This page is for HHA members who administer ESG. Each section includes information on who is eligible for services under the grant, what expenses can be charged to the grant, the documentation requirements for those expenses, and the documentation requirements for each client’s case file. For ESG-CV recipients there is also a section in each category detailing the additional flexibilities that are provided for the CV money.
Client Eligibility
This funding may be used to provide services to unsheltered homeless people. They must have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not meant for human habitation. They cannot be staying in a shelter, hotels, or with friends/family.
Services are provided on the street, or in parks, abandoned buildings, bus stations, campgrounds, and other unsheltered settings.
Allowable Expenses
Engagement: activities to locate, identify, and build relationships with unsheltered homeless people for the purpose of providing immediate support, intervention, and connections with homeless assistance programs and/or mainstream social services and housing programs.
- Initial assessment of needs and eligibility
- Providing crisis counseling
- Addressing urgent physical needs (food, water, showers, clothing)
- Actively connecting and providing information and referral
- Cell phone costs of outreach workers
Case Management: Assessing housing and service needs, and arranging/coordinating/ monitoring the delivery of individualized services.
- Using the centralized or coordinated assessment system o Initial evaluation/verifying and document eligibility
- Counseling
- Developing/Securing/Coordinating Services
- Helping obtain Federal, state, and local benefits
- Monitoring/evaluating participant progress
- Providing information and referral to other providers
- Developing an individualized housing/service plan
Emergency Health Services: Outpatient treatment of urgent medical conditions by licensed medical professionals in community based settings (e.g. streets, parks, and campgrounds) to those eligible participants unwilling or unable to access emergency shelter or an appropriate healthcare facility. ESG funds may be used only for these services to the extent that other appropriate health services are inaccessible or unavailable within the area.
- Assessing participants’ health problems and developing treatment plans
- