FLORIDA’S COUNCIL
ON HOMELESSNESS
ANNUAL
REPORT
SUBMITTED
JUNE 2023
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
TABLE OF
CONTENTS
4 Introduction
Summary of 2023 Policy Recommendations ............................................................................. 6
Comprehensive 2022 Policy Recommendations .....................................................................6
APPENDICES
APPENDIX I: DEFINING HOMELESSNESS ....................................12
APPENDIX II: UNSHELTERED HOMELESSNESS ............................13
APPENDIX III: SHELTERED HOMELESSNESS .................................14
APPENDIX IV: HOMELESSNESS AMONG FAMILIES ......................15
APPENDIX V: HOMELESSNESS AMONG
SPECIAL POPULATIONS ..........................................15
APPENDIX VI: CHALLENGES ADDRESSING HOUSING &
HOMELESSNESS ......................................................22
APPENDIX VII: EVICTIONS FILED IN FLORIDA .................................24
OPERATION IN FLORIDA .........................................25
APPENDIX IX: EXAMPLE OF STRATEGIC LOCAL
COLLABORATIONS .................................................26
APPENDIX XI: COC FUNDING .........................................................26
APPENDIX XII: SYSTEM PERFORMANCE MEASURES .....................28
APPENDIX XIII: POINT IN TIME DATA ................................................30
APPENDIX XIV: FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF
EDUCATION HOMELESS STUDENT DATA ...............38
APPENDIX XV: DESIGNATED COC LEAD AGENCY MAP ..................42
APPENDIX IX: COUNCIL MEMBERS ................................................43
APPENDIX X: GLOSSARY ................................................................44
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Florida’s Council on Homelessness
June 30, 2023
Governor Ron DeSantis
400 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0001
Dear Governor DeSantis,
On behalf of the Florida Council on Homelessness, its members and state agency partners, I submit the “Council on
Homelessness 2023 Report” for your consideration.
In accordance with state law, the Council has prepared recommendations for reducing homelessness in our state. We have
also provided data concerning the extent of homelessness and the characteristics of the men, women and children who do
not have a home.
experiencing “literal homelessness” (28,328 to 30,809 individuals from 2019 to 2023). The past two years’ Counts have
shown increases; however, due to limitations conducting the Count during COVID, the accuracy of these increases are not
certain.
growth is the second highest in the country
1
.Supply and demand being fundamental market factors, this is causing
pressure on the rental housing market.From March of 2020, through October of 2022, rent for a one-bedroom increased
2
Florida also has the highest percentage of cost-burdened renters in the country
3
.
4
.Therefore, Florida’s unprecedented increases in rent rates will have a
homelessness while also decreasing the supply of housing stock. The three counties most impacted by Hurricane Ian
funding to meet the local needs to prevent and end homelessness in each of the 27 CoC catchment areas.
homelessness. Homelessness is not an intractable issue. When we all work collaboratively, we can end homelessness in the
State of Florida.
If you would like any additional information regarding this report or homelessness in Florida, please do not hesitate to
contact me.
Thank you,
Shannon Nazworth
Chairperson for the Council on Homelessness
2 https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/region-hillsborough/rent-in-tampa-miami-orlando-show-largest-year-over-year-rent-increases-in-the-
3 https://www.gao.gov/blog/how-covid-19-could-aggravate-homelessness-crisis
4 https://www.gao.gov/blog/how-covid-19-could-aggravate-homelessness-crisis
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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INTRODUCTION
The formation of the State of Florida’s interagency Council on Homelessness (the Council), created
in 2001, has since become a nationally recognized best practice. The Council unites leadership
across a spectrum of statewide systems to convene stakeholder meetings, develop policy, and
make recommendations on how to prevent and end homelessness across the state. Pursuant to
section 420.622(9), Florida Statutes, the Council submits its Annual Report to the Governor and
Legislature, providing the current landscape of homelessness in Florida and oering recommended
actions to address the challenge.
The Council has produced an overview of homelessness in Florida. Through an analysis of data
on subpopulations and trends, the report provides valuable insights into the nature and extent of
homelessness in the state.Additionally, the report highlights solutions that have been working to
prevent and end homelessness. Drawing upon data and best practices, the Council presents a set
of recommendations for the State’s consideration. These recommendations are based on valuable
insights of the complex factors contributing to homelessness in Florida and represent a thoughtful
and evidence-based approach to addressing this critical issue. We believe these recommendations
will help to further the State's eorts to reduce homelessness and improve outcomes for those
experiencing housing insecurity.
Florida’s Point in Time Count (PIT) data, included in this report and presented in Appendix V,
provides a snapshot of homelessness in Florida. On any given night in January 2023, a total of
30,809 individuals were identied as homeless, either living in a shelter or in a place not meant for
human habitation. This represents a 19.1% increase in the number of individuals identied from
the prior year. There are several reasons for this increase – in communities largely impacted by
Hurricane Ian (Charlotte, Collier and Lee Counties) there was a 70% increase in homelessness over
2022.According to a 2020 Government Accountability Report, for every $100 increase in median
rent, there is a 9% increase in homelessness. There was an estimated $170 average rental increase
in the State of Florida from January 2022 through January 2023
1
. The lack of aordable housing
increases the length of time people remain homeless, as those with barriers to housing – such as
those with criminal histories or evictions are unable to nd rental units
2
According to raw data, over the past ve years, Florida has seen a 9% increase in the rate of
Floridians experiencing “literal homelessness” (28,328 to 30,809 individuals from 2019 to 2023).
This is the second year in a row where homelessness has increased. Important to note however,
COVID-19 made it dicult to conduct an accurate Point in Time count; therefore, the 2021 data is
not entirely reliable, and the accuracy or cause of last year’s reported increase is uncertain.
Florida is facing an unprecedented housing market aordability crisis. The State’s population
growth is the second highest in the country. Supply and demand being fundamental market factors,
this is causing housing costs to increase at extraordinary rates. That factor, coupled with population
growth, has signicantly increased pressure on the rental housing market.From March of 2020,
through October of 2022, rent for a one-bedroom increased 36.1%
3
,Florida also has the highest
percentage of cost-burdened renters in the country
4
.
The Department of Education also identied a signicant increase in the number of public school
students that were homeless or unstably housed last school year. However, due to school closures
and increased rates of remote learning during COVID, the prior year count may be a signicant
undercount of students that were homeless or unstably housed.
On March 29, 2023, Governor DeSantis signed the Live Local Act (SB 102) into law. The Act, which
was the 2023 Legislative Session's omnibus housing bill, is poised to make signicant strides in
1 https://www.gao.gov/blog/how-covid-19-could-aggravate-homelessness-crisis
2 GAO-20-433, HOMELESSNESS: Better HUD Oversight of Data Collection Could Improve Estimates of Homeless Population
3 https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/region-hillsborough/rent-in-tampa-miami-orlando-show-largest-year-over-year-rent-increases-in-the-
4 https://www.gao.gov/blog/how-covid-19-could-aggravate-homelessness-crisis https://www.gao.gov/blog/how-covid-19-could-aggravate-homelessness-
crisis
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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addressing Florida’s housing aordability crisis, providing more than $700 million to aordable
housing strategies for the coming year. The Act contains a range of policies aimed at increasing
the availability of aordable homes across the state. Among its notable provisions, the Act funds
both the State Housing Initiatives Partnership Program (SHIP) and State Apartment Incentive Loan
Program (SAIL), as well as adding an additional $150 million annually for ten years to be used in a
similar manner to the SAIL program. This signicant nancial commitment demonstrates a strong
dedication to the production of aordable rental housing in Florida.
For decades, Housing Trust Fund appropriations have been insucient. Funding slated for the
trust fund has been diverted toward other purposes, forgoing tens of thousands of much-needed
aordable housing units. We want to thank the Legislature for adding language in statute during
the 2022 session that would ensure
5
valuable funding remains dedicated to its intended purpose.
This commitment ensures that all communities in Florida will have aordable housing resources
available, annually, to help address the state’s housing crisis rather than solely relying on local
partnerships to fund these needs.
The Council recognizes the achievements of Florida in aordable housing funding and
acknowledges the importance of continuing to build upon these successes. However, it is
imperative the State of Florida dedicate sucient resources to address the pressing issue of
housing aordability for extremely low-income households, those experiencing homelessness,
and persons with special needs. The lack of housing aordable to those households not only
poses a signicant challenge for vulnerable populations but also impacts the overall well-being
of communities. A commitment to the investment in accessible aordable housing initiatives for
those who need it most can help improve access to safe, decent, and aordable homes, thereby
promoting economic stability and social inclusion. The Council urges all stakeholders to work
together towards this goal and support any eorts made towards achieving greater access to
aordable housing for vulnerable individuals across the state.
At the local level, partnerships encouraging the development and preservation of aordable
housing are being paired with evidence-based strategies that support at-risk households. These
eorts are successfully serving the most vulnerable Floridians including veterans, students
experiencing homelessness, persons experiencing chronic homelessness, persons with
disabilities, older adults, and other special needs households.
In 2023 the Legislative appropriation for the Challenge Grant was increased by $16.8 million, more
than four times the previous year’s funding amount and the Stang Grant was increased to $5.2
million, a 74% increase over the previous year.These funds will be critical in supporting Florida’s
most vulnerable populations with rental assistance and permanent supportive housing needs.
The Challenge Grant provides an opportunity to serve those who do not meet the strict eligibility
requirements of the grants received from federal sources. It also provides an opportunity to fund
programs that are outside of the limitations of federal funding. Some examples include programs to
divert individuals from homelessness and other supportive programs to support the acute health,
mental health, transportation, and educational needs of those experiencing or at risk of becoming
homeless. The Challenge Grant funding allows Continuums of Care (CoCs) to provide assistance
where there is no other resource available.
In addition, the Stang Grant provides operating funding that CoCs can leverage to build their
capacity to create eective crisis response systems and draw down tens of millions of dollars in
federal funding.These additional funds for the Stang Grants are critical to ensuring CoCs have
qualied sta to oversee community collaborations and systematic solutions to homelessness
at the local level. Stang Grant funds are also often used as match funding to leverage additional
private, local and federal funds.
While increased funding for homelessness and housing is a positive step forward, it is important
to recognize that addressing these issues requires a multifaceted approach.Additional nancial
resources can help expand aordable housing initiatives, provide rental assistance, and support
homelessness prevention programs.However, a holistic approach to addressing these challenges
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is necessary, which includes coordination between government, nonprots, and communities to
implement comprehensive strategies to address underlying causes of homelessness, such as
mental health, substance use, employment, etc.Additionally, eorts should focus on strengthening
social safety nets, improving access to mental health services, and developing the resources
necessary for long-term stability and well-being.The following section outlines key policy
recommendations to ensure Florida uses these additional resources eciently and develops
policies and practices to reduce homelessness in Florida. Additional data concerning the extent of
homelessness in Florida are provided in the Appendices.
Summary of 2023 Policy Recommendations
1. Promote strategic systems collaborations. Continue to support enhanced, strategic
collaborations among Florida’s systems of care serving people at risk of, or currently
experiencing homelessness.
2. Leverage federal resources. Identify and concentrate federal resources that can be
used for the development of housing and provision of services for those who are most
vulnerable.
3. Support best practices. Continue to support best practices that prevent and end
homelessness throughout Florida and ensure households have access to aordable low-
barrier housing.
4. Encourage aordable housing development. Bolster local government investments
and eorts to reduce and end homelessness through the development of aordable
housing for extremely low income, those experiencing homelessness, and persons with
special needs.
Comprehensive 2023 Policy Recommendations
1. Promote strategic systems collaborations. Continue to support enhanced,
strategic collaborations among Florida’s systems of care serving people at risk of
or currently experiencing homelessness.
Paramount to success as a state in preventing and ending homelessness is the element of
collaboration. Homelessness and housing instability aect various households and individuals, at
various times and challenges throughout their lives, usually impacting multiple systems of care. A
person should not have to solely rely on the homelessness system of care to address their housing
stability needs; instead housing instability and risk of homelessness should be discovered and
addressed upon entry into many systems of care, so that appropriate resources can be paired
with the household needing assistance immediately, decreasing their likelihood of falling into long-
term homelessness. Systems of Care known to have crossover among participants facing housing
instability including those who are literally homeless as well as at risk of homelessness include
Behavioral Health, Justice and Corrections, Education, Healthcare, Veteran Aairs, Employment and
Training, Elder Aairs, Foster and Adoptive Care. Many of these systems of care have designated
representatives serving on the Florida Council on Homelessness. Continued and increased
commitment from all systems of care that can impact housing stability for their participants
is essential in reducing homelessness among Floridians. For example, if the Department of
Corrections were able to increase discharge planning eorts with access to funding to cover
housing costs upon reentry to a community, those exiting corrections would not have to rely on the
homeless system of care to meet their housing placement needs. Housing placement needs would
thus be addressed more immediately, avoiding homelessness altogether.
The Council supports advancing collaborative eorts among all of Florida’s systems of care.
These partnerships should aim to expand state and local community capacity to strategically
identify multi-system consumers experiencing or at risk of homelessness and coordinate housing
and services to increase housing stability and retention. The Council supports being forward-
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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thinking, vigilant, and exible to increase collaboration aimed at strategically preventing and ending
homelessness throughout Florida. The Council encourages these partners to strategically address
ways in which braiding and blending resources can create the maximum impact of the use of
government funds.
Another recent example of improved strategic collaboration across systems of care was Governor
DeSantis’ oce establishing a statewide permanent supportive housing workgroup consisting
of State Agency leadership to identify housing and supportive services policies and actions that
can be implemented to best address the needs of our most vulnerable neighbors. Although the
Homeless Continua of Care have increased the number of Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH)
beds available for this population by over 2,700 units in the past 10 years, the need for additional
supportive housing units and supportive services continues to grow. According to Florida Housing
Coalition, an estimated 12,811 households experiencing homelessness in Florida need supportive
housing
6
.Increasing coordination and leveraging nancial and other resources to expand housing
opportunities are proven successful strategies for ending homelessness. There are several
subpopulations at risk of or experiencing homelessness, including youth, people with behavioral
health disorders, older adults, people eeing domestic violence or human tracking, and people
exiting institutions like jails or hospitals.
According to the same report, the overall need of these subpopulations totals 156,962 supportive
housing and aordable housing families combined. These individuals and families often intersect
with many systems of care. When these systems work in collaboration by sharing data and
resources, the services are more eective, duplication is reduced, and signicant cost savings are
realized.
