Emergency and Transitional Housing Program Annual Report FY2019

Preface

The Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) Emergency and Transitional Housing Program (ETH) is compiled for the House and Senate Appropriation Committees of the Illinois General Assembly in accordance with 305 ILCS 5/12-4.5. This report provides historical and current fiscal year information about the Emergency and Transitional Housing Program, and outlines funding by detailing program expenditures, types of services, and number of people served.

This report should not be construed to represent the total homeless population in Illinois. This report contains data compiled from quarterly reports from organizations funded by the ETH Program.

Introduction

The Illinois Emergency and Transitional Housing (ETH) Program was developed to provide immediate food and shelter to homeless persons and families or persons and families at imminent risk of becoming homeless. The ETH Program was designed to provide meals, beds and supportive services through not-for-profit organizations to homeless individuals and families to assist them to return to self-sufficiency.

Funding for the ETH Program has provided funding for emergency shelters, transitional shelters, voucher programs, food, and an array of supportive services to homeless individuals and families across the state of Illinois.

In State Fiscal Year 2019, $9.2 million in funding was allocated to the Emergency and Transitional Housing Program providers.

Program Goal

The goal of the Emergency and Transitional Housing Program is to render immediate and comprehensive shelter services to homeless individuals and families or individuals and families at imminent risk of homelessness. The program provides food, shelter, and supportive services through local not-for-profit agencies. Program deliverables require that:

  • All participants be provided with case management services, counseling services and advocacy services within 5 days of admittance to the program for transitional programs and within 15 days for overnight programs.
  • All participants have access to case management services outside of normal business hours of operation including, but not limited to evening case management service hours.
  • All participants have complete intake and assessment done upon entry into the program. Providers must submit all intake and assessment forms to IDHS annually for approval.
  • All providers have a community outreach plan which includes a detailed description for notifying the community of the program, hours of operation, and admittance / eligibility requirements into the program they administer for IDHS. This plan includes outreach to other community service agencies and the local Family and Community Resource Center (FCRC). IDHS must be advised of any publication and distribution of flyers, printed materials and / or brochures that are part of the IDHS funded program.
  • All providers have a referral process that assists program participants with enrollment into public benefit programs such as TANF, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps), ALL Kids, medical assistance, disability assistance, as well as any other resources that address the needs of the program participants.
  • All progress and supportive services for transitional shelter participants be tracked and reported within each participant's case file through the development of an Individual Service Plan that includes at a minimum a record of the participant's supportive services, case management, outcomes, goals, progress notes, and benefit assistance.
  • All providers have the ability to download the IDHS Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps) application and distribute to all eligible households.
  • All providers have a written agreement or memorandum of understanding for referrals with other social service providers. The agreement or memorandum of understanding includes at a minimum; the type of services to be provided, the referral process of each agency, and follow-up actions.
  • All providers accurately report outcomes and submit quarterly reports to IDHS utilizing the Emergency and Transitional Housing (ETH) web-based reporting system.
  • All providers report the following information in the annual Funding Plan:
  • an unduplicated number of projected participants to be served in the fiscal year.
  •  an unduplicated number of projected households to be served in the fiscal year.
  •  the projected nights of shelter to be provided during the fiscal year.
  • the projected number of meals to be provided, served, purchased, or vouchered during the fiscal year.

Administration

The IDHS Division of Family and Community Services, Bureau of Basic Supports administers the state funded ETH Program. Program staff perform all administrative and program management functions that includes, but is not limited to, the implementation of funding plans, contracting, program payments, and program monitoring. The ETH Program deliverables are verified by IDHS staff through on-site field monitoring.

Funding

The General Revenue Fund (GRF) allocation for the ETH Program provides food, shelter and supportive services to homeless individuals and families throughout the state. The allocation is divided between Chicago (54%) and the balance of the state (46%).

The public and not-for-profit organizations that participate in the ETH Program must provide shelter and supportive services and match at least 25% of the program costs from other sources. Fifty percent of the match must be cash. The other fifty percent may be cash and/or in-kind services, including volunteer services, or the value of the property.

Included in the ETH appropriation are funds allocated for technical assistance. The Illinois Association of Community Action Agencies provides monthly information to homeless agencies across the state regarding legislative and programmatic changes, public and private funding opportunities, and changes in federally funded homeless programs.

