Item Number: 3
City Council / Board of Directors
Written Communications
Meeting of: April 1, 2025
Submitted By:
Alex Jauregui, City Planner
Subject:
Housing and Homelessness Incentive Program – Agreement with San Bernardino County Recommendation:
That the Honorable City Council take the following actions:
(1) Adopt Resolution No. 25-021 authorizing an agreement between the City of Victorville and San Bernardino County to receive Housing and Homelessness Incentive Program (HHIP) grant funding in the amount of $489,820.00 to support the ongoing operation of the Wellness Center by serving individuals experiencing homelessness;
(2) Authorize the City Manager to finalize all documents needed to execute the agreement; and
(3) Adopt Resolution No. 25-022 amending the annual budget for fiscal year 2024- 2025 to reflect an additional appropriation in the amount of $489,820.00.
Fiscal Impact:
The proposed action will result in an increase of $489,820.00 in the City's budget for the ongoing operation of the Wellness Center, including serving individuals experiencing homelessness and assuring medically informed care to clients. Upon execution of the agreement, the funding will be awarded to the City in a lump sum with no matching requirements. To oversee expenditure of the subject funding, $43,420.00 of the total award can be used for administrative functions of the City’s Homelessness Solutions staff utilizing the existing client management system and local Homeless Management Information System (HMIS). The subject funding source will supplement other funding sources used at the Wellness Center (e.g. Homekey, PLHA, ERF, etc.) and assist in sustaining operations further into the future while reducing potential impacts to the City’s General Fund and Measure P. The following budget table provides a summary of the revenue and expenditure accounts related to this item.
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Account Code Account Description Amount
2654020-43100-20590
(Revenue)
HHIP Grant $489,820.00
2654020-52300-20590
(Expenditure)
HHIP Grant – Contract Services $446,400.00
2654020-52110-20590
(Expenditure)
Administration – Supplies $15,000.00
2654020-51100-20590
(Expenditure)
Administration – Full Time Wages $15,420.00
2654020-51200-20590
(Expenditure)
Administration – Fringe $2,000.00
2654020-51300-20590
(Expenditure)
Administration – Payroll Tax $1,000.00
2654020-52350-20590
(Expenditure)
Administration – Legal $10,000.00
Strategic Plan Goal:
This subject funding opportunity aligns with Goal D, Strategy, 5 of the 2023-2026 Strategic Plan, which states that in order to achieve the goal of reducing homelessness, the City should:
•"Strengthen collaboration with the County and other entities to identify new funding opportunities and expand partnerships for homelessness services." Inasmuch as the proposed funding source will allow the City to further implement the strategy noted above, acceptance of the subject funds would be compliant with the City’s 2023-2026 Strategic Plan.
Background:
Funding History
In alignment with Section 9817 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) developed a Medi-Cal Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Spending Plan, which outlines several initiatives designed to enhance, expand, and strengthen HCBS throughout California. A key initiative under this plan is the Housing and Homelessness Initiative Program (HHIP), a $1.288 billion statewide voluntary incentive program that provides health plans with one-time incentive funds to improve health outcomes and access to whole-person care services. This initiative targets the social determinants of health, specifically homelessness and housing insecurity, as critical factors contributing to health disparities.
Through HHIP, Medi-Cal Managed Care Plans (MCPs) earn funds by addressing homelessness and housing insecurity in their service areas. These funds flow from DHCS to Medi-Cal MCPs and are intended to foster collaboration between MCPs and county agencies, ensuring that members facing homelessness or housing instability are 4 0
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connected to the necessary housing services. In San Bernardino County, Inland Empire Health Plan (IEHP) and Molina Healthcare have partnered with the San Bernardino County Department of Community Development and Housing to invest in programs aimed at improving housing access and addressing homelessness. These initiatives involve significant investments in activities aimed at addressing homelessness and improving housing stability.
Regional Funding Allocation
The DHCS HHIP program period for MCPs began on January 1, 2022, and concluded on December 31, 2023. This period was divided into two Program Years, with three distinct measurement periods where MCPs submitted narrative documentation and quantitative data at five specific points. Throughout the program, San Bernardino County played an instrumental role in supporting the MCPs with their submissions. DHCS allocated incentive payments based on various factors, including member enrollment, revenue, and Point-in-Time Counts (PITC) of homelessness in the County. Using this methodology, the County and the San Bernardino County Continuum of Care (SBC CoC) were allocated $1,580,000 in Molina funding.
These funds are intended to support coordination efforts between health plans, the County, and other entities involved in addressing homelessness. The HHIP funds are to be used in accordance with each MCP’s Investment Plan, which was developed in collaboration with the County. While existing programs and projects may be supplemented by these funds, the initiative also allows for the development of new programs and projects that align with the goals of HHIP. On February 26, 2024, the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors approved agreements necessary for the County to accept and begin investing the Molina HHIP funds into the approved programs and projects (Attachment C).
Local Funding Award
Based on the 2024 SBC CoC Homeless Count and Survey Report, Victorville remained the city with the second highest homeless population in the County at 611 (285 Sheltered, 326 Unsheltered), second only to the city of San Bernadino. Specific to Victorville’s homeless population at the time of the 2024 Point-In-Time count, 43% were chronically homeless, 19% were incarcerated during the last 12 months, 18% have a mental health disorder, 18% have a physical disability, and 31% have a substance use disorder. The 2025 SBC CoC Homeless Count and Survey Report will be published in the coming months.
In early January 2025, the San Bernardino County approached the City of Victorville to explore the feasibility of using Molina HHIP funds to support the City’s Wellness Center, a 170-bed interim housing facility addressing one of the Molina HHIP plan’s identified initiatives, “navigation centers.” After continued discussions, it was determined that the Wellness Center was an appropriate use of these funds. As a result, an agreement has been drafted (Exhibit B of Attachment A) to award the City of Victorville $489,820.00 in 4 0
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HHIP funds, which is now being presented to both the Victorville City Council for review and approval, with the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors subsequently reviewing the item for final approval.
Discussion:
As proposed, the recommended action will assist in the fiscal sustainability of the Wellness Center. With this $489,820.00 in additional funding, the City will continue to address the City’s unsheltered population with additional resources and support from our County partners, while offsetting Wellness Center operating costs.
If accepted, the subject funding period of performance will begin on April 8, 2025, and end on April 7, 2027. As part of the funding obligations, the City will be required to submit quarterly and annual reporting on the target populations served at the Wellness Center, which can be produced by City Homelessness Solutions staff utilizing intake processes and data collection systems already in place. As part of the agreement, the Wellness Center clients served by this funding source are required to be members of a Medi-Cal managed plan; however, a large majority of clients are already included in the target population and City staff does not anticipate any difficulties utilizing the subject funding within the noted timeline.
Guided by our Homelessness Solutions Task Force Strategic Action Plan and the Citywide Strategic Action Plan, the City continues to address the homeless challenges within our community and seeks funding sources to reduce impacts to the City’s budget.
Given the City’s goals of addressing homelessness and collaborating with San Bernardino County for additional resources and partnerships, staff recommends that the Honorable City Council adopt Resolution Nos. 25-021 and 25-022, amending the fiscal year 2024-2025 budget, and authorizing the City Manager to proceed with formally accepting the $489,820.00 in available funding.
Attachments: A. City Council Resolution No. 25-021 - City/County HHIP Agreement
B. City Council Resolution No. 25-022 - Budget Amendment C. Contract - Molina and San Bernardino County HHIP