Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program

Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program

Request for Proposals

Re-Released May 23, 2018

The Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness (ACEH), is accepting applications for Anchorage’s Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP). Applications will be accepted for one project type:

1. Young Adult Permanent Supportive Housing

Funding for this effort comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD); renewal funding for selected projects will be available through Anchorage’s annual Continuum of Care (CoC) application renewal, ranking and review process.

Application Deadline and Submittal Instructions:

• Responses are due on June 8, 2018 at 5:00 pm
• Please submit your completed application to Monika Winklervia email:

• Please submit questions to Dave Mayo-Kiely:

Contents

1.Introduction

Background and Purpose

Eligibility

2.Proposed Project Type

Permanency Navigator Team

Young Adult Permanent Supportive Housing

Rapid Re-housing for Young Adults

Host Home Program for Youth and Young Adults who identify as LGBTQ

3.Scoring and Evaluation

4.Definitions

5.Required Application Components

Informational Questions

Proposed Budget

Required Review of Relevant Guidelines and Eligibility Requirements

Minimum Threshold Requirements

Scored Questions

1.Introduction

Background and Purpose

In August 2016, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) invited continuum of care (CoC) organizations from around the country to participate in the Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP). The YHDP is a competitive, multiyear effort to build systems intended to end youth homelessness. Over 130 communities applied and in January 2017, Anchorage’s CoC was one of ten communities selected.

As part of the YHPD planning process, The Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness and the lead agency Covenant House Alaska worked closely with the Youth Task Force and the YHDP Leadership Team to develop and submit to HUD the Municipality of Anchorage Community Plan to End Homelessness: Youth and Young Adults 2020. This Coordinated Community Plan guides the implementation of the Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP) for the Municipality of Anchorage. The four project types in this RFP were identified as community needs during the planning process.

Anchorage’s $1.5 million YHDP award includes funding for two years; proposals received in response to this solicitation will be funded from this award amount. YHDP funds will be administered alongside the annual CoC funding using the structure already in place with the ACEH and HUD; projects will be eligible for renewal under the same guidelines as existing CoC projects.

Purpose (from Municipality of Anchorage Community Plan to End Homelessness: Youth and Young Adults 2020)

The purpose of this plan is to coordinate community efforts to achieve the shared vision that youth and young adult homeless experience is rare and brief, and, when it does occur, it is a one-time occurrence.

Eligibility

Eligible applicants for YHDP project funding are nonprofit organizations, States, local governments, and instrumentalities of State and local governments. For-profit entities are not eligible to apply for grants or to be subrecipients of grant funds.

Applicants may submit joint applications in response to this RFP.

2.Proposed Project Type

The Municipality of Anchorage Community Plan to End Homelessness: Youth and Young Adults 2020proposes the following project types for funding using HUD’s YHDP funds. For more details about the category, refer to the full plan.

Young Adult Permanent Supportive Housing, 8 beds

Program Type: / Permanent Supportive Housing
Brief Description: / 8 permanent supportive housing beds prioritized for young adults with severe service needs but who may or may not meet HUD’s definition for chronically homeless.
Timeframe: / 6 months to indefinite
Target Population: / Young adults ages 18-24; highest vulnerability
Budget Amount: / Up to $175,000 per year for two years (total $350,000)

3.Scoring and Evaluation

The ACEH, YHDP Leadership Team, and the Youth Task Force are working together to create and administer a fair and transparent selection process for selecting projects for YHDP funding. Points will be assigned to proposed projects in accordance with scoring created by the Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP) Project Review Committee. The YHDP Project Review Committee is composed of membersof the Anchorage CoC Ranking and Review Committee, with additional representatives from ACEH, the YHDP Leadership Team and the Youth Task Force. No person with a real or perceived personal or organizational conflict of interest shall participate in the scoring of YHDP project applications, and §578.95 (Conflicts of interest) of the CoC Program interim rule applies to this competitive procurement process for housing and services.

Information provided by applicants in response to this RFP will be used for scoring. Each of the four project types will be reviewed separately; proposed projects will be compared to other projects in the same category, and not to other project types. Each application will be given a preliminary score, and the YHDP Project Review Committee will meet to discuss, review and finalize rankings; the Committee may follow up with applicants to ask follow-up and clarifying questions as necessary. The YHDP Project Review Committee will then submit their recommendations for award to ACEH, the YHDP Leadership Team, and the Youth Task Force.

