice PIH 2010-40(HA) issued by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to Directors of HUD Regional and Field Offices of Public Housing; Agencies that Administer the Housing Choice Voucher Program. Issued Wednesday, September 28, 2010.
Center for Capacity Building Releases New Paper on Ten Year Plan Implementation
| Minneapolis and Hennepin County, MN began implementing their Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness, Heading Home Hennepin, in January 2007. Using a few replicable practices, the community has made significant progress.
On Wednesday, September 22, the Center for Capacity launched the HEARTH Academy with a webinar explaining the implications of the HEARTH Act. For more information about the HEARTH Academy, please visit the Training section.
TANF ECF to Expire Next Week Unless Congress Acts
2010 NOFA for CoC Competition Released
Homeless youth can directly benefit from greater investment in homelessness prevention and re-housing. This series of program profiles highlights those organizations that have emphasized these two techniques with the resources provided by the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP).
First Place for Youth, based in Oakland, CA, is considered a national model for providing permanent supportive housing for youth aged 18 to 24 who are at risk of homelessness. First Place targets youth aging out of the foster care system and provides them with housing, economic stability, and the life skills to live independently and successfully.
Larkin Street Youth Services, of San Francisco, California, opened in 1984 as a Drop-In Center and since then has grown to provide a continuum of services for at-risk and homeless youth. From street outreach to permanent supportive housing, Larkin Street offers youth between the ages of 12 and 24 opportunities to stabilize, gain life skills, and move beyond the street into successful, independent adulthood.
LifeWorks, located in Austin, TX, is the city’s only nonprofit organization offering youth and families a range of housing, counseling, and education services that address critical needs while helping homeless youth develop self-sufficiency and long term success.
Volunteers of America - Dakotas operates a variety of programs for at-risk and homeless youth throughout communities in South Dakota, including Sioux Falls, Rapid City, and Aberdeen.
Hope Street for Runaway and Homeless Youth, located in Minneapolis, MN, works with at-risk and homeless youth between the ages of 12 and 21. Hope Street operates an emergency shelter, transitional living program, and conducts street outreach. All Hope Street clients are provided service referrals, crisis management, and case management. Hope Street also offers life skills training, education and employment assistance, family counseling, and after-care services. In 2009, the street outreach team made contact with over 2,000 youth.
Walker's Point Youth and Family Center, St.Amelian's-Lakeside, Inc. and Pathfinders, all located in Milwaukee, WI, formed a strong partnership in the front line delivery of HPRP. They collaborated on the HPRP grant application and demonstrated comprehensive service provision to different subpopulations of homeless and at-risk youth. In 2009, the three organizations were awarded over $1 million in HPRP funds by the City of Milwaukee Community Development Grants Administration to be used over the next three years.
Valley Youth House operates more than 100 programs for at-risk and homeless youth throughout southeastern Pennsylvania that emphasize prevention, intervention and positive youth growth and development.
New Beginnings has been serving troubled youth in and between Lewiston and Farmington, ME since 1980. The organization runs the area’s only youth shelter for youth ages 12 to 19, a transitional living program for youth 16 to 21, and offers a variety of community services including outreach, and service referrals for health care, housing, employment, and education assistance.
Urban Peak of Colorado has programs for homeless and at-risk youth in Denver and Colorado Springs. Their services include emergency shelter, street outreach, a variety of housing programs, education and employment services, and health and human services support. Urban Peak’s mission is to support and empower young adults. They serve over 2,300 youth a year.
AIRS, located in Baltimore, MD, has been serving low-income and homeless individuals and families since 1987. The organization provides connections to health care, job training, and supportive housing for youth, individuals, and families, many of whom have HIV/AIDS or disabilities. AIRS is also a licensed Community Housing Development Corporation (CHDC) and buys and develops distressed properties to expand Baltimore’s affordable housing inventory.
Thank Your Senators for Joining the TANF ECF Sign-On Letter, Push for Extension ASAP
HUD Releases 2010 CoC NOFA
This is a Congressional sign-on letter written by Senator John Kerry (D-MA) to urge senators to extend the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Emergency Contingency Fund (TANF ECF), which expires on September 30. The deadline for senators to sign on to Senator Kerry's letter is September 15 at noon ET.
On September 15, the Alliance and the National Network for Youth co-hosted a webinar to kick-off a Fall 2010 Homeless Youth Site Visit Campaign. This is the recording of the webinar.
The Alliance and the National Network for Youth launched a Fall 2010 Campaign to encourage Members of Congress to visit local youth homelessness assistance programs across the country.
$1 Billion in Additional Funding Available for NSP
Deadline Approaches for TANF ECF Senate Sign-On Letter
HPRP Provides Housing Assistance and Placement for 92,000 in 13 Cities
| The Alliance released the third Quarterly Leadership Council Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-housing Report, which documents the progress of 13 cities implementing their HUD-funded prevention and rapid re-housing programs.
This interactive chart shows per household prevention and rapid re-housing spending for the thirteen cities profiled in the Alliance's Quarterly Leadership Council HPRP Report: April - June 2010.
Urge Senators to Extend Critical Support for Low-Income Families AND Create Jobs
This policy brief quantifies the changes to funding allocations made by the HEARTH Act and demonstrates the impact of a "Hold-Harmless" funding scenario for FY 2011.
In this video, Laura Webb, Community Engagement Manager at Walden Sierra in Maryland, discusses how to most effectively utilize storytelling in advocacy efforts. She describes how to tell compelling stories, including where to find stories, how to edit them to fit an organization’s needs, and how to incorporate policy issues into storytelling.
Alliance Launches Youth Site Visit Campaign
Alliance Launches Youth Site Visit Campaign
This Quarterly Report includes updates on several different policy and advocacy initiatives, as well as a preview of upcoming opportunities.
Alliance Launches First Ever Photo Contest
Paper on the Early Childhood Home Visiting Program, which will provide $1.5 billion over the next five years to support implementation of evidence based home visiting programs that improve the health and development of very young at-risk children and reduce child abuse and neglect.
The Recovery Act provided $5 billion to reimburse states for increased costs of meeting the needs of low-income families in the TANF Emergency Contingency Funds (ECF). Unfortunately, the funds expire on September 20, 2010, so the Alliance urges Congress to extend the ECF.
This two-pager provides four key legislative priorities for a comprehensive bill to address veterans homelessness. The Zero Tolerance for Homelessness Among Veterans Act of 2009 addresses all four priorities. This document was updated in August 2010.
Take the Online Training Survey!
Alliance Releases Paper Focused on Family Homelessness
| The Alliance is providing access to all presentations from the 2010 National Conference on Ending Homelessness as they become available.
House Approves $2.2 Billion for McKinney-Vento, $75 Million for VASH
House May Cut VASH Program Today
This paper provides an overview of family homelessness in the United States. It examines the key strategies that communities are implementing to respond to increased family housing instability and homelessness. It also discusses the need for federal leadership.
HUD, VA Announce $15 Million for New Veterans Homelessness Prevention Demo Program
House and Senate Committees Recommend Increases to McKinney Programs
House and Senate Propose Increases to McKinney Funding
HUD and HHS Urge Providers to Help Homeless Families with HPRP and TANF Resources
Senate T-HUD Subcommittee to Mark Up FY 2011 Bill
Leadership Council: HPRP Report
| This document is a "Dear Colleague" letter from Mercedes Marquez, Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development and Carmen Nazario, Assistant Secretary for Children and Families. The letter offers guidance to local communities on how best to use Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-housing Program (HPRP) and TANF Emergency Contingency Fund (ECF) resources to end family homelessness.
Live from the Conference
On Thursday, July 22, the Alliance's Center for Capacity Building will host a virtual discussion about the federal Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program.
Focus On Homeless Prevention
On Thursday, June 24, the Alliance hosted "Creating a High Performing Rural Continuum, Part II: Increasing Stakeholder Engagement & Strengthening Collaboration," a webinar examining rural homelessness. Speakers provided an overview of their communities’ CoC infrastructures and services, as well as strategies to strengthen interagency coordination and collaboration to address key challenges in a rural CoC.
On Tuesday, July 6, the Alliance advocacy team hosted this webinar to prepare state captains for Capitol Hill Day.
Hill Update: House T-HUD Committee Marks Up FY 2011 Bill
House T-HUD Subcommittee Marks Up FY 2011 Bill
The Alliance research brief Economic Bytes: Doubled up in the United States estimates that there are 4.8 million people living in a housing unit with extended family, friends, and other non-relatives due to economic hardship, earning no more than 125 percent of the federal poverty level. This map shows how many of the 4.8 million reside in each state.
House T-HUD Subcommittee Expected to Mark Up FY 2011 Bill on Thursday
Presentation by Alliance staff member M William Sermons during the African American Homeless Veterans workshop at the 2010 Annual Conference of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans (NCHV.
Increasingly, communities and programs are providing homeless and at-risk families with short term rental assistance. In assessing which families to help, one of their primary concerns is to help families that will be able to sustain their housing once the short subsidy ends. To inform their choices about whom to help, this Fact Sheet examines the level of housing cost burden that poor families typically carry.
This short video profiles the C.A.T.C.H. program in Boise, ID and the public-private partnership that made it possible.
This document outlines the Alliance's activities and accomplishments in 2009.
USICH Releases Federal Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness
This interactive chart illustrates the Alliance's understanding of the necessary reductions in homelessness, as measured during January point-in-time counts, that correspond to the goals set forth in the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness' Opening Doors: The Federal Strategic Plan to End Homelessness.
U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness to Release Federal Strategic Plan to End Homelessness
On Thursday, June 24, the Alliance's Center for Capacity Building will host a virtual discussion about the federal Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program.
| Youth experiencing homelessness require specialized care but few states offer the resources required to serve this vulnerable population. The Alliance provides two sample legislative texts for local advocates to propose to state legislators.
Alliance Releases Second HPRP Quarterly Report
Urge Your Senators to Fund NHTF and TANF ECF
Homelessness: Break the Cycle; A Ten Year Plan for Adams County
Restoring Hope, Happiness, and Healing
There's No Place Like Home: A Ten Year Plan to Address Issues Surrounding Housing and Homelessness
The City of Virginia Beach's Ten Yar Plan to End Homelessness
Rensselaer County Ten Year Plan to end Homelessness
Topeka/Shawnee County Homeless Task Force 10 Year Plan, Objectives, and Action Steps
Williston Plan to End Homelessness
Stevens County 10 Year Housing Plan
Caring for our Neighbors: A 10 Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness in Tallahassee
Ten Year Strategic Plan to end Homelessness
A 10 Year Plan to End Hoemlessness in Grant County
10 Year Plan to end Chronic Homelessness
A Strategy to End Chronic Homelessness in Lynn, Massachusetts Ten Year Action Plan
Ending Homelessness: South East Texas 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness
Heading Home Southeast Minnesota
Ten Year Plan to end Chronic and Other Homelessness
Homelessness 2007 Stamford/Greenwich Connecticut: A Ten Year Plan. Different Time Different Place
Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness
Home Run: The Capital Area's 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness in the County of Dauphin and the City of Harrisburg
L.I.F.E. Lee's Investment For Everyone: Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness in Our Community
The Kittitas County Homelessness Prevention and Reduction Plan
Identify, Assist and Congrol: A 10 Year Plan to Eliminate Chronic Homelessness 2006-2016
Tulsa's Strategic Plan to end Chronic Homelessness by 2010
A Road Home: 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness
Tax Extenders Bill Passes the House!
| The Alliance has prepared draft comments on HUD's proposed rule to change the definition of "homeless" as part of the HEARTH Act. The proposed rule was published in April and final comments are due to HUD by June 21.
| The Alliance released the second Quarterly Leadership Council Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-housing Report, which documents the progress of 13 cities implementing their HUD-funded prevention and rapid re-housing programs.
New Online Training: Structuring Your Prevention Efforts
This online training is designed to introduce some basic concepts necessary to design a prevention program. The training covers outreach strategies, explains the importance of targeting services, offers ideas for assessment and financial assistance plans, and examines program evaluation.