In 2019, the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) successfully launched a multi-sector
collaboration with housing providers, four of its Statewide Medicaid Managed Care health plans
(i.e., Aetna, Molina, Simply, and Sunshine), and mental health physicians and therapists. The Agency
sought to demonstrate the impact of housing assistance on health outcomes and health care
utilization for low-income, adult Floridians with mental illness and/or addiction in six Florida counties
(i.e., Pinellas, Pasco, Seminole, Orange, Osceola, and Brevard). The demonstration uses a Housing
First policy backbone and adds transitional housing services, tenancy sustaining services, mobile
crisis management, self-help peer support, and one-time payments for moving expenses. To date,
the demonstration has recruited and served over 2,000 Floridians with a median age of 49 years.
However, there has been a bimodal peak of younger adults and elderly with housing instability in
the program, which underscores the need to think about the special needs of older adults who are
homeless, more likely to have chronic diseases, and more vulnerable to the risks of homelessness.
Early results from the demonstration show decreased narcotic overdoses, decreased suicidal
ideation, decreased emergency department usage, decreased hospitalizations, and cost avoidance
of over $27 million for the entire program when compared to homeless Medicaid recipients not
in the program. The return on investment (ROI) is currently estimated at least 3X. The Agency is
considering options on how to scale the collaborative housing assistance pilot. The two greatest
challenges in scaling are enrolling housing providers as Medicaid providers and receiving individual
referrals from Continua of Care and physicians. Both challenges can be overcome with further
collaboration and data sharing.
2. Leverage federal resources. Identify and concentrate federal resources that can
be used for the development of housing and the provision of services for those
who are most vulnerable, including people experiencing homelessness, those with
special needs, and households with extremely low incomes.
The Council recommends state agencies and entitlement jurisdictions utilize the exibility of federal
resources to prioritize the development of aordable housing and supportive services.Florida’s
communities have received a signicant inux of federal funds that may be used to address
housing-related needs.This nancial support allows communities to address immediate and long-
term housing needs.Although some federal funds have exible uses, the Council recommends
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encouraging communities to prioritize these federal resources to develop housing for the most
vulnerable. While the development of aordable housing can have positive outcomes, there may
be negative consequences such as the concentration of poverty in specic areas. Housing that is
built in already economically disadvantaged neighborhoods may perpetuate the cycle of poverty
and create challenges for community development. Other considerations may include resource
management, stigmatization, social isolation, and other perceptions that may limit opportunities for
residents. It is critical to incorporate community input, implement management and maintenance
practices, promote mixed-income developments, and ensure supportive services exist to promote
positive experiences. Communities should consider expanding available housing by supporting
local organizations in acquiring dedicated housing and increasing services to the most vulnerable.
While communities may receive an inux of funding to be used for the development of aordable
housing, it is also necessary to identify resources that may be used for supportive services.
Identifying resources for supportive housing requires a comprehensive approach involving multiple
funding streams and collaborative.Permanent supportive housing (PSH) plays a critical role in
addressing chronic homelessness and promoting stability for vulnerable populations.This model
combines aordable housing with supportive services to meet the complex needs of individuals
experiencing homelessness. PSH has been shown to signicantly reduce homelessness, improve
permanent housing retention rates, and enhance the quality of life for residents. Identifying
resources for permanent supportive housing requires a proactive and collaborate approach, while
engaging federal and state funding sources.By leveraging these resources eectively, communities
can enhance their capacity to develop permanent and aordable housing, while providing the
supportive housing options needed for vulnerable populations.The Council recommends state
agencies and local communities identify all resources that may be used for the development of
aordable housing and supportive services.While this activity will require strategic planning and
innovation, the Council recognizes the importance of acknowledging the state’s current housing
decit and utilizing all available resources to address the shortage.
3. Support best practices. Continue to support best practices that prevent and
end homelessness throughout Florida and ensure households have access to
aordable low barrier housing. Prior to the pandemic, Florida had made substantial
progress in reducing the number of persons experiencing homelessness because
CoCs across the state have been committed to prioritizing evidence-based best
practices. All state agencies should ensure their programs and policies implement
best practices and support these proven practices at the local level.
Housing First is an evidence-based best practice helping households move into stable permanent
housing as quickly as possible. The National Alliance to End Homelessness denes Housing
First as a homeless assistance approach that prioritizes providing permanent housing to people
experiencing homelessness, thus ending their homelessness, and serving as a platform from which
they can pursue personal goals and improve their quality of life. This approach is guided by the
belief that people need basic necessities like food and a place to live before attending to anything
less critical, such as getting a job, budgeting properly, or attending to substance use issues.
Additionally, Housing First is based on client choice in housing selection and supportive service
participation, and exercising that choice is likely to make a client more successful in remaining
housed and improving their life
7
.
The National Alliance to End Homelessness
8
outlines best practices for eectively ending
homelessness including:
• Utilizing a community-wide coordinated approach to end homelessness through the
delivery of services, housing, and programs.
7 Housing First - National Alliance to End Homelessness
8 National Alliance to End Homelessness Solutions - National Alliance to End Homelessness
-populations
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• Prioritizing rapid re-housing as an intervention designed to quickly connect people to
housing and services.
• Designing programs to assist the most vulnerable since some individuals may need
longer-term rental assistance and services supports to achieve stability.Permanent
supportive housing is a solution to addressing the housing needs of the most
vulnerable.
• Designing an eective crisis response system can help people quickly exit
homelessness; and
• Incorporating employment strategies in homelessness programs to assist low-income
people increase their income as a critical component of housing stability.
The Council recommends these specic State actions to meet the needs of Florida’s households
most at risk of homelessness:
• The Oce on Homelessness, takes a leadership role in modeling and sharing proven
best practices at the state level to ensure all entities using state resources to end
homelessness are implementing best practices.
• The Oce on Homelessness continues to gather data, assemble performance
outcomes, and accurately report on statewide progress toward the goals adopted by
the Council; and
• The Oce on Homelessness continue to incentivize the adoption of best practices
at the local level through housing-focused funding application requirements and
monitoring processes administered by the Oce.
• The Oce on Homelessness provide technical assistance and capacity-building
opportunities to all CoCs within the state of Florida to fully leverage local and federal
funding of homelessness solution homelessness solutions.
• The Oce on Homelessness, in times of crisis, provide more frequent technical
assistance and/or HUD TA assistance for CoCs within the state of Florida.
4. Encourage aordable housing development. Bolster local government
investments and eorts to reduce and end homelessness through the
development of aordable housing for extremely low income, those experiencing
homelessness, and persons with special needs.
As part of its annual funding application, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
(HUD) evaluates CoCs on their ability to increase the number of permanent housing units
for homeless households within their local community. This requires the support of external
funding sources to leverage state and local funding with federal dollars, thus increasing the
capacity for development and rental assistance and creating permanent housing solutions to
end homelessness. Local governments can incentivize best practices at the local level and can
maximize their impact on ending homelessness by investing in CoCs and stakeholders that adopt
best practices.
As noted in recommendation two, more housing is needed to address the rise in homelessness
in the State. To ensure that homelessness is rare, brief, and one-time, a community-wide eort is
required. Local governments, like CoCs, have limited nancial resources to increase the supply of
housing targeted to special populations. State agencies should incentivize local governments to
strategically partner with CoCs to implement strategies that create permanent housing options
specically for people experiencing homelessness. This type of multi-system coordination is
encouraged and documented as a best practice by the United States Interagency Council on
Homelessness (USICH). As quoted from the USICH Home, together: Federal Strategic Plan for
2023 ANNUAL REPORT2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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Preventing and Ending Homelessness
9
, “Achieving these shared goals is not possible through
federal action alone—it requires strategic focus, eort, and investments from both the public and
the private sectors and across all levels of government.”
Therefore, the Council recommends that state agencies assess how they could incentivize local
governments to direct resources to expand housing opportunities for people experiencing
homelessness.Since strategies for addressing housing barriers may vary by community, state
agencies should also consider if there are local entities that are providing supportive services,
such as employment, to people experiencing homelessness.Incentives for these investments can
include using local government support as a scoring criterion or preference in competitive awards;
agencies can also establish goals to fund programs and partnerships in communities in which local
governments are leveraging their resources.
9 Home, Together | United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH)
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APPENDIX I: DEFINING HOMELESSNESS
Homelessness occurs when a person lacks a home. While conceptually simple, state statutes and
federal regulations dictate what it means for an individual or family to be dened as homeless. It
is important to recognize that various systems may have dierent criteria/denitions, sometimes
causing systems to become more complex and dicult to navigate for those who need it. A
household’s eligibility is often tied to denitions outlined by the funding source. Technical and
varying denitions can create unintentional barriers to resolving an individual or family’s housing
crisis. While the term “homeless” can paint various pictures for people, it is important to understand
there is no one dening characteristic of a household experiencing homelessness outside of
lacking a stable place to live. Communities are tasked with addressing homelessness among
a wide variety of households, including people who are unsheltered, living in places not meant
for human habitation, eeing domestic violence, aging out of foster care, staying in a homeless
emergency shelter, and more.The entity responsible for coordinating, planning, and pursuing the
end of homelessness in a community is the Collaborative Applicant or Lead Agency of the local
Continuum of Care (CoC). This work is primarily funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and
Urban Development (HUD), therefore CoCs work within a very specic denition and often are
tasked with prioritizing households based on the federal goal to reduce and end homelessness.
As alluded to throughout this report, there are varying denitions of homelessness dependent upon
sources of funding and state and federal funding or agencies. The report utilizes the HUD denition
of homelessness, unless specied otherwise. This section describes two of the varying denitions.
US DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT (HUD)
HUD denes homelessness among four categories to provide a dened scope that ensures
individuals and families at the greatest risk are served with the limited resources available.
1. Literally Homeless. Individuals and families who live in a place not meant for human
habitation (including outdoors or in their car), emergency shelter, transitional housing, and
motels paid for by a government or charitable organization.
2. Imminent Risk of Homelessness. Individuals and families who will lose their primary
nighttime residence within 14 days and have no other resources or support networks to
obtain other permanent housing.
3. Homeless Under other Federal Statutes. Unaccompanied youth under 25 years of age,
or families with children and youth, who do not meet any of the other categories are
homeless under other federal statutes, have had a lease, and have moved two or more
times in the past 60 days, and are likely to remain unstable because of their special needs
or barriers.
4. Fleeing or Attempting to Flee Domestic Violence. Individuals or families who are eeing or
attempting to ee domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, and who
lack resources and support networks to obtain other permanent housing.
US DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Subtitle VII-B of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (MVA) prescribes a denition
of homelessness that more broadly accounts for the traumatic impact of housing instability on
children and youth and the impact of that trauma on their education and development.
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Homeless children and youth are dened as Individuals who lack a xed, regular, and adequate
nighttime residence and includes:
1. Children and youth who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing,
economic hardship, or a similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or
camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations; are living in
emergency or transitional shelters; or are abandoned in hospitals; or are awaiting foster
care placement.
2. Children and youth who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private
place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human
beings.
3. Children and youth who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings,
substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; and
4. Migratory children (as such term is dened in section 1309 of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965) who qualify as homeless for the purposes of this
subtitle because the children are living in circumstances described above in (1) through
(3).
Subtitle VII-B of the MVA also denes unaccompanied youth as follows: The term “unaccompanied
youth” includes a youth not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian.
10 https://myelisting.com/commercial-real-estate-news/1444/homelessness-united-states-state-by-state-analysis/ data based on original US Department of
Housing and Urban Development counts submitted by Continuums of Care.
APPENDIX II: UNSHELTERED HOMELESSNESS
On a single night in January 2023, approximately 15,706 individuals were unsheltered, which may
have included sleeping in cars, park benches, abandoned buildings, or other places not meant
for human habitation. The number of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness in Florida
increased from 11,746 in 2022 to 15,706 in 2023, representing a 34% increase from 2022 to 2023.
In 2022, Florida ranked 11th in the United States in the number of unsheltered homeless.The inux
of ESG-CV provided temporary shelter units for communities to increase their shelter capacity.
This included hotel/motel and other non-congregate shelter locations.These funds have been
exhausted.In addition, during Hurricane Ian’s recovery, FEMA had to relocate individuals from Florida
to neighboring States because there were not enough hotel beds in Florida to accommodate the
increased need. Although emergency shelter plays a role in the homeless response system, an
eective housing focused outreach program and ample aordable housing can move individuals
experiencing unsheltered homelessness directly into housing without the need for shelter services.
Individuals and chronically homeless individuals are more likely to be unsheltered than families but
the increase in unsheltered homeless is being seen nationwide - there are not enough resources to
serve the inux of individuals experiencing homelessness
10
.
In April 2023, the Miami-Dade Homeless Trust was awarded $21 million under a U.S. Department
of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Supplemental NOFO to address unsheltered
homelessness, in homeless encampments including those in rural communities.A total of 10 new
projects were funded under this initiative.The Homeless Trust will also work in partnership with the
local public housing authorities including the Miami-Dade Housing Agency, the Housing Authority
of the City of Miami Beach, and the Housing Authority of the City of Homestead, that received new
housing stability vouchers.These new vouchers will be available specically to those experiencing
homelessness referred through CoC coordinated entry.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT2023 ANNUAL REPORT
14
TABLE 1: UNSHELTERED HOMELESSNESS, 2018-2023
11
UNSHELTERED HOMELESSNESS ( 2018 – 2023 )
18,000
16,000
14,000
12,000
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
13,393
12,476
12,672
11,746
15,706
7,728
* Continuums of Care submit their homeless Point in Time (PIT) counts to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development
right before they submit information to the Department of Children and Families.Occasionally some corrections are completed after
this report has been printed.
The impact of unsheltered homelessness on a local community could include increased utilization
of emergency health services, frequent interactions with law enforcement, and governmental
costs to managing encampments.At the individual level when coupled with chronic homelessness,
unsheltered individuals are more likely to report higher rates of lifetime illnesses, substance use,
mental health disorders, and incarceration
12
.
Research has found that housing market conditions, including rental costs, eviction rates, and
overcrowded housing units are associated with higher unsheltered homelessness
13
. This nding
highlights the importance of ensuring Floridians have access to aordable housing and preventing
individuals from experiencing unsheltered homelessness and the negative impacts as a result.
Addressing unsheltered homelessness requires comprehensive solutions that provide stable
housing, access to healthcare and support services, and a focus on addressing the root causes of
homelessness.