Reporting

In Fiscal Year 2009 the Department made significant improvements to the ETH Program by developing a web-based quarterly reporting system. In an attempt to capture the maximum amount of available data, the Department designed a reporting system compatible with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development homeless program reporting formats. The Department also added data elements to the reporting system to provide statistical information regarding homeless children.

Fiscal Reporting: Fiscal compliance, program activity, and program monitoring are employed by IDHS staff to ensure the effective administration of the ETH Program. Upon execution of the ETH contract, all agencies are required to report expenditures quarterly utilizing a web-based reporting system.

Service Reporting: Client activity is also reported quarterly on the IDHS web-based reporting system. The number of participants served, characteristics, services, causes of homelessness, special needs, and household types are just

some of the data elements collected.

Program Services

Shelter programs funded by the ETH Program include:

  • Overnight / Emergency Shelters that provide emergency sleeping accommodations for 12 or fewer hours that serve at least one meal and provide supportive services;
  • Voucher Programs that provide emergency shelter on a per diem basis at a nearby hotel or motel when other overnight shelter is not available and also provide supportive services and may provide food;
  • Transitional Shelters that provide shelter, food and supportive services for up to 24 months.

While the majority of the ETH funding provides for food and shelter, all organizations must also provide supportive services to receive funding from the ETH Program.

The supportive services provided by the ETH Program assist homeless individuals and families return to self-sufficiency. The eligible supportive services include:

Advocacy - Intervening on behalf of program participants to assist in the receipt and use of support services.

Alcohol Abuse Services -  Providing or arranging services for participants to attend AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) or other programs that address alcohol abuse issues.

Case Management  -  Coordinating the acquisition, delivery and use of supportive services. Case management must include individual assessments that are used to develop individual service plans.

Child Care -  Providing or arranging child care services.

Children's Services -  Providing or arranging services for child-specific services, such as child abuse counseling or preschool programs.

Counseling -  Providing or arranging for individual or group counseling to alleviate physical abuse, mental health issues, substance abuse, and/or familial obstacles that are preventing a return to self-sufficiency.

Domestic Violence -  Providing or arranging services for victims of domestic violence.

Education -  Providing or arranging services for participants to complete a course of study leading to a diploma or specific skill certificate.

Employment Services -  Providing or arranging services for participants to complete job preparation and/or to secure job interviews or employment. This may include acquiring special tools or clothing to perform the job in which the participant is placed or receiving training.

English as a Second Language - English language services available to persons who seek to improve Language their English language skills.

Follow Up -  Assessing the need and providing additional services upon completion of, and discharge from the Emergency and Transitional Housing Program.

Health/Dental Services -  Providing or arranging services for participants and assuring use of needed medical and dental services.

HIV/AIDS Related Services -  Supportive services related to the needs of participants diagnosed with HIV/AIDS.

Housing Location / Inspection -  Locating and/or the initial inspection of rental property on behalf of inspection participants to ensure that the housing is decent and adequate for the household and meets the general health and safety standards prior to tenant occupancy.

Legal Service Referral - Referrals to any legal services which may be needed by participants.

Mental Health Services - Providing or arranging services that address serious mental health issues that cannot be resolved through regular counseling services.

Outreach -  Locating and contacting homeless individuals or families in the community and inform them of available services.

Substance Abuse Services -  Providing or arranging services for participants to attend NA (Narcotics Anonymous) or other programs that address substance abuse issues.

Transportation -  Transporting or purchasing services, such as bus tokens or taxi fares for participants to obtain medical care, public assistance, education, training and other services not provided on site.

Fiscal Year End Program Data

The following statistics were downloaded directly from the Department's ETH web-based reporting system. All of the following program data was compiled from the quarterly reports submitted by the ETH providers.

Number or Homeless Persons

Listed below is the total number of adults and children under the age of 18 that utilized ETH during the fiscal year.

Adults Children Under 18 Total 
22,541 8,351 30,900

Number of Homeless Households

Household Number
Single Male 11,422
Single Female 5,822
Couple No Child 269
Couple W/Child 734
Male W/Child 173
Female W/Child 2,972
Total Unduplicated Households 21,392

Prior Living Situation

The ETH participants reported sleeping in the following places in the week prior to entering the program.

