Council on Homelessness

Continuum of Care / VA Committee Call Minutes

Wednesday, October 26, 2016 at 10:00 a.m.

Participants

Erik Braun, Office on Homelessness

Angela Hogan, Committee Chair, Charlotte County

Mia Parker, Office on Homelessness

Cristina Batista, DCF

Skip Forsyth, FL Dept. of Education

Denise Barber, SAMH

Lindsey Cannon, Children’s Home Society, Pensacola

Sarah Yelverton, Homelessness & Housing Alliance

Regina Solomon, Broward

Lashon Black, Veterans Affairs

Victoria Mallette, Miami-Dade

Leslie Loveless, Suncoast Partnership

Jackie McNeil, Suncoast Partnership

Christine Durrance, Pinellas

Sylvia Smith, Big Bend

Mark Lenkner, Monroe County

Jeannie Sutton, Lee County

Raine Johns, Pasco County

Brenda Gray, Highlands County

Mark Broms, Brevard County

Diana Moore, EscaRosa Coalition

Jennifer Lee, Suwannee Valley

Alene tarter, FL Dept. of Veterans’ Affairs

Bryan Cherry, Adams Street Advocates

Sonja Jackson, Adam Street Advocates

Amanda Wander, Big Bend

Antoinette Triplett, Tampa Hillsborough

Susan Myers, Pinellas

Janet Bartos, Lee County

Laura Reeves, FL Dept. of Health

Erik Braun / Mia Parker:

- Contract Issues; Challenge Grant Template and Performance Measures

- Challenge Grant template will go out this morning [10/26] to contract managers. Start date of Challenge Grant is approx. 3 weeks.

- Timeline for TANF template – it’s already been sent out to the contract managers. ESG templates are out also.

Erik Braun:

- We can expedite things quickly through legal and regional leadership. Send me an email and copy contract manager to find what the true holdup is. We need to know what causes holdup between contract manager and provider.

John Johnson:

- Is there a way that you can provide us all the CoC’s that receive the Challenge grant – we were one of the last to receive the grant executed

- Can you post the progress of challenge grant contracts that have been executed?

Erik Braun:

- It’s possible – we will send out an executed contract date. We can send out executed contract dates weekly

Angela Hogan: Discussion re: ESG and the Level 2 background check situation

Mia Parker: There were several issues with background screen

- Holding pattern being required for providers who did not provide any services at all. Had sent email out re: this.

- Non-direct service providers still working on issues for more clarification to do something different than level 2 screening

- If you have sub providers providing direct services Level 2 screening is required

- There was a backlog several months ago. Turnaround time frame is approx. 25 days – for individuals where there was an issue. $70/per person is chargeable to the grant that you are working under

Erik Braun:

- In terms of 25 day turnaround with Background Screening Unit here in Tallahassee, leadership knows this.

- This is a legal / liability issue. Will speak with Legal as to what has been circulated and will send out.

Bryan Cherry:

- Start with legal opinion given, we will get back with the department

Mia Parker:

- The Dept is looking at that – the groups of people that the criminal history is there. We are working with Legal to see how this can be addressed. There has not been a resolution to this.

Erik Braun:

- Veterans Update (attached Veterans Poll by CoC); Concerns and issue re: to certification process and barriers to ending Veterans homelessness

- Would like to hear where everyone is in trying to get to meet this Functional Zero goal.

- Time is critical – once we get to end of 2016 and see communities having issues, we need to provide narrative. Cannot be a CoC issue alone

- If there is a lack of federal collaboration we need to address this

Angela Hogan:

- Charlotte County filed for Functional Zero

Regina Solomon:

- We have filed but are working on 2 areas from USICH

- We had to get better confirmation of our vet inflow and we needed to work closer with our VA office

- If the VA does not sign off on your application, you will not be approved

Barbara Wheeler:

- We will be submitting our application but we probably won’t be able to do this. Our VA is not involved

- We have issue with getting our Vets involved

Antoinette Triplett:

- We have a call with VA secretary today at 11:30 / focus of call is Operation Reveille

Erik Braun:

- This conversation needs to be continued Barbara Wheeler, Angela Hogan, Mark Broms, Regina Solomon, Alachua, Suwannee Valley, John Johnson, Susan Myers

- Our office to initiate and engage folks from Council – to convene in central area possibly Orlando to sit down and discuss what the narrative is going to be coming out of Veteran Function Zero goal – where there are gaps, where resources are, where collaboration needs to be

- We will [Cristina Batista] update the poll then get a poll on issues being faced, narrative on what went well and what are barriers/opportunities

- Discussion on Community Solutions Effort and six CoCs involved [Leslie Loveless, Antoinette Triplett part of it]

Antoinette Triplett:

- They no longer use “Functional Zero” terminology

Erik Braun:

- Will communicate this to Council members / this is a critical issue

- Our office will work on Challenge Grant flow process

- Will also get clear language re: background screening and sub recipients and entities that do not provide direct services

- Will do follow-up with key players convening re: Veteran homelessness

Adjourned at 10:58 a.m.