11 HUD PIT data on Unsheltered Homeless at: https://www.hudexchange.info/resource/3031/pit-and-hic-data-since-2007/
12
unsheltered-homelessness.pdf
13
Aprroaches-to-Address-Unsheltered-Homlessness-2020.pdf
APPENDIX III: SHELTERED HOMELESSNESS
Sheltered homelessness refers to the count of people who were living in emergency shelters,
transitional housing, or other temporary settings.The PIT count for sheltered homelessness in
2022 was 14,213, while the sheltered count in 2023 was 15,103, or an increase of 6.2%.While
sheltered homelessness provides immediate support and stability, several concerns that should be
considered.Sheltered homelessness may result in demands on shelters that exceed the available
space, leading to overcrowding and waitlists.This may leave some individuals without a safe place
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
15
to stay.Shelters are a temporary solution to homelessness, and some individuals may struggle
with transitioning out of shelter into housing.In response to the pandemic and the hurricane, non-
congregate shelters, mostly hotel/motel rooms, were temporarily used as shelters.The number of
available permanent shelter units has decreased steadily over the past 5 years.A critical component
of shelter services is the support activities oered to residents including aordable housing, job
opportunities, and case management.
TABLE 2: SHELTERED HOMELESSNESS, 2018-2023
14
SHELTERED HOMELESSNESS ( 2018 – 2023 )
20,000
18,000
16,000
14,000
12,000
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
2018 2019 2020 2021* 2022 2023
17,594
16,111
15,079
14,213
15,103
13,490
*The 2022 data for FL-510, FL-513, FL-517, FL-519 and FL-520 were revised based on HUD’s reconciliation of the CoC data.
14 HUD PIT data on Unsheltered Homeless at: https://www.hudexchange.info/resource/3031/pit-and-hic-data-since-2007/
15
16
APPENDIX IV: HOMELESSNESS AMONG FAMILIES
The 2023 PIT reports approximately 24% (2,264 families with 7,530 individuals) of the homeless
population in Florida are households that include adults with children. The 2022 PIT data reported
25% (2,061 families or 6,118 individuals) were homeless. While the percentage of families
experiencing homelessness has decreased slightly the total number of persons experiencing
homelessness has increased. Homelessness can be a signicant stressor on families, including
food insecurity, poor physical and behavioral health, compromised education, and possible
family separation
15
. These factors may have an impact on obtaining housing stability for families.
Homelessness has a signicant impact on children including higher levels of behavioral problems,
health problems, and academic performance
16
. As with other populations a driving factor in families
experiencing homelessness is the shortage of aordable rental housing. As rental costs increase
families are left paying a larger share of their income towards housing. In this scenario one crisis
can be destabilizing for a family and may result in homelessness.
APPENDIX V: HOMELESSNESS AMONG SPECIAL POPULATIONS
STUDENTS
While the annual Point in Time count oers a snapshot of people experiencing literal homelessness
it does not account for all types of homelessness among students and other youth subpopulations.
The Department of Education uses a broader denition of homelessness to include youth who
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
16
“lack a xed, regular, and nighttime residence.”
17
Another type of household that falls within the
McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (subsection VII-B), are sometimes referred to as
“doubled-up,” and due to their economic and housing crisis these households lack the resources
to maintain a lease in their own name. Some of these home-sharing arrangements are relatively
stable; in other cases, people, especially young people, may be “couch-surng” and moving from
one place to another in quick succession. The larger numbers of homelessness in this section
reect the broader denition while also counting a cumulative total over the course of an academic
school year. The Florida Department of Education (FDOE) reports that 78,277 students experienced
homelessness in the 2021-2022 school year, this is a 23% increase from the 2020-2021 school
year. While the data shows an increase in youth homelessness in the 2021-2022 school year,
research has indicated an estimated 420,000 fewer youth experiencing homelessness were
identied during school year 2019-2020
18
. The main reason for the fewer numbers was the inability
to identify youth due to distance learning and school closures during the public health emergency.
Therefore, school year 2020-2021 likely represents an undercount of youth experiencing
homelessness.
TABLE 3: HOMELESS STUDENTS, 2017-2022
19
HOMELESS STUDENTS ( School Years 2017 – 2022 )
120,000
100,000
80,000
60,000
40,000
20,000
0
2017-2018 2018-2019 2019-2020 2020 -2021 2021-2022
95,860
91,675
79,781
78,277
63,846
Though most of these youth are not living in emergency shelters or places not meant for human
habitation, any type of housing insecurity and lack of regular nighttime setting is a traumatic
experience and is proven to cause disruption to a young person’s academic pursuits, as
documented by disparities in standardized test scores and graduation rates.
20
17
18
19
php/20081/urlt/1721HLStudTrendData.pdf
20 University of Florida Shimberg Center for Housing Studies and Miami Homes for All. “Students Experiencing Homelessness in Florida: Updates +
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
17
TABLE 4: LIVING SITUATIONS AT THE TIME STUDENT IDENTIFIED AS HOMELESS
21
LIVING SITUATION AT THE TIME STUDENTS WERE
IDENTIFIED AS HOMELESS ( School Years 2017 – 2022 )
3,958
10,926
58,069
5,324
Shelters
Sharing
Other
Motels
The majority of youth experiencing homelessness were sharing housing with other persons (74%).
Youth identied in the “other” category include those living in cars, parks, and other places not
designated for regular sleeping accommodations.
Solutions to address homelessness among students in Florida’s school system mirror successful
interventions in the housing crisis response system which include developing cross-sector
collaborations, employing a person-centered approach to services, and advocating for additional
funding aimed at aordable housing.
21
php/20081/urlt/1721HLStudTrendData.pdf
22 https://voicesofyouthcount.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/ChapinHall_VoYC_1-Pager_Final_111517.pdf
23 https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/RL/RL33785
UNACCOMPANIED HOMELESS YOUTH
An unaccompanied homeless youth refers to a youth who is homeless and not in the physical
custody of a parent or guardian. Risk factors for youth homelessness include sexual orientation,
sexual activity, school problems, pregnancy, and substance abuse.
Table 5 illustrates the 6% increase in unaccompanied homeless youth from school year 2020-2021
to 2021-2022, as reported by the Florida Department of Education. However, as noted above,
school year 2020-2021 likely represents an undercount of youth experiencing homelessness
due to school closures and distance learning. Since school year 2017-2018 there has been a 5%
decrease in youth experiencing homelessness. A study conducted by Voices of Youth Count from
Chapin Hill at the University of Chicago found that 1 in 10 young adults ages 18 to 25 experience
some form of homelessness in a year
22
. Although Florida has seen progress in the number of
unaccompanied homeless youth, homelessness among this population has long-lasting impacts on
the lives of youth. Homeless youth are vulnerable to many problems while not in a permanent home
including untreated mental health disorders, drug use, and sexual exploitation
23
. To adequately
address homelessness among unaccompanied youth, systems of care must coordinate services
between education agencies, child welfare, juvenile justice, etc.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
18
TABLE 5: UNACCOMPANIED HOMELESS YOUTH, 2017-2022
24
UNACCOMPANIED HOMELESS YOUTH ( 2017 – 2022 )
9,000
8,000
7,000
6,000
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,000
1,000
0
7,844
7,061
6,952
6,342
5,991
2017-2018 2018-2019 2019-2020 2020 -2021 2021-2022
24
25
26 https://www.va.gov/HOMELESS/faqs.asp#accordion-va-role
PARENTING YOUTH
Included in the youth homelessness population is a percentage of youth who experience
homelessness and are pregnant or parenting. These youth are not only dealing with the trauma
of not having permanent housing, but in also trying to provide stable and safe housing to live with
their children. The 2023 PIT data reports that there were 194 parenting youth during the annual
count. Data has estimated that about 1.1 million children have a young parent who experienced
homelessness in a year.
25
The challenges faced by this segment of the homeless youth population
requires systems of care to support developmentally appropriate services that address the unique
needs of young homeless parents.
Solutions to address homelessness among students in Florida’s school system mirror successful
interventions in the housing crisis response system which include developing cross-sector
collaborations, employing a person-centered approach to services, and advocating for additional
funding aimed at aordable housing. To achieve success in addressing the housing needs of
homeless youth, there must be an increase of stock in housing that is aordable and available.
For schoolchildren and their families who lack stable housing, it takes a multi-system approach,
including leveraging local, state, and federal resources, to satisfy the need for housing options.
When students and their families have access to stable housing, decent wages, and natural
supports they can thrive. For parenting youth, it requires recognizing the importance of holistic
models that can support young parents and their children as they navigate to self-suciency.
VETERAN HOMELESSNESS
Homelessness among veterans has been a critical issue among state, local and federal agencies.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Aairs reports that through their campaign to secure permanent
housing for every veteran, homelessness among the group decreased by 50% between 2010 and
2020 . For the time period of 2010 to 2020,
26
Florida reduced homelessness by 68%, from 7,794
homeless veterans in 2010 to 2,504 in 2023.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
19
TABLE 6: HOMELESS VETERANS, 2018-2023
27
HOMELESS VETERANS ( 2018 – 2023 )
3,000
2,500
2,000
1,500
1,000
500
0
2018 2019 2020 2021* 2022 2023
2,543
2,472
2,436
2,279
2,504
1,583
*The 2021 Point in Time Count numbers are not comparable to the previous or current years’ counts. Typically, Continuums of Care
(CoCs) conduct a PIT Count of both sheltered and unsheltered households. In 2021, due to COVID-19 related safety concerns, only
six of the 27 CoCs conducted such a count; 10 CoCs did not conduct an unsheltered count; and others conducted a modied form
of the unsheltered count. All CoCs conducted a sheltered PIT count. For those that did not conduct an unsheltered count, the CoCs
reported zero unsheltered persons, resulting in an undercount of homelessness.
Florida’s PIT data shows a more gradual decrease from 2018 to 2020. The data for 2021 can be
attributed to the alternative collection methods used because of the public health emergency.
However, the 2023 PIT data indicates an increase in the number of homeless veterans from 2,279 in
2022 to 2,504 in 2023. Consideration to reduce homelessness should include leveraging programs
that specically target this population such as the HUD VA Supportive Housing (VASH) vouchers
and Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) program. These vouchers assist veterans
by providing long-term rental assistance for permanent housing to those who are high needs.
However, as indicated throughout the report, to support this population, the state must prioritize its
resources toward aordable permanent housing.
27 https://www.va.gov/HOMELESS/faqs.asp#accordion-va-role
OLDER ADULTS
The shelter system, nursing homes, hospice care, and other aging services often do not have a
history of addressing the specic challenges and needs of older adults. This may make some older
adults reluctant to seek care in these spaces, even if they might be able to aord it. Adults 64 and
older represent 28% of the homeless population.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
20
TABLE 7: HOMELESS POPULATION BY AGE
28
2023 HOMELESS POPULATION BY AGE
7,000
6,000
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,000
1,000
0
4,668
1,869
4,955
5,451
2,785
5,861
5,220
Under 18 18 - 24 25 - 34 35 - 44 45 - 54 55 - 64 Over 64
The aging population is growing, by 2040, there will be about 80.8 million older Americans, which
will account for 22 %, almost one-fourth, of the population. As the aging population grows so does
their rate of homelessness. Moreover, projections based upon analysis of three major U.S. cities
estimate that homelessness among older adults is expected to nearly triple in 2030. Additionally,
the homeless population, overall, continues to get older. The root causes of homelessness among
older adults are diverse. These can include community-level factors such as lack of accessible and
aordable housing and limited safety net resources. They also may include individual risk factors,
such as medical problems, health-related behaviors such as substance use disorders, social factors
(e.g., social isolation, barriers to transportation), and nancial insecurity. Key eorts to address
homelessness among older adults not only include building and maintaining partnerships among
the various actors that engage with older adults, but it also demands the leveraging of public
funding.
29
28 HUD PIT data at: https://www.hudexchange.info/resource/3031/pit-and-hic-data-since-2007/
29 Recommitting to Older Adults During Older Americans Month - National Alliance to End Homelessness
30 Mental Health America. (2022). Adult Data 2022, State of Mental Health in America. Retrieved on July 13, 2023, from https://mhanational.org/
SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESS AND SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER
Over the past year, Florida saw a 35% increase in homelessness among individuals with serious
mental illness and substance use disorders from 6,755 to 9,140 from 2022 to 2023 respectively.
High rates of chronic and co-occurring health conditions, and mental health and substance use
disorders are frequently associated with homelessness. Without access to basic necessities such
as housing, these conditions exacerbate and aect crisis services such as rst responders, jails,
shelters, hospitals, and ultimately taxpayers. The COVID-19 pandemic nearly eradicated aordable
housing, making nding housing for some of Florida’s most vulnerable nearly impossible.
In 2022, Florida had the nation's third-highest homeless population with 25,959 people. For
that same year, Mental Health America found that Florida ranked rst for the prevalence of adult
substance use disorder and third the for adult prevalence of mental illness in the U.S.
30
Florida’s
2023 PIT count reveals a total of 30,809 homeless individuals, of those 5,374 were living with a
serious mental illness, and 3,766 with a substance use disorder (Table 8.). Individuals experiencing
homelessness face a range of health problems, including but not limited to, alcohol and drug
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
21
addiction, mental illness, and other serious conditions. These health issues often stem from and are
exacerbated by lack of access to basic necessities such as food, shelter, and healthcare.
31
Homelessness and opioid use are two critical public health issues that are interrelated. People
experiencing homelessness are also at higher risk for opioid misuse and overdose than those who
are housed. One study found that homeless individuals had a higher risk of opioid overdose, with
an adjusted risk rate of 1.8% for homeless vs. 0.3% for low-income people who had housing.
32
Homelessness presents multiple vulnerabilities including signicant trauma, serious mental illness,
poly-substance use, and health conditions. In order to cope with the stress of homelessness,
individuals develop substance use disorders, rather than the other way around.
Individuals with behavioral health disorders frequently cite a lack of aordable housing as a major
barrier to recovery. Research indicates that a combination of long-term housing, treatment, and
recovery support services leads to improved housing stability and reductions in substance use
and mental health symptoms
33
. Locating housing is not just important but timing is critical in order
to manage symptoms and reduce the amount of impairment individuals experience. Unfortunately,
housing for these vulnerable individuals is in short supply. The years of inadequate funding, policies,
and programs aimed at addressing homelessness also play a signicant role in exacerbating the
current housing crisis. The healthcare community has also been slow to react. Both the private
and public health sector is growing awareness of housing as an important social determinant of
health and are increasingly employing strategies to improve access to housing. However, as they
gained awareness, thousands of aordable housing units were lost over the past decade rendering
aordable housing virtually nil.
