Overview
S 4251 (Session 222, New Jersey) would create a reimbursable cost-sharing program to support municipally-operated emergency shelters for the homeless that serve both their own residents and nonresident homeless individuals. The bill also tightens participation in the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) and authorizes a $10 million appropriation to implement these provisions. It is administered by the Director of the Division of Housing and Community Resources within the Department of Community Affairs (DCA).
Main purpose and intent
- Establish a cost-sharing reimbursement program to compensate municipally-operated emergency shelters for the homeless when they serve individuals who are not residents of the shelter’s municipality.
- Encourage coordination among shelters while preventing displacement or relocation of individuals solely for shelter access.
- Improve real-time shelter bed availability information via HMIS and require shelters to participate in HMIS to support statewide planning and service delivery.
Key provisions and changes
1) Program establishment and purpose
- The Director of the Division of Housing and Community Resources must create a cost-sharing reimbursement program for municipally-operated shelters that serve homeless individuals or those at risk, when those individuals seek services in a municipality other than their last-known residence.
- Goals:
- Compensate shelters that serve nonresident homelessness populations.
- Require a portion of costs to be paid by the nonresident individual’s last-known municipality of residence, as determined by the Director.
2) Eligible costs and reimbursement framework
- The Director must develop a list of eligible costs (examples include emergency shelter, temporary housing, food, clothing, transportation, and other appropriate costs).
- A reimbursement formula must consider factors such as:
- Number of nonresident individuals served
- Duration and type of services provided
- Regional cost variations
- Availability of program funding
- Nonreimbursement criteria include:
- Voluntary relocation by the individual for employment or family reasons
- Inability to verify the last-known municipality of residence
- The individual has resided in the shelter’s municipality for more than 12 consecutive months
3) Participation and application process
- Shelters must apply to participate, detailing eligible costs and verifying the last-known municipality of residence was different from the shelter’s location.
4) HMIS participation and data requirements
- Shelters must use HMIS (administered by HMFA or the Office of Homelessness Prevention if HMIS is transferred).
- Shelters must catalog the last-known municipality of residence for each person seeking services, using official records (IDs, prior addresses, social services records, etc.).
- If a person seeks services in a municipality other than their last-known residence in the prior 12 months, the shelter may seek reimbursement from the last-known municipality of residence for those services.
5) State coordination and safeguards
- The bill encourages regional coordination to improve efficiency and reduce service duplication.
- It clarifies that nothing in the act should authorize or require relocation of individuals solely based on municipal residency or prior shelter connection.
6) Administrative and statutory amendments
- Amends sections of P.L.2019, c.73 and P.L.2021, c.440, and adds a new section to implement the HMIS-related requirements and cost-sharing framework.
- Creates definitions for “Agency,” “Director,” “Division,” “Homeless Management Information System,” “Municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless,” and “Program.”
7) Funding and effective date
- Appropriates $10,000,000 from the General Fund to the Division of Housing and Community Resources (DCA) to implement the act, including reimbursements and HMIS participation.
- Act takes effect immediately upon enactment.
Who would be affected
- Municipally-operated emergency shelters for the homeless (including shelters operated by municipalities or by non profits in partnership with municipalities): potential recipients of reimbursements for eligible nonresident services.
- Municipalities (as last-known residences): potentially responsible for funding a portion of costs when their residents use shelters in other municipalities.
- Shelter clients (homeless or at risk): subjected to HMIS data collection requirements, including recording last-known municipality of residence.
- State agencies and private providers funded to serve homeless populations: required to participate in HMIS and share data as described.
Procedural and timeline aspects
- The Director of the Division of Housing and Community Resources is to establish the cost-sharing program and HMIS participation requirements.
- Shelters must apply to participate and provide specified information to qualify for reimbursement.
- HMIS participation and last-known residence data collection are mandated for shelters, with real-time bed occupancy data to be available (as per HMIS structure and potential transfer to the Office of Homelessness Prevention).
- The act includes a single appropriation of $10 million to cover reimbursements and HMIS-related costs.
- Effective date: immediate.
Potential impacts and considerations
- Could stabilize shelters that serve regional homeless populations by providing cross-municipality reimbursement, potentially reducing service gaps.
- Creates incentives for shelter coordination at regional levels.
- Data-sharing and HMIS participation may enhance statewide planning but raises considerations about privacy, data governance, and administrative burden on local providers.
- The cost-sharing mechanism could shift some financial responsibility to last-known municipalities, depending on the reimbursement formula and eligible costs.
