§346-374 Homeless shelter stipends. (a) The department may make or may contract to make homeless shelter stipend payments to a provider agency operating or managing an emergency or transitional shelter. Under each contract, the department shall pay homeless shelter stipends only for performance measures actually achieved by the provider agency, such as the number of homeless families or individuals actually provided with shelter and appropriate services at the emergency or transitional shelter. The contract also may include provisions for the automatic adjustment of the homeless shelter stipend amounts, depending on factors agreed to by the department and provider agency.
(b) In making homeless shelter stipend payments to a provider agency, the department may establish minimum services to be provided by the provider agency to homeless families or individuals at the provider agency's shelter. The department may also direct provider agencies to establish and manage a savings account program as described in subsection (c). Additionally, the department may direct provider agencies to subcontract for outreach services from other private agencies specializing in programs for the unsheltered homeless.
(c) When authorized under a contract with the department, a provider agency may establish and collect shelter and services payments from homeless families or individuals in addition to the amount received in homeless shelter stipend payments. To the extent possible, the shelter and service payment amounts established and collected by a homeless facility, other than an emergency shelter, shall be based on the homeless families' and individuals' ability to pay. If collection of payments based on ability to pay is too difficult, costly, or inefficient for the provider agency, the payment amounts may be based on other criteria authorized under the contract or waived partially or entirely.
Provider agencies and the department may also set aside a portion of the payments in a savings account to be made available to homeless families or individuals when these families and individuals vacate the shelter.
(d) Any state funding assistance provided to a provider agency for compliance with the minimum requirements under section 346-374.5(b) shall be in addition to homeless shelter stipends paid to the provider agency. [L 2010, c 89, pt of §2; am L 2016, c 234, §5; am L 2017, c 100, §4]