The State of the Nation’s Housing 2019 highlighted a signicant gap between the production of new
housing and increase in households and income growth from 2010 through 2018.
34
The Shimberg
Center for Housing Studies at the University of Florida’s 2022 Rental Market Study reports 825,990
low-income Florida households pay more than 40 % of their income for rent. Currently, Florida has
only 26 aordable and available rental units for every 100 households with incomes of 0-30% of
the area median income, a decit of 398,715 units
35
. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, this
lack of aordable housing has become even more apparent, compounding the need for accessible
and aordable housing options.
Consequently, governments and communities must work together towards developing adhesive
solutions that address the root causes of homelessness while providing support for those aected
by it. Although the 2023 Legislative Session included signicant investments in housing, it is
important to note that it does not fully address the need that existed before the pandemic or
suciently target housing to the lowest-income households. Continued funding, collaboration,
and support must be dedicated towards a variety of housing options for individuals with behavioral
health conditions with extremely low-income or experiencing homelessness.
31 Sleet, D.A., et. al. (2021). Homelessness and Public Health: A Focus on Strategies and Solutions, National Library of Public Medicine (2021). Retrieved on
July 13, 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8583397/. doi: 10.3390/ijerph182111660.
32 Fine, D.R., et. al. (2022). Drug Overdose Mortality Among People Experiencing Homelessness, 2003 to 2018. JAMA network open, 5(1), e2142676. https://
doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.42676 Retrieved on June 13, 2023, from Drug Overdose Mortality Among People Experiencing Homelessness,
2003 to 2018 - PMC (nih.gov).
33 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2011). Leading Change: A Plan for SAMHSA’s Roles and Actions 2011-2014. HHS
Publication No. (SMA) 11-4629. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2011. Retrieved July 13, 2023 from Leading
Change: A Plan for SAMHSA’s Roles and Actions, 2011–2014 (ncceh.org)
34 Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. (2019). The State of the Nation’s Housing 2019. Retrieved July 13, 2023, from The State of the
Nation's Housing 2019 | Joint Center for Housing Studies (harvard.edu)
35
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
22
TABLE 8: HOMELESS POPULATION AMONG Special Populations
36
2023 HOMELESS AMONG SPECIAL POPULATIONS
3,766
2,519
5,374
Serious Mental Illness
Substance Use Disorder
Victims of Domestic Violence
36 HUD PIT data at: https://www.hudexchange.info/resource/3031/pit-and-hic-data-since-2007/
37 Domestic Violence - National Alliance to End Homelessness
38 https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-20-433
VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Domestic Violence is common among youth, single adults and families who become homeless.
Survivors eeing domestic violence may turn to shelters to seek a safe, temporary place to stay.
In 2022, approximately 11% of all Emergency Shelter, Transitional Housing, and Safe Haven beds
in homeless service systems were targeted to survivors of domestic violence and their families.
Short- or long-term rental assistance can be used to help survivors exit shelter and regain housing.
Having an aordable place to call home is crucial for this population, to both reduce their risk of
homelessness as well as the possibility of future violence. Research indicates that families that
receive a housing subsidy after exiting homelessness are far less likely to experience interpersonal
violence than those that do not.
37
APPENDIX VI: CHALLENGES ADDRESSING HOUSING & HOMELESSNESS
HOUSING AFFORDABILITY
Housing aordability is a pressing issue that signicantly impacts all communities. According to
the National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH) one of the primary causes of homelessness
is the lack of aordable housing. As has been mentioned in this report, Florida has seen among
the highest housing cost increases in the country. And according to a Government Accountability
Oce Report to Congress, median rent increases of $100 per month are associated with a 9%
increase in homelessness.
38
When housing becomes too expensive, it may force people to choose
between paying for housing and meeting other basic needs, and increasing the odds of eviction,
foreclosure, and homelessness. Homeless individuals and families often experience physical and
mental health problems, making it dicult for them to maintain employment. This may also result in
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
23
a strain on social services and healthcare systems, leading to higher costs for emergency services
and hospitalization.
39
Permanent housing is the most eective way to end homelessness. In 2021 Florida Housing
Finance Corporation released a Needs Assessment for Homeless/Special Needs Households that
projected the scale of need for supportive and aordable housing for homeless and special needs
populations.
40
The assessment determined an estimated need of 12,811 units for supportive
housing. Supportive Housing is a model that combines aordable housing, with an indenite length
of stay, with supportive services to assist households with achieving housing stability. Those in
need of supportive housing may include individuals exiting behavioral health institutions, youth
aging out of foster care, child welfare-involved families, and survivors of domestic violence. In
addition to the supportive housing needs, the assessment also estimated the need for 144,151
aordable housing units. In total 156,962 households need either aordable or supportive housing.
This estimated need would cost approximately $36.32 billion to develop enough units to address
the supporting and aordable housing needs.
41
It is important to note that this estimate only
accounts for the construction of housing, and not the costs of supportive services that are needed
to maintain stable housing.
39
Serving Hospitals in the USA: Observational Study. J GEN INTERN MED 35, 2560–2568 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-020-06029-0
40
41
42
Debate, 28(1), 1-24.
43 Wynne-Edwards, J. (2003). Overcoming Community Opposition to Homelessness Sheltering Projects under the National Homelessness Initiative. http://
www.urbancentre.utoronto.ca/pdfs/elibrary/NHINIMBY.pdf
44
NOT IN MY BACKYARD (NIMBY)
“Not in my backyard” (NIMBY) is a mindset that refers to the opposition by community members
towards the construction of aordable housing properties in their neighborhood. This mindset
is often driven by concerns about property values, safety, and overall quality of life. Research
suggests that these concerns are unwarranted, but that does not sway those in opposition.
As a result, aordable housing is not built, which leads to a lack of suitable housing options for
individuals experiencing or at risk of homelessness. Research has shown that NIMBY opposition
often results in the obstruction of new housing projects which are necessary to address the
issue of homelessness.
42
Allowing more exibility to develop aordable housing projects will help
to address NIMBY. Through providing tax incentives for current landlords to serve low-income
individuals, allowing aordable housing units to be built in commercial zones without requiring a
zoning change or comprehensive plan amendment; and requiring counties and cities to post the
land they own suitable for aordable housing, the Live Local Act (SB102) will help address NIMBY
issues that have been an obstacle for aordable housing developments in some communities.
NIMBY is also an active and eective barrier to developing homeless shelters and transitional
housing programs.
43
Without access to aordable housing, individuals experiencing homelessness
may be forced to live in unsafe and unsanitary conditions. To address the impact of NIMBY there
is a need for increased public education and community engagement on homelessness issues.
By providing accurate information about the benets of aordable housing, communities can
better understand the importance of addressing homelessness. In addition, partnerships between
housing providers, social service agencies, and local governments can help create supportive
housing solutions that are responsive to community concerns and meet the needs of people
experiencing homelessness.
44
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
24
LOCAL LAWS, RULES, AND REGULATIONS
There are several rules, laws, and regulations at the local level that make it dicult to build
aordable housing. For example, zoning laws dictate how land can be used and, in many cases,
local zoning laws limit the types of housing that can be built in certain areas. Some areas may
only permit single-family homes or may have minimum lot sizes that make if challenging to
build aordable multi-family housing. With the Live Local Act (SB102), a county must authorize
proposed multifamily and mixed-use residential projects as an allowable use in any area zoned for
commercial, industrial, or mixed use with certain requirements.
1. At least 40% of the residential units are aordable.
2. Aordable means: that the monthly rents, including taxes, insurance, and utilities do not
exceed 30% of the AMI for extremely-low-income persons (i.e., 30% AMI) (“ELI”), very-
low-income persons (i.e., 50% AMI) (“VLI”), low-income persons (i.e., 80% AMI) (“LI”), and
moderate-income persons (120% AMI) (“MI”).
3. Period of at least 30 years; and
4. For a mixed-use project at least 65% of the total square footage of the improvement on
the parcel must be used for residential purposes.
For proposed multifamily developments meeting the above requirements and that are to be located
in areas zoned for commercial, industrial, or mixed-use, a county may no longer require the owner
to obtain a zoning or land use change, special exemption, conditional use approval, variance,
or comprehensive plan amendment for building height and densities. Building codes establish
minimum safety and quality standards for construction. While these codes are important to ensure
safety, they can also increase the cost of construction, or be unnecessarily strict and therefore
make it dicult to build aordable housing. Other costs may be increased through environmental
regulations related to land use and water quality. The Live Local Act (SB102) will help bridge the
gap in a meaningful way with market-driven, short-and long-term solutions that improve options for
both homeownership and aordable rental units in communities across our state.
LEVERAGING RESOURCES
Another challenges to addressing aordable housing issues are missed opportunities to leverage
federal resources. In 2019, the Agency for Health Care Administration implemented a housing
assistance pilot, in collaboration with certain health plans. The Housing Assistance Waiver
provides evidence-based community supports and services that help secure housing for Medicaid
recipients ages 21 and older who are homeless or at risk of homelessness and have a serious
mental illness (SMI), or substance use disorder (SUD). This program assists individuals with
Medicaid to obtain housing support including case management and behavioral health treatment.
Working with the CoCs, eligible Medicaid recipients can be linked with the Continuum of Care
housing projects, including Rapid Rehousing or Permanent Supportive Housing. Medicaid Regions
ve (Pinellas and Pasco County) and seven (Seminole, Orange, Brevard, and Osceola Counties)
are the only areas where the services are available. While Medicaid is primarily a health insurance
program, it can play an important role in supporting stable housing for low-income families.
APPENDIX VII: EVICTIONS FILED IN FLORIDA
According to data compiled by The University of Florida’s Shimberg Center, eviction lings in Florida
have increased 54% from 2021 to 2022. While the evictions were down in 2020 and 2021, this
was due to the eviction moratorium and the more than $1.4 billion in Emergency Rental Assistance
Funds paid out by the State of Florida for rental and utility assistance during this time.
There are several factors that may have contributed to the increase in eviction lings during this
time period. Those factors include the eviction moratorium that was lifted during this time and the
utilization of special allocations of funding related to the public health emergency. Additionally, the
price of real estate in Florida has skyrocketed which has caused a decline in aordable housing.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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As the supply of aordable rentals decreases, the rental rates have drastically increased. Another
contributing factor is the shift in population from other states to Florida.
One model that is used in some communities to combat eviction lings is eviction diversion
programs, which are policies that are aimed at preventing homelessness by helping tenants avoid
eviction. These programs often include nancial assistance, mediation, and legal representation
for tenants facing eviction. Legal representation has been shown to be eective and resulted
in tenants being much more likely to avoid eviction than those who did not receive legal
representation
45
. The primary component of these types of programs is nancial assistance in the
form of rental assistance, emergency funds, and other types of resources. Another component of
eviction diversion programs is mediation, which involves bringing landlords and tenants together
to negotiation a resolution that allows tenants to remain in their homes. Overall, eviction diversion
programs have potential to be a powerful tool in the ght against homelessness.
45 https://www.irp.wisc.edu/publications/fastfocus/pdfs/FF22-2015.pdf
46 The Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act of 2009 is the primary federal law governing federal programs related
47 The terms “CoC Lead Agency” and “Collaborative Applicant” are often used interchangeably in Florida. The Collaborative Applicant is the CoC-designated
organization, sometimes called the CoC Lead Agency, that submits funding proposals to HUD on behalf of the CoC. A Collaborative Applicant may be
Statutes/2020/Chapter420/Part_VI/
APPENDIX VIII: CONTINUUM OF CARE (COC) OPERATION IN FLORIDA
One of the most coordinated eorts to prevent and end homelessness was the establishment of the
Continuum of Care (CoC) model by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
nationwide. A CoC comprises all stakeholders in a geographic area that are working together to
prevent and end homelessness. The State of Florida has 27 CoCs of varying sizes and geographic
areas. Some CoCs serve one county, while another spans eight counties.
In alignment with best practice, the CoC is composed of a broad array of stakeholders across
multiple systems in the community, extending beyond nonprots that provide homeless-specic
services. To prevent and end homelessness, it is necessary to take a multi-disciplinary approach,
encouraging participation in action planning to support activities that address homelessness in
local communities. CoCs work to engage multiple sectors, including philanthropy, local government,
housing developers, realtors, health care systems, child welfare, criminal justice, and so on.
These eorts strengthen collective impact when addressing the needs of people experiencing
or at risk of homelessness. These partnerships can assist CoCs to strengthen the housing crisis
response system, expand funding opportunities, increase economic opportunity, and incorporate
perspectives that help build a more eective system of care.
Prior to the development of the current CoC model, homeless services organizations worked
individually and applied directly to HUD for funding. Currently, as required by the federal HEARTH
Act
46
, the CoC establishes a local planning body to organize and deliver housing and services to
meet the needs of people experiencing homelessness. The planning body is typically a CoC Board
or Council comprising community leaders and representatives of multiple stakeholder groups. The
CoC also designates a “CoC Lead Agency.”
47
CoCs are required to submit an annual consolidated application to HUD for CoC Program funding.
All CoCs have a designated Lead Agency that serves as this collaborative applicant. The CoC Lead
Agency provides sta leadership for the system, submits funding applications on behalf of the
CoC to HUD and the State of Florida, and has a wide range of responsibilities to ensure that the
local system is eectively ending homelessness. CoC Lead Agencies are tasked with leading the
coordination of community eorts that include a diverse group of stakeholders.
The State of Florida supports this vital work of the Lead Agency through CoC Stang Grants. The
CoC geographic areas are agreed upon by the local communities and HUD and are recognized by
the State. The Florida CoC geographic areas are provided in Appendix VIII and the contacts for the
CoCs are in Appendix IX.
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APPENDIX IX: EXAMPLE OF STRATEGIC LOCAL COLLABORATIONS
GULF COAST PARTNERSHIP -MASTT- MULTI-AGENCY SHELTER TRANSITION TEAM
To support Hurricane Ian response, Charlotte County’s Disaster Shelter opened on October 8th
and within 10 weeks the Multi-Agency Shelter Transition Team (MASTT) located stable housing
for over 180 survivors.A MASTT Team provides a variety of assistance and resources through a
one-stop site where disaster victims interview with numerous agencies to jump-start their journey
toward recovery. The Charlotte County MASTT included representatives from FEMA, Gulf Coast
Partnership as CoC Lead, Florida Department of Emergency Management, Charlotte County
Human Services, Charlotte County Community Services, American Red Cross, Plexos Group, and
the Florida Department of Children & Families. Additional resources and services provided in the
weeks following the storm include:
• 1,000,000 meals and 316,500 MREs distributed.