Prior Living Situation Adults Children Under Age 18
Non-housing (street, park, car, bus station, etc.) 5,200 733
Emergency Shelter 6,035 3,261
Transitional Housing for homeless persons 358 154
Permanent Housing 237 73
Psychiatric facility 183 1
Substance abuse treatment facility 487 10
Hospital 482 55
Jail / Prison 743 132
Domestic violence situation 974 684
Living with relatives / friends 5,162 2,021
Rental housing / Eviction 1,422 643
Disaster / Fire 96 74
Condemned housing 118 68
Other 1,052 442
Total 22,549 8,351

Other Shelters

This section provides the number of participants that used "other" shelters in the year prior to entering the Emergency and Transitional Housing Program. If no shelters were utilized during the prior year, the number of these participants were reported in the "None" category.

Number of Shelters Adults Children Under Age 18
None 12,169 4,360
1 5,778 2,285
2 2,649 976
3 950 279
4 464 129
5 or more 539 322
Total 22,549 8,351

Age and Gender

This section describes the age and gender of all participants that entered the program during the fiscal year.

Age Males Females
62 and over 909 424
51 - 61 3,221 1,368
31 - 50 5,124 3,871
18 - 30 3,515 4,032
Emancipated Minor or Unaccompanied Youth* 37 45
Total Adults - 22,547
13-17 494 601
6-12 1,554 1,643
1-5 1,590 1,679
under 1 380 382
Total Children - 8,323

Age and Gender of Reunited Family Members or Newborns

The age and gender of newborns, other family members, emancipated minors, or unaccompanied youth reunited with a participant that entered the ETH program during the fiscal year is provided in this section.

Age Male Female
62 and over 0 0
51 - 61 0 0
31 - 50 0 1
18 - 30 0 1
Emancipated Minor or Unaccompanied Youth* 0 0
Total Reunited Adults  - 2
13 - 17 0 1
6 - 12 1 1
1 - 5 1 1
under 1 9 14
Total Reunited Children - 28

* Emanicipated or Unaccompanied Youth are defined as: emancipated minors, unaccompanied youth, married youth and/or a youth with a child

Ethnicity

This section provided the ethnicity of the ETH participants entering the program within the fiscal year.

Ethnicity Adults Children Under Age 18
Hispanic or Latino 2,149 1,130
Non-Hispanic and Non-Latino 20,400 7,221
Total 22,549 8,351

Race

This section provides the race of participants entering the ETH Program during the fiscal year.

Race Adults Children Under Age 18
American Indian/Alaskan Native 145 33
Asian 148 32
Black/African American 12,555 5,781
Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander 104 34
White 8,400 1,666
American Indian/Alaskan Native & White 58 9
Asian & White 18 9
Black/African American & White 374 441
American Indian/Alaskan Native & Black/African American 44 21
Other * 700 325
Total 22,549 8,351

* The "Other" category exists for participants that do not declare themselves in any of the given categories.

Special Needs

This section provides information regarding the types of special needs declared by the ETH program participants upon entering the program. (A participant may have multiple special needs.)

Special Need / Conditions Adults Children Under Age 18
Substance Abuse (SA) 3,128 12
Alcohol Abuse (AA) 2,384 4
Mental Illness (MI) 6,218 171
Developmental Disability (DD) 843 199
Physical Disability (PD) 2,664 57
HIV and / or AIDS (HIV) 231 0
Chronic Medical Health Problem 2,774 115
Domestic Violence 3,353 1,176
Unaccompanied Youth 210 1
Pregnant / Parenting Teen 250 4
Ex-Offenders 2,670 2
Other 552 47
Total 25,277 1,788

Disabling Condition

The number of program participants declaring a disabling condition upon entry into the program is reported in this section.

Total - 7,642

The definition of a disabling condition is:

  1. A disability as defined in Section 223 of the Social Security Act;
  2. a physical, mental, or emotional impairment which is expected to be of a long continued and indefinite duration; substantially impedes an individual's ability to live independently, and of such a nature that such ability could be more suitable housing conditions;
  3. a developmental disability as defined in section 102 of the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act;
  4. the disease of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome or any conditions arising from the etiological agency for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome; or
  5. a diagnosable substance abuse disorder.

Veterans

The number of participants that declared themselves as a veteran* that participated in the ETH Program is reported in this section.

Total - 867

* A veteran is anyone who has ever been on active military status.

Cash Income

This section provides monthly cash income levels for all ETH program participants entering the program and the income status of program participants when exiting the program.