Urge Congress to Fund NHTF and TANF ECF
On Friday, May 21, 2010, the Alliance sent this letter to Chairman McDermott of the House Income Security and Family Support Subcommittee of the Ways and Means Committee. It urges him to
Urge Congress to Fund NHTF and TANF ECF
New Online Training: Working with Landlords
| In the first of our Economy Bytes series, the Alliance presents the state of doubled-up families. The brief examines the implications of the increase in doubled-up families and reflects on the how the situation speaks to the recession’s impact of homelessness.
This interactive, web-based training provides participants with an overview of how to find landlords and track and document the success of your landlord outreach strategies, as well as tools for maintaining your partnership with landlords for the long-term.
Alliance Launches New Website
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
Gearing up for the July Conference and Capitol Hill Day; McKinney-Vento Appropriations Update; Veterans Homelessness Legislation; Sign onto National Letter from NHTF Campaign
In May 2010, the Alliance hosted a webinar discussing how Cincinnati developed its family rapid re-housing system goals and outcomes, its approach to stakeholder engagement, and its approach to targeting, accountability, and evaluation.
This interactive spreadsheet serves as a database of the 243 Plans that have been collected by the Alliance.
Alameda County Reduces Family Homelessness by 37 Percent
Family homelessness declined by 37 percent in Alameda County, CA between 2003 and 2009. This "Community Snapshot" examines the key initiatives that led to this and other outcomes.
This map serves as a geographic database of the 243 state, regional, and local ten year plans to end homelessness that have been collected by the Alliance.
This short brief provides a description of the official methods of including people experiencing homelessness in the U.S. decennial census and, when available, the results of those efforts. Additionally, the fact sheet includes a brief look into the enumeration of populations similar to those we consider homeless today.
Thank Your Senators; Briefing to Launch New Congressional Caucus on Homelessness
Alliance Hosts Webinar on Targeting, Outcomes, and Evaluation in a Family Rapid Re-Housing System
This issue brief outlines changes in appropriations and authorization language for HUD’s McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance program and focuses on how these changes may benefit homeless youth. Changes in program eligibility will allow agencies to offer housing, rapid re-housing, and services designed to facilitate family reunification and prevent youth from running away.
Awardee Spotlight for Annual Awards Ceremony: Virgin Mobile
In April 2010, the Alliance presented a webinar on building political will in a rural CoC. Speakers discussed their experiences raising awareness about homelessness in the state’s rural areas.
This one-pager provides a brief overview of S. 1547, the Zero Tolerance for Homeless Veterans Act of 2009. S. 1547 was incorporated into another veterans' bill in January 2010 and passed by the Senate VA Committee.
REMINDER: Senate McKinney Appropriations Letter Dealine, April 22
HUD Releases Draft HEARTH Act Regulations on Definition of Homelessness
Written testimony to the Senate and House Appropriations Subcommittees on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Concerning Programs in the United States Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
Seeking Signatures on Senate McKinney-Vento Appropriations Letter; Sign National Letter from NHTF Campaign
Alliance Publishes New Best Practice on Rapid Re-Housing for Survivors of Domestic Violence
The Center for Capacity Building puts out quarterly newsletter outlining the activities, developments, and tools offered by the Center. This is The Keys: Rapid Re-Housing Clinic Series, the spring 2010 edition of the newsletter.
This best practice document profiles the Empowerment Project of the District Alliance for Safe Housing (DASH), a domestic violence survivor housing and service agency in Washington, DC that provided a transition-in-place program that provided families with time-limited rental assistance and case management.
| Denver, CO has experienced tremendous success in implementing its Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness, much of which can be attributed to a few core practices. A slate of those practices are examined here.
Alliance's New Aging Report Predicts Increase in Elderly Homelessness
M Williams Sermons, director of the Homelessness Research Institute at the Alliance to End Homelessness, on why the aging baby boomer generation may make up a large amount of a new population of seniors living in poverty. KCBS Radio, San Francisco.

There is some troubling evidence that homelessness is increasing among elderly adults. In this report, the Homelessness Research Institute presents this evidence and projects that homelessness among the elderly population will increase by 33 percent by 2020, and more than double by 2050.
This online training, which includes both an audio and visual component, is the second in a series on rapid re-housing. It covers the program design and planning aspects of rapid re-housing, including assessment, design, and evaluation.
This online training, which includes both an audio and visual component, is the first in a series on rapid re-housing. It covers the basics of rapid re-housing, including defining rapid re-housing, doing rapid re-housing, and common questions on the topic.
March 31, 2010
Alliance Opens Conference Registration for Annual DC Conference
The TANF program is an important resource for homeless advocates and planners to be using to help homeless and low-income families. States use TANF resources for a host of supports for low-income families.
On March 23, 2010, the Alliance and the Corporation for Supportive Housing co-hosted a Congressional Briefing entitled, "Policy Solutions to Chronic Homelessness." This resource includes information on the speakers and materials from the briefing.
Alliance Publishes New Policy Brief on Chronic Homelessness
This brief examines chronic homelessness and provides an overview of key strategies used to reduce chronic homelessness, including permanent supportive housing, prevention, and targeting.
On March 2, Representatives Gwen Moore (D-WI) and Geoff Davis (R-KY) began circulating a McKinney-Vento appropriations Congressional Sign-On Letter in the House. The letter requests that McKinney-Vento programs receive a funding level of $2.4 billion in FY 2011.
March 22, 2010
This March 2010 webinar included an overview of Trenton/Mercer County's vision for ending homelessness, the strategies they developed to reduce homelessness, and how they are using both Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) funds and other funding streams to create a comprehensive Housing First system.
Congressional Sign-On Letter for FY 2011 RHYA and EHCY Appropriations
New Paper Examines Success Factors for Rural CoCs
The Alliance conducted in-depth interviews with representatives from four rural CoCs. Based on these interviews, the Alliance has identified five critical success factors for making progress toward ending homelessness, implementing Ten Year Plans, and meeting the housing and service needs of homeless families and individuals in rural areas.
This best practice document profiles Home Free, a domestic violence survivor service agency in Portland, OR that provides an array of services for families impacted by violence. Currently, the program provides rapid re-housing assistance to 80 to 100 households annually.
March 15, 2009
Plug and Play Test
Alliance Publishes Geography of Homelessness Brief
Each community has been classified into one of five categories, ranging from completely urban to completely rural. This report analyzes various aspects of the homeless population in each category.
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
March 3, 2010
Alliance Releases First Quarterly Leadership Council HPRP Report
In conjunction with a group of 11 cities from across the country, the Alliance has created a quarterly report on the status of HPRP. It examines how the 11 communities are spending their HPRP funds, as well as the results of their January 2009 point-in-time counts.
This interactive stacked bar chart illustrates the relative costs of permanent supportive housing and homelessness (prior to supportive housing) in five different communities: Portland, ME; New York, NY; Rhode Island; Portland, OR, and Denver, CO.
Focus On Homeless Youth
This document contains answers to questions asked during the February 2010 webinar, "Adopting a Housing First Approach: Using HPRP and TANF to Re-House Families in Salt Lake City, UT."
HUD Releases Third Homelessness Pulse Report
On February 18, 2010, the Alliance hosted a webinar that explored how TANF Emergency Contingency Funds and Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) funds are being used by The Road Home in Salt Lake City to re-house families experiencing homelessness.
Alliance to Host Virtual Discussion on HPRP Implementation
Alliance to Host Webinar on Using HPRP and TANF to Re-House Families
This is the Alliance's guidance to the US Interagency Council on Homelessness on what should be included in the Federal Plan to End Homelessness.
President Releases FY 2011 Budget Proposal
This chart highlights numerous homelessness and housing federal programs. For each program, it shows how much funding was appropriated in FY 2009 and FY 2010, as well as how much President Obama requested in his FY 2011 budget proposal. The chart also notes whether the President's Proposal represents an increase or decrease and by how much.
Advocates are welcome to use this sample letter as a model for letters sent to their Members of Congress. The letter encourages Congress to provide $2.4 billion for McKinney-Vento Homelessness Assistance Grants in FY 2011.
USICH Announces New Deputies
On January 26, the Alliance and the Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH) hosted a call to kick off the McKinney-Vento appropriations campaign for FY 2011.
This interactive chart quantifies the changes to funding allocations made by the HEARTH Act and demonstrates the impact of several FY2011 funding scenarios, including two different "Hold-Harmless" scenarios. The table shows funding activity under 4 different scenarios.
For Members of the Leadership Council
Although chronic homelessness represents a small share of the overall homeless population, chronically homeless people use up more than 50 percent of the services. The most successful model for housing people who experience chronic homelessness is permanent supportive housing using a Housing First approach.
On January 21, 2010, the Alliance hosted a Webinar highlighting the efforts of Alameda County, CA to adopt a Housing First approach across its entire homelessness assistance system. Key strategies and lessons were discussed.
Alliance to Host Webinar on President's FY 2011 Budget Request
The issue of youth homelessness has gained some traction lately, in both the news and among community activists. This fact sheets goes over what is and isn't known about youth homelessness, including data, relevant issues, and possible solutions.
The number of people who experience rural homelessness is unknown, but the last national count of homeless people found that 9 percent live in rural areas. The same structural factors that contribute to urban homelessness—lack of affordable housing and inadequate income—also lead to rural homelessness. One of the most important strategies in ending rural homelessness is prevention.
This timeline, released in conjunction with A Shifting Focus: What's In Ten Year Plans to End Homelessness, documents the evolution of 10-year plans from the development of the first plan in 1998 to the present.
This resource explains what a Continuum of Care is, as well as details the necessary parts of a Continuum of Care (CoC) and how to plan a CoC. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development began to require communities to submit a single application for McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants in 1995. In 2009, there were 461 CoCs.
Use these tools to help convince your Member of Congress to take action to ensure that Congress includes an additional $1 billion for the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) in any jobs package.
January 14, 2009
Alliance Publishes Interactive Tool on HPRP Media Stories
This program journal was for the 2009 National Conference on Ending Family Homelessness, which was held February 12-13, 2009 in San Diego, CA.
This program journal was for the 2009 National Conference on Ending Homelessness, which was held in Washington DC on July 29-31, 2009.
Domestic violence is an immediate cause of homelessness for many women and children. In November 2006, over 22,000 victims of domestic violence—12,000 children and 10,000 adults—received housing services from 1,243 domestic violence service providers.
This document goes over why homelessness is an important issue and what we can do about homelessness as a community. The document goes over the major issues around homelessness, including the number of homeless people in the United States as well as local and national efforts to address homelessness.
January 2010
January 2010
In preparation for Capitol Hill Day at the Alliance’s Annual Conference, the Alliance is hosted two webinars to provide participants with information about the 2009 Capitol Hill Day Policy Agenda.
This November 13, 2009 webinar explored issues with HPRP implementation that are particular to rural areas. Specifically, program design and data collection challenges were discussed. It was the second Alliance webinar to focus on HPRP implementation issues in rural areas.
Steve Berg, vice President of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, explains the history of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance programs and what we can expect in the future.
In 2000, the National Alliance to End Homelessness released A Plan, Not a Dream: How to End Homelessness in Ten Years. Drawing on research and innovative programs from around the country, the plan outlined key strategies in addressing the issue locally, which cumulatively can address the issue nationally. Since the release of this blueprint, over 300 communities have undertaken efforts to end homelessness and over 180 communities have completed plans to end homelessness.
These opening remarks were given by Charles King, President and CEO of Housing Works, Inc. at a White House Summit on Housing and HIV/AIDS in December 2009.
December 22, 2009
December 15, 2009
Each community receiving HPRP funds is responsible for designing its program based on its distinct needs, and many are taking this unique opportunity to transform their homelessness assistance systems. This community profile examines Alameda County, CA's efforts to use HPRP to transform its homelessness assistance system.
These are the remarks made by Nan Roman, Alliance President and CEO, at the Alliance's Congressional Briefing entitled "Ending Family Homelessness" on December 4, 2009.
The Alliance recently signed a letter to the Director of the Office on Management and Budget (OMB) urging a $35 million increase in funding to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Transitional Living Program (TLP) for the President’s proposed FY 2011 budget. This increased federal appropriation would expand housing options to 3,000 new youth annually.