• 8,190 Disaster Supplemental Food Stamps issued.
• 2,643 residents qualied for Transitional Shelter Assistance (TSA)
• 54,000 FEMA applications completed.
• 22,000 crisis calls answered.
• 46,540 cases of water and 25,932 bags of ice
• 15,362 homes cleaned, mucked and gutted.
• 5,000+ temporary roof repairs & 15,548 tarps provided.
APPENDIX XI: COC FUNDING
On September 28, 2022, Hurricane Ian made landfall in southwestern Florida as a category 4
hurricane, producing catastrophic storm surge, damaging winds, and historic ooding across much
of central and northern Florida.The damage from this hurricane caused many to lose their jobs and/
or housing.Federal, State, and private funders stepped into to provide support but many of the
programs are short lasting or not available for individuals experiencing homelessness.On October
26, 2022, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) allocated $3,000,000 to
the Department through a new program, Rapid Unsheltered Survivor Housing (RUSH).The program
is a rapid response to addressing homelessness in communities hit by disasters. RUSH is meant to
serve those who cannot access all services provided by FEMA programs or for those whose short-
term FEMA assistance has ended.RUSH has many of the same requirements as ESG.RUSH provides
funding for eligible activities including emergency shelter; rapid re-housing, which provides up to
24 months of rental assistance, nancial assistance for move in costs, and supportive services
for people currently experiencing homelessness; homelessness prevention, which provides
up to 24 months of rental assistance, utility assistance, and supportive services for people at
risk of homelessness; and outreach assistance, including assistance to meet urgent needs, for
unsheltered people.
The Department was oered an additional $6,440,688.65 in reallocated ESG-CV funding from the
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development to prevent, prepare for, and respond
to coronavirus, among individuals and families who are homeless or receiving homeless assistance
and to support additional homeless assistance and homelessness prevention activities to mitigate
the impacts created by coronavirus.
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TABLE 9: 2023 COC STATE AND FEDERAL FUNDING
CoC
Number
CoC Emergency
Solutions Grant
(Federal)
TANF
Homelessness
Prevention
(Federal)
ESG-CV
(Federal)
ESG- RUSH
(Federal)
Stang
(State)
Challenge
(State)
Total (State
& Federal)
FL-500 Suncoast Partnership to End
Homelessness
$172,000.00 $38,000.00 $797,921.30 $165,688.36 $107,142.85 $119,000.00 $1,399,752.51
FL-501 Tampa Hillsborough Homeless
Initiative
$151,000.00 - $1,218,845.14 $201,690.17 $107,142.85 $86,000.00 $1,764,678.16
FL-502 The Homeless Leadership Alliance
of Pinellas
$200,000.00 $46,582.00 $105,311.12 $192,970.88 $107,142.85 $148,500.00 $800,506.85
FL-503 Homeless Coalition of Polk County $172,000.00 $34,683.00 $241,816.48 $137,546.78 $107,142.85 $119,000.00 $812,189.11
FL-504 Volusia/Flagler County Coalition for
the Homeless
$200,000.00 $46,582.00 $66,344.94 $213,836.92 $107,142.85 $148,500.00 $782,406.71
FL-505 Homelessness and Housing Alliance $300,000.00 $38,000.00 $705,575.95 - $107,142.85 $148,500.00 $1,299,218.80
FL-506 Big Bend Continuum of Care $150,000.00 $32,250.00 $250,451.16 - $107,142.85 $86,000.00 $625,844.01
FL-507 Homeless Services Network of
Central Florida
$200,000.00 $46,582.00 $602,156.20 $222,981.11 $107,142.85 $148,500.00 $1,327,362.16
FL-508 United Way of North Central FL $257,000.00 $32,250.00 $1,630,097.22 $157,720.54 $107,142.85 $86,000.00 $2,270,210.61
FL-509 Treasure Coast Homeless Services
Council
$300,000.00 - $275,806.99 - $107,142.85 $148,500.00 $831,449.84
FL-510 Changing Homelessness $172,000.00 $46,582.00 $967,220.76 - $107,142.85 $148,500.00 $1,441,445.61
FL-511 Opening Doors of NW FL $257,000.00 $38,000.00 $1,138,256.26 - $107,142.85 $119,000.00 $1,659,399.11
FL-512 Flagler Hospital $226,000.00 $32,250.00 $388,495.00 $168,709.10 $107,142.85 $86,000.00 $1,008,596.95
FL-513 Brevard Homeless Coalition $257,000.00 $32,250.00 $680,016.38 $88,949.83 $107,142.85 $119,000.00 $1,284,359.06
FL-514 Marion County Board of County
Commissioners
$172,000.00 $38,000.00 $425,318.40 - $107,142.85 $86,000.00 $828,461.25
FL-515 Doorways of NW FL $226,000.00 $32,250.00 $804,422.19 - $107,142.85 $86,000.00 $1,255,815.04
FL-517 Heartland Coalition for the
Homeless
$226,000.00 - $117,314.41 $167,509.85 $107,142.85 $86,000.00 $703,967.11
FL-518 United Way of Suwannee Valley $257,000.00 $38,000.00 $561,989.86 - $107,142.85 $119,000.00 $1,083,132.71
FL-519 Pasco County CoC $172,000.00 $32,250.00 $721,955.11 $44,542.68 $107,142.85 $119,000.00 $1,196,890.64
FL-520 Mid Florida Homeless Coalition $257,000.00 $38,000.00 $209,606.56 $99,795.44 $107,142.85 $119,000.00 $830,544.85
FL-600 Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust $200,000.00 $46,582.00 $231,097.32 - $107,142.85 $148,500.00 $733,322.17
FL-601 Broward County Homeless Initiative
Partnership
$194,019.00 - $1,810,680.97 - $107,142.85 $119,000.00 $2,230,842.82
FL-602 Gulf Coast Partnership $300,000.00 $46,582.00 $253,897.52 $288,605.20 $107,142.85 $148,500.00 $1,144,727.57
FL-603 Lee County Continuum of Care $105,525.00 $46,582.00 $249,551.03 $418,906.75 $107,142.85 $148,500.00 $1,076,207.63
FL-604 Monroe County Homeless Services
CoC
$257,000.00 $32,250.00 $332,406.18 $71,353.22 $107,142.85 $119,000.00 $919,152.25
FL-605 Palm Beach County Division of
Human Services
- $38,000.00 $320,661.26 $158,444.96 $107,142.85 $86,000.00 $710,249.07
FL-606 Collier County Hunger and
Homeless Coalition
$200,000.00 - $303,836.96 $125,748.23 $107,142.85 $86,000.00 $822,728.04
Total $5,580,544.00 $852,507.00 $15,411,052.67 $2,925,000.02 $2,892,856.95 $3,181,500.00 $30,844,452.31
State-administered HUD ESG - Federal Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) funding allocated to the
State of Florida by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, to be used for homeless-
related housing interventions, outreach, shelters, and more.
State-administered TANF-HP - Federal Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) funding
that is allocated to the State of Florida, which is utilized for Homelessness Prevention (HP) services.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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State Stang - Funding appropriated by the State of Florida Legislature to build capacity in local
homeless Continuums of Care (CoCs).
State Challenge - Funding appropriated by the State of Florida Legislature and allocated from the
Local and State Government Housing Trust Fund, to provide a variety of homelessness-related
services and housing.
State-administered HUD ESG-CV – Federal Emergency Solutions Grant Coronavirus-related
(ESG-CV) funding allocated to the State of Florida by the Department of Housing and Urban
Development, to be used for homeless-related housing interventions, outreach, shelters, and other
activities to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the coronavirus.
State-administered HUD ESG- RUSH funds- Federal funds allocated to the State of Florida to be
used to address ongoing needs of individuals who were homeless prior to the storm and those who
are experiencing homelessness as a result of Hurricane Ian, and whose needs are not served or
fully met by existing Federal disaster relief programs.
48 https://www.hudexchange.info/resource/5691/system-performance-measures-data-since-fy-2015/
APPENDIX XII: SYSTEM PERFORMANCE MEASURES
In addition to the PIT count data HUD has added to its focus by evaluating performance on a
system level, seeking to identify how each piece of the housing crisis response system contributes
to the eectiveness of the system as a whole. CoC Performance Prole, System Performance
Measures (SPM) Reports, provide a snapshot of a CoC’s performance in addressing homelessness
using performance indicators such as the length of time persons have been homeless, returns to
homelessness over time, and exits to permanent housing. The report compiles data from the Point
in Time (PIT) count, Housing Inventory Count (HIC), System Performance Measures (SPMs), and
CoC Program Competition.This information may be used to recognize gaps in populations served,
decision-making for resource allocation, justifying projects or funds, etc.
Rather than focusing on individual service providers, HUD uses these reports to help the CoC
evaluate the continuum’s overall eectiveness and eciency in making homelessness rare, brief,
and one-time. System Performance Measures (SPMs) oer a comprehensive and complete picture
of how long people are experiencing homelessness, how many households are entering and exiting
throughout the year and housing outcomes.
SPMs are important to understanding a community’s progress toward meeting the needs of people
experiencing homelessness.As the above table outlines, Florida has been successful in several key
components of the SPMs.The state has lowered the rate at which people return to homelessness
and increased the rate of people exiting to permanent housing
48
. As alluded to throughout this
report, the public health emergency has also impacted the results of SPMs.With the increases
in rent and decrease in available rental units, communities experienced higher utilization of
emergency shelters and more people entering homelessness for the rst time.
The 27 local Continuum of Care planning agencies have reported the following information on
the makeup of people experiencing homelessness in Florida. They captured this information from
direct interviews or from agency data on persons experiencing homelessness served as entered
the HMIS. The current 2022 data is compared to the reported 2021 data. Reported characteristics
are based on the individuals own self-report and may not have been veried.
The 27 local Continuum of Care planning agencies have reported the following information on
the makeup of people experiencing homelessness in Florida. They captured this information from
direct interviews or from agency data on persons experiencing homelessness served as entered
into the HMIS. The current 2022 data is compared to reported 2021 data. Reported characteristics
are based on the individuals own self-report and may not have been veried.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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TABLE 10: HOMELESS FOR THE FIRST TIME
NUMBER OF PERSONS FIRST TIME HOMELESS
50,000
40,000
30,000
20,000
10,000
0
46,666
44,137
36,380
43,507
41,466
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
TABLE 11: SYSTEM PERFORMANCE MEASURES, 2018-2022
49
11.0%
11.3%
SUCCESSFUL EXIT TO PERMANENT HOUSING
AND RATE OF RECIDIVISM
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
43%
96%
9.9%
42%
96%
10.1%
42%
96%
8.3%
44%
96%
42%
95%
Rate of Persons Returning to Homelessness within 6 Months ( SPM 2 )
Rate of Persons Exiting from ES, TH, SH, RRH, or Permanent Housing ( SPM 7 )
Rate of Persons in PSH or OP that remain in or exit to Permanent Housing Housing ( SPM 7 )
System Performance Measures can be found at National Summary – CoC System Performance
Measures 2015-2022 – HUD Exchange
49 https://www.hudexchange.info/resource/5691/system-performance-measures-data-since-fy-2015/
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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APPENDIX XIII: POINT IN TIME DATA
50 CPD Memo: Availability of Waivers for the Biennial Point-in-Time Count of Unsheltered Homelessness - HUD Exchange
This section highlights the Point in Time Count, HUD System Performance Measures, and CoC
Performance Prole. Applying the data from the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS)
and these instruments, CoCs are improving their ability to make homelessness rare, brief, and one-
time.As data continues to prove, housing is the solution to ending homelessness.
HUD requires that CoCs conduct an annual census, coined the Point in Time Count (PIT Count), of
persons experiencing homelessness, which are divided into unsheltered and sheltered population
categories.Conducting a PIT Count is challenging and requires many volunteers and a great deal of
coordination, mapping, resources, and data entry. While PIT Counts provide valuable information,
it is understood that they are likely undercounts of homelessness due to the diculty of locating
every person that is homeless in a community, and the count only oers a snapshot because it is
completed on a single night in January.
In the table below, it’s important to note that the 2021 Point in Time Count numbers are not
comparable to the previous or current years’ counts. Typically, Continuums of Care (CoCs) conduct
a PIT Count of both sheltered and unsheltered households. In 2021, due to COVID-19 related
safety concerns, only six of the 27 CoCs conducted such a count; 10 CoCs did not conduct an
unsheltered count; and others conducted a modied form of the unsheltered count. All CoCs
conducted a sheltered PIT count. For those that did not conduct an unsheltered count, the CoCs
reported zero unsheltered persons, resulting in an undercount of homelessness.