Each of the bodies will review the recommendations from the YHDP Project Review Committee and approve or deny them. If one of the bodies denies the recommendation, the committee will re-convene to reconsider. If the recommendation changes, all three bodies will review again. If it does not change, then the three bodies will re-convene and attempt a consensus decision. If one cannot be reached, the ACEH board will make a final decision.

Once the recommendation has been approved and finalized, applicants will be notified of the decision. Selected applications will be classified locally as “conditional awards” until each selected applicant completes the full application in e-snaps; HUD also has the authority to make conditional awards based on project feasibility.

Overall points will be awarded as follows:

• Agency Experience 18%
• Project Understanding: 10%
• Project Purpose and Approach: 39%
• Alignment with Community Plan 19%
• Implementation of Housing First 6%
• Financial 8%

4.Definitions

TERM / DEFINITION
Youth / Minors under the age of 18
Young Adults / Young adults ages 18-24 who are transitioning from childhood to adulthood (also called Transition Age Youth)
Unaccompanied Youth / Persons who are age 24 or younger, who are not part of a family with children, and who are not accompanied by their parent or guardian during their episode of homelessness. This also includes two or more youth age 24 or younger who are presenting together as a family without children.
Pregnant or Parenting Youth / Persons who are 24 and younger who are the parents or legal guardians of one or more children who are present with or sleeping in the same place as that youth parent, or who are pregnant.
LGBTQ / LGBTQ is an acronym that stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Queer, and is used to designate a community of people whose sexual or gender identities can create shared political and social concerns.
Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) / The individual receives supportive services such as case management, clinical services and/or referral to services, transportation to appointments, employment services, and others according to their specific needs and the service area of the provider or region. The individual may also receive rental assistance in the form of a lease held by a provider organization or a voucher for a subsidized monthly rental amount.
Rapid Re-housing (RRH) / Rapid re-housing is a set of services to address these short-term barriers to safe and secure housing. Typically, these supports are provided over a short period of time, less than six months, until the individual or family is stabilized.
Transitional Housing (TH) / An individual or family lives at a site that is longer term than an emergency shelter, but which has a required move-out date, often up to two years after moving in. The individual or family receives supportive services, and may be connected with permanent housing in advance of leaving transitional housing.
Continuum of Care (CoC) / The modern system of federal programs and funding related to homelessness were first established in 1987 with the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. A key feature of the McKinney-Vento Act, the Continuum of Care structure is designed to foster regional collaboration to address homelessness and related issues, by designating one or more jurisdictions within each state as the entity to collect local data, receive funding, and provide a forum for multiple public and private agencies to work together.
Housing First / Provision of access to safe, secure, and stable housing without preconditions.
Positive Youth Development (PYD) / Positive Youth Development engages youth along with their families, communities and/or governments so that youth are empowered to reach their full potential. PYD approaches build skills, assets and competencies; foster healthy relationships; strengthen the environment; and transform systems.[1]
Trauma-informed Care (TIC) / A program, organization, or system that is trauma-informed realizes the widespread impact of trauma and understands potential paths for recovery; recognizes the signs and symptoms of trauma in clients, families, staff, and others involved with the system; and responds by fully integrating knowledge about trauma into policies, procedures, and practices, and seeks to actively resist re-traumatization.[2]

5.Required Application Components

Informational Questions

Please complete the following table.

Organization’s legal name
Primary Contact / Name & Title
Email
Phone
Briefly provide an overview of your agency, including organizational mission and history.
Project Type (select one) / Permanency Navigator Team(categorized as SSO)
Young Adult Permanent Supportive Housing(categorized as PSH)
Rapid Re-Housing for Young Adults(categorized as RRH)
Host Home Program(categorized as PSH)
Proposed Project Operation Dates / Start
End
Total amount requested:

Proposed Budget

Please itemize your budget using the categories below.Enter zeroes for categories with no budget amount.

NOTE: please review HUD’s Detailed Instructions for guidance on developing budget estimates. Selected applicants will need to be prepared to itemize and input detailed budget information into e-snaps as a part of the project application to HUD.