December 8, 2009
Any new jobs bill should expand funding for HUD’s Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) by $1 billion, to create 2,500 additional jobs in community agencies, provide temporary rent payments that will fund additional jobs in the housing industry, and stabilize housing for 200,000 additional homeless or near-homeless families, giving them a fighting chance to become or remain employed.
Remarks at the National Alliance to End Homelessness Congressional Briefing on Friday, December 4, 2009.
Remarks at the National Alliance to End Homelessness Congressional Briefing on Friday, December 4, 2009.
Between 2005 and 2008, chronic homelessness in Wichita/Sedgwick County decreased by 61 percent. Learn how they accomplished their success.
Congressional Briefing: Speaker Bios
On December 4, 2009, the Alliance hosted a Congressional Briefing. Staff representing nearly 30 Congressional offices heard speakers provide information about the success that they have had in using solution-focused strategies, like prevention and rapid re-housing, to reduce homelessness among families. Speakers asked Congress to support their efforts by acting on specific federal policy priorities.
Congress should increase access to affordable housing for extremely low income families by providing a $1 billion mandatory allocation for the National Housing Trust Fund this year and funding 200,000 new Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers in FY 2011.
TANF reauthorization is an ideal opportunity to make TANF an effective tool that more communities can use to end family homelessness. This paper outlines the Alliance's policy priorities for TANF reauthorization.
The Alliance urges Congress to include $1 billion in any upcoming job-creation bill to extend the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP).
This is a list of federal policies to prevent and end homelessness that the Alliance urges Congress to move forward as quickly as possible.
December 1, 2009
This is the Fall 2009 and inaugural edition of The Keys. This quarterly newsletter is put out by the Center for Capacity Building at the Alliance.
The bar charts illustrate how homelessness increased overall and among families in Major Cities at the same time that homelessness decreased overall and among the chronic and family subpopulations in other Urban CoCs.
November 30, 2009
This is the fourth in a series of briefs examining the geographic distribution of the population experiencing homelessness and the homeless assistance system in the United States. It examines the homeless population in urban areas, and further categorizes urban areas into five subcategories.This document provides a summary to the November 12, 2009 Virtual Discussion on HPRP Implementation. It contains 26 questions asked during the Virtual Discussion, along with the responses given by Alliance staff.
November 24, 2009
This issue brief is jointly published by members of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Coalition to raise awareness around reentry services nationally. It outlines the concept of reentry services in theory and practice, offers a review of federal policy previously enacted to support reentry, suggests opportunities for improvements in public policy, and reviews promising initiatives.
Fall 2009
This November 13, 2009 webinar explored issues with HPRP implementation that are particular to rural areas. Specifically, program design and data collection challenges were discussed. It was the second Alliance webinar to focus on HPRP implementation issues in rural areas.
This tool is designed to help communities identify possible partners and accountable agencies within their Housing First system based on the three main outcomes of a Housing First system: prevention of homelessness, reduction in the length of time of homelessness, and decreased recidivism.
November 17, 2009
Written testimony to the Senate Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development of the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee Concerning ending veterans' homelessness.
In association with Veterans Day 2009, the Alliance released an update to the veterans report: Vital Mission: Ending Homelessness Among Veterans. New data from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) shows that while the number of homeless veterans seems to have decreased, the need for more proactive intervention and action grows.
This presentation provides an easy-to-follow overview of the impact of the HEARTH Act on the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance programs. The presentation lays out how things are under the current McKinney-Vento programs and how they will be once HEARTH Act implementation is complete.
November 10, 2009
The Department of Veterans Affairs estimates that 131,230 veterans were homeless on a given night in 2008. This map shows how many veterans are estimated to be homeless in each state.
This presentation by Rich Hooks Wayman of the Alliance at the 2009 National Homeless Youth Month Summit provides an overview of how many youth are homeless, youth housing models, the cost of youth housing, federal funding for youth housing, and other information.
This document provides information to help advocates answer questions from reporters regarding veterans homelessness and includes tips for local media outreach.
This is the Alliance's memo to media assignment editors regarding the Data Update to Vital Mission: Ending Homelessness Among Veterans.
This is the presentation of the Veterans Media Campaign webinar on November 2. It contains information regarding the Data Update to Vital Missions: Ending Homelessness Among Veterans, as well as information to assist advocates with local media outreach.
This brief lists the Alliance's legislative priorities to end homelessness among veterans.
November 3, 2009
Click here for more information about the Neighborhood Stabilization program, which provides funds to communities that have high rates of foreclosure and vacant properties. At least 25 percent of the funding must be used to provide housing, including permanent supportive housing, to people below 50 percent of area median income. This resource includes a fact sheet on how communities can use the funding, as well as links to additional resources.
Homeless youth surviving day-to-day on the streets are at constant risk of solicitation and sexual exploitation. Homeless youth are far more likely to be physically and sexually victimized than their peers who are housed, and they are more likely to experience repeated episodes of sexual assaults. This publication reviews the research and practice implications for community-based services.
October 27, 2009
The National Alliance to End Homelessness Annual Report, 2008.
October 20, 2009
October 19, 2009
The REDUCE Act, S. 1781, would create a demonstration program that would allow service providers to reimburse Medicaid for coordinated care management and community support services. The program targets Medicaid beneficiaries with complex medical and behavior health conditions who frequently rely on emergency health care services.
This is a copy of the legislative text of S. 1781, the Reduce Emergency Department Utilization through Coordination and Empowerment (REDUCE) Act.
October 13, 2009
Written testimony to the House Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support of the Committee of Ways and Means Concerning the response of the "safety net" to the recession.
SELHA would authorize funding for a flexible array of services in permanent supportive housing, focused on helping people move toward recovery and self sufficiency.
October 6, 2009
September 29, 2009
This is the third in a series of briefs examining the geographic distribution of the population experiencing homelessness and the homeless assistance system in the United States. It examines the geographic distributions of homeless subpopulations and subgroups.September 25, 2009
This September 24, 2009 letter from the Alliance and the National Center on Family Homelessness was sent to Senator Max Baucus (D-MT), Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. The letter thanks Senator Baucus for including a provision that provides states with funds to support the creation or expansion of home visiting programs in the Chairman’s Mark of the Senate Finance Committee’s health care reform proposal.
September 22, 2009
This document provides a status update as of 2008 on Dane County, WI's efforts to meet the goals of its plan to prevent and end homelessness.
This document provides a brief overview of Dane County, WI's plan to prevent and end homelessness.
This document provides an overview of the progress being made by Dane County, WI on a Housing First program funded by a grant from the Henry J. Predolin Foundation.
This document provides a summary of the plan by Dane County, WI to use its Rapid Re-Housing Demonstration grant.
This document provides a summary of the plan by Kalamazoo County, MI to use its Rapid Re-Housing Demonstration grant.
Between 2005 and 2008, chronic homelessness in Quincy, MA decreased by 50 percent. Learn how they accomplished their success.
This presentation provides an overview of Clallum and Whatcom County, WA's plans to use its Rapid Re-Housing Demonstration Grant.
This document provides a summary of the plan by Clallam and Whatcom County, WA to use its Rapid Re-Housing Demonstration grant.
This document provides a summary of the plan by Greater New Orleans, LA to use its Rapid Re-Housing Demonstration grant.
This presentation provides an overview of Mercer County, NJ's plans to use its Rapid Re-Housing Demonstration Grant.
This document provides a summary of the plan by Trenton/Mercer County, NJ to use its Rapid Re-Housing Demonstration grant.
This document provides a summary of the plan by Allegheny County, PA to use its Rapid Re-Housing Demonstration grant.
This document provides a summary of the plan by Lancaster City and County, PA to use its Rapid Re-Housing Demonstration grant.
This document provides a summary of the plan by Austin/Travis County, TX to use its Rapid Re-Housing Demonstration grant.
Congress allocated $25 million for a Rapid Re-Housing Demonstration to serve homeless families. The experience of the 23 communities that received grants awards under the Demonstration can be an important resource for communities developing Rapid Re-Housing programs to serve families using HPRP or other funding resources. This resource collects information about what the Demonstration grantees are doing.
September 17, 2009
September 15, 2009
This September 15, 2009 letter from the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD) TANF Task Force was sent to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. It outlines the Task Force’s principles for TANF reauthorization.
In this policy platform, the National Foster Care Coalition makes numerous recommendations about housing supports that should be made available to youth transitioning from foster care.
The Alliance and the National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare sent a letter, which was endorsed by over 200 local, state, and national organizations, to U.S. House and Senate members of leadership to ensure final health reform legislation includes provisions to improve access and quality of health care for people experiencing homelessness.
This video includes a series of remarks made in July 2009, at the Annual Conference on Ending Homelessness in Washington, D.C. Congressman Al Green of Texas appears in this clip.
This video includes a series of remarks made in July 2009, at the Annual Conference on Ending Homelessness in Washington, D.C. Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan is featured in this clip.
This video includes a series of remarks made in July 2009, at the Annual Conference on Ending Homelessness in Washington, D.C. Speakers in this clip include White House Director of Urban Affairs Adolfo Carrion, acclaimed scholar Dennis Culhane, and Alliance president Nan Roman.
This video includes a series of remarks made in July 2009, at the Annual Conference on Ending Homelessness in Washington, D.C. Speakers in this clip include Barb Poppe, Jim Ryczek, Sen. Jack Reed, and Alliance board member Irene Mabry-Moses.
September 8, 2009
This policy brief outlines the Alliance's policy recommendations for ending homelessness for 50,000 street youth through the provision of supportive housing, rental assistance, and services for specific sub-populations of street youth.
The Alliance launched a multi-part series called the "Geography of Homelessness", which examines rates of homelessness in rural, urban, and mixed areas. The first part of this ongoing series explains the goals and parameters of the project.
Norm Suchar, senior policy analyst for the National Alliance to End Homelessness, explains the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing program and the nation's changing approach to addressing homelessness in the country.
September 1, 2009
Peggy Bailey, program and policy analyst at the National Alliance to End Homelessness, explains how health care fits into discussions about homelessness, and outlines the Alliance's priorities in the health care reform debate.
Norm Suchar, senior policy analyst at the National Alliance to End Homelessness, explains the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing program and it's potential to transform the homeless systems in the country.
This interactive tool shows the communities with the largest homeless populations and highest rates of homelessness.
This is the second in a series of briefs examining the geographic distribution of the population experiencing homelessness and the homeless assistance system in the United States. It evaluates how rates of homelessness in rural areas compare to rates in urban areas.August 25, 2009
August 25, 2009
This document outlines the key strategies of a Housing First approach - it can help organizations that are planning to use HPRP resources to shift their organization's approach toward a Housing First model.
The National Alliance to End Homelessness and National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare are circulating an organizational sign-on letter urging House and Senate leadership to consider two critical Medicaid provisions in health care reform.
Capitol Hill Day provides people who attend the Alliance’s Annual Conference with an opportunity to take part in federal advocacy by meeting with their U.S. Senators and Representatives. This Summary and Report includes a list of the 2009 Capitol Hill Day Federal Policy Priorities, a report of the Hill Day activities, and a summary of the impact advocates had on each of the policy priorities before and during the conference.
August 18, 2009
This short brief provides information on the spectrum of structural variations of youth housing models, including host homes, community-based group homes, shared housing, supervised apartments, scattered-site housing, and dormitories. It also defines programmatic service delivery variations, including foyer employment-focused housing, transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, and host homes.
This brief fact sheet provides information on how much the federal government appropriated in fiscal year 2009 for general homeless assistance programs and for dedicated youth homeless assistance programs.
This short fact provides information on how much the federal government appropriated on fiscal year 2009 on special population affordable housing, rental assistance programs, public housing, and youth housing.

This is an issue brief presenting the ways state mental health agencies can work cooperatively with community members and lawmakers to prevent and end homelessness for those afflicted with severe mental illness. Key strategies are examined in this brief, as well as case studies of states that have successfully implemented some of these strategies.
Access a variety of resources regarding a national youth housing policy agenda, including information on federal funding, youth housing proposals, and other documents. This resource also includes a number of youth housing resources, including information on the spectrum of youth housing and other topics. Also included are a external links to useful resources.
