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Government Funding

City of Santa Rosa Funding for the Homeless

Homeless Encampment Assistance Program (HEAP)
homeless@srcity.org

HEAP, the Homeless Encampment Assistance Program, is staffed by representatives from various departments of the City of Santa Rosa and the Catholic Charities coordinated HOST outreach team. HEAP came together as a response to the inevitable complaints by housed people when a homeless camp begins to grow in their neighborhood. HEAP maintains a list of known camps in the City of Santa Rosa, evaluates them on health hazards, fire danger, and size.

Periodically, HEAP staff chose an encampment, send outreach workers in to offer the residents a bed at the Sam Jones Shelter and then post notices that the camp will be closed. Notices range from 72 hours to three weeks depending on how much public and legal support there is for a particular camp. The City holds a forum where various city officials, staff and a Catholic Charities manager assures the public that each camp resident will be offered shelter and a path to a better life. Then, they send police to threaten everyone with a citation and arrest if they don’t move. Since the fall of 2017, HEAP has destroyed these major encampments: Farmer’s Lane (Homeless Hill), the 5th, 6th and 9th Steets underpasses to Hwy 101, Camp Michela, & Last Chance Camp.

Homeless people suffer great trauma when a camp is dismantled. People scatter to unsafe areas and lose much of their property and support system. Advocates consistently challenge the city and Catholic Charity numbers of those they “help”, saying that the great majority of residents in any camp continue to live on the street after a sweep. Advocates find the name, “Homeless Encampment Assistance Program to be Orwellian as the program acts to harm rather than assist. Read from their webpage.

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Homeless Outreach Services Team (HOST)
(707) 978-8329
HOST@srcharities.org
The Homeless Outreach Services Team (HOST), operated by Catholic Charities and funded by the City, is a street outreach team that actively works in our community to engage unsheltered homeless into services and housing in collaboration with the Police Department’s Downtown Enforcement Team (DET) and other providers such as Social Advocates for Youth. The City Council funded this pilot effort starting in August 2015. [Read more]

Emergency Shelter
Family Support Center is a 138-bed emergency shelter operated by Catholic Charities for families experiencing homelessness. The center provides food, clothing, children’s activities, medical and dental care, and client-focused family action plans and services to overcome homelessness. Samuel L. Jones Hall Homeless Shelter is a City-owned facility which has been operated by Catholic Charities since it opened in 2005. This housing-focused emergency shelter provides 138 year-round beds set aside for individuals with the highest vulnerability in conjunction with the regional Coordinated Entry system, plus up to 75 beds prioritized for the Homeless Encampment Assistance Pilot Program or during emergent situations.

For victims of domestic violence, the City of Santa Rosa provides funding to the YWCA’s Safe House to support intervention, prevention, and treatment services, including counseling, support services, and family advocacy, to create a life free of violence.

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Day Services
Homeless Services Center, operated by Catholic Charities, is a multi-service day center in downtown Santa Rosa for persons experiencing homelessness in Sonoma County. The Center provides showers, laundry, telephone, mail service, referrals and shelter intake, all with the goal of exiting participants out of homelessness and into housing. Homeless Outreach Services Team (HOST) and Coordinated Entry program operations are based at this facility as well.

Community Homeless Assistance Program (CHAP)
Santa Rosa City Council approved the Community Homeless Assistance Program (CHAP) in 2016 to foster community solutions with the goal of reducing the impacts of homelessness on the community and to better serve persons experiencing homelessness. This program allows property owners to use commercial properties or properties/facilities that meet the Zoning Code definition for “Meeting Facility, Public or Private”, for safe parking, safe camping, the placement and maintenance of portable toilets and access to existing bathroom facilities, provision of temporary overnight shelter and storage for personal belongings.
CHAP Guidelines | CHAP Registration Form

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City of Santa Rosa Homeless Services Dashboard
https://srcity.org/3026/Data
The City of Santa Rosa’s Open Data Portal includes a Homeless Services Dashboard tracking the number of people served, sheltered, and/or housed by quarter through the following City-funded programs: Homeless Outreach Services Team (HOST), Samuel L. Jones Hall Homeless Shelter, Family Support Center, and Homeless Services Center.

Year-end Reports of All City-Funded Homeless Services Programs

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Sonoma County Homeless Census and Survey 2019
The 2019 Sonoma County Point in Time Count was a community wide effort conducted on January 25th, 2019. In the weeks following the street count, a survey was administered to 2,951 unsheltered and sheltered individuals experiencing homelessness in order to profile their experience and characteristics.

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County of Sonoma Funding for the Homeless

2020 Notice of Funding Availability from Sonoma County
Published on September 19, 2020.
The County of Sonoma (“County”) established the County Fund for Housing (CFH) in 2003 to provide financial assistance for the development and preservation of affordable housing located in Sonoma County. The purpose of the CFH is to develop, preserve, and accelerate the pace of development of below market-rate housing for low-, very low-, and extremely low-income households. To achieve this purpose, CFH resources shall be used to provide loans and grants to qualified developers, public entities, groups, and individuals to undertake activities which create, maintain, or expand the County’s affordable housing stock.