50
TABLE 12: POINT IN TIME COUNTS BY COC, 2018-2023
CoC # CoC Name 2018 2019 2020 2021* 2022 2023
FL-500 Suncoast Partnership to End
Homelessness
1,192 1,135 1,044 526 1,138 1,150
FL-501 Tampa Hillsborough Homeless
Initiative
1,795 1,650 1,452 870 1,513 2,040
FL-502 The Homeless Leadership Alliance
of Pinellas
2,612 2,415 2,226 2,307 1,985 2,144
FL-503 Homeless Coalition of Polk County 552 563 612 385 506 607
FL-504 Volusia/Flagler County Coalition for
the Homeless
683 875 904 694 865 1,053
FL-505 Homelessness & Housing Alliance 495 399 351 73 403 395
FL-506 Big Bend Continuum of Care 909 966 805 621 621 801
FL-507 Homeless Services Network of
Central FL
2,053 2,010 2,007 1,544 2,151 2,258
FL-508 United Way of North Central FL 756 804 880 677 925 1,226
FL-509 Treasure Coast Homeless Services
Council
1,542 1,499 1,379 814 846 925
FL-510 Changing Homelessness 1,794 1,654 1,366 1,222 1,279 1,247
FL-511 Opening Doors of NWFL 632 518 746 731 727 1,180
FL-512 Flagler Hospital - St Augustine 342 356 367 420 349 435
FL-513 Brevard Homeless Coalition 734 815 940 432 916 1,052
FL-514 Marion County BOCC 572 475 523 512 455 454
FL-515 Doorways of NWFL 381 488 385 101 378 524
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CoC # CoC Name 2018 2019 2020 2021* 2022 2023
FL-517 Heartland Coalition for the
Homeless
453 398 403 27 650 1,016
FL-518 United Way of Suwannee Valley 493 538 578 69 488 494
FL-519 Coalition for the Homeless of
Pasco County
2,668 894 898 857 589 680
FL-520 Mid FL Homeless Coalition 711 677 703 638 745 649
FL-600 Miami-Dade County Homeless
Trust
3,516 3,472 3,560 3,224 3,276 3,657
FL-601 Broward County Homeless
Initiative Partnership
2,318 2,803 2,211 2,561 2,054 2,487
FL-602 Gulf Coast Partnership 164 156 169 154 148 427
FL-603 Lee County Continuum of Care 728 372 444 394 560 857
FL-604 Monroe County Homeless Services
CoC
973 501 421 242 526 493
FL-605 Palm Beach County Division of
Human Services
1,309 1,397 1,510 458 1,404 1,855n
FL-606 Hunger & Homeless Coalition of
Collier County
653 498 603 568 462 703
Totals 31,030 28,328 27,487 21,121 25,959 **30,809
*The 2021 Point in Time Count numbers are not comparable to the previous or current years’ counts. Typically, Continuums of Care
(CoCs) conduct a PIT Count of both sheltered and unsheltered households. In 2021, due to COVID-19 related safety concerns, only
six of the 27 CoCs conducted such a count; 10 CoCs did not conduct an unsheltered count; and others conducted a modied form
of the unsheltered count. All CoCs conducted a sheltered PIT count. For those that did not conduct an unsheltered count, the CoCs
reported zero unsheltered persons, resulting in an undercount of homelessness.
**Annually, the CoCs submit PIT data to the State and to HUD. Occasionally, there are technical adjustments made to the PIT data
after the State’s scal year end. In that case, the PIT data will be updated on the next annual report and marked with an asterisk.
TABLE 13: POINT IN TIME COUNTS BY COUNTY, 2018-2023
County 2018 2019 2020 2021* 2022** 2023
Alachua 641 714 657 521 625 931
Baker N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Bay 372 470 378 185 351 342
Bradford 33 4 N/A 12 21 1
Brevard 734 815 815 432 902 1,052
Broward 2,318 2,803 2,312 2,561 2,054 2,487
Calhoun 0 2 N/A 0 0 29
Charlotte 164 156 169 122 148 427
Citrus 169 262 171 221 154 199
Clay 62 74 74 57 43 16
Collier 653 498 603 568 462 703
Columbia 485 316 312 60 276 285
DeSoto 104 104 104 N/A 239 57
Dixie N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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County 2018 2019 2020 2021* 2022** 2023
Duval 1,640 1,494 1,494 1,137 989 1,176
Escambia 598 504 504 770 724 1,168
Flagler 62 130 73 37 65 61
Franklin N/A N/A 7 0 N/A 9
Gadsden 6 2 14 8 10 29
Gilchrist 0 0 N/A 0 1 0
Glades 36 34 34 No Count 49 18
Gulf 2 4 2 No Count 25 109
Hamilton N/A 45 45 No Count 42 40
Hardee 82 70 70 No Count 406 494
Hendry 45 45 45 No Count 124 4
Hernando 182 151 151 169 112 183
Highlands 136 102 102 No Count 246 402
Hillsborough 1,795 1,650 1,650 870 1,513 2,040
Holmes 3 0 N/A 0 0 3
Indian River 447 486 486 261 290 341
Jackson 2 5 3 No Count 1 32
Jeerson N/A N/A 6 No Count 3 1
Lafayette N/A 27 27 No Count 25 28
Lake 312 254 254 223 141 228
Lee 728 630 444 394 560 857
Leon 903 951 761 539 596 732
Levy 26 27 27 38 8 22
Liberty N/A N/A 45 0 N/A 0
Madison N/A N/A N/A 0 N/A 4
Manatee 545 541 466 185 594 739
Marion 571 475 523 512 455 454
Martin 311 305 305 266 248 246
Miami-Dade 3,516 3,472 3,472 3,224 3,276 3,657
Monroe 973 501 437 242 526 493
Nassau 92 86 86 28 17 55
Okaloosa 322 372 372 73 353 189
Okeechobee 50 48 48 No Count 79 30
Orange 1,539 1,544 1,401 1,162 1,532 1,626
Osceola 226 214 234 173 339 358
Palm Beach 1,309 1,397 1,510 458 1,404 1,855
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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County 2018 2019 2020 2021* 2022** 2023
Pasco 1,356 894 894 857 516 680
Pinellas 2,612 2,415 2,209 2,307 1,985 2,144
Polk 552 563 565 385 506 607
Putnam 56 59 178 106 270 272
St. Johns 342 356 368 420 349 435
St. Lucie 784 708 708 287 308 338
Santa Rosa 34 13 13 24 3 12
Sarasota 647 594 594 341 544 411
Seminole 288 252 372 209 280 274
Sumter 48 10 24 25 13 39
Suwannee 8 150 182 9 145 141
Taylor N/A 9 11 6 12 10
Union N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
Volusia 621 745 839 657 800 992
Wakulla 0 4 N/A 0 N/A 27
Walton 173 27 27 No Count 50 206
Washington 2 7 2 0 1 9
** adjustment **149
Totals 29,717 28,590 27,679 21,141 25,959 **30,809
*The 2021 Point in Time Count numbers are not comparable to the previous or current years’ counts. Typically, Continuums of Care
(CoCs) conduct a PIT Count of both sheltered and unsheltered households. In 2021, due to COVID-19 related safety concerns, only
six of the 27 CoCs conducted such a count; 10 CoCs did not conduct an unsheltered count; and others conducted a modied form
of the unsheltered count. All CoCs conducted a sheltered PIT count. For those that did not conduct an unsheltered count, the CoCs
reported zero unsheltered persons, resulting in an undercount of homelessness.
**Annually, the CoCs submit PIT data to the State and to HUD. Occasionally, there are technical adjustments made to the PIT data
after the State’s scal year end. In that case, the PIT data will be updated on the next annual report and marked with an asterisk.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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TABLE 14: SHELTERED AND UNSHELTERED HOMELESSNESS BY COC FOR THE YEAR 2023
CoC # CoC Name Sheltered Unsheltered Total
FL-500 Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness 630 520 1,150
FL-501 Tampa Hillsborough Homeless Initiative 905 1135 2,040
FL-502 Pinellas County Homeless Leadership Board 1,498 646 2,144
FL-503 Homeless Coalition of Polk County 435 172 607
FL-504 Volusia/Flagler County Coalition for the Homeless 470 583 1,053
FL-505 Homelessness & Housing Alliance 138 257 395
FL-506 Big Bend Continuum of Care 532 269 801
FL-507 Homeless Services Network of Central FL 1,671 587 2,258
FL-508 United Way of North Central FL 319 907 1,226
FL-509 Treasure Coast Homeless Services Council 185 740 925
FL-510 Changing Homelessness 851 396 1,247
FL-511 Opening Doors of NWFL 438 742 1,180
FL-512 Flagler Hospital - St Augustine 152 283 435
FL-513 Brevard Homeless Coalition 387 665 1,052
FL-514 Marion County BOCC 234 220 454
FL-515 Doorways of NWFL 110 414 524
FL-517 Heartland Coalition for the Homeless 120 896 1,016
FL-518 United Way of Suwannee Valley 96 398 494
FL-519 Coalition for the Homeless of Pasco County 259 421 680
FL-520 Mid FL Homeless Coalition 323 326 649
FL-600 Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust 2,599 1058 3,657
FL-601 Broward County Homeless Initiative Partnership 863 1624 2,487
FL-602 Gulf Coast Partnership 193 234 427
FL-603 Lee County Human & Veteran Services 264 593 857
FL-604 Monroe County Homeless Services CoC 283 210 493
FL-605 Palm Beach County Division of Human Services 686 1169 1,855
FL-606 Hunger & Homeless Coalition of Collier County 462 241 703
Totals 15,103 15,706 **30,809
*The 2021 Point in Time Count numbers are not comparable to the previous or current years’ counts. Typically, Continuums of Care
(CoCs) conduct a PIT Count of both sheltered and unsheltered households. In 2021, due to COVID-19 related safety concerns, only
six of the 27 CoCs conducted such a count; 10 CoCs did not conduct an unsheltered count; and others conducted a modied form
of the unsheltered count. All CoCs conducted a sheltered PIT count. For those that did not conduct an unsheltered count, the CoCs
reported zero unsheltered persons, resulting in an undercount of homelessness.
**Annually, the CoCs submit PIT data to the State and to HUD. Occasionally, there are technical adjustments made to the PIT data
after the State’s scal year end. In that case, the PIT data will be updated on the next annual report and marked with an asterisk.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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TABLE 15:CHRONIC HOMELESSNESS, 2018-2023
CoC # CoC Name 2018 2019 2020 2021* 2022 2023
FL-500 Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness 250 246 188 72 255 132
FL-501 Tampa Hillsborough Homeless Initiative 262 264 266 64 114 260
FL-502 Pinellas County Homeless Leadership Board 434 722 592 213 483 573
FL-503 Homeless Coalition of Polk County 84 80 78 22 57 137
FL-504 Volusia/Flagler County Coalition for the Homeless 90 89 76 24 73 137
FL-505 Homelessness & Housing Alliance 119 269 183 18 85 92
FL-506 Big Bend Continuum of Care 151 152 192 145 153 178
FL-507 Homeless Services Network of Central FL 272 478 489 158 403 464
FL-508 United Way of North Central FL 272 261 225 64 223 3
FL-509 Treasure Coast Homeless Services Council 56 51 45 0 48 207
FL-510 Changing Homelessness 327 301 71 0 88 62
FL-511 Opening Doors of NWFL 78 52 184 1 250 234
FL-512 Flagler Hospital – St Augustine 65 14 43 6 80 156
FL-513 Brevard Homeless Coalition 116 206 245 15 290 218
FL-514 Marion County Homeless Council 124 150 130 13 63 84
FL-515 Doorways of NWFL 98 34 43 3 71 87
FL-517 Heartland Coalition for the Homeless 259 235 98 2 12 907
FL-518 United Way of Suwannee Valley 38 41 65 0 37 34
FL-519 Coalition for the Homeless of Pasco County 826 265 265 68 126 43
FL-520 Mid FL Homeless Coalition 36 68 58 16 24 46
FL-600 Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust 384 378 524 392 762 939
FL-601 Broward County Homeless Initiative Partnership 439 914 654 208 388 624
FL-602 Gulf Coast Partnership 45 48 23 1 0 0
FL-603 Lee County Human & Veteran Services 132 99 93 13 47 49
FL-604 Monroe County Homeless Services CoC 62 36 31 24 35 48
FL-605 Palm Beach County Division of Human Services 164 215 241 61 248 237
FL-606 Hunger & Homeless Coalition of Collier County 119 61 80 31 39 472
Totals 5,302 5,729 5,182 1,634 4,454 **6,423
*The 2021 Point in Time Count numbers are not comparable to the previous or current years’ counts. Typically, Continuums of Care
(CoCs) conduct a PIT Count of both sheltered and unsheltered households. In 2021, due to COVID-19 related safety concerns, only
six of the 27 CoCs conducted such a count; 10 CoCs did not conduct an unsheltered count; and others conducted a modied form
of the unsheltered count. All CoCs conducted a sheltered PIT count. For those that did not conduct an unsheltered count, the CoCs
reported zero unsheltered persons, resulting in an undercount of homelessness.
**Annually, the CoCs submit PIT data to the State and to HUD. Occasionally, there are technical adjustments made to the PIT data
after the State’s scal year end. In that case, the PIT data will be updated on the next annual report and marked with an asterisk.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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TABLE 16:HOMELESSNESS AMONG VETERANS, 2018-2023
CoC # CoC Name 2018 2019 2020 2021* 2022 2023
FL-500 Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness 108 111 105 51 103 122
FL-501 Tampa Hillsborough Homeless Initiative 171 149 160 134 147 176
FL-502 Pinellas County Homeless Leadership Board 281 316 265 285 310 292
FL-503 Homeless Coalition of Polk County 26 38 46 17 31 14
FL-504 Volusia/Flagler County Coalition for the Homeless 44 61 73 25 38 80
FL-505 Homelessness & Housing Alliance 30 21 31 3 30 24
FL-506 Big Bend Continuum of Care 108 90 83 85 86 92
FL-507 Homeless Services Network of Central FL 181 177 190 177 149 189
FL-508 United Way of North Central FL 114 126 155 79 135 164
FL-509 Treasure Coast Homeless Services Council 61 50 68 3 59 70
FL-510 Changing Homelessness 121 118 177 139 70 84
FL-511 Opening Doors of NWFL 103 64 89 37 150 134
FL-512 Flagler Hospital - St Augustine 30 25 26 3 20 28
FL-513 Brevard Homeless Coalition 169 182 119 120 147 187
FL-514 Marion County Homeless Council 69 81 80 44 67 53
FL-515 Doorways of NWFL 34 54 18 1 19 55
FL-517 Heartland Coalition for the Homeless 18 1 18 2 20 62
FL-518 United Way of Suwannee Valley 41 29 39 22 75 31
FL-519 Coalition for the Homeless of Pasco County 214 92 92 54 44 58
FL-520 Mid FL Homeless Coalition 45 57 28 37 49 38
FL-600 Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust 120 169 163 123 131 93
FL-601 Broward County Homeless Initiative Partnership 189 219 157 42 117 128
FL-602 Gulf Coast Partnership 40 43 51 25 40 66
FL-603 Lee County Human & Veteran Services 18 25 17 4 24 31
FL-604 Monroe County Homeless Services CoC 67 50 61 29 46 46
FL-605 Palm Beach County Division of Human Services 130 119 100 37 102 139
FL-606 Hunger & Homeless Coalition of Collier County 11 5 27 5 22 48
Totals 2,543 2,472 2,436 1,583 2,231 **2,504
*The 2021 Point in Time Count numbers are not comparable to the previous or current years’ counts. Typically, Continuums of Care
(CoCs) conduct a PIT Count of both sheltered and unsheltered households. In 2021, due to COVID-19 related safety concerns, only
six of the 27 CoCs conducted such a count; 10 CoCs did not conduct an unsheltered count; and others conducted a modied form
of the unsheltered count. All CoCs conducted a sheltered PIT count. For those that did not conduct an unsheltered count, the CoCs
reported zero unsheltered persons, resulting in an undercount of homelessness.