August 11, 2009
Summer 2009
August 4, 2009
HUD Released the 2008 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress on July 9, 2009. The AHAR research team (Alvaro Cortes, Abt Associates; Jill Khadduri, Abt Associates; Dennis Culhane, University of Pennsylvania) presented the results at the 2009 National Conference on Ending Homelessness. These are the slides from that Presentation.
This presentation by LaDonna Pavetti with Mathematica Policy Research was made for the July 16 webinar, "Serving Parents and Children with Disabilities in the TANF Program."
The Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities TANF Task Force hosted a webinar that offered an overview on how the TANF program is serving families that include a person with a disability on July 16, 2009. Featured speakers included LaDonna Pavetti, Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. and Elizabeth Lower-Basch, Center on Law and Social Policy (CLASP). How the TANF Emergency Contingency Fund and TANF reauthorization in 2010 can improve services to parents and children with disabilities was also discussed.
This presentation by Elizabeth Lower-Basch of the Center on Law and Social Policy (CLASP) was made for the July 16 webinar, "Serving Parents and Children with Disabilities in the TANF Program."
This issue brief identifies proven interventions from the fields of child welfare, community mental health, and juvenile justice, and it promotes their use as a model for youth homelessness prevention and early intervention. It is directed at community planners and youth advocates, who should view these services as critical components of a service and housing spectrum that can end youth homelessness.
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
This presentation by Mark Kroner, Director of the Lighthouse Training Institute at Lighthouse Youth Services Inc., provides an overview of how to create a spectrum of youth housing and a comprehensive transition system.
This presentation by the Alliance provides information on how to respond to the national youth housing demand through focusing limited appropriations and recognizing varying demand for housing services by youth subpopulations. It makes policy recommendations for HUD and HHS regarding the provision of housing and services.
This presentation by Roxana Torrico, Senior Consultant at the National Center for Housing and Child Welfare, provides an overview of how to tap into federal housing resources, including FUP, HPRP, CDBG, and child welfare funding.
The National Alliance to End Homelessness has published this guide and companion to help organizations create a homelessness prevention program or improve an existing prevention program.
The Alliance has published this guide to help organizations develop Rapid Re-Housing programs.
This presentation by the Alliance provides information on how to use the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) to provide housing for homeless and at-risk youth.
This presentation by Michael Coffey of YAA in Australia was presented at the National Conference on Ending Homelessness in July 2009. It provides an Australian perspective on the issue of housing for homeless youth.
As VA’s only permanent supportive housing intervention, HUD-VASH must be an integral part of ending homelessness for veterans. This document provides advocates and policymakers with a number of specific areas for improvement and recommendations to improve targeting and administration of HUD-VASH in the service of homeless veterans.
This joint paper by the Alliance and Enterprise Community Partners demonstrates the importance of affordable housing in ending homelessness for families.
Join the social action campaign to challenge false serotypes about people who have a mental illness and live on the street. Participate in the August 4 DVD release of the movie the Soloist—the story of Nathaniel Ayers, a gifted Juilliard-trained string player whose mental illness led him to become homeless. His story illustrates strength in community connections and relationships. It is not acceptable, regardless of a person's mental health, for anyone to experience homelessness—with proper supports, housing stability can be achieved. We can all take action to solve homelessness and de-stigmatize mental illness.
On July 23, the Alliance hosted the Housing and Veterans Initiatives Webinar to provide Capitol Hill Day participants with the latest updates on the Hill Day policy priorities. Presenters discussed the status of and key talking points for each issue, as well as what action is needed to make as much progress as possible on these issues over the summer. This is the PowerPoint presentations. Unfortunately, the webinar did not record successfully.
Federal Policy Update Webinar: Services Appropriations PowerPoint Presentation.
There are several important issues moving forward in Congress. In order to make as much progress as possible on these things, it will be important to PRIORITIZE. It is advantageous to only ask your Members of Congress to do one (or maybe two) things. In order to help you decide which issue to choose, this document provides Congressional targets for each issues and the specific policy request.
July 21, 2009
July 20, 2009
President Obama and Department of Veterans’ Affairs (VA) Secretary Eric Shinseki have made ending veterans homelessness a top priority, and Congress has been exploring legislative solutions to the problem. While there is great interest in Congress and the Administration, it is unclear how veterans legislation will move forward. The Alliance believes that any bill should bolster the capacity of the VA to provide assistance to all veterans who are homeless or are at risk, including through rapid re-housing, permanent supportive housing, short-term emergency assistance, and outreach services.
The Section Eight Voucher Reform Act (SEVRA), H.R. 3045, would streamline and make improvements to the Housing Choice Voucher program and authorize 150,000 new vouchers.
This is a sample agenda and worksheet to help you think through the framework of your meeting with your Senator(s) or Representative(s). Think about who will chair the meeting and who will cover each agenda item.
This serves as the first in a series of briefs examining the geographic distribution of the homeless population in the United States and provides some insight into the extent to which homelessness exists in rural and urban areas.This interactive map identifies the geographic distribution of the homeless population for each of the 50 states.
July 14, 2009
July 7, 2009
"Some Stimulus Money Preventing Homelessness" Homeless programs are about to get a big push in a new direction. They used to focus on providing food and shelter. Now, the economic stimulus package is providing $1.5 billion to prevent people from becoming homeless and to quickly re-house those who do.
This presentation was used by Miriam Komaromy on the June 3, 2009 webinar, "Implementing Harm Reduction Strategies in Your Health Center."
This presentation was used by Ed Stellon in the June 3, 2009 webinar, "Implementing Harm Reduction Strategies in Your Health Center."
This presentation was used by Jan Caughlan on the June 3, 2009 webinar, "Implementing Harm Reduction Strategies in Your Health Center."
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
Given the debate in Congress over health care reform, the Alliance has prepared two recommendations for inclusion in health care reform. First, that at least every American living below the federal poverty level must be eligible for Medicaid; second, that Medicaid eligible populations must have access to integrated health services that include mental health and substance use treatment.
In June 2009, the Alliance, along with several other national organizations released this report, which provides insight into the contribution that foreclosures had on 2008 homeless populations.
This document includes information about the specific policy request related to the FY 2010 appropriations priorities.
This one-pager discusses key partners worth identifying when planning a Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP). It was used during a June 23, 2009 webinar entitled "Implementing HPRP in Rural Areas."
This document shows the application being used by the State of Ohio for nonprofit organizations and local governments interested in receiving HPRP funds.
This one-pager discusses how to target assistance toward those with the greatest risk of becoming homeless. It was used during a June 23, 2009 webinar entitled "Implementing HPRP in Rural Areas."
This is the PowerPoint presentation used by the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio (COHHIO) on the June 23, 2009 webinar entitled "Implementing HPRP in Rural Areas."
This is the PowerPoint presentation used by Jamey Burden on the June 23, 2009 webinar entitled "Implementing HPRP in Rural Areas."
In June 2009, the Alliance and the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio (COHHIO) co-hosted a webinar entitled "Implementing HPRP in Rural Areas." Speakers explored the unique challenges that rural communities face as they implement their Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) plans. They also delved into new and significant opportunities to address these challenges through effective program design and collaborative strategies.
June 23, 2009
This is a schedule of policy and advocacy-related workshops and activities at the annual conference.
This document provides information about the Second Chance Act programs, which were passed into law in April 2008, and recommendations for funding in FY 2010.
This document provides a section-by-section analysis of the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act signed into law in May 2009.
This report by the National Foster Care Coalition is entitled "Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act: Frequently Asked Questions on the Provisions Designed to Impact Youth and Young Adults." It reviews numerous common questions, including those around the extension of foster care to age 21, which was included in the Act.
The National Alliance to End Homelessness Annual Report, 2007.
This interactive stacked bar chart illustrates the relative costs of permanent supportive housing and homelessness (prior to supportive housing) for both urban and rural areas in the state of Maine.
June 9, 2009
This two-page brief provides highlights of the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act that was signed into law by President Obama on May 20, 2009.
This brief provides a detailed overview of the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act that was included in the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act, which was signed into law on May 20, 2009 by President Obama. The document explains the legislation's background, provides details on its provisions, and discusses the ramifications of the bill's language for implementation and application procedures.
On June 3, the Alliance and the National Health Care for the Homeless Council co-hosted a webinar on harm reduction strategies within Health Care for the Homeless clinics. Adopting a harm reduction approach can be controversial, but communities across the country have found it to be an effective strategy to engage vulnerable persons into primary care, behavioral health, and other stabilizing services, including housing.
Testimony to the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity Concerning the Proposed Section 8 Voucher Reform Act (SEVRA) on.
This is Fairfax County, VA's Substantial Amendment to its Consolidated Plan, which describes its plan to use the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) funds.
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
This calculator illustrates the relationship between shelter demand, length of stay, and minimum required shelter bed inventory.
This one-pager explains how homeless families will benefit from the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act, which reauthorizes McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance programs and was signed into law on May 20, 2009.
Written Testimony to the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Concerning Programs in the United States Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education by the National Alliance to End Homelessness.
This document provides the legislative text of S. 896, the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act, which was signed into law by President Obama on May 20, 2009. Contained within S. 896 was the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act. The text of the HEARTH Act begins on page 32 of the bill.
May 19, 2009
May 16, 2009
May 19, 2009
The National Community Development Association and the National Alliance to End Homelessness hosted an audio conference presentation on the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) on April 30. The presentation included a brief review of program requirements and strategies from two communities to implement the program locally. Time was reserved for questions and answers. Featured speakers included Steve Berg and Norm Suchar of the National Alliance to End Homelessness; Bob Gehret from the City of Boston and Keith Theriot from the City of Orlando.
This is a draft version of Clark County, NV's Substantial Amendment to its Consolidated Plan, which describes its plan to use the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) funds.
This is the City of Sacramento, CA's Substantial Amendment to its Consolidated Plan, which describes its plan to use the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) funds.
This is the County of Sacramento, CA's Substantial Amendment to its Consolidated Plan, which describes its plan to use the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) funds.
May 12, 2009
FY 2010 Federal Budget Brefing, PowerPoint Presentation
This is a draft version of the State of Minnesota's Substantial Amendment to its Consolidated Plan, which describes its plan to use the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) funds.
A number of communities have posted their plans or draft plans online for how they intend to use HPRP funding locally. This resource includes links to sample substantial amendments that communities are planning to submit to HUD.
Home First! Kern County's Ten Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness
Directions Home: Making Homelessness Rare, Short-term and non-recurring in Fort Worth, Texas Within Ten Years
Blueprint to End Homelessness in Allen County Ohio
City of Arcata Homeless Services Plan: 2007-2016
A Community Response to Homelessness in Albuquerque
A Home for Hope: A 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness in Oregon
A Passageway Home
State of Louisiana Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness: The Road to Supportive Housing
Plan to End HOmelessness in Santa Fe in 5 Years
Destination Home: Jackson's Ten Year Strategic Plan to End Chronic Homelessness
Blueprint for Succe3ss: Strategic Directions for the Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness in the Fairfax-Falls Church Community
Boise's 10 Year Plan to Reduce and Prevent Chronic Homelessness
City of Lowell Partnership for Change: Action Plan to End Homelessness
The Plan to End Homelessness on the North Shore
Vision to End Homelessness in the Greater Grand Traverse Region
Spring 2009
All roads lead home: The Pioneer Valley's Plan to End Homelessness
Strategic Plan to Address Homelessness in Houston/Harris County
Homes for All 2008 - 2018
A Road Home: 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness
Chesapeake Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness
Cowlitz County Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness
May 6, 2009
May 5, 2009
May 4, 2009
Click here to access links to our partner organizations that serve as strong resources on the intersection of substance use, mental health, and homelessness.
Click here to access links to our partner organizations that serve as strong resources on the intersection of health care and homelessness.
Written Testimony to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Concerning Programs in the United States Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education by the National Alliance to End Homelessness.
Many health care agencies assisting those experiencing homelessness are able to receive Medicaid reimbursement for by providing targeted case management services. The Alliance outlines three main reason for the Administration not to limit case management activities.
In May 2008, the Alliance provided comments to the Department of Health and Human Services explaining the importance of protecting health care for the homeless clinics and consolidated community health centers across the country. These clinics and centers provide an important safety net for people without health insurance or with insufficient access to health care services.
