S. 4903: To improve the point-in-time count conducted by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and for other purposes.

This bill would change how the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) counts homeless people for its annual “point-in-time” survey. The goal is to make the count more consistent, more detailed, and easier to compare across communities.

What changes for the homeless count

The bill would require every local homeless services network that receives HUD funding to take part in an annual point-in-time count during the last 10 days of April each year, starting after the bill becomes law. This is a nationwide counting period used to estimate how many people are experiencing homelessness on a given night.

Communities could still do supplemental counts at other times of year without having to get special approval from HUD.

Use of HUD data systems

The bill would require communities to use a standardized Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) to collect client-level data during the annual count. HMIS is a database used by homeless service providers to track information about people using shelters and related services.

HUD would also have to make sure HMIS data is kept up to date year-round, including records of people entering and leaving emergency shelters, street outreach programs, transitional housing, and other HUD-funded homelessness activities.

Midyear data collection

In addition to the annual count, communities would have to collect and maintain a midpoint HMIS data snapshot halfway between annual counts. This data would be used to:

• track seasonal or emerging trends;
• help plan homelessness programs; and
• supplement, but not replace, the annual count.

New reporting and oversight

HUD would have to create standardized HMIS reporting rules covering how communities describe the geographic area they count and how they analyze sheltered and unsheltered homelessness.

The bill would also require HUD to submit an annual report to Congress covering:

• whether communities are complying with the new counting and reporting rules;
• what technical assistance and guidance HUD provided; and
• whether the data is becoming more consistent, accurate, and complete.

Help for rural and smaller communities

HUD would have to provide training and guidance to rural or resource-limited communities on how to use HMIS, how to map sheltered and unsheltered populations, how to collect midpoint data, and what staffing, training, and technology practices may help them comply.

The bill would also allow HUD to let communities use certain federal homelessness assistance funds to train staff or volunteers in HMIS integration, as long as doing so does not interfere with shelter services.

GAO study

The bill would direct the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to study HUD’s point-in-time count within one year and report back to Congress. The report would examine the method used for the count and may recommend ways to modernize it, including making methods more uniform across communities and improving the efficiency and consistency of data collection and reporting.

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