Budget Category / Amount(insert) / Notes / Eligible Project Types
Leased Units / $ / The lease must be between the landlord and the recipient. These costs cannot be combined with Rental Assistance, Acquisition, Rehabilitation, or New Construction in a single housing unit. / PSH, SSO
Leased Structures / $ / Leased structures are buildings leased by the project applicant that contain multiple units for program participants or serve as the structure for supportive services or operations. Note: These costs cannot be combined with Rental Assistance, Acquisition, Rehabilitation, or New Construction in a single leased housing unit. A leased structure budget can only be requested with rental assistance when the two budget line items are used in separate structures or to cover different, and not overlapping, portions of the same structure. / PSH, SSO
Rental Assistance / $ / The lease must be between the landlord and the program participant; except for Sponsor Based Rental Assistance (SRA), where the sponsor owns or leases the unit and has a sublease with the program participant. Rental Assistance cannot be combined with Leased Units, Leased Structures, or Operating in a single housing unit. Funds for Leased Structures or Operating may only be requested together with rental assistance if the Leased Structures (whole or in part) are being used for Supportive Services and not for rental assistance or when the budget line items are used in separate structures or to cover different, and not overlapping, portions of the same structure.
Budget should accurately reflect unit costs and household sizes; see HUD’s Fair Market Rate (FMR) table for reference:

FY2018_code/select_Geography.odn / PSH, SSO, RRH
Supportive Services / $ / PSH, SSO. RRH
Operating / $ / Remember, these costs cannot be used with Rental Assistance in a single housing unit, even if the Rental Assistance is being paid for by another CoC Program project. / PSH, SSO
TOTAL: / $

Required Review of Relevant Guidelines and Eligibility Requirements

It is the responsibility of each agency to read the following documents and understand and adhere to all HUD guidelines and regulations. By submitting an application, an agency acknowledges they have read and are familiar with the contents and requirements of these documents:

• HUD Detailed Instructions for New Project Applications: FY2016 Youth Homelessness Demonstration Project:

• Anchorage Community Plan to End Youth Homelessness:
• YHDP Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA):
• YHDP Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA), Appendix A:
• 24 CFR part 578 (CoC Program Interim Rule):

Anchorage applicants who are selected for funding through the local prioritization process will need to submit an application via HUD’s e-snaps portal. The HUD application seeks additional information beyond what is included in this RFP; a summary of the application requirements is available in the Detailed Instructions for New Applications link above. Prior to submitting a proposal in the local review process, Anchorage YHDP applicants MUST review the Detailed Instructions in detail to ensure they meet all eligibility and project requirements and are able to respond to all questions in the e-snaps application.

Minimum Threshold Requirements

The following are minimum threshold requirements that must be met for an agency to be eligible to apply for YHDP project funding. Please mark “yes” next to each line to confirm your agency meets each requirement. If your agency responds “no” to any of these questions, please provide a brief explanation and a summary of how the agency will resolve and address the threshold requirement in an attachment to your application.

Administrative and Financial Requirements

Project application is complete and data are consistent.
Project has documented, secure minimum match that meets the HUD requirement of 25% (except for leasing budget line items).
Project is financially feasible; please complete the Financial Summary Table and submit with your application. The table can be downloaded here:
Nonprofit agencies must be able to provide proof of a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status.
Applicant has an active System for Award Management (SAM) registration (preferred) or agrees to set up a registration if selected.
Applicant has valid DUNS number (preferred) or agrees to apply for a DUNS number if selected.
Applicant has no outstanding delinquent federal debts- It is HUD policy, consistent with the purposes and intent of 31 U.S.C. 3720B and 28 U.S.C. 3201(e), that applicants with outstanding delinquent federal debt will not be eligible to receive an award of funds, unless:

• A negotiated repayment schedule is established and the repayment schedule is not delinquent, or
• Other arrangements satisfactory to HUD are made before the award of funds by HUD.