Click here for additional resources on how mental health and substance use issues affect homelessness. Materials include "Chronic Homelessness," "Christian Community Health Center in Chicago, Illinois: Providing Supportive Housing and Health Care," and "Amethyst Inc. in Columbus, Ohio: Helping Addicted Women to Gain and Maintain Sobriety."
Click here to access additional resources related to health care and Medicaid. Materials include "New Targeted Case Management Rule and Homelessness," "Medicaid Coverage for Rehabilitation Services," "Medicaid Proof of Citizenship," and "Protecting Health Care for the Homeless Programs."
April 28, 2009
Senators Reed (D-RI) and Martinez (R-FL) are seeking signatures on an FY 2010 McKinney appropriations letter.
This is a copy of a letter being circulated by Senators Reed (D-RI) and Martinez (R-FL) urging Congress to provide $2.2 billion for HUD’s McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants program in FY 2010.
April 28, 2009
This April 23, 2009 audio conference included a discussion of how HPRP can be used for child welfare involved families and youth aging out of care to promote better program housing and perhaps reduce foster care placements.
This presentation was used for an audio conference on April 23, 2009 entitled "Using the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-housing Program in Child Welfare Agencies."
April 21, 2009
Speakers on this audio conference provided concrete steps for using HPRP to create a more effective and efficient homelessness assistance system centered on housing stability and addressed strategies for sustaining programs beyond the three years of HPRP funding.
This agenda highlights the content of the April 16, 2009 audio conference entitled "Using HPRP to Transform Your Homeless Assistance System."
This paper provides basic steps for using HPRP to facilitate the transformation of homeless assistance from a system organized around emergency shelter to one centered on housing stability. Although no community has perfected homeless assistance, the steps in this paper have been used in communities to spark the process of transformation.
April 14, 2009
This two-page brief provides an overview of the prevalence and experience of LGBTQ youth, causal factors, and risks to LGBTQ youth while homeless.
This policy brief provides a brief overview of homelessness among LBGT youth and makes recommendations about improving practice, organizational culture, and residential services.
On April 24, 2009, the film "The Soloist" will premier in theaters. This downloadable document folds up and fits into your pocket. Users can easily download this PDF of Myths, Facts, and Tips to carry with them and make change everyday.
Representatives Nadler (D-NY) and Velazquez (D-NY) and 41 other Representatives, sent a letter to Chairman Olver (D-MA) and Ranking Member Latham (R-IA) of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development (T-HUD) urging them to fully fund the Section 8 Tenant-Based and Project-Based Rental Assistance Programs and 200,000 additional tenant-based vouchers in fiscal year 2010.
This paper explores key partnerships that communities should consider for both the planning and program design stage and the implementation, oversight, and evaluation stage of their HPRP program.
April 3, 2009
This map serves as a database of January 2009 point-in-time counts that have been reported in the media or on Continuum of Care websites. Red markers indicate reports of increases and green markers indicate reports of decreases. Links to news story's or CoC websites are included.
March 31, 2009
Housing location is a core function of a good prevention and re-housing program. Many programs have staff whose sole function is housing location. Other programs have staff who split time between housing location and case management. This brief includes tips on how to locate and then acquire affordable housing units for your homeless or at-risk clients.
March 28, 2009
This video describes New York City's HomeBase program, one of the most effective homelessness prevention programs in the United States.
DRAFT House Section 8 “Dear Colleague”
March 24, 2009
This short brief provides an overview of many of the important provisions that were contained in HUD's Notice for the HPRP funds.
On March 24, 2009, the Alliance and CSH co-hosted a conference call on the recent SAMHSA RFA. SAMHSA staff made a brief presentation and were available to answer questions.
This document is an example of a Housing Resource Coordinator job description used by one city.
This brief includes information on new funding benefiting homeless youth in ARRA and the HPRP program. It offers local organizations serving homeless youth action steps, ideas, and model programs on re-housing and prevention for homeless youth, information on establishing a framework for youth homelessness prevention and re-housing, and details regarding other federal appropriations benefiting homeless youth.
Many communities have in place best practices which can be funded through HUD’s new Homelessness Prevention and Re-Housing Fund. Highlighted below are model community-based and statewide programs, which are preventing homelessness, diverting people from shelter, and rapidly re-housing those who become homeless. Provided are the programs’ focus (noted under its name) and websites, and Alliance Audio Conferences, Best Practice write-ups, and National Conference presentations pertaining to the program.
The Dudley Diversion Project was a collaboration between several service-providing organizations and the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA). The purpose of this two-month pilot was to test the use of a diversion intervention for families seeking shelter at DTA’s Dudley Square office.
When runaways and homeless youth cannot be reunited with their families, the creation of housing models that also address the service needs of youth is one solution to ending youth homelessness. The goal of this brief is to outline a spectrum of youth housing models that connect affordable housing, self-sufficiency services, and positive youth development approaches. This brief examines youth housing combined with positive youth development services and highlights four housing models and programs that demonstrate promise in housing for older adolescents and young adults.
March 17, 2009
On March 12, the Alliance co-hosted an audio conference with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities focusing on how the Homeless Prevention Fund and TANF Emergency Contingency Funds can be coordinated and used to prevent homelessness and re-house families. The audio conference was intended for state and local poverty and homeless advocates and providers.
This presentation provides information on the HPRP and TANF Emergency Contingency Fund programs from the economic recovery act. The presentation includes an overview of each fund, information on opportunities for collaboration, steps to take, and suggestions on how to be part of the solution to homelessness.
This audio conference included basic information about the program, recommendations on how to think about structuring the program locally, and next steps that advocates, public officials, and providers should begin taking immediately. Speakers included Steve Berg, Vice President for Programs and Policy at the Alliance, and Norm Suchar, Senior Policy Analyst at the Alliance. The call was moderated by Sarah Kahn, Director of Field Mobilization at the Alliance.
The National Alliance to End Homelessness joined nearly 200 other organizations in sending a letter to the Obama Administration requesting its support in ending youth homelessness. The letter makes numerous recommendations about how to achieve that goal.
March 10, 2009
Local planners can improve the effectiveness of their local HPRP efforts by coordinating with TANF agencies. This one-pager provides an overview of ways in which communities can coordinate HPRP and TANF resources.
Up to $5 billion is available to states under the economic recovery act for the TANF Emergency Contingency Fund. This brief explores how improving TANF agencies' capacity to work in concert with local efforts to prevent homelessness and re-house families can be used effectively to improve outcomes and end homelessness.
This document provides a checklist of steps to guide state and local coalitions, CoCs, provider organizations, advocates, and others interested in ending homelessness through the planning process for the HPRP funds.
On February 23, the Alliance hosted a Congressional Briefing, "Homelessness and the Economic Crisis.” This link provides materials which were included in the Congressional Briefing packet, including information about high-priority policy issues on which the Alliance urges Congress to act in 2009.
Increase funding to $2.2 billion for HUD’s McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants Program and continue the rapid re-housing for families program. Homeless youth require housing programs tailored to meet the demands of transition from adolescence to adulthood on an individual basis. This paper explores housing options for young people experiencing homelessness.
A movement to end homelessness is underway in our nation. Nearly 300 communities have adopted concrete plans to end homelessness, utilizing focused, outcome-driven strategies. As a result, leading communities have substantially reduced the number of people who are homeless. However, almost 3.5 million Americans will still experience homelessness this year and the recession could put many more low income families and individuals at risk. Federal investments in proven interventions should be taken to scale to ensure those who are most at risk do not become homeless, and that we address the housing and service needs of those who are or who become homeless.
Testimony of Michael Kelly: February 23, 2009
Congress should pass Section Eight Voucher Reform legislation to increase the number of vouchers available to prevent and end homelessness by streamlining the program and making it more effective and efficient.
Communities have significantly increased their ability to confront homelessness using efficient, solution-focused interventions. This is a set of issues focused on preventing and ending homelessness on which the Alliance, along with our national, state, and local partners, urge Congress to act in 2009.
HUD’s McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants fund thousands of homeless assistance programs in nearly every community. Congress should include $2.2 billion for the program and continue the rapid re-housing for families program in the FY 2010 Appropriations Bill.
The Alliance has created this guide to help communities prepare a HPRP plan to submit to HUD. This guide can be used by public agencies responsible for submitting the plan, as well as the public and private partners who will be involved in developing the plan. The Guide was prepared before HUD issued its guidelines for the HPRP.
Although HPRP provides a tremendous opportunity to prevent or end homelessness, there are not enough resources to adequately serve everybody who is homeless or at risk. This one-pager provides an overview of the Alliance’s principles for achieving the maximum benefit from these funds.
Christian Community Health Center (CCHC) is based in Chicago and provides permanent supportive housing for families and individuals. CCHC started as a Community Health Center in 1991 and has expanded to include housing placement and support services. CCHC is able to maintain housing for 100 percent of clients 6 months after housing placement.
March 2, 2009
February 25, 2009
The economic recovery act also included funding for several other programs that aid homeless individuals and families. This fact sheet provides a brief overview of some of these programs. It also highlights resources that provide more information on each program.
February 24, 2009
Press Release | Feb. 23, 2009
February 17, 2009
This document contains the legislative text from HR 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, relating to the creation of a homelessness prevention fund. The economic recovery bill included $1.5 billion for this fund.
February 13, 2009
February 12, 2009
Press Release | Feb. 11, 2009
February 10, 2009.
This document provides a brief overview of the HPRP funding, how communities should begin preparing for it, and what opportunities it presents.
Both the House and Senate economic recovery bills include $1.5 billion for one-time grants to state and local government, to prevent people from becoming homeless or quickly rehouse those who become homeless. The funding, combined with know-how that has improved dramatically over the past ten years, will give communities a fighting chance to avoid the kind of massive increases in homelessness that took place during the recession of the early 1980s.
February 3, 2009
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
January 28, 2009
January 27, 2009
January 21, 2009
In June 2004, the Charles and Helen Schwab Foundation launched the Shifting Gears Initiative: Fast Track to Housing for Bay Area Families. The grants supported a shift away from “managing” homelessness toward programs and strategies aimed at ending homelessness. As a result, providers increasingly based their service delivery on rapid re-housing principles, families had shorter stays in shelter, and many families avoided entering the homeless service system altogether.
January 16, 2009
Representative Gwen Moore (D-WI) began circulating a Congressional sign-on letter to teh House Appropriations Committee. The letter calls on Congress to include in final economic recovery legislation: $2 billion in the Emergency Shelter Grant (ESG) Program for preventing and ending homelessness, $10 billion for the National Housing Trust Fund, and $3.6 billion for 400,000 Section 8 vouchers.
Recessions mean more homelessness. Increasing numbers of unemployed people are unable to afford rent, and charities and local governments are unable to keep up. Based on estimates of the depth likely to be reached by the current recession, 1.5 million additional Americans are likely to experience homelessness over the next two years, over and above the number who usually become homeless. However, the worst increases in homelessness can be prevented by providing emergency assistance to help stabilize or rehouse people experiencing a housing crisis.
January 13, 2009
Press Release | Jan. 13, 2009
Created in conjuction with Homelessness Counts: Changes in Homelessness from 2005 to 2007, this interactive map provides homeless counts and other demographic data for all 50 states for the years 2005 and 2007.
In 2007, the National Alliance to End Homelessness released Homelessness Counts, establishing a 2005 baseline for measuring progress in the fight to end homelessness. This report is a follow up to that report. Here, we analyze the changes from 2005 to 2007, looking more closely at changes at the state level and among subpopulations.Joint Letter to President-Elect Obama
Obama Administration Homeless Youth Letter
Please use this form if you would like to contribute to the National Alliance to End Homelessness Annual Awards Ceremony.
The expansion of rapid re-housing and permanent supportive housing models for families experiencing homelessness has prompted communities to explore how to use their transitional housing resources. This has resulted in narrower targeting of transitional housing programs and, in some cases, shifting missions. Speakers for this audio conference included Kay Moshier McDivitt, Community Homeless Advisor for Lancaster County, PA, and Sharon McDonald, Senior Policy Analyst at the National Alliance to End Homelessness.
This presentation, made my Kay Moshier McDivitt, examines the use of transitional housing as a whole, and more specifically within Lancaster County, PA.
