County to consolidate funds to aid homeless
The Washington County commissioners Thursday approved consolidation of three grants to aid the homeless and place them on the same fiscal calendar. This and another move are expected to save taxpayers money because of a reduction in administrative costs.
Tim Kimmel, director of human services, told the commissioners of dealings with the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development, “We got HUD to agree to combine them into one.”
The programs include permanent supportive housing, housing expansion and a mental health program for veterans. Providing these emergency services for the homeless is projected to cost $479,172 from May 1 through April 30, 2016.
Jason Bercini, Washington County human service fiscal manager, said the move will cut down on reporting, administration and invoicing costs.
The provider of these three programs, SPHS Care Center’s Connect Inc., will have to provide only one invoice per month and only one annual report.
Kimmel also said a second consolidation affects the Homeless Management Information System. Between April 1 and March 31, 2016, the county will be turning over accounting for programs for the homeless to the state’s western region of the Department of Community Development.
“We will still report through the (information) system,” Bercini said. “We just won’t have the responsibility for the administration of it at the local level. The state has people who handle this full time.”
Washington County was part of a southwestern region, but instead of Pennsylvania being divided into four regions to compile statistics on programs to eliminate homelessness, the state consolidated into just two regions, east and west.
The proposed change “came directly from the top of DCED,” Bercini continued. Under the previous setup, “We’d get a grant from DCED and then pay DCED to administer it. It made no sense.”
The $72,980 annual grant the county wasreceiving for the information-management system eventually will be handed off to the state.
In another matter related to funding for homeless individuals and families, the commissioners approved a request from the Human Services Department to revise budgets for emergency shelter services. Contract authorization amounts remain unchanged.