The Sonoma County Community Development Commission (Commission) requests applications for eligible Affordable Housing projects to receive funding from the County Fund for Housing (CFH) loan program. Applications must be submitted by October 16, 2020. A virtual Technical Assistance training session is scheduled for October 1. [Read]

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HOME Sonoma County
https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/CDC/Homeless-Services/Home-Sonoma-County/

Sonoma County Community Development Commission
Michael Gause, Ending Homelessness Manager – michael.gause@sonoma-county.org
1440 Guerneville Road, Santa Rosa, CA 95403
(707) 565-1977

HOME Sonoma County is Sonoma County’s homeless services system of care. The countywide effort is governed by a nine-member Leadership Council responsible for allocating funds to local homeless services programs. The Council consists of local elected officials and individuals with lived homeless experience and is advised by Task Groups comprising its 25-member Technical Advisory Committee. The Community Development Commission is currently serving as the Lead Agency of Home Sonoma County.

The Goal of HOME Sonoma County is to achieve Functional Zero homelessness in Sonoma County using a Housing First model.

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Boards and Committees Related to HOME Sonoma County

Leadership Council
The HOME Sonoma County Leadership Council is the primary decision-making body for the Sonoma County homeless system of care. The Leadership Council serves as the HUD-mandated Continuum of Care (CoC) governing body for the county.

Technical Advisory Committee
The HOME Sonoma County Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) serves as the advisory body to the HOME Sonoma County Leadership Council. The TAC is made up of 25 members with backgrounds in homeless services, housing development or lived experience of homelessness.

Homeless System of Care
The goal of HOME Sonoma County is to achieve functional zero homelessness in Sonoma County through utilization of a Housing First strategy. Through Sonoma County’s homeless system of care, persons experiencing homelessness will be connected to permanent housing as quickly as possible by strategically targeting Rapid Re-housing and Permanent Supportive Housing as resources. 

The new system of care program is designed to accomplish the following:

  • Promote a community‐wide commitment to the goal of ending homelessness
  • Provide funding for efforts to quickly re‐house individuals and families who are homeless, which minimizes the trauma and dislocation caused by homelessness
  • Promote access to and effective use of mainstream programs
  • Optimize self‐sufficiency among individuals and families experiencing homelessness

In Sonoma County, the primary decision-making group will be called the Sonoma County Homeless System of Care Leadership Council. Focused Task Groups will comprise the members of the Sonoma County Homeless System of Care Technical Advisory Committee (TAC). The Sonoma County Community Development Commission (CDC), the current CoC lead agency, will serve as the interim lead agency until the Leadership Council officially selects an entity to serve as the lead agency.

Sonoma County’s Homeless System of Care will serve as the HUD-mandated Continuum of Care (CoC) program for the county. [Read more]

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Summary of 2019-2020 Funding Requests
Applications Received Total: $32,796,409
Funds Available: $14,245,728
$2.30 in requests for each dollar available. [Read more]
FY 2019-20 Consolidated Notice of Funding Availability

2020 Consolidated Plan and One Year Action Plan Now Available for Public comment
Published by Sonoma County Community Development Commission, May 1, 2020
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), requires jurisdictions receiving federal funds from Community Development Block Grant, HOME Investment Partnerships, and Federal Emergency Solutions Grant programs to develop and submit a Five-Year Consolidated Plan. The plan identifies the needs of lower-income persons in the locality and the proposed actions to be taken to serve those needs. [Read more]

Download Draft 2020 Consolidated Plan and One Year Action Plan (PDF: 2 MB)

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State of California Funding for the Homeless

CalHome Program Notice of Funding Availability
The California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) is pleased to announce the release of the CalHome Program Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for approximately $57 million. Visit CalHome webpage for application materials. Applications are due October 29, 2020. Register to attend the NOFA webinar on Sept 22, 9 am – 12 pm. [Details]

HUD ExchangeHUD Exchange – CPD (Office of Community Planning and Development) Cross-Program Funding Matrix and Dashboard Reports
These reports provide funding information for each city and
state that receives CPD program funds, in a place-based format. The reports detail the size of each grant received over the past several years, as well as the total amount of funds currently available to be spent on affordable housing and community and economic development activities. [Read – set filter to California, Sonoma County, CA]

California Housing and Community DevelopmentState of California Project Roomkey
Published by California Department of Housing and Community Development, June 2020

Building on the success of Project Roomkey, Homekey is the next phase in the state’s response to protecting Californians experiencing homelessness who are at high risk for serious illness and are impacted by COVID-19.