January 6, 2009
December 16, 2008
On December 16, the Alliance sent a letter to President-elect Obama urging him to adopt specific goals for ending homelessness. In January, the new Administration and Congress will take office, providing advocates with a great opportunity to help shape a national agenda that prioritizes ending homelessness.
On January 13th, the Homelessness Research Institute of the National Alliance to End Homelessness will release its second Homelessness Counts report. We are pleased to be working with our state and local partners to strengthen media efforts.
Ask your Senators and Representatives to invest in programs that prevent and end homelessness in the economic recovery package. Call or email the staff who work on housing issues or copy the staff on a letter and fax it to your Members of Congress’ office. Personalize the following talking points to make your case.
Many homeless youth do not receive the consistent developmental support from their families, leaving youth housing programs to assume the role of guardian and life skills coach for homeless youth. This audio conference call focused on the age-appropriate service delivery component of youth housing models. Speakers discussed the strengths and challenges presented by scattered-site and single-site housing models; the case management services necessary to ensure a successful transition from youth housing programs to independent housing; and how a variety of housing models can support homeless youth through services that address their entire well-being.
This document is the supplemental material for "Youth Hosing: It's More than Bricks and Mortar."
December 9, 2008
This report highlights the incidence of homelessness among LGBTQ youth and the vulnerability of LGBTQ youth to becoming homeless. As compared to their heterosexual peers, LGBTQ youth face a greater risk of exploitation. This brief explores pathways into homelessness for LGBTQ youth and ways to end homelessness for this group. It also includes a chart on the systems components for addressing homelessness among all youth, including LGBTQ youth.
Congressional letter of support for SAMHSA funding
SAMHSA letter of support for the SOAR initiative.
December 2, 2008
Novemeber 25, 2008
November 18, 2008
This document is a review of research focused on unaccompanied homeless youth.
This edition of the Leadership to End Homelessness Audio Conference Series focused on using the Continuum of Care process to help end homelessness.
November 12, 2008
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has recently launched the "America's Heroes at Work" initiative. This one-pager explains the initiative and provides an overview of resources that can be found on the initiative's website.
On Veterans' Day 2008, Nan Roman rang the closing bell of the NASDAQ Stock Exchange in New York City. The ceremony was broadcast live in Times Square on the jumbotron screen. This video shows a recording of the ceremony, as seen from Times square.
This document, provided by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, provides information about key provisions in the Section 8 Voucher Reform Act.
November 4, 2008
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
October 28, 2008
HUD is providing $3.9 billion to communities that have been hit hard by the foreclosure crisis through the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP). This fact sheet explores how communities can use this opportunity to create permanent housing and permanent supportive housing for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
This document includes a discussion addressing: point-in-time count methods, challenges, and best practices; an outline of South Carolina’s approach; a sampling/extrapolation strategy from Georgia; and a tool to help communities choose the best approach based on local considerations.
This brief report provides an update to the Alliance's report, Vital Mission: Ending Homelessness among Veterans. This update utilizes data collected during 2007 about homelessness among veterans.
This April 2007 document describes the Alliance’s priorities for reauthorizing SAMHSA. The Alliance supports creating a system of care for homeless individuals, families, and youth, as well as authorizing S. 593, the Services to End Long-Term Homelessness Act (SELHA).
This one-pager describes how the funding for homeless services is distributed across various federal agencies.
This handout describes The Homelessness Budget, an index that combines the funding levels of eleven major federal programs dedicated to homelessness. It provides a quick look at the Federal commitment to homelessness and how it is changing. It also includes a broader indicator of federal housing spending and need.
Click here to access resources on Section 8 programs, including information on how to answer difficult questions about Section 8 from the media and Congressional staff. Also available is an overview of Section 8.
This section provides resources on the HOPWA program, as well as additional resources relating to homelessness and HIV/AIDS.
This document provides an overview of the "Strengthening At Risk and Homeless Young Mothers and Children" initiative. This initiative is sponsored by the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, in partnership with the National Center on Family Homelessness, the National Alliance to End Homelessness, and the Child Welfare League of America. The project is aimed at improving the housing, health, and development of homeless and at-risk young mothers and children.
This technical assistance session focused on strategies that programs have developed to cultivate landlords to provide housing to families experiencing homelessness.
This brief discusses the Family Unification Program (FUP) and its impact on homeless families with children. Specifically, it focuses on the intersection between homelessness and child welfare as it relates to FUP and the ways in which FUP can help promote successful partnerships to help families and youth.
This audio conference addressed these particular NIMBY issues, with a special focus on the right messaging and communication strategy.
Hundreds of communities have committed to ending homelessness by dramatically transforming their homeless assistance systems. This document provides a summary of strategies and subpopulations included in those plans.
North Carolina Housing Coalition
Amethyst, Inc., in Columbus, Ohio, is a substance use treatment program that seeks to create a safe, supportive, nurturing, and woman-centered environment that encourages trust, bonding, and connection.
This audio conference offered practical strategies for conducting homelessness counts in rural areas and lessons learned from both local and national perspectives.
This document outlines what will be discussed on the Rural Counts audio conference held on September 17, 2008 at 3 pm ET.
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
This audio conference reviewed changes regarding the new FUP vouchers and will feature a program that has used FUP vouchers in the past. This call also explored the latest housing resource available for families and youth involved with the foster care system.
Press Release | August 28, 2008
This document was prepared by the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC). It summarizes changes to the Low Income Housing Tax Credit that were included in the recently enacted Housing and Economic Recovery Act. The changes make it much easier to use the tax credit to develop permanent supportive housing.
This document contains the text of the Capital Magnet Fund section of the recently enacted Housing and Economic Recovery Act. The Fund provides resources for Community Development Financial Institutions and nonprofit housing developers for housing and economic development.
This document contains the text of the National Housing Trust Fund section of the recently enacted Housing and Economic Recovery Act. The Trust Fund provides resources that will primarily develop rental housing affordable to extremely low income households.
This update describes three major parts of the Housing Bill recently passed by Congress and signed by the President.
Press Release | July 25, 2008
Press Release | April 17, 2008
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
Vote for Home, a voter education coalition in Philadelphia including Project HOME, received media coverage on their activities in 2004.
The Sentencing Project has information on the status of felon and ex-felon disenfranchisement laws in your state.
A voting rights fact sheet published by the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty.
Published by the Alliance for Justice, this checklist provides information on the nonpartisan voter education activities in which 501(c)(3) non profit organizations can be engaged.
A list of resources to help you get involved in nonpartisan electoral activities.
August 5, 2008
Between 2006 and 2008 homelessness in Norfolk, VA decreased by 25 percent, from 665 to 502. Additionally, chronic homelessness decreased by almost 40 percent, from 126 to 78, in the same time period. Norfolk’s count of unsheltered homeless people revealed a significant decrease from 196 in 2006 to only 61 in 2008, representing a 69 percent decline.
In its Third Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR), the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that last year the country has experienced about an 11 percent decrease in homelessness, including a 30 percent drop in chronic homelessness since 2005.
Who is the most vulnerable to illness, mortality, and continued homelessness? Many communities are taking steps to identify people who experience chronic homelessness. Some are going further, developing tools to prioritize homeless people who are most at risk. Workshop speakers described a new Vulnerability Index for assessiong who is most at-risk of mortality and other tools to identify vulnerability and help target permanent supportive housing.
A Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) is a powerful tool for program administrators. HMIS can help you evaluate and understand the effectiveness of your program, ultimately leading to improved service delivery. Workshop speakers described how to use HMIS to answer important questions about the characteristics of homeless people, patterns of homelessness, and ways to allocate resources more effectively within a community.
The movement to end chronic homelessness using permanent supportive housing has required many homeless assistance providers to also become property managers. This workshop covered the basics of sound property management for permanent supportive housing. Workshop speakers discussed how to overcome some of the biggest challenges, such as screening tenants for supportive housing, addressing disruptive behaviors, effectively coordinating with supportive services staff, and preventing evictions.
National Alliance to End Homelessness President Nan Roman's keynote address from the National Conference on Ending Homelessness 2008 on July 28, 2008.
Matching families and individuals with interventions that meet their needs and represent the most efficient use of scarce resources is challenging many communities. This interactive workshop included speakers with program and system level expertise in targeting and designing interventions. The workshop explored the data needed to improve targeting and the assessment tools and strategies communities are currently using to maximize their resources to end homelessness.
July 22, 2008
July 15, 2008
The Manager’s Amendment is a compromise.
On this call, Dr. Jill Levenson, a national expert on residence restrictions and professor at Lynn University discussed the impact of these laws and what they mean for homelessness and public safety.
The Impact of Residence Restrictions for Sex Offenders
The Impact of Residence Restrictions for Sex Offenders
July 8, 2008
Communities will be invited to compete for funds to provide short-term rental assistance, housing placement and short-term rental assistance as part of the Continuum of Care application process. This brief provides currently available details on how the funds will be awarded and how they can be used.
A Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness in Saginaw County
Misson Possible: Oakland County's Community Plan to End Homelessness
Building A Bridge to the Future: Savannah's Ten-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness
The Plan to End Homelessness
A Home for Everyone: A 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness in the City of Manchester
Plan to End Chronic Homelessness
The Strategic Framework for Ending Chronic Homelessness in Murfreesboro
The Journey Home: Baltimore City's 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness
At Home in Lincoln County: A Ten-Year Housing Plan for Lincoln County With a Special Focus on Chronic Homelessness
Middlesex County Ten Yar Plan to End Homelessness
A Comprehensive 10-Year Plan to End Long-Term Homelessness in the Bismarck-Mandan Area
The Greater Windham Region Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness
Building Hope Together: New Britain's Work Plan to End Homelessness
Partnering to End Chronic Homelessness in Guilford County, High Point, and Greensboro
Welcome Home: A Bold Proposal to End Homelessness
Within Our Reach: A Community Partnership to Prevent and End Homelessness
Ten Year Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness in the Richmond Region
Ending Homelessness in Jacksonville: A Blueprint for the Future
The Street is No Place to Live: Ten Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness and Reduce HOmelessness in the Cape Fear Region
A Plan to End Homelessness in Lapeer COunty
Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness
10-Year Strategy to End Homelessness
10-Year Homeless Housing Plan
Kentucky's Ten-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness
Ten-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness in Macomb County
10-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness: KEYS for Housing the Homeless
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
June 24, 2008
June 17, 2008
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
June 10, 2008
A Congressional Delegation Reception is a reception for the Members of Congress who represent your State. Many have found it successful to organize a reception in conjunction with the Annual Conference of the National Alliance to End Homelessness. This toolkit provides concrete steps for organizing a Reception for your Congressional Delegation.
June 3, 2008
May 28, 2008
Kentucky's Ten-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness
County of Riverside 10-Year Strategy to End Homelessness
10-Year Homeless Housing Plan
May 20, 2008
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
May 13, 2008
This audio conference highlighted strategies to prevent evictions from public housing.
April 29, 2008
Written Testimony to the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Concerning Programs in the United States Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education by the National Alliance to End Homelessness. April 28, 2008.
April 22, 2008
April 15, 2008
Materials for "HIV/AIDS Housing Strategies," an installment of the Leadership to End Homelessness Audio Conference Series.
This audio conference presented highlights from the National AIDS Housing Coalition (NAHC) HIV/AIDS Research Summit and discussed the opportunities for increasing access to housing for people living with HIV/AIDS.
Press Release | April 9, 2008
April 8, 2008
SAMHSA homeless programs award grants across the U.S. to improve the treatment of mental health and substance use disorders for those experiencing homelessness. These grants go to community-based public and private nonprofit organizations that provide substance abuse services and mental health treatment for homeless individuals.
Streets to Homes is a Housing First program in Toronto that targets unsheltered homeless people and provides them with government subsidized permanent housing with follow-up supports. To date, approximately 1,500 people have moved directly from living on the street into permanent housing units, and 87 percent have remained housed.
A letter urging the Transportation and HUD Appropriations Subcommittee to help prevent and reduce homelessness by funding the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants program at $2 billion in FY 2009.
A copy of a letter urging the Transportation and HUD Appropriations Subcommittee to help prevent and reduce homelessness by funding the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants program at $2 billion in FY 2009.
