Iowa to use $21.6 million in federal COVID-19 aid to house up to 700 homeless families
Kim NorvellIowa will use a portion of its federal emergency rental assistance money to greatly expand services for people experiencing homelessness.
The Iowa Finance Authority, which is administering the new state-run Rapid Rehousing project, believes it can house 700 homeless families and connect thousands more to community programs such as mental health or sobriety counseling, Terri Rosonke, housing programs manager, told the authority's board Wednesday.
Iowa will use $21.6 million from a $149 million second round of emergency rental assistance, approved by Congress last spring as part of the American Rescue Plan Act. In total, the state is receiving $344 million in federal funds, largely used to prevent evictions of Iowans who fell behind on rent because of financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Rapid Rehousing project will drastically expand a federal program already in place across the state, which this year provided $2.8 million for agencies helping homeless Iowans find housing.
The additional $21.6 million will bolster existing agencies like Central Iowa Shelter & Services in Des Moines and the Shelter House in Iowa City, which already provide housing.
"Our ability to invest in and expand this resource for our state is an exciting opportunity for communities across our state and for folks who are experiencing homelessness," Crissy Canganelli, executive director of the Shelter House, told the board.
A presentation on Iowa's program said it will provide homeless families with help finding housing; financial assistance that includes security deposits, moving costs and up to 12 months in rent and utilities; and access to "housing stability services" to connect them with jobs, schools and other services.
A total of 2,647 Iowans were experiencing homelessness in January 2020, according to an annual count by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Canganelli said all three tiers of the housing-first strategy work together to ensure families "very quickly" gain housing and build the skills needed to become financially independent.
"When we move them quickly to the safety and stability of their own homes, they're not going to recidivate back to homelessness," she said. "It's beneficial for the adults, for the children, for our communities."
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Unlike the federal program, administered by HUD, Iowa can expand its definition of homelessness to include those who are "doubling up" by sharing crowded quarters with friends or relatives, or who are "couch surfing" with no set address, Rosonke said.
"That's often how homelessness, especially in rural areas, manifests itself," she said.
The state will spend $1.6 million to hire seven caseworkers for its coordinated entry network, which connects people experiencing homelessness to the Rapid Rehousing program and other services for those at risk of homelessness.
Last year, 16,240 people sought help from the coordinated entry network, an increase year-over-year due to the economic stress of the pandemic, Julie Eberbach, associate executive director of the Institute for Community Alliances, told the board. Her organization operates the statewide program.
"I wish we could say all 16,240 received services, but that's not the case," she said.
"Because of that huge number of individuals trying to access the system, the network was getting strained. And folks weren't getting access to services as quickly as intended," Eberbach said.
Adding more funding without adding more caseworkers would create an even bigger backlog, she said. In addition to more staff, Iowa will create an online portal for families seeking assistance to fill out the initial assessment. It's previously been conducted on a telephone hotline.
Debi Durham, executive director of the Iowa Finance Authority, said there was criticism after Gov. Kim Reynolds did not include services for the homeless when she announced in September her plan to use $100 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding on affordable housing.
The plan had always been to use the second round of emergency rental assistance funds for that purpose because it allows for more "creativity" in how it is used, Durham said.
The Rapid Rehousing program is considered a pilot project, she said, and the results will be shared with the Iowa Legislature in an attempt to win state funding for additional rounds.
"We need to look at how we approach this population differently," Durham said. "And we need the resources."
Under federal law, the money must be spent by Sept. 30, 2025.
This article was edited to correct the amounts of federal emergency rental assistance funds Iowa is receiving.
Kim Norvell covers growth and development for the Register. Reach her at knorvell@dmreg.com or 515-284-8259. Follow her on Twitter @KimNorvellDMR.