Administered by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), $600 million in grant funding will be made available to local public entities, including cities, counties, or other local public entities, including housing authorities or federally recognized tribal governments within California to purchase and rehabilitate housing, including hotels, motels, vacant apartment buildings, and other buildings and convert them into interim or permanent, long-term housing. [Read]

Governor Newsom Visits Project Roomkey Site in Bay Area to Announce “Homekey,” the Next Phase in State’s COVID-19 Response to Protect Homeless Californians
Press release from Governor Newsom’s office, June 30, 2020

Governor announces Homekey, the next phase of COVID-19 response to protect homeless Californians. State and counties will spend upwards of $1 billion to purchase hotels, motels, vacant apartment buildings and tiny homes and provide services to the homeless. [Read]

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California Governor Newsom’s Emergency Action and Funding to Protect Homeless Californians from COVID-19
From the Office of Governor Gavin Newsom, Published on March 18, 2020

California is working across government to get homeless Californians – among the most vulnerable to spread of COVID-19 – safely into shelter & housing. Governor signed executive order granting local flexibility on spending and building shelters. State purchased 1,309 trailers and leased first two hotels to provide emergency isolation units for homeless individuals.

Measures include:

  • Emergency Funding
  • Executive Order for Local Flexibility
  • Public Health Guidance for homeless Shelters
  • Purchasing Trailers
  • Leasing Hotels & Motels, in Partnership with Counties
  • First Hotel Leases

[Read more]

Ongoing State of California Funding for the Homeless and Low-Income Families
California Department of Housing and Community Development

The following programs either have funding currently available for application or will be announcing a notice of funding availability (NOFA) in the next 12 months. [Read more]

How to Get Funding from State of California
California Department of Housing and Community Development

The Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) makes loans or grants available through more than 20 programs. [Read more]

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Federal Grants to Fund Homelessness Programs

COVID-19: Federal Resource Guideline Series
Published by the National Alliance to End Homelessness

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges to homelessness systems, and with that, expanded several avenues of federal funding available for community response.

The following resources are designed to help communities understand the various resources available to them, what activities and services they can fund, and how eligible parties can begin to apply for them. [Read]

Federal Funding for the Homeless in Response to COVID-19 Pandemic
By the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, April 3, 2020

Federal agencies are working to provide resources and flexibility to communities in support of efforts to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic among people at risk of and experiencing homelessness.

Many of those resources come through provisions of the CARES Act, which was signed into law on March 27, 2020. Agencies are also providing guidance on flexibilities within existing funding that can be used in response to COVID-19. As resources are released, we’ll add them here. [Read more]

Agencies involved:

  • Federal Emergency Management Agency
  • Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
  • Small Business Administration (SBC)
  • US Department of Agriculture (USDA)
  • US Department of Education (ED)
  • US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
  • US Department of Justice (DOJ)
  • US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

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Ongoing Federal Funding for the Homeless and Low-Income Families

  • Housing Choice Voucher Program (Section 8)
    The housing choice voucher program provides assistance to very low-income families to afford decent, safe, and sanitary housing. Housing can include single-family homes, townhouses and apartments and is not limited to units located in subsidized housing projects. 
    https://www.benefits.gov/benefit/710
  • Equal Opportunity in Housing
    The objective of this program is to support fair housing throughout the United States and provide an administrative enforcement system that is subject to judicial review.
    https://www.benefits.gov/benefit/737
  • Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
    The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program provides grant funds to states and territories to provide families with financial assistance and related support services. State-administered programs may include childcare assistance, job preparation, and work assistance.
    https://www.benefits.gov/benefit/613
  • Support Services for Runaway and Homeless Youth-Basic Centers
    Basic Center programs provide emergency shelter services to runaway and homeless youth. These programs seek to reunite young people with their families, whenever possible, or to locate appropriate alternative placements. Basic Center programs are located throughout the country. Services include access to emergency shelters, food, clothing, counseling, and referrals for health care
    https://www.benefits.gov/benefit/625
  • Transitional Living Program for Homeless Youth
    The Transitional Living Program (TLP) provides homeless youth with stable, safe living accommodations for up to 21 months. The TLP provides services to help young people develop skills necessary to move to independence and life as healthy, productive adults.
    https://www.benefits.gov/benefit/619
  • Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH)
    The Federal grant program Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH) provides assistance to individuals who are homeless or at risk of homelessness and have serious mental illnesses. PATH funds are distributed to States/Territories that, in turn, contract with local public or non-profit organizations to fund a variety of services to homeless individuals. 
    https://www.benefits.gov/benefit/728?#
  • Continuum of Care (CoC) Homeless Assistance Program
    The Continuum of Care (CoC) Homeless Assistance Program assists individuals and families experiencing homelessness by helping homeless individuals and families move into transitional and permanent housing.
    https://www.benefits.gov/benefit/5889
  • Emergency Solution Grants (ESG)
    The purpose of the Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) program is to assist individuals and families quickly regain stability in permanent housing after experiencing a housing crisis or homelessness. ESG provides grants by formula to states, metropolitan cities, urban counties and U.S. territories to support homelessness prevention, emergency shelter and related services.
    https://www.benefits.gov/benefit/5890

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