Entering the Program Adults Children Under 18
No Income 13,890 7,669
$1 to 150 376 86
$151 to 250 363 44
$251 to 500 1,013 124
$501 to 1000 4,135 254
$1001 to 1500 1,514 87
$1501 to 2000 770 54
$2001 + 484 29
Total 22,545 8,347
Exiting the Program Adults Children Under 18
No Income 7,999 5,743
$1 to 150 345 149
$151 to 250 321 40
$251 to 500 807 122
$501 to 1000 3,225 241
$1001 to 1500 1,489 120
$1501 to 2000 776 58
$2001 + 449 38
Total 15,411 6,511

Sources of Cash Income

The sources of cash income for all participants entering the ETH program are provided in this section.

Participants may have multiple sources of cash income.

Entering the Program

Income Source Adults Children Under 18
AABD 87 11
Alimony / Spousal Support 25 0
Child Support (or DCFS Grant) 267 74
Employment and Training 165 9
Employment Income 3,704 264
Pension / Retirement 118 3
Private Disability Insurance 12 2
Social Security 292 23
SSDI 1,424 47
SSI 2,516 163
Targeted Work Initiative 9 0
Temp. Asst. Needy Families (TANF) 616 173
Transitional / GA / Earnfare 39 2
Unemployment Benefits 143 10
Veterans Benefits 98 3
Work First / Work Pays 10 1
Worker's Compensation 7 0
Total 9,532 785

Exiting the Program

Income Source Adults Children Under 18
AABD 29 14
Alimony / Spousal Support 18 2
Child Support (or DCFS Grant) 177 73
Employment and Training 331 30
Employment Income 3,380 304
Pension / Retirement 101 3
Private Disability Insurance 24 3
Social Security 282 20
SSDI 1,063 34
SSI 1,990 302
Targeted Work Initiative 7 42
Temp. Asst. Needy Families (TANF) 570 194
Transitional / GA / Earnfare 145 86
Unemployment Benefits 106 4
Veterans Benefits 88 3
Work First / Work Pays 3 1
Worker's Compensation 12 0
Total 8,326 1,115

Non-Cash Benefits

The non-cash benefits for all participants entering the program are provided in this section, as well as the non-cash benefits for all participants exiting the program during the fiscal year.

Entering the Program

Source of Benefits Adults Children Under 18
All Kids 183 964
Child Care Assistance 75 78
Emergency Food Assistance 2,847 786
LIHEAP 78 29
Teen Parent Program 30 21
WIC 389 334
Medical Card 11,884 5,215
Other 1,958 344
Total 17,444 7,771

Exiting the Program

Source of Benefits Adults Children Under 18
All Kids 188 709
Child Care Assistance 151 127
Emergency Food Assistance 2,430 625
LIHEAP 91 36
Teen Parent Program 31 24
WIC 378 289
Medical Card 8,742 4,207
Other 1,650 339
Total 13,661 6,356

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program / SNAP (formerly known as Food Stamps)

This section provides an unduplicated number of households entering the program during the fiscal year that were either currently enrolled, agency enrolled or ineligible for the program.

Enrolled Prior to Entering:  11,507

Enrolled After Entering:  6,511

Ineligible:  3,374

Total Households:  21,392

Shelter Nights and Meals

The total number of shelter nights and meals served to all program participants during the fiscal year is provided in this section.

Shelter Nights Overnight Shelter Voucher Shelter Transitional Shelter
Male Adults 575,065 5,694 50,943
Male Children 240,600 5,766 106,296
Female Adults 409,833 8,504 154,617
Female Children 248,820 7,324 115,077
Total 1,474,318 27,288 426,933
Shelter Meals Overnight Shelter Voucher Shelter Transitional Shelter
Meals Served / purchased / or Vouchered for All Participants 1,422,023 21,033 524,366

Supportive Services

The supportive services provided to all program participants during the fiscal year is represented in this section. (Advocacy, Case Management, and Counseling are required supportive services.

