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APPROVE A MOTION TO APPLY FOR, ACCEPT, AND APPROPRIATE GRANT FUNDING FROM THE CALIFORNIA INTERAGENCY COUNCIL ON HOMELESSNESS (CAL ICH) FOR ROUND FIVE OF THE HOMELESS HOUSING, ASSISTANCE AND PREVENTION (HHAP) GRANT PROGRAM
recommended action
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council adopt a motion to:
1. Authorize staff to apply for, accept and appropriate Round 5 of the Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention Grant (HHAP 5) Program;
2. Approve and authorize the City Manager, or designee, to enter into a Standard Agreement for HHAP 5 funds with all its exhibits or other necessary documents consistent with the motion; and authorize the City Manager to approve consultant contracts that exceed the Stockton Municipal Code Section 3.68.060 spending limits to carry out application planning and administrative portions of the grant where necessary;
3. Approve findings pursuant to Stockton Municipal Code Section 3.68.070 that support an exception to the competitive bidding process; and,
4. Authorize the City Manager, or designee, to take appropriate and necessary actions to carry out the purpose and intent of this motion.
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Summary
The general purpose of Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) funding is to build regional coordination and a unified regional response to reduce and end homelessness, informed by a best-practices framework focused on moving homeless individuals and families into permanent housing and supporting the efforts of those individuals and families to maintain their permanent housing. HHAP 5 requires applicants to strategically pair HHAP 5 funds with other local, state, and federal resources towards long-term sustainability of housing and supportive services and to prioritize permanent housing solutions.
HHAP 5 differs from previous funding rounds in that it requires regions (i.e., the Continuum of Care, San Joaquin County, and the City of Stockton) to apply together and be signatory to a Regionally Coordinated Homelessness Action Plan. Funding allocations, though, may be received directly. Applications and the Regionally Coordinated Homelessness Action Plan are due to the California Interagency Council on Homelessness on March 27, 2024.
DISCUSSION
Background
The State's Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention Program (HHAP) funds are designed to support regionally coordinated efforts between the County, Continuum of Care (CoC), and the City to expand and develop local capacity to address immediate homelessness challenges throughout the state. HHAP funds are focused on moving homeless individuals and families into permanent housing and ensuring those individuals and families maintain their permanent housing.
HHAP 5 is a $1 billion grant program authorized by Section 17 of AB 129 (Chapter 40, Statues of 2023; Health & Safety Code (HSC) § 50230, et seq.), which was signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom on July 10, 2023. In addition to the $1 billion appropriation, Assembly Bill (AB) 129 reallocates $360 million from prior HHAP funding appropriations (HHAP 3 and HHAP 4 bonus funding) towards supplemental funding under HHAP 5. This NOFA makes available $869.5 million to eligible cities, counties, and CoCs. The California Interagency Council on Homelessness (Cal ICH) released the HHAP 5 Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) on September 29, 2023.
The City of Stockton’s current HHAP allocations total to $23,603,997:
Round 1: $6,460,266
Round 2: $3,053,944
Round 3: $7,893,270
Round 4: $6,196,518
Nearly all Round 1 and Round 2 funds have been disbursed to homeless service providers and affordable housing developers to meet a variety of needs, including shelter expansions and operations and new permanent housing projects. Round 3 funds have been contracted to provide low-barrier shelter operations, and about half of Round 3 and Round 4 funds are obligated to a Homekey permanent housing project, pending award notification by the state. The remaining HHAP 3 and 4 funds will be awarded in a manner consistent with the Updated Local Action Plan and multi-year spending plan for HHAP funds approved by motion by City Council on June 21, 2022.
Present Situation
HHAP 5 is established for the purpose of organizing and deploying the full array of homelessness programs and resources comprehensively and effectively, and to sustain existing federal, state, and local investments towards long-term sustainability of housing and supportive services. (HSC §§ 50232(a) and 50236(a).) To accomplish these goals, HHAP 5 requires applicants to create and implement a Regionally Coordinated Homelessness Action Plan, and to develop data-driven plans which fund the state’s priorities and commit to spending funds to sustain existing investments towards long-term sustainability of housing and supportive services, with a focus on permanent housing solutions.
On September 29, 2023, Cal ICH released the NOFA for Round 5 funding. Applications are due March 27, 2024.
The City’s funding allocation dollar amount under HHAP Round 5 will be released at a later date, pending the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) certification of the 2024 Point in Time (PIT) Count findings.
Per HSC section 50234(a)(1), up to one percent of HHAP 5 funding is available to applicants for the purpose of planning for and preparing the Regionally Coordinated Homelessness Action Plan. The calculation for the planning allocation funding will be based on the 2022 PIT data.
Staff met with the Collaborative Applicant (County) and the Board Chair and Co-Chair of the Continuum of Care (CoC) to discuss the plan to meet the HHAP 5 Application and Regionally Coordinated Homelessness Action Plan requirements. It was determined that the City of Stockton is best positioned to lead the application process, including overseeing development of the Regionally Coordinated Homelessness Action Plan . Costs associated with planning for and preparing the Regionally Coordinated Homelessness Action Plan will be shared by each eligible funding entity (the City of Stockton, the CoC, and the County) according to their proportionate share of the available planning allocation. The City will submit the joint Application to Cal ICH on behalf of the San Joaquin County Region. The City intends to receive its funding allocation directly.
FINDINGS
Pursuant to Stockton Municipal Code section 3.68.070, Council may award a contract without competitive bidding where it approves findings which support an exception to the competitive bidding process.
These findings include:
1. Staff issued an informal Request for Proposals for Regional Homeless Action Plan Consultant solicitations to four professional consulting firms, a local nonprofit with facilitation expertise, and to the Continuum of Care listserv. The City, County, and CoC does not have sufficient staff or resources to complete a regionally coordinated homeless action plan within the required timeline. Further, an independent consultant is better suited to solicit countywide stakeholder involvement and to identify regional goals and strategies.
2. The Regional Homeless Action Plan requirements are extensive, including significant stakeholder engagement involvement and data collection efforts. The level of effort required to conduct a comprehensive regionally coordinated homeless action plan, as required for this grant, could feasibly take upwards of six months to a year. Once a consultant contract is awarded, there will be approximately three months to complete the scope of work. A formal competitive bidding process would have further shortened the timeline.
3. This contract involves the acquisition of a specialized consultant with a firm understanding of the SJC Region and of the complex issues of homelessness, housing, vulnerable populations, or related fields such as mental health and social services. Because of the specialized nature of the work, a thorough evaluation of the proposers’ strengths and resources to carry out the scope within the timeline is imperative, rather than selecting the lowest responsive price.
FINANCIAL SUMMARY
There is no financial impact to the City's General Fund or any other unrestricted fund as a result of this action. HHAP 5 funding will be appropriated and budgeted in the Special Grant Fund in the Housing Division. The consultant contract will be supported with available HHAP 4 funds, and later reimbursed with HHAP 5 funds once received, as allowed by grant guidelines.