This report provides an extensive discussion of the RHISCO Project, the issue of rural homelessness, and the nature of the participating counties, and also highlights the cross cutting findings, promising practices, and challenges and opportunities that emerged from the RHISCO Project. This report is a useful tool for all rural communities looking to develop ten year plans to end homelessness and working to advance better approaches to address the issue.
April 1, 2008
Written testimony to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Concerning Programs in the United States Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education. March 31, 2008
Advocates are urged to ask their Senators to co-sponsor the National Affordable Housing Trust Fund Act of 2007, S. 2523, and the Section Eight Voucher Reform Act of 2008 (SEVRA), S. 2684, recently introduced in the U.S. Senate. This link provides advocacy-related tools and information on both bills.

Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
March 25, 2008
March 18, 2008
Housing subsidies are a key ingredient in ending family homelessness. Unfortunately, federal subsidies are scarce and difficult to obtain. Programs are responding by developing their own subsidy programs, including short-term, shallow, and declining subsidies. This audio conference will feature Beth Stokes, executive director of Hamilton Family Services. She will discuss First Avenues: Housing Solutions for Families, a shallow subsidy program in San Francisco, CA.
March 11, 2008
The Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH) program allocates funds by formula to states to serve homeless people with serious mental illness. Eligible services include outreach, screening and diagnosis, habilitation and rehabilitation, community mental health services, substance abuse treatment, case management, residential supervision, and housing.
Make ending homelessness a priority in Congress by calling on your Senators and Representatives to support an increase in funding for services in homeless programs administered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
This document provides information which was presented on a national call, Services in Supportive Housing: Efforts to Garner New Federal Resources on February 12. The focus of the discussion was on the status of, and efforts to increase, federal resources for supportive services.
This letter urges Chairman Olver and Ranking Member Knollenberg of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Subcommittee to provide $2.0 billion for Homeless Assistance Grants in the FY 2009 Transportation-HUD Appropriations Act.
This case study describes organizational changes at HELP USA, one of the largest shelter and transitional housing providers in New York City.
March 4, 2008
February 26, 2008
February 20, 2008 - Letter inviting other senators to co-sponsor the Section 8 Voucher Reform Act of 2008 (SEVRA).
A tribute to Governor Jennifer M. Granholm for the statwide effort Michigan made to create ten year plans to end homelessness.
February 19, 2008
RHISCO County partners used this worksheet to guide their planning process. This tool would be useful for any community looking to create a ten year plan to end homelessness.
This document provides recommendations for how to create a ten year plan to end homelessness and identifies different communities that have successfully incorporated particular elements of a ten year plan.
This extensive document outlines the major regional themes of the RHISCO Project – emergency prevention, systems prevention, outreach, shorten homelessness, rapid re-housing, services, permanent housing, income, and implementing the plan – and identifies particular strategies that relate to each theme. It then assesses the extent to which each County’s plan includes those strategies.
This document outlines the various options for administering a homeless survey.
This document highlights the different funding opportunities – including from foundations, corporations, and the federal government – that were available to the RHISCO Counties and to other rural communities working to end homelessness.
This document provides a survey of the seventeen different counties participating in the RHISCO Project. It also provides a summary of the Project.
This document is a summary of a stakeholder survey, which was emailed at the beginning of the RHISCO Project to approximately 150 community stakeholders of the seventeen participating counties. The survey was designed to capture the residents’ opinions of homelessness in their region.
This document served as a template as RHISCO Counties created their ten year plans to end homelessness. Other communities can look to this document for suggestions on creating their own local ten year plans.
Rapidly re-housing homeless families is critical to ending homelessness. In communities where there is a lack of affordable housing and no infrastructure to triage and assess housing needs, rapid re-housing is challenging. Is rapid re-housing in rural areas possible? Hear from one service provider about how to create a rapid re-housing program in a rural community, why it’s important to engage partners, and where to find affordable housing resources.
February 12, 2008
States and localities have been successful at developing, modifying, and implementing policies that assist families experiencing homelessness. This has resulted in improved programs and more resources for affordable housing and homeless assistance programs, including state and local trust funds and new homelessness prevention resources. Workshop speakers discussed successful advocacy strategies for improving state and local policy and how to replicate them in your community.
Homelessness prevention is a challenging but potentially powerful tool for ending homelessness. Those interested or involved in planning, designing, or advocating for prevention strategies or resources will be interested in this discussion of the merits of different new approaches to targeting prevention. Instead of highlighting specific models, workshop speakers addressed questions on how much assistance should be provided, when, and to whom.
Survivors of domestic violence face unique challenges that require unique solutions. These presentations from a conference workshop focused on increasing family safety and financial and housing security while helping families cope with and overcome the effects of trauma and violence.
What does your organization do well? What could it improve? Program measurement is an important element in moving programs forward. Understanding what is effective helps program managers monitor their programs, deliver services, and secure funding. Topics included program and system-wide performance measures.
A healthy home environment and comprehensive early education are critical components of a child’s success later in life. Homeless children are at high risk for disruptions in development and education. Workshop speakers focused on strategies to link children with school (preschool through elementary school) and appropriate interventions that promote healthy physical and mental development. This workshop addressed the importance of engaging parents in meeting the child’s developmental needs both directly and through advocacy on the child’s behalf.
Mental illness and trauma are familiar issues for homeless service providers. Workshop speakers discussed basic elements of common mental disabilities and what you as a service provider need to know to identify these issues and serve families effectively. In addition, speakers in this workshop addressed how to assist the children of parents living with mental illness.
Rural communities face a unique set of challenges and opportunities in responding to the problem of family homelessness. Workshop speakers examined how rural communities can use their existing service systems to respond to family homelessness. Workshop speakers discussed promising models and effective strategies.
Families who experience homelessness are often eligible for important sources of public financial and social supports ranging from TANF cash assistance to Head Start services for children. Unfortunately, many families do not utilize these services and programs. This workshop examined how homeless programs can improve families’ access to critical supports by building relationships with the key public systems that serve low income families and children.
Families need a steady source of income in order to maintain or re-access housing. Increasing employment skills and opportunities also helps families achieve greater stability and family well-being. This workshop focused on employment promotion strategies and explored lessons culled from research on promoting employment among welfare recipients.
For families with significant barriers to maintaining housing, permanent supportive housing is an effective solution. This workshop offered examples of effective permanent supportive housing strategies. Workshop speakers provided examples of how permanent supportive housing is targeted to families with the greatest barriers to maintaining housing and how these efforts fit into their communities' overall homelessness strategies.
Assessment tools that can accurately identify the service and housing supports required to help families quickly escape homelessness are in great demand. This interactive discussion explored the limitations and potential of assessment tools to target the appropriate housing and service packages to families. The Arizona Self-Sufficiency Scale was examined and its appropriate use and potential explored.
Homeless families with children suffer from high rates of mental and physical health problems, including HIV/AIDS, which are often exacerbated by living on the streets and in shelters. In addition, there are serious health disparities that also play a role in the health of homeless families. This workshop highlighted recent research in health disparities, best practices in public health, and what they mean for families experiencing homelessness.
Experts in responding to high-need homeless families report that it is the families’ relationship with their caseworker that promotes stability and improved outcomes. This workshop examined the service strategies that benefit high-need families and how organizations can support and retain the frontline workers who offer a stable relationship and consistency in the lives of vulnerable families.
This workshop provided an overview of the promising strategies that communities are using to end family homelessness. This introductory workshop covered Housing First approaches, explored how communities are targeting prevention resources, and recommended when to use more intensive service models such as transitional housing and permanent supportive housing.
Many communities have developed plans to end homelessness but full implementation requires the infusion of new resources and broad commitment, from political leaders to nonprofit providers, to reshape the response to family homelessness. This workshop, designed for public sector officials and other community leaders, examined strategies to transform the service system from a shelter-based approach to a focus on permanent housing. Speakers explored funding mechanisms, such as performance based contracting, as well as strategies that can be used when community leaders have no financial resources to facilitate service shifts.
This workshop examined promising emergency assistance strategies to prevent family homelessness as well as approaches that are responsive to the housing needs of families residing in precarious housing situations. Workshop speakers explored a range of interventions that both help families retain their current housing and re-house families living in doubled up situations or in motels who are at imminent risk of homelessness.
Maintaining shelter capacity to meet the pressing needs of families while embracing and funding new strategies to end homelessness is challenging. This workshop, designed for systems level leaders, examined how communities are balancing existing shelter needs and investments in new permanent housing strategies. Workshop speakers also discussed strategies for targeting more intensive resources to higher need families.
Making decisions about housing and serving clients is often viewed from a lens that is culturally biased. Organizations must continuously promote the skills, practices, and interactions necessary to ensure that social services are delivered in a culturally responsive and competent manner. This workshop addressed cultural competency among your staff and board and how to build it into a program design that will lead to respectful interactions, efficient operations, and improved client outcomes.
Foundations are making investments to reshape the provision of services to families within communities. Examples range from introducing new housing and service models to facilitating the integration of early education activities in homeless programs. In this workshop, speakers provided examples from their own communities and discussed strategies to fully engage foundations (and win support) in the effort to end family homelessness.
Effective public education and communication can help an organization raise visibility within the community, increase funding, and improve awareness and knowledge of the solutions to homelessness. This beginner workshop taught how to effectively engage the print and broadcast media as well as utilize new online tools, like blogs and electronic newsletters, to disseminate a comprehensive, effective message.
Advocacy is the best strategy for convincing Congress to make ending family homelessness a top priority. This beginner to intermediate workshop provided participants with a brief update on current policies targeted to ending family homelessness. Workshop speakers discussed effective advocacy strategies for moving these initiatives forward and encourage participants to share their own advocacy experiences.
Ending homelessness requires new resources including funding to support housing and services. This workshop explored policy strategies that communities have utilized to generate new resources. This workshop also provided an overview of how communities are using state and local resources, such as TANF and HOME funds, to support ending family homelessness and developing partnerships that leverage services for families.
National Alliance to End Homelessness President Nan Roman's keynote address from the National Conference on Ending Family Homelessness 2008 on February 7, 2008.
Partnering with local public housing authorities (PHAs), housing finance agencies, and community development corporations can be a valuable tool for acquiring housing subsidies to serve homeless families. This entry-level workshop, which was intended for homeless service providers and public officials, focused on effective strategies and models for engaging PHAs and other housing agencies.
Adolescence is a stage in human development that includes important physical, psychosocial, and cognitive development. This workshop reviewed youth development concepts for providers who are serving adolescents, pregnant and parenting youth, and young adults. Workshop speakers focused on how to help youth and young parents prepare for a successful transition to adulthood.
This workshop explored the merits and challenges of various substance use treatment models for assisting families struggling with substance use disorders. Workshop speakers from the treatment community focused on how to place clients in a treatment model that will work best for them.
New research examining patterns of family shelter use is raising questions about how communities should allocate homeless assistance resources. This advanced workshop for public and community leaders examined new research on shelter utilization and highlight strategies communities are using to target resources more efficiently and achieve better system-wide outcomes.
With the increasing focus on helping homeless people obtain permanent housing, providers have come up with creative ways to locate affordable housing and entice landlords to become partners. This workshop is for anyone involved in helping homeless families move into private market housing. Workshop speakers described the strategies they use when working with landlords and provide suggestions on how to find affordable housing in your community.
Helping families experiencing homelessness to quickly re-access permanent housing and offering them home-based case management services following a housing placement has contributed to declines in family homelessness. This workshop examined the key elements of rapid re-housing programs, including how they operate, how to fund them, and how to know if they are successful.
This workshop explored involvement of faith-based communities in delivering permanent housing to homeless families. In particular, the workshop highlighted case examples of faith-based organizations that have become housing developers or have assisted communities in converting buildings into affordable housing for homeless families. In addition, workshop speakers highlighted how smaller faith-based organizations can contribute to ending homelessness among families.
February 5, 2008
Annual Federal Budget Briefing held on February 5, 2008.
Annual Federal Budget Briefing held on February 5, 2008.
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
Homelessness in Chicago decreased 12 percent from 6,715 in 2005 to 5,922 in 2007. Learn how they accomplished their success.
Housing vouchers are successful in helping families exit homelessness and can protect poor families from becoming homeless. This paper summarizes those research findings and draws out their implications for housing policymakers.
