Opportunities Exist to Improve the Accuracy of Veterans' Emergency Housing Assistance and Permanent Housing Placement Data

VHA’s Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) program helps veterans and their families who are experiencing homelessness and those at imminent risk of homelessness by providing outreach, case management services, assistance obtaining other public benefits, and temporary financial assistance. The SSVF program works through grantees, typically nonprofit organizations and consumer cooperatives. SSVF grantees spent about $67.1 million to place 12,490 veterans in emergency housing during the OIG review period from July 1, 2021, through June 30, 2022. The OIG initiated a project to assess the SSVF program’s oversight of grantees’ use of emergency housing assistance to place veterans in permanent housing, as well as the program’s efforts to place veterans in permanent housing in a timely manner. SSVF grantees are required to report information to the SSVF program office on veterans who are at risk of or experiencing homelessness. All grantees are required to track information related to payments made on behalf of veterans, including emergency housing assistance payments for hotels or motels, and the dates the veterans moved into permanent housing. Grantees enter this information into their version of a Homeless Management Information System (HMIS). However, not all HMIS applications have an option for entering information about veterans’ lengths of stay in emergency housing. The OIG also found that, due to grantee errors or omissions, data did not always accurately reflect the dates veterans started receiving emergency housing assistance or moved into permanent housing. The OIG encouraged VHA leaders to consider strengthening the data validation process to ensure responsible personnel have the necessary information to assist grantees and ensure compliance with the 60 day limit on emergency housing assistance for veterans.