Response to the Survey From —
El Dorado County CoC
HUD provides two lists of California Continuum of Care (CoC) key contacts: one for Northern California and one for Southern California.
You can find these lists at https://www.hud.gov/states/california/homeless/continuumcare.
- Enter the CoC number for which you are completing the survey.
CA-525 - Enter the CoC name for which you are completing the survey.
El Dorado County CoC
- Enter the organization within the CoC that you represent.
Collaborative Applicant, HMIS lead, CoC Board
- What type of organization do you represent?.
0
We provide CalWORKS HSP for homeless families who are CalWORKS eligible. We also provide CalWORKS Homeless Assistance, which is short term motel vouchers for 16 days annually or one month's rent and deposit if folks were moving into a residence. Other than those two programs, we don't provide any homeless specific programs, though our services are often generally provided to the homeless population.
0
The Center for Violence Free Relationships
(For example, did you increase the number of volunteers, or find additional funding?)
We simply are too far behind, as a system. Our HUD annual renewal amount this year was less than 10k. I imagine that is one of the lowest in the state. As a rural county, there has not been support for the administration of the CoC over the years, therefore we are behind. In terms of our priorities, with limited resources, we can't validate conducting an unsheltered count annually.
If we had funding that would support the annual count, as well as general CoC administration (NOFAs, AHAR, CAPER, System Performance Measures, etc), HMIS administration, Coordinated Entry administration, and the basic essentials to administering a CoC, there would likely be value to conducting an annual count.
Historically, it has been all volunteer driven - we have received no funding to support this.
$0
35
35
Our PIT numbers grew significantly for the reason that we conducted the most thorough, accurate count to date. However, most of all, our number grew due to CA's lack of housing stock. According to Zillow.com, rents went up 88% in El Dorado between 2015 and 2017, and median cost of housing went up 37%. Wage stayed the same during that time, leaving a threshold of earners on the verge of homelessness on a given day. CA currently ranks 49th in the nation in housing units per capita, and between 2000 and 2014 (according to HCD) rents in our state are up 25% while wage for renters is down 6%. For these reasons, homelessness for the majority of PIT counts in CA have gone up.
Never due to our annual renewal amount of approximately 10k only funding our HMIS licenses. We need that grant to continue surviving.
Housing gap analysis—Never
Funding gap analysis—Only related to Preliminary Pro Rata Need assessment, annually
Service gap analysis—Never
Other (please specify)—
Housing gap analysis
NA
Funding gap analysis
NA
Service gap analysis
NA
Other (as you identified in question 27)
NA
Lack of administration, lack of broad support regionally over the years, lack of vision and guidance from anyone with CoC experience. I was hired in February 2018 in EDC and have been leading the CoC ever since. As Solano County's former Homeless Coordinator for 2 years, I have experience with CoC administration and am doing what I can to launch Coordinated Entry by January and integrate as many services as possible within the system. Before I started, there has never been anyone with CoC experience, and the CoC has been driven by a few non-profits who lack the depth to administer a growing system. (to no fault of their own)
Since May 2018, we have developed a strong partnership with the Community Foundation. Since then, we have been actively seeking funds from local hospitals and jurisdictions. We have successfully received approximately $40k, which has been helpful in receiving technical assistance and funding a few agencies to administer Coordinated Entry - however this funding is small and is quickly diminishing.
Having a former homeless coordinator in El Dorado County has strengthened the vision of the CoC, particularly regarding coordination of resources and best practices. That being said, one person cannot lift an entire system, and all regional partners will need to see the vision quickly in order to ensure continued evolution.
Feel free to provide web addresses to any reports or email them as attachments to CoCSurvey@auditor.ca.gov.
www.edokcoc.org
For example, if you would like to share additional information regarding homelessness, services, or funding.
For small counties with little resources, and often a traditional lens which views homelessness as an "urban issue," few systems have been developed. As California is in its worst housing crisis ever, and with homelessness rising 15% across the state over the past 2 years (according to the AHAR), rural counties will continue to see significant rises in visible homelessness for some years to come. We simply don't have the capital to invest in this system, we are ultimately starting it from scratch. It takes time to develop data, to show the need, to express the cost savings, and to grow the support from regional partners when none of this administrative infrastructure has been developed. If rural counties were able to apply for grant funds that would be strictly dedicated to CoC administration (annual requirements of PIT count, HIC Count, NOFAs, AHAR, CAPER, etc), then these systems could continue evolving over time - versus piecing bits and pieces together annually and never having the best data to validate regions financially or programatically supporting these valuable systems.