January 29, 2008
January 22, 2008
January 15, 2008
This document was supplemental material for the "Substance Abuse Treatment Models for Homeless People" audio conference held on January 10, 2008.
This presentation was given during the "Substance Abuse Treatment Models for Homeless People" audio conference on January 10, 2008.
This audio conference call highlighted two substance use treatment programs.
This technical assistance session focused on strategies that have been utilized by local providers and communities to build partnerships with local public housing authorities (PHA’s), state Housing Finance Agencies and Community Development Corporations (CDC’s) that have expanded the housing opportunities for families experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness.
January 8, 2008
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Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
This audio conference featured a review of existing data and demographics on homeless youth and covered reports released earlier this year from the Congressional Research Service, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Government Accountability Office.
This Article examines the nature and extent of housing assistance provided by the United States government to veterans of its military service. It finds that assistance remarkably limited and inconsistent with our nation’s history and rhetoric, providing a sobering corrective for those who wish to believe that public policy in the United States progressively becomes more humane or that national declarations are matched by national performance. The Article also considers the reasons and potential cures for these inadequacies and inconsistencies.
Birmingham's Plan to Prevent and End Chronic Homelessness
Homes Within Reach: Springfield's 10-Year Plan to End Long-Term Homelessness
Endings Have Beginnings: A 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness in Camden County/Camden City
Mahoning County Continuum of Care 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness 2008
This technical assistance session provided an overview of housing subsidies that local providers or communities have developed to help families experiencing homelessness transition back into housing. The session reviewed the sources of funding that communities have used and how support for using funds for housing assistance was built.
Learn how Housing Trust Funds work, what they typically fund, who gets the money, how to tap the Trust Fund in your state, and how to ensure that the Trust Fund targets funds to the lowest income individuals and those that are currently homeless.
Homeless veterans can be found in every state across the country and live in rural, suburban, and urban communities. In 2006, approximately 195,827 veterans were homeless on a given night—an increase of 0.8 percent from 194,254 in 2005. More veterans experience homeless over the course of the year. We estimate that 336,627 were homeless in 2006. This report analyzes data from the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Census Bureau to examine homelessness and severe housing cost burden among veterans.
Homeless veterans can be found in every state across the country and live in rural, suburban, and urban communities. This report analyzes data from the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Census Bureau to examine homelessness and severe housing cost burden among veterans.
Fairfield County Housing Coalition's Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness
Ten Year Plan for Licking County, OH
Kentucky's Ten-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness
The Second Chance Act will help ensure the transition people make from prison or jail to the community is safe and successful.
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
On August 13, 2007, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued new proposed rules to make several definition and rule clarifications to the rehabilitation option that Medicaid agencies use to provide services for people with mental health disorders, physical disabilities, developmental delays, and other disabilities or chronic illnesses. In addition, the rehabilitation option package of services has been used for youth in therapeutic foster care. The National Alliance to End Homelessness has concerns that, if this proposed rule were implemented in its current form, people experiencing homelessness would have less access to health related services.
Testimony of Steve Berg for the U.S. Senate Committee on Aging about Health Issues Affecting Aging Veterans on October 3, 2007.
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
There have been recent proposals to expand the US Department of Housing and Urban Development's definition of homeless to include households that are doubled up for economic reasons. To assess the impact of this proposal, a new data snapshot from the Homelessness Research Institute at the Alliance looks at how many people would be added to the homelessness population if the proposal were adopted. The data snapshot shows that expanding the definition would increase the current homeless population (744,313 on any given night) by 3.8 million. The amount that would have to be appropriated so that the amount of funding per homeless or doubled up person matched the actual amount of funding per homeless person in 2005 is $7.725 billion.
The focus of this audio conference was rehousing strategies for families.
Agenda for Ending Homelessness in Pennsylvania
Blueprint Towards a Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness in Alabama
Bringing Our Community Home: Santa Barbara County-wide 10-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness
10 Year Homeless Housing Plan
Ten Year Homeless Housing Plan
Ten Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness
A Home for Everyone: New Hampshire's Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness
Community Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness in Dane County
The National Affordable Housing Trust Fund Act would establish a dedicated source of revenue to build, rehabilitate and preserve housing for the lowest income households with a goal of creating 1.5 million affordable homes over the next 10 years. The bill passed the House Financial Services Committee on July 31 and Chairman Frank expects that the House of Representatives will vote on the bill in September. Representatives must submit their names to the committee by September 4 to be added to the bill.
House Republicans who voted in support of one or both of the dedicated funding sources for H.R. 2895 (GSE bill, H.R. 1472/FHO bill, H.R. 1852)
Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness
10-Year Plan to Address Homelessness
10-Year Plan to End Homelessness
Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness
A Place to Call Home
Our Plan to End Homelessness, 2007 - 2017
Promoting Stable Homes and Stable Families
A Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness
Ten-year Plan to End Homelessness
Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness
The Athens County Plan to End Homelessness
Ten Year Plan to Eradicate Homelessness
Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness
Homelessness can be particularly hard on children. This workshop will examine service strategies designed to minimize the detrimental effects of homelessness on children and promote child well-being. Strategies to enhance stability and consistency in the lives of children and a program to identify developmental delays in homeless children will be explored. This workshop examined how providers can ensure children are receiving appropriate supportive services through coordination with school liaisons, Head Start programs, and partnerships with other public systems.
Press Release | July. 18, 2007
Take a five minute break from whatever you are doing to hear about emerging issues, new research, and personal stories from experts and leaders in homelessness and housing policy.
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This Research Agenda was developed in order to better inform government agencies, philanthropic organizations, and other funders about research questions that will help move policy and practice forward.
This audio conference featured experts on examining the costs of homelessness.
Reliable data is critical to inform policy and program development and attract the federal and local resources necessary to end homelessness. In sparsely populated geographic areas with fewer homeless specific service providers, however, counting the number of people that are homeless poses significant challenges. This workshop highlighted how some rural communities have overcome the challenges to capturing reliable data and offer guidance to how rural areas can improve their point-in-time counts.
The effects homelessness has on a community can sometimes be quantified with a dollar amount. Cost analysis is a powerful tool for program administrators who make decisions on how to allocate scarce funding for housing and services and for advocates who are seeking to demonstrate a case for ending homelessness. This workshop explored how to perform a cost study with different levels of sophistication from back of the envelope estimates to rigorous research studies.
Fear and prejudice about affordable housing, particularly for people with special needs, can quickly erupt into strong community opposition and lead to major road blocks in developing housing for homeless people. This workshop presented successful programmatic and community-based strategies to overcome NIMBY (Not in My Backyard) and how to turn concerned neighbors into supportive partners.
After a period of declining resources, many Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) have more resources to serve all populations of homeless people, including families, youth, veterans, and people with disabilities. This workshop was intended for homeless assistance providers, who learned not only how to acquire more housing resources for their clients, but also how they as providers can help PHAs be more effective, creating a mutually beneficial partnership.
Having a stable source of income is necessary to secure and maintain housing. The challenges are in connecting people who are able to work with employment or training that will help them to move into careers that sustain them in permanent housing, and connecting those who cannot work with the benefits that will support them. This workshop examined promising strategies for long-term income stability for those who are likely facing multiple obstacles.
Housing Trust Funds exist in all but a few states across the country and can be an important resource for developing affordable housing. Learn how Housing Trust Funds work, what they typically fund, who gets the money, how to tap the Trust Fund in your state, and how to ensure that the Trust Fund targets funds to the lowest income individuals and those that are currently homeless.
As communities are implementing their plans to end homelessness, one of the biggest lessons they are learning is that oversight of plan implementation is critical. Who should be in charge of making sure that strategies are implemented, funding is secured, and outcomes are measured? How many staff does it take? What qualifications should they hold? What authority should they have? Workshop speakers will address these questions and more.
This workshop provided the opportunity to hear about research on homelessness that is paving the way towards policies and programs that are more effective. Workshop participants had the opportunity to interact with the leading researchers in the field and hear from policy experts about implications of research findings.
Consumer choice is often a critical ingredient for success in achieving housing stability and treatment. This workshop was designed for caseworkers and program directors who serve people with mental illness, developmental disabilities, and substance use disorders and who are trying to maximize consumer or tenant participation.
Rural homeless providers know that, with scarce funding for housing and services, they must leverage dollars and become adept collaborators. This session examined how creative local partnerships can help bring needed services and housing dollars to people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness in rural and small town America.
Communities across the country are seeing an increasing number of frail, elderly individuals in their homeless programs. This workshop featured new research on the aging chronic homeless population and highlight housing and service models that can help older people age with dignity, regardless of special medical, mental health, or social needs.
Moving from meeting about ending homelessness to implementing an action plan is always difficult, but communities are overcoming obstacles and finding new ways to solve old problems. This workshop highlighted how Connecticut reshaped complex social systems, such as TANF, health, mental health, and local provider networks, to provide housing and services to clients.
This workshop provided participants with a general overview of how to finance affordable housing. The course covered how to read real estate pro forma and general information regarding different financing sources for affordable housing, including CDBG, HOME funds, grants, low-income housing tax credits, and bond financing. Workshop participants will learn the basics of how to put together financing to house formerly homeless individuals—whether you are developing five units or 105.
The media plays a critical role in promoting your organization as well as its greater advocacy agenda. One well-placed newspaper article or op-ed can give a tremendous boost to your organization’s goals of ending homelessness. Learn how to craft a compelling message, create a news hook, and set the stage for groundbreaking coverage. Workshop speakers presented tips on how to write press releases, op-eds, and letters to the editor.
It is critical that homeless service providers—who must address a wide array of cultural differences—offer culturally competent services which value individual uniqueness and demonstrate the capacity to deliver services in line with the beliefs, values, and practices of those served. In this interactive workshop, participants learned about the importance of cultural competence and acquire the skills necessary to apply that understanding to their work.
Housing is a key ingredient in the effort to end youth homelessness. There are a number of housing and service models that show promise in helping homeless youth attain and maintain stable housing. This interactive workshop explored housing models and supportive services, their design and scope, and funding options.
Put together a few tenant based vouchers, a consumer oriented service team, a Housing First philosophy, and what do you have? A powerful strategy for ending homelessness for people with serious mental illness and substance use disorders. Pioneered by the Pathways to Housing Program in New York, this Housing First strategy has been successfully replicated in dozens of cities. Workshop speakers described some of the challenges they encountered and how they implemented a successful Housing First program targeting chronically homeless individuals.
States and municipalities have been successful in developing innovative ways to create affordable housing and fund local homeless assistance programs. In addition, they have raised homelessness on the local and state agendas. Workshop speakers shared how they implemented local and state strategies for ending homelessness and offer guidance on how to develop relationships with state and local policymakers.
Almost all of the communities showing progress in ending homelessness have initiated some type of rental assistance program that subsidizes housing for people who are homeless. These programs vary in size and scope with some offering one-time cash infusion, some offering ongoing shallow support, and others offering deeper subsidies. This workshop examined key considerations in designing a local housing subsidy program and where to find the funding to make it a reality.
Like other families experiencing homelessness, victims of domestic violence require immediate shelter assistance and linkages to appropriate transitional or permanent housing and support. Within this context, providers must be attentive to safety issues and the effects of recent violence on the lives of women and children. This workshop examined how homeless shelter and Housing First providers are improving their services to families fleeing domestic violence.
Far too many individuals who leave prison become homeless, either immediately after discharge or after intermediate, temporary housing placements. This presentation reviews housing models and services that are effective in preventing homelessness and reducing recidivism among individuals leaving prisons.
One ongoing challenge in the movement to end homelessness is managing the supply of shelters and transitional housing during a shift to a Housing First system. This workshop highlighte how to plan ahead to efficiently increase or decrease the supply of shelter to reflect fluctuating demand, and how to assure that transitional housing is being put to the most effective use.
Some cities are developing centralized intake and service centers for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. Some of these sites provide controversial services and the sheer number of homeless people frequenting these sites can lead to NIMBYism. What are the benefits and risks of developing such facilities, and if a community is going to build a “one stop” center, what elements need to be in place to make it a successful strategy for ending homelessness?


