Board advances one-time and program funds for homelessness shelters and outreach

Orange County supervisors during the June 13 budget hearing reviewed a package of homelessness-related investments included in the CEO27s recommended FY 2017-18 budget and took nonbinding straw votes to advance the proposals to final adoption.

Kim Engelby and program staff summarized Program 2, which represents roughly 40 percent of the county budget and includes community services that administer state and federal mandates. County officials presented funding for improvements and operating costs for the Cramer shelter site and a second shelter, plus a continuum of care funded through state emergency solutions grants, Whole Person Care pilots, crisis stabilization units and outreach programs.

Mary Hale, representing Health Care Agency program staff, told the board that $3.9 million is budgeted specifically for county-operated outreach and engagement staff focused on homelessness and that, if the board approves an augmentation request for eight additional positions, the outreach program will total about 43 positions.

Supervisor Bartlett and other board members asked for detailed breakdowns of where outreach dollars would be spent and whether funding included staffing and supplies; staff said the majority of the $3.9 million is for county staff and related supplies. Several supervisors indicated support for the System of Care approach while reserving the right to revisit allocations at the final vote.

The board took straw votes on Program 2 base budgets and augmentations and asked that department leads provide program-level detail and operating costs to inform the June 27 adoption. County staff said some shelter funding includes carryover from FY 2016-17 and loans from OC Waste & Recycling to support capital improvements and operations.