Maricopa Regional Continuum of Care: May Newsletter

Maricopa Association of Governments sent this bulletin at 05/02/2022 02:58 PM MST

Maricopa Regional Continuum of Care May 2022 Newsletter

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS 

 

IRS Free File Program 

Individuals who didn’t earn enough money to require filing a tax return may still be eligible for a refund through the IRS Free File program. Even if no income tax is owed, the Earned Income Tax Credit, the Child Tax Credit, the Child & Dependent Care Credit, the Premium Tax Credit, or the 2021 Recovery Rebate Credit may apply. More information on these credits can be found on FS-2022-10, and the IRS Free File program remains available through October 17 on irs.gov.  

 

East Valley Senior Home Sharing Program – Request for Quotes 

The East Valley Senior Home Sharing Program is a program for connecting pairs of older adults in order to prevent homelessness, maintain independence, and enhance quality of life. They are currently seeking an experienced consultant to provide support with logo and web design, marketing, and communications. To be considered for the contract, please email a PDF of a project proposal to Ash Uss at ashu@fgu-az.org with consultant information, the project approach, a list of qualifications, the estimated cost, and references. Submissions must be received by 3pm on May 4th.  

 

Request for Proposals 

MAG has relaunched our website including a list of procurement opportunities currently available. Current opportunities include a solicitation from Maricopa County, Arizona Department of Housing, and the Department of Veteran Affairs. Check out the proposals here. If you have a proposal that you want listed, reach out to us at hsinfo@azmag.gov.  

 

PAST MEETINGS 

 

The Continuum of Care Board continues to complete Strategic Planning sessions and is receiving feedback from the other Committees and Subcommittees. The Board heard an update on the Heat Relief Network, reviewed the System Flow Dashboard, and received an update on Pathways Home. The Board approved the changes to the Notice of Funding Opportunity scorecard and is developing a workgroup to give guidance for the 2022 Notice of Funding Opportunity.  

 

The Continuum of Care Committee continues to have in depth conversations about the System Flow Dashboard and System Performance Measures. The Committee reviewed the 2021 System Performance Measures and will be completing a deep dive into the System Performance Measures by program type. The Committee will be reviewing the change to the Coordinated Entry Pandemic Prioritization as well as form a workgroup to begin reviewing the Community Adopted Best Practices.  

 

The Coordinated Entry Subcommittee welcomed Homebase Consulting who went over the Coordinated Entry (CE) evaluation project that is being conducted for the Maricopa County CoC. The purpose of the project is to evaluate how the current CE system is functioning, this includes what the current landscape is in Maricopa County, look at national best practices and assess fidelity of the VI-SPDAT tool and implement evaluation findings.  

 

The Data Subcommittee (DSC) welcomed 5 new members to the Subcommittee. DSC continues to review and discuss the System Flow Dashboard. In addition, DSC heard a presentation on Threshold and the work that HOM, Inc. is doing to engage landlords. The DSC had a discussion about next steps and how to continue to combat the challenging housing market. DSC will be diving deeper into their Roles & Responsibilities as well as the potential to share data relating to heat this summer.  

 

The ESG Subcommittee is currently working to align scopes of work for multiple interventions. The first were for Rapid Rehousing and Emergency Shelter, there was agreement on language and a consensus with the group to move forward with alignment of contracts with providers. The next area to review will be Homeless Prevention and Street Outreach.  

 

The Lived Experience Subcommittee (LESC) welcomed 3 new members to the sub-committee. LESC is currently discussing SB1581 and its impacts on unhoused populations. LESC wants to ensure the voices of people with lived experience are at the table on discussions around our homeless response system.  The Lived Experience Sub-committee is holding a networking event on May 6 at RI International. Please contact Nicky Stevens for more information nstevens@azmag.gov. 

 

The Race Equity Leadership Group has discussed the VI-SPDAT tool and the inequities that currently exist with its usage in our coordinated entry system. There is a request to look at national best practice models on the VI-SPDAT and how other communities have augmented the tool or created another tool that created more equitable outcomes. Homebase Consulting will be attending a meeting in the future to discuss equity concerns with Coordinated Entry and the currently system.  

