This
weekly update is targeted towards the SSVF Grantees and shared with
valuable partners for awareness.
July
28, 2023
ANNOUNCEMENT:
VA 2023 Permanent Housing Conference – Call for Presenters!
DUE: Supplemental NOFA
Communities Monthly Report Due in UDPaaS July
31, 2023
NEW:
Customer Satisfaction Survey Update
NEW:
Office Hours – CY 2023 Homelessness Goals: August 3, 2023
REMINDER:
SSVF Emergency Housing Assistance (EHA)
REMINDER: Legal Services Assessment
REMINDER: Outreach Activities
ANNOUNCEMENT:
VA 2023 Permanent Housing Conference – Call for
Presenters! - Pending Due Date
The
SSVF Program Office, in partnership with the VA Homeless Program Office and
national HUD-VASH office, is excited to bring together practitioners from
across the country for the 2023 VA Permanent Housing Conference – One
Team Approach: Collaborating to End Homelessness Among Veterans. The tentative
dates for these conferences include:
· West
Coast November 14-15, 2023
· East
Coast December 5-6, 2023
For
2023, VA is committed to highlighting innovative practices happening in the
field and to giving SSVF Grantees and their partners more opportunity to share
their successes in effectively serving Veterans experiencing or at-risk of
homelessness locally. With that, we are asking
Grantees to share with us your innovative practices related to the topics of
the conference so we can feature local highlights, panels, and presentations
throughout the two-day event. This year’s conference is organized around lessons
learned in pursuing VA’s 2023 Housing Goals.
We
are requesting Grantees review the attached outline of topic areas for possible
presentation topics. Attached to this email
is a general description of the topic areas we are planning to include at the
conference. In addition, if you or your community are doing innovative work
in ending Veteran homelessness that does NOT fit into the topics below, we
welcome ideas for other topics or highlights to be added to the conference.
If
your organization is interested in presenting your local practices or
innovations related to any of the topics in the attached document or other
practices that are working well locally, please submit an abstract with a brief summary of your presentation or panel ideas using
the following link. If you are submitting for
multiple topics, you will need to fill out the survey once for each
presentation idea being submitted: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SB93C9H
Presentation
proposals are due by 5pm PST on Monday, July 31, 2023
Thank
you in advance for your interest in contributing to the expertise offered at
this important event. We hope to hear from many of you soon!
DUE: Supplemental NOFA
Communities Monthly Report Due in UDPaaS July
31, 2023
All grant
recipients of the FY22 Supplemental NOFA funds are required to complete a
monthly report activity in UDPaaS. The June data
report is due July 31, 2023, and should include any data from June 1,
2023, through June 30, 2023. If you have any questions regarding this report,
please reach out to your Regional Coordinator for assistance.
NEW:
Customer Satisfaction Survey Update
The goal of the Satisfaction Survey is to ensure that
Veteran families receiving supportive services under the SSVF Program are receiving
quality services. Each SSVF Grantee is required to register all household for
the SSVF designated satisfaction survey within 30 days of the participant’s
pending exit from the grantee’s program. Veteran households that
are enrolled using the HUD-VASH or GPD packet and only receive TFA are excluded
from the satisfaction survey registration requirement. If the
Veteran is co-enrolled in SSVF and HUD VASH or GPD and receives services other
than one-time TFA, the Grantee is required to register Veteran household for
the satisfaction survey.
NEW:
Office Hours – CY 2023 Homelessness Goals: August 3, 2023
The next Calendar Year (CY) 2023 Homelessness Goals Office Hours call
will be on Thursday, August 3, 2023. This call will provide guidance on
strategies to improve data quality on the prevention of returns to homelessness
and setting Veterans back on paths to rehousing.
These calls are held at 3:00 p.m. Eastern / 12:00 p.m. Pacific.
This call series is intended to provide broad
technical assistance and support, so SSVF grantees are strongly encouraged to
participate.
Please forward this reminder as appropriate.
If you need the ongoing invitation, please
email VHA11HPO38kGoalSupport@va.gov.
Access the recordings
and slides for previous calls.
Join from a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone, or Android device
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85681601911
One tap mobile:
US: +13017158592,,85681601911#
or +16469313860,,85681601911#
Join by phone:
Dial(for higher quality,
dial a number based on your current location):
US: +1 301 715 8592 or
+1 646 931 3860 or +1 305 224 1968 or +1 309 205 3325 or +1
312 626 6799 or +1 646 558 8656 or +1 669 444 9171 or +1 689
278 1000 or +1 719 359 4580 or +1 720 707 2699 or +1 253 205
0468 or +1 253 215 8782 or +1 346 248 7799 or +1 360 209
5623 or +1 386 347 5053 or +1 507 473 4847 or +1 564 217 2000
Webinar ID: 856 8160 1911
REMINDER:
SSVF Emergency Housing Assistance (EHA)
The
SSVF Program Office would like to remind grantees of the updated Emergency
Housing Assistance (EHA) guidance post Stafford Act. As of May 12, 2023,
the updated Emergency Housing Assistance Verification form (https://www.va.gov/HOMELESS/ssvf/docs/EHA_Verification.docx) must be completed for
any Veteran household receiving this support.
Additionally,
EHA is limited to one instance, up to 60 days, in a 2-year period. As
noted in previous National webinars (Webinar Library
(va.gov))
and the End of COVID-19 Public Health Emergency and Stafford Act Incident
Period FAQ, grantees will use May
12, 2023, as day-one of the allowable 60-day episode. EHA past the 60-day
limit in a 2-year period is considered an unallowable expense and SSVF grantees
should be planning to leverage additional community resources to ensure
Veterans are housed.
REMINDER:
Legal Services Assessment
The SSVF Program Office would like to remind grantees of
the requirement to conduct a legal assessment with all Veteran households
enrolled in services. As part of legal services expansion, all grantees
must screen Veteran households for legal needs. Grantees should develop a
process for this (how and when screenings take place, who will complete, and
next steps) It is a best practice to develop this assessment collaboratively
with your legal services provider. The assessment and processes should be
reassessed throughout service provision and/or annually.
Further information about the expansion of legal services
can be found on our website at: Legal_Services_FAQ.pdf
(va.gov).
REMINDER:
Outreach Activities
The SSVF Program Office would like to remind grantees to
utilize guidance and best practices for engaging with homeless Veterans.
Grantees should be conducting screenings and evaluating Veterans for program
eligibility. It is the expectation that SSVF grantees screen and enroll
eligible Veteran households on the same day they request services. It is
important that grantees are able to screen, assess,
and assist the Veteran family as they are likely in crisis. Delays that
occur between the first outreach encounter and service delivery can result in
missed opportunities to mitigate the crisis or the Veteran may no longer be
easily located. Note: Veteran status and income eligibility must be
established prior to the provision of Temporary Financial Assistance
(TFA). For more information, please review Section VI., subsection B
regarding outreach, found at: SSVF_Program_Guide.pdf
(va.gov)