Applicant has no debarments and/or suspensions - In accordance with 2 CFR 2424, no award of federal funds may be made to debarred or suspended applicants, or those proposed to be debarred or suspended from doing business with the Federal Government.
Disclosed any violations of Federal criminal law - Applicants must disclose in a timely manner, in writing to HUD, all violations of Federal criminal law involving fraud, bribery, or gratuity violations potentially affecting the Federal award. Failure to make required disclosures can result in any of the remedies described in 2 CFR §200.338, Remedies for noncompliance, including suspension or debarment. This mandatory disclosure requirement also applies to subrecipients of HUD funds who must disclose to the pass-through entity from which it receives HUD funds.
Applicants and potential subrecipients must have satisfactory capacity, drawdowns, and performance for any existing grant(s), as applicable, that are funded under the CoC Program, as evidenced by timely reimbursement of subrecipients (as applicable), quarterly drawdowns, and timely resolution of monitoring findings.
Applicant agrees to meet all timeliness standards established at 24 CFR 578.85.
Applicants agrees to participate in a HUD-Sponsored Program Evaluation. As a condition of the receipt of financial assistance under a Program NOFA, all successful applicants will be required to cooperate with all HUD staff, contractors, or designated grantees performing research or evaluation studies funded by HUD.
Applicant agrees to provide accurate reporting to help ACEH and HUD measure progress. Community-wide required performance measures for YHDP communities include, but may not be limited to:

• The number of unaccompanied youth experiencing unsheltered homelessness.
• The length of time youth remain homeless.
• The extent to which youth who leave homelessness return to homelessness.
• Overall reduction in the number of homeless youth.
• The number of individuals and families who become homeless for the first time.
• Successful housing placement to or retention in a permanent housing destination.

Community Requirements

Project applicant is a member of the Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness. Become a member here:
Applicant agrees to serve the Anchorage area (defined by the Municipality of Anchorage boundaries).
Project will fully participate in the Anchorage Coordinated Entry System, including participating in data-sharing and only receiving referrals from the system; for projects serving youth under 18, projects agree to participate in coordinated entry to the extent possible.Applicants will agree to work with the Anchorage Coordinated Entry System to increase the usability and efficacy of the current system and minimize the use of secondary assessment tools.
Project agrees to participate in AK HMIS and respond in a timely and appropriate timeframe to AK HMIS requests. However, in accordance with Section 407 of the Act, any victim service provider that is a recipient or subrecipient must not disclose, for purposes of HMIS, any personally identifying information about any client. Victim service providers must use a comparable database that complies with the federal HMIS data and technical standards.
Applicant agrees to participate in and be responsive to the Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness, the YHDP Leadership Team and Youth Task Force.

Project Quality Thresholds

To be considered as meeting project quality threshold, housing projects (including Permanent Supportive Housing, Host Homes and Rapid Re-Housing projects) must receive at least 3 out of the 5 points for the following criteria:
Whether the type, scale, and location of the housing fit the needs of the program participants (1 point);
Whether the type and scale of the supportive services fit the needs of the program participants–this includes all supportive services regardless of funding source (1 point);
Whether the specific plan for ensuring program participants will be individually assisted to obtain the benefits of the mainstream health, social, education, and employment programs for which they are eligible to apply meets the needs of the program participants (1 point);
Whether program participants are assisted to obtain and remain in housing in a manner that fits their needs (1 point); and
Whether 100 percent of the proposed program participants meets paragraphs 1, 2, and 3 of the definition of homeless found at 24 CFR 578.3 (1 point).
TOTAL POINTS (minimum of 3 required for housing projects)
To be considered as meeting project quality threshold, SSO projects (including the Permanency Navigator project) –must receive at least 4 out of the 6 points available for the following criteria:
Whether the type, scale, and location of the supportive services fit the needs of program participants (2 points);
Whether the supportive services are clearly designed to help youth quickly exit homelessness by obtaining or retaining housing (2 points); and
Whether 100 percent of the proposed program participants meets paragraphs 1, 2, and 3 of the definition of homeless found at 24 CFR 578.3 (2 points).
TOTAL POINTS (minimum of 4 required for SSO projects)

ScoredQuestions

Please respond to the following questions. Applicants may use this Word document to complete the questions, or attach a separate file. Please send your application as a PDF. Responses should be no smaller than size 12 font. Please adhere to the character limits for each question; the character limit count includes spaces.