 

The Veteran Workgroup reviewed data from both HMIS and the VA’s HOMES databases and proposed the creation of a Veteran Data Workgroup to investigate the discovered discrepancies between databases. The Inflow Workgroup continues to focus on Veterans who do not qualify for VA healthcare and who could benefit from AHCCCS. Additional public education is needed to understand what services are available. They are also developing resource materials that can be continually updated to reflect all services available to this community. The Arizona Department of Veterans’ Services, Be Connected, and the Arizona Housing Coalition are finalizing the details for a pilot project that would allow higher levels of care for any Veteran who does not initially qualify for Arizona Long Term Care Services (ALTCS). 

 

The Chronic Workgroup reviewed the challenges and opportunities that have been discussed throughout the winter after completing a landscape analysis and pain points in the system. The chronic workgroup found five tangible next steps: inflow from jails, communication with systems of care that are feeding into the homelessness system, document collection, transportation, and training. Each of these will be worked on throughout the coming quarter within workgroups. If interested, please reach out to Katie Gentry at kgentry@azmag.gov.  

 

The Youth Workgroup welcomed guest speaker Jason Thorpe from the City of Tucson, who presented on the work the Tucson Pima Collaboration to End Homelessness is doing to reduce youth homelessness in their community. Dominique Roe-Sepowitz shared that Arizona State University is looking to partner with youth providers to conduct their annual Youth Experiences Survey (YES Survey). If you are a youth provider and are interested in participating in the YES Survey, please contact Haleigh Owens at howens@azmag.gov.  

 

The Outreach Collaborative is ensuring that outreach teams are utilizing the longitude and latitude in the HMIS system. MAG is looking at mapping outreach through the Regional Analytics Division and overlay that map with the Point in Time Count data. There is discussion around available training to complete longitude and latitude for new outreach team members to provide consistency across the region. There was a survey that was sent to outreach teams to complete, and it will provide MAG with additional information on outreach components and any additional gaps in our system.  

 

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE 

 

House Bill 2674, which creates a Housing Supply Study Committee, has been signed into law by Governor Ducey. As the legislature continues budget negotiations, housing bills with appropriations await further action. This includes House Bill 2528, House Bill 2610, and Senate Bill 1263. Senate Bill 1581, which allows for sanctioned camp sites, has been amended to allow different structures and continues in the negotiation process. 

 

The Arizona Housing Coalition leads the efforts to end homelessness and advocate for safe, affordable homes for all Arizonans. For any questions, please contact Joan Serviss with the Arizona Housing Coalition at joan@azhousingcoalition.org, join the Arizona Housing Coalition, or get involved in their Advocacy Committee if you are a member.    

 

UPCOMING MEETINGS 

All meetings subject to change. If you are interested in attending and do not have a meeting invite, please reach out to hsinfo@azmag.gov. 

 

  • Race Equity Leadership Group – May 2 at 3:00 p.m. 
  • ESG Subcommittee – May 4 at 10:30 a.m. 
  • Data Subcommittee – May 9 at 10:00 a.m. 
  • CoC Committee – May 11 at 9:30 a.m. 
  • Outreach Collaborative – May 12 at 1:00 p.m.  
  • Coordinated Entry Subcommittee – May 12 at 3:00 p.m. 
  • Communication Workgroup – May 17 at 11:00 a.m.  
  • Chronic Workgroup: Communication – May 17 at 2:00 p.m. 
  • CoC Board Strategic Planning – May 19 at 10:00 a.m. 
  • Youth Workgroup – May 19 at 10:00 a.m. 
  • CoC Board – May 23 at 1:30 p.m.  
  • Chronic Workgroup: Jail Inflow – May 24 at 2:00 p.m. 
  • Coordinated Entry Subcommittee – May 26 at 3:00 p.m. 
  • Lived Experience Subcommittee – May 27 at 10:00 a.m. 

 

UPCOMING TRAININGS AND WEBINARS 

 

Compassion Fatigue and Self-Care: Arizona Housing Coalition – May 3 at 2:00 p.m. 

Serving Communities through Housing Counseling: HUD – May 10 and May 11 

Intersectionality of Youth Homelessness: HUD – May 12 at 11:00 a.m.  

Race Equity Basics: An Actionable Plan Forward: NCRC – May 16 at 7:00 a.m.  

Employment Training: MAG – May 17 at 1 p.m. 

 

 

RESOURCES 

 

National Alliance to End Homelessness: Rapid Rehousing Toolkit 

NEW! National Alliance to End Homelessness: Pressure Points Resource Series 

NEW! Arizona Housing Coalition: Evictions Resources Packet 

 

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