Supportive Services Adults Children
Advocacy 111,529 21,325
Case Management 256,725 26,544
Counseling
Financial 52,768 4,727
Life Skills 128,015 17,512
Other Counseling Services 48,986 10,125
Alcohol Abuse Services 19,434 441
Child Care 2,909 1,907
Children's Services 8,596 16,101
Domestic Violence 6,235 962
Education 15,481 6,199
Employment Services 48,436 1,609
English as Second Language 2,126 258
Follow-up Services 37,391 2,735
Health / Dental Service 26,016 2,575
HIV / AIDS Related Services 5,258 141
Housing Location / Inspection 19,085 3,657
Mental Health Services 19,803 2,698
Legal Service Referrals 5,108 73
Outreach 14,907 1,551
Substance Abuse Services 33,010 473
Transportation 85,851 4,020
Other 142,268 19,227
Total 1,089,947 144,860

Grand total of Supportive Services is 1,234,807.

Length of Stay

This section provides information regarding the length of time participants spent in the Emergency and Transitional Housing Program before leaving.

Time Period Adults Children Under Age 18
Less than 1 month 8,672 2,966
1 to 2 months 3,010 1,251
3 to 6 months 2,503 1,364
7 to 12 months 794 584
13 to 24 months 336 284
25 months to 3 years 79 61
4 to 5 years 11 1
6 to 7 years 5 0
8 to 10 years 1 0
10 years and up 3 0
TOTAL 15,414 6,511

Reason for Departure

Upon departing from the Emergency and Transitional Housing Program, the following reasons were cited for all program participants during the fiscal year.

Reason for Departure Adults Children Under Age 18
Left for housing opportunity before completing program 1,464 924
Completed Program 4,213 2,440
Non-payment of rent/occupancy charge 12 11
Non-compliance with project 1,127 360
Criminal activity/destruction of property/violence 306 115
Reached maximum time allowed in project 663 316
Needs could not be met by project 238 89
Disagreement with rules/persons 632 295
Death 23 14
Voucher funds exhausted 16 5
Voluntary Departure 2,784 1,143
Unknown/disappeared 3,103 655
Other 833 144
TOTAL 15,414 6,511

* Transitional shelter programs are allowed to charge up to 30% of participant income for rent.

Destination

This section provides the destination of the participants who exited the program during the fiscal year and were not expected to return.

Permanent Housing Destination Adults Children Under Age 18
Rental house or apartment (non-subsidized) 1,598 970
Public Housing 209 230
Section 8 75 107
Shelter Plus Care 29 4
HOME subsidized house or apartment 216 145
Other subsidized house of apartment 499 385
Home Ownership 22 25
Moved in with family or friends 1,602 912
Transitional Housing Destination (24 Months or Less) Adults Children Under Age 18
Transitional Opportunity 324 149
Moved in with family or friends 1,694 1,033
Institutional Destination Adults Children Under Age 18
Psychiatric hospital 63 2
Inpatient alcohol or other drug treatment facility 197 6
Jail/prison 154 1
Other Emergency Shelter Destination Adults Children Under Age 18
Emergency Shelter 1,067 442
Other supportive housing 145 21
Places not meant for human habitation (e.g. street) 424 82
Other 1,312 554
Unknown Destination Adults Children Under Age 18
Unknown 5,784 1,443
Destination Totals Adults Children Under age 18
Grant Total 15,414 6,511

Reason for Turn Away

This section provides information regarding the reason participants were turned away from the Emergency and Transitional Housing Program during the fiscal year.

Reason for Turn Away Adults Children Under Age 18
No Vacancy 7,757 5,413
No Voucher Funds 1,089 689
Inappropriate for shelter 7,795 4,147
Refused to accept rules 995 133
Found other housing 1,102 495
TOTAL 18,738 10,877

Turn Away Referral

This section represents a duplicated count of the referrals made to program participants for other social services that were turned away from the Emergency and Transitional Housing Program. There were 18,255 participants turned away during the fiscal year.

Primary Language

The Department is attempting to identify the total number of program participants that could not speak or read English. A duplicated count of the primary language for these program participants is provided in this section.

Category Number of Adults Number of Children Under Age 18
Albanian 0 0
Arabic 11 3
Bosnian 2 0
Bulgarian 5 0
Chinese 3 0
French 15 8
Gujarati 0 0
Hindi 4 0
Khmer 1 0
Korean 2 0
Lithuanian 1 0
Mandingo 0 0
Polish 16 0
Romanian 7 0
Russian 17 10
Spanish 370 153
Ukrainian 4 0
Urdu 1 0
Uzbek 0 0
Vietnamese 1 0
Other - Asian 3 0
Other - African 11 12
Other - Central and South American 0 0
Other - European 1 0
Other - India 0 0
Other 24 11
TOTAL 499 197