**Annually, the CoCs submit PIT data to the State and to HUD. Occasionally, there are technical adjustments made to the PIT data
after the State’s scal year end. In that case, the PIT data will be updated on the next annual report and marked with an asterisk.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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TABLE 17: FAMILY HOMELESSNESS, 2018-2023
CoC # CoC Name 2018 2019 2020 2021* 2022 2023
FL-500 Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness 238 160 199 141 180 175
FL-501 Tampa Hillsborough Homeless Initiative 602 456 379 400 458 612
FL-502 Pinellas County Homeless Leadership Board 359 381 350 372 449 506
FL-503 Homeless Coalition of Polk County 198 189 160 151 150 24
FL-504 Volusia/Flagler County Coalition for the Homeless 199 301 300 178 322 312
FL-505 Homelessness & Housing Alliance 147 80 56 39 83 81
FL-506 Big Bend Continuum of Care 269 215 215 109 139 170
FL-507 Homeless Services Network of Central FL 713 745 657 659 858 793
FL-508 United Way of North Central FL 113 129 163 70 122 60
FL-509 Treasure Coast Homeless Services Council 688 745 570 76 261 285
FL-510 Changing Homelessness 384 289 375 247 292 276
FL-511 Opening Doors of NWFL 165 45 75 3 36 140
FL-512 Flagler Hospital - St Augustine 123 120 97 80 44 75
FL-513 Brevard Homeless Coalition 213 211 222 160 172 210
FL-514 Marion County Homeless Council 129 110 161 141 127 116
FL-515 Doorways of NWFL 68 34 39 18 22 91
FL-517 Heartland Coalition for the Homeless 161 156 143 19 82 509
FL-518 United Way of Suwannee Valley 106 84 205 32 105 160
FL-519 Coalition for the Homeless of Pasco County 1,839 209 211 134 126 135
FL-520 Mid FL Homeless Coalition 285 178 180 128 182 178
FL-600 Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust 1,091 1,160 1,299 1,011 1,054 1219
FL-601 Broward County Homeless Initiative Partnership 462 462 435 329 401 416
FL-602 Gulf Coast Partnership 34 25 32 25 46 97
FL-603 Lee County Human & Veteran Services 305 115 136 70 149 193
FL-604 Monroe County Homeless Services CoC 249 32 24 14 54 37
FL-605 Palm Beach County Division of Human Services 345 264 276 230 291 398
FL-606 Hunger & Homeless Coalition of Collier County 102 168 184 145 155 262
Totals 9,587 7,063 7,143 4,981 6,440 7,530**
*The 2021 Point in Time Count numbers are not comparable to the previous or current years’ counts. Typically, Continuums of Care
(CoCs) conduct a PIT Count of both sheltered and unsheltered households. In 2021, due to COVID-19 related safety concerns, only
six of the 27 CoCs conducted such a count; 10 CoCs did not conduct an unsheltered count; and others conducted a modied form
of the unsheltered count. All CoCs conducted a sheltered PIT count. For those that did not conduct an unsheltered count, the CoCs
reported zero unsheltered persons, resulting in an undercount of homelessness.
**Annually, the CoCs submit PIT data to the State and to HUD. Occasionally, there are technical adjustments made to the PIT data
after the State’s scal year end. In that case, the PIT data will be updated on the next annual report and marked with an asterisk.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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APPENDIX XIV: FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION HOMELESS
STUDENT DATA
TABLE 18: FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION HOMELESS STUDENT COUNT, 2021-2022
District Name Living Situation at the Time Students were Identied as
Homeless
Total
Homeless
Unaccompanied
Homeless Youth
(UHY)
Shelters Sharing Housing Other Motels
Alachua 110 660 28 98 896 52
Baker 0 201 19 13 233 26
Bay 53 1,539 101 137 1,830 267
Bradford 2 88 6 28 124 11
Brevard 81 829 80 288 1,278 130
Broward 300 3,091 237 579 4,207 388
Calhoun 9 67 4 0 80 3
Charlotte 43 352 14 82 491 62
Citrus 49 679 91 70 889 71
Clay 13 669 9 74 765 207
Collier 107 1,098 13 77 1,295 317
Columbia 24 263 11 44 342 16
Miami-Dade 1,024 6,743 312 434 8,513 266
Miami-Dade – KIPP Miami
Charter*
NA NA NA NA NA NA*
Desoto 0 46 21 4 71 1
Dixie 1 36 0 3 40 3
Duval 134 2,564 37 442 3,177 470
Escambia 81 1,384 77 280 1,822 64
Flagler 8 258 24 31 321 49
Franklin 6 51 4 6 67 4
Gadsden 5 65 3 5 78 4
Gilchrist 0 32 6 1 39 0
Glades 0 56 6 2 64 9
Gulf 1 15 2 0 18 4
Hamilton 0 239 1 5 245 0
Hardee 14 285 41 5 345 42
Hendry 182 256 44 5 487 26
Hernando 47 639 51 96 833 76
Highlands 21 370 25 41 457 17
Hillsborough 371 3,032 252 874 4,529 364
Holmes 3 70 2 3 78 6
Indian River 43 362 19 46 470 8
Jackson 4 390 32 21 447 62
Jeerson 2 18 0 0 20 5
Lafayette 0 89 94 0 183 0
Lake 58 1,304 151 179 1,692 59
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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Lee 96 823 238 353 1,510 69
Leon 67 436 20 107 630 58
Levy 12 1356 23 16 186 3
Liberty 0 60 0 0 60 5
Madison 2 102 26 1 131 20
Manatee 46 1,155 35 137 1,373 35
Marion 89 694 80 254 1,117 185
Martin 67 567 22 53 709 65
Monroe 27 211 10 10 258 9
Nassau 3 328 21 26 378 104
Okaloosa 73 409 35 67 584 66
Okeechobee 2 213 15 6 236 14
Orange 277 3,542 274 1,469 5,562 287
Orange - UCP Charter* NA <NA NA NA NA NA*
Osceola 57 1,902 107 877 2,943 88
Palm Beach 277 3,636 235 329 4,477 139
Palm Beach - South Tech
Charter*
NA NA NA NA NA NA*
Pasco 129 1,299 112 289 1,829 278
Pinellas 485 3,267 117 800 4,669 372
Polk 181 3,154 312 659 4,306 388
Polk - Lake Wales Charter* NA NA NA NA NA NA*
Putnam 17 188 20 23 248 50
St. Johns 59 597 37 93 786 140
St. Lucie 45 2,003 63 244 1,355 181
Santa Rosa 30 686 47 54 817 63
Sarasota 140 460 31 117 748 52
Seminole 80 1,388 69 397 1,934 265
Sumter 21 64 15 11 111 12
Suwannee 7 178 19 19 223 22
Taylor 0 71 9 26 106 9
Union 0 67 0 0 67 0
Volusia 224 1,926 114 449 2,713 230
Wakulla 0 70 1 0 71 3
Walton 0 180 21 24 225 15
Washington 10 180 4 11 205 7
School for Deaf/Blind 0 23 3 4 30 3
Florida Virtual School 5 188 6 27 226 11
FAU Lab School 0 25 0 0 25 4
FSU Lab School 0 1 0 0 1 1
FAMU Lab School 0 1 0 0 1 0
UF Lab School 0 0 0 1 1 0
State Total 5,324 58,069 3,958 10,926 78,277 6,342
*2021-2022 School Year the following school totals were included in the County count: Miami-Dade -KIIP Miami Charter; Orange –
UCP Charter; Palm Beach – South Tech Charter: and Polk – Lake Whales Charter.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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TABLE 19: FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION HOMELESS STUDENT COUNT BY SCHOOL
DISTRICT 5-YEAR TOTALS, 2017-2022
District Name
2017-2018 2018-2019 2019-2020 2020-2021 2021-2022
Alachua 1,021 1,026 1,045 809 896
Baker 97 55 103 120 233
Bay 1,523 5,725 3,774 2,050 1,830
Bradford 155 160 140 152 124
Brevard 2,763 2,261 1,614 1,125 1,278
Broward 4,903 5,424 5,090 3,264 4,207
Calhoun 73 202 271 131 80
Charlotte 435 364 387 396 491
Citrus 669 619 637 638 889
Clay 728 983 812 793 765
Collier 1,367 1,030 1,163 1,154 1,295
Columbia 671 507 462 347 342
Dade 8,957 9,949 9,438 5,749 8,513
Desoto 134 155 125 61 71
Dixie 80 53 68 41 40
Duval 5,817 3,770 3,352 2,435 3,177
Escambia 1,909 1,936 1,812 1,363 1,822
Flagler 529 556 445 284 321
Franklin 290 289 140 108 67
Gadsden 287 252 149 170 78
Gilchrist 13 13 <11 <11 39
Glades 39 45 35 56 64
Gulf 16 108 30 23 18
Hamilton 335 347 285 273 245
Hardee 147 178 252 283 345
Hendry 1,231 346 445 607 487
Hernando 653 577 691 686 833
Highlands 651 465 426 374 457
Hillsborough 4,859 4,240 4,782 4,011 4,529
Holmes 71 56 58 21 78
Indian River 416 441 529 423 470
Jackson 158 2,861 386 360 447
Jeerson 38 34 26 26 20
Lafayette 198 204 203 156 183
Lake 2,269 1,999 1,508 1,296 1,692
Lee 2,071 1,275 1,240 961 1,510
Leon 790 1,352 837 521 630
Levy 210 256 207 155 186
Liberty 29 34 52 58 60
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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District Name 2017-2018 2018-2019 2019-2020 2020-2021 2021-2022
Madison 169 227 186 127 131
Manatee 1,679 1,406 1,279 1,192 1,373
Marion 2,649 2,150 1,080 1,016 1,117
Martin 482 620 667 622 709
Monroe 696 352 276 264 258
Nassau 543 546 510 490 378
Okaloosa 449 1,132 733 606 584
Okeechobee 520 432 352 356 236
Orange 9,692 6,118 4,774 3,914 5,562
Orange - UCP Charter 17 21 16 <11 N/A
Osceola 5,212 3,489 2,621 2,501 2,943
Palm Beach 4,407 4,465 4,489 2,927 4,477
Palm Beach - South Tech Charter 11 39 42 21 N/A
Pasco 2,232 1,908 1,877 1,550 1,829
Pinellas 4,233 4,371 4,255 3,334 4,669
Polk 4,626 3,517 3,665 3,682 4,306
Polk - Lake Wales Charter 273 177 251 240 N/A
Putnam 634 537 523 357 248
St. Johns 872 732 643 650 786
St. Lucie 1,585 1,512 1,429 1,700 2,355
Santa Rosa 1,034 1,141 797 820 817
Sarasota 832 833 727 611 748
Seminole 2,268 1,590 1,599 1,395 1,934
Sumter 148 127 97 92 111
Suwannee 285 307 266 252 223
Taylor 124 100 109 87 106
Union 98 61 73 48 67
Volusia 2,718 2,744 2,666 2,569 2,713
Wakulla 83 94 63 73 71
Walton 346 465 338 220 205
Washington 197 211 231 231 524
School for Deaf/Blind 17 19 27 27 13,141
Florida Virtual School 89 38 55 317 2,734
FAU - Lab School 24 20 21 25 25
FSU - Lab School <11 <11 <11 <11 1
FAMU - Lab School <11 16 14 <11 1
UF Lab School 0 <11 <11 <11 1
KIPP Charter 0 0 0 33 N/A
State Total 95,860 91,675 79,781 63,846 78,277
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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APPENDIX XV: DESIGNATED COC LEAD AGENCY MAP
Opening Doors of NWFL – Escambia, Santa Rosa
Homelessness & Housing Alliance – Okaloosa, Walton
Doorways of NWFL – Bay, Calhoun, Gulf, Holmes, Jackson, Washington
Big Bend CoC – Franklin, Gadsden, Jeerson, Leon, Liberty, Madison,
Taylor, Wakulla
United Way of Suwannee Valley – Columbia, Hamilton, Lafayette, Suwannee
United Way of North Central FL – Alachua, Bradford, Levy, Putnam, Gilchrist
Changing Homelessness – Duval, Clay, Nassau
Flagler Hospital – St. Augustine – St. Johns
Volusia/Flagler County Coalition for the Homeless – Volusia, Flagler
Marion County Homeless Council – Marion
Mid Florida Homeless Coalition – Citrus, Hernando, Lake, Sumter
Homeless Coalition of Polk County – Polk
Brevard Homeless Coalition – Brevard
Homeless Services Network of Central FL – Orange, Osceola, Seminole
Coalition for the Homeless of Pasco County – Pasco
Pinellas County Homeless Leadership Board – Pinellas
Tampa Hillsborough Homeless Initiative – Hillsborough
Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness – Manatee, Sarasota
Gulf Coast Partnership – Charlotte
Collier County Hunger & Homeless Coalition – Collier
Lee County Human & Veteran Services – Lee
Heartland Coalition for the Homeless – DeSoto, Glades, Hardee, Hendry,
Highlands, Okeechobee
Treasure Coast Homeless Services Council – Indian River, Martin, St. Lucie
Palm Beach County Division of Human Services – Palm Beach
Broward Homeless Initiative Partnership – Broward
Miami–Dade County Homeless Trust – Dade
Monroe County Homeless Services CoC – Monroe
Levy
Alachua
Baker
Bradford
Gilchrist
Union
Clay
Duval
Nas sau
Columbia
Dixie
Hamilton
Lafayette
Madison
Suwannee
Taylor
Bay
Calhoun
Gulf
Holmes
Jackson
Washington
Franklin
Gadsden
Jefferson
Leon
Liberty
Wakulla
Escambia
Okaloosa
Santa
Rosa
Walton
Monroe
Miami-Dade
Broward
Palm Beach
Indian
River
Martin
Okeechobee
St. Lucie
Charlotte
Collier
Glades
Hendry
Lee
Hillsbo rough
De Soto
Manatee
Sarasota
Pasco
Pinella s
Brevard
Seminole
Hardee
Highlands
Polk
Orange
Osceola
Citrus
Hernando
Lake
Marion
Sumter
Putnam
Volusia
Flagler
St.
Johns
Contact information for the Continuums of Care can be found at www.myfamilies.com/services/public-assistance/homelessness
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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APPENDIX IX: COUNCIL MEMBERS
Statutory Position (Agency) Represented By
Florida Department of Children and Families Teresa Berdoll, State PATH Coordinator,
SOAR State Team Lead, FDC Aftercare
Process Lead Housing & Employment
Process Lead
Florida Department of Economic Opportunity Isabelle Potts, Supervisor, Program
Development and Research Unit
Florida Department of Corrections Cassandra Moore, Bureau Chief,
Interstate Compact and Probation
Florida Department of Education Courtney Walker, State Coordinator
Florida Department of Health Shay Chapman, Division Director,
Community Health Promotion
Florida Department of Veteran Aairs Robert (Bob) Asztalos, Deputy Executive
Director
CareerSource Florida Warren Davis, Policy Analyst
Florida Association of Counties Council Vice Chair, Claudia Tuck,
Director (Alachua)
Florida Coalition to End Homelessness Leeanne Sacino, Executive Director
Florida Housing Finance Corporation Zachary Summerlin, Policy Director &
Supportive Housing Coordinator
Ability Housing, Inc./Florida Supportive Housing Coalition Council Chair, Shannon Nazworth,
President & CEO
Florida League of Cities Lisa Kane DeVitto, Commissioner (City
of Crescent City)
Agency for Health Care Administration Kim Smoak, Deputy Secretary
Florida Department of Elder Aairs Jennifer Moore, Deputy Director,
Statewide Community Based Services,
Senior Housing Liaison
Florida Housing Coalition Amanda Wander, Director, Ending
Homelessness Team
Governor Appointees Represented By
New Beginnings of Central Florida Steve Smith, Founder
Vacant To apply please visit www.gov.com
Ex-Ocio Appointees Represented By
Children’s Home Society Pensacola Lindsey Cannon, Regional Executive Director,
Program Operations
US Department of Veteran Aairs Steven Tillman, VISN 8 Network Homeless
Coordinator VA Sunshine Healthcare
Network
2023 ANNUAL REPORT2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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APPENDIX X: GLOSSARY
Aordable Housing – In general, housing for
which the tenants are paying no more than 30%
of their income for housing costs, including
utilities. Aordable housing may either be
subsidized housing or unsubsidized market
housing. A special type of aordable housing
for people with disabilities who need services
along with aordable housing is “Permanent
Supportive Housing.”
Area Median Income (AMI) – The household
in a certain region that is in the exact middle in
terms of income compared to other households
will set the AMI for their region (the household
size is a factor taken into account; there are
dierent AMIs for households of dierent sizes
in the same region). This number is calculated
every year by HUD. HUD focuses on a region,
rather than a single city because families and
individuals are likely to look outside of cities to
surrounding areas when searching for a place to
live.
Chronically Homeless – In general, a
household that has been continuously
homeless for over a year, or one that has had at
least four episodes of homelessness in the past
three years, where the combined lengths of
homelessness of those episodes is at least one
year, and in which the individual has a disabling
condition.(See 24 CFR 578.3)
Continuum of Care (CoC) – A local geographic
area designated by HUD and served by a
local planning body, which is responsible for
organizing and delivering housing and services
to meet the needs of people who are homeless
as they move to stable housing and maximum
self-suciency. The terms “CoC Governing
Body” or “CoC Board” have the same meanings.
In some contexts, the term “continuum of care”
is also sometimes used to refer to the system
of programs addressing homelessness. The
geographic areas for the Florida CoCs are
provided in Appendix VIII. (See 24 CFR 578.3
and F.S. 420.621)
CoC Lead Agency – The local organization or
entity that implements the work and policies
directed by the CoC. In Florida, there are 27
CoC Lead Agencies, serving 64 of 67 Florida
counties. The CoC Lead Agency typically
serves as the “Collaborative Applicant,” which
submits annual funding requests for HUD
CoC Program funding on behalf of the CoC.
The contacts for the CoC Lead Agencies are
provided in Appendix IX.
Coordinated Entry System – A standardized
community-wide process to perform outreach
and identify homeless households, enter their
information into HMIS, use common tools to
assess their needs and prioritize access to
housing interventions and services to end
their homelessness. Sometimes referred to as
a “triage system” or “coordinated intake and
assessment.” (See 24 CFR 578.3)
Council on Homelessness – The Council on
Homelessness was created in 2001 to develop
policies and recommendations to reduce
homelessness in Florida. The Council’s mission
is to develop and coordinate policy to reduce
the prevalence and duration of homelessness
and work toward ending homelessness in
Florida. (See F.S. 420.622)
Diversion – A strategy that prevents
homelessness for people seeking shelter by
helping them stay housed where they currently
are or by identifying immediate alternate
housing arrangements and, if necessary,
connecting them with services and nancial
assistance to help them return to permanent
housing. This strategy is used in order to keep
individuals from entering the homelessness
system in their county.
Eectively Ending Homelessness – Eectively
ending homelessness means that the
community has a comprehensive response
in place to ensure that homelessness is
prevented whenever possible, or if it cannot be
prevented, it is a rare, brief, and non-recurring
phenomenon. Specically, the community will
have the capacity to: (1) quickly identify and
engage people at risk of or already experiencing
homelessness; (2) intervene to prevent the loss
of housing and divert people from entering the
homelessness services system; and (3) when
homelessness does occur, provide immediate
access to shelter and crisis services, without
barriers to entry, while permanent stable
housing and appropriate supports are being
secured, and quickly connect people to housing
assistance and services—tailored to their
unique needs and strengths—to help them
achieve and maintain stable housing. (Source:
USICH)
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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Emergency Shelter – A facility operated to
provide temporary shelter for people who are
homeless. HUD’s guidance is that the lengths of
stay in emergency shelters prior to moving into
permanent housing should not exceed 30 days.
(See 24 CFR 576.2)
Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) – HUD
funding that ows through the state and
certain local governments for street outreach,
emergency shelters, rapid re-housing,
homelessness prevention, and certain HMIS
costs. (See 24 CFR 576)
Encampment - The term encampment has
connotations of both impermanence and
continuity. People are staying in temporary
structures or enclosed places that are not
intended for long-term continuous occupancy
on an ongoing basis. (Source: HUD)
Extremely Low-Income (ELI) – Household
income that is 30% or less of the AMI of the
community. (See F.S. 420.0004)
Florida Housing Finance Corporation – Florida
Housing Finance Corporation was created by
the Florida Legislature 40 years ago to help
Floridians obtain safe, decent, aordable
housing that might otherwise be unavailable to
them. The corporation provides funds for the
development of housing. (See F.S. 420.501-
420.55)
Homeless – There are varied denitions
of homelessness. Generally, “homeless”
means lacking a xed, regular, and adequate
nighttime residence and living in temporary
accommodations (e.g., shelter) or in places not
meant for human habitation. Households eeing
domestic violence and similar threatening
conditions are also considered homeless. For
purposes of certain programs and funding,
families with minor children who are doubled-
up with family or friends for economic reasons
may also be considered homeless, as are
households at imminent risk of homelessness.
(See 24 CFR 578.3)
The Homeless Emergency and Rapid
Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act –
Federal Legislation that, in 2009, amended and
reauthorized the McKinney-Vento Homeless
Assistance Act. The HEARTH/McKinney Vento
Act provides federal funding for homeless
programs, including the HUD ESG funds and
the HUD CoC Grant funding. (See https://les.
hudexchange.info/resources/documents/S896_
HEARTHAct.pdf)
Homeless Management Information System
(HMIS) – A web-based software solution
and database tool designed to capture and
analyze client-level information including
the characteristics, service needs, and
use of services by persons experiencing
homelessness. HMIS is an important
component of an eective Coordinated Entry
System, CoC planning eorts, and performance
evaluation based on program outcomes. (See
24 CFR 578.3)
Homelessness Prevention – Short-term
nancial assistance, sometimes with support
services, for households at imminent risk
of homelessness and who have no other
resources to prevent homelessness. For
many programs, the household must also
be extremely low-income, with income at or
less than 30% of the AMI, to receive such
assistance. (See 24 CFR 576.103)
Housing First Approach – An approach to
ending homelessness that centers on providing
people experiencing homelessness with
housing as quickly as possible and, once the
person is housed, then providing services to
help the person remain stably housed. This
approach is consistent with what most people
experiencing homelessness need and want.
Housing First is recognized as an evidence-
based best practice, is cost-eective, and
results in better outcomes as compared to
other approaches. The Florida Legislature
encourages CoCs to adopt the housing rst
approach to reduce homelessness.
Housing or Permanent Housing – Any housing
arrangement in which the person/tenant can
live indenitely, as long as the rent is paid,
and lease terms are followed. Temporary
living arrangements and programs – such as
emergency shelters, transitional programs,
and rehabilitation programs – do not meet the
denition of housing.
HUD- The Department of Housing and Urban
Development – HUD provides funding to
states and local communities to address
homelessness. In addition, this department
supports fair housing, community development,
and aordable housing, among other issues.
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
46
HUD CoC Funding – Funding administered by
HUD through local CoC Collaborative Applicant
(i.e., CoC Lead Agency) entities. Eligible uses
for new projects include permanent supportive
housing, rapid re-housing, coordinated entry,
HMIS, and CoC planning.
Local Housing Trust Funds - Florida’s
Sadowski Act Aordable Housing Trust Funds
receive funding from dedicated revenue from
real estate doc stamps.70% of these funds are
allocated to the Local Government Housing
Trust Fund for the State Housing Initiatives
Partnership Program (SHIP) that funds housing
programs.
Low Income – Low-income persons means
one or more natural persons or a family, the
total annual adjusted gross household income
of which does not exceed 80% of the median
annual adjusted gross income for households
within the state, or 80% of the median annual
adjusted gross income for households within
the metropolitan statistical area (MSA) or, if not
within an MSA, within the county in which the
person or family resides, whichever is greater.
(See F.S. 420.0004)
Oce on Homelessness – Created in
2001, the Oce on Homelessness was
established as a central point of contact
within state government on matters related
to homelessness. The Oce coordinates the
services of the various state agencies and
programs to serve individuals or families who
are homeless or are facing homelessness.
Oce sta work with the Council on
Homelessness to develop state policy. The
Oce also manages targeted state grants to
support the implementation of local homeless
service CoC plans. The Oce is responsible for
coordinating resources and programs across all
levels of government, and with private providers
that serve people experiencing homelessness.
(See F.S. 420.622)
Outreach – A necessary homeless system
component that involves interacting with
unsheltered people who are homeless in
whatever location they naturally stay (e.g.,
in campsites, on the streets), building trust,
and oering access to appropriate housing
interventions. (See 24 CFR 576.101)
Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) – Safe
and aordable housing for people with disabling
conditions, legal tenancy housing rights, and
access to individualized support services. PSH
that is funded through HUD CoC funding should
prioritize people who are chronically homeless
with the longest terms of homelessness and the
highest level of vulnerability/acuity in terms of
health issues and service needs. (See 24 CFR
578.3)
Point in Time (PIT) Count – HUD requires CoCs
to count the number of people experiencing
homelessness in their geographic area through
the Point in Time (PIT) Count on a given day.
Conducted by most CoCs during the last ten
days in January, the PIT Count includes people
served in shelter programs every year, with
every other year also including people who
are un-sheltered. Data collected during the
PIT Counts is critical to eective planning and
performance management toward the goal of
ending homelessness for each community and
the nation as a whole. A one-night snapshot of
homelessness in a specic geographic area,
the PIT Count data are presented in Appendix
VI. (See 24 CFR 578.3)
Rapid Re-Housing (RRH) – A housing
intervention designed to move a household
into permanent housing (e.g., a rental unit)
as quickly as possible, ideally within 30 days
of identication. Rapid Re-Housing typically
provides (1) help identifying appropriate
housing; (2) nancial assistance (deposits and
short-term or medium-term rental assistance
for 1-24 months), and (3) support services as
long as needed and desired, up to a certain
limit. (See 24 CFR 576.104)
Services or Support Services – A wide
range of services designed to address issues
negatively aecting a person’s quality of life,
stability, and/or health. Examples include
behavioral health counseling or treatment
for mental health and/or substance use
issues, assistance increasing income through
employment or disability assistance, nancial
education, assistance with practical needs
such as transportation or housekeeping, and
connections to other critical resources such as
primary health care.
Sheltered/Unsheltered Homelessness –
People who are in temporary shelters, including
emergency shelter and transitional shelters, are
considered “sheltered.” People who are living
outdoors or in places not meant for human
habitation are considered “unsheltered.”
State Housing Trust Funds – Florida’s
Sadowski Act Aordable Housing Trust Funds
2023 ANNUAL REPORT
47
receive funding from dedicated revenue from
real estate doc stamps.30% of these funds
are allocated to the State Housing Trust Fund
for programs such as the State Apartment
Incentive Loan (SAIL) program.In Florida, the
Housing Trust Funds are used for aordable
housing when appropriated for that use by the
State Legislature. Housing Trust Funds may also
be funded by general revenue and government
bonds.
Stella P. – Used as a tool to visualize system
performance based on Longitudinal System
Analysis data, Stella P. provides an illustrative
approach to a housing crisis response system’s
data by reporting the number of days homeless,
exists from the homeless system to permanent
destinations, and returns to homelessness.
Stella P. develops data visualization elements
to describe trends, population characteristics,
performance, and comparisons based on
ocial HUD data sets.
Transitional Program – A temporary shelter
program that allows for moderate stays (3-
24 months) and provides support services.
Based on research on the ecacy and costs
of this model, this type of program should be
a very limited component of the housing crisis
response system, due to the relative costliness
of the programs in the absence of outcomes
that exceed rapid re-housing outcomes.
Transitional housing should be used only for
specic subpopulations such as transition-age
youth.
United States Interagency Council on
Homelessness (USICH) – A federal Council
that co-ordinates the federal response to
homelessness, working in partnership with
Cabinet Secretaries and senior leaders from
nineteen federal member agencies.
Very Low Income – Very-low-income persons
means one or more natural persons or a family,
not including students, the total annual adjusted
gross household income of which does not
exceed 50% of the median annual adjusted
gross income for households within the state,
or 50% of the median annual adjusted gross
income for households within the metropolitan
statistical area (MSA) or, if not within an MSA,
within the county in which the person or family
resides, whichever is greater.
Very Low Income – Very-low-income persons
means one or more natural persons or a family,
not including students, the total annual adjusted
gross household income of which does not
exceed 50 percent of the median annual
adjusted gross income for households within
the state, or 50 percent of the median annual
adjusted gross income for households within
the metropolitan statistical area (MSA) or, if not
within an MSA, within the county in which the
person or family resides, whichever is greater.
(See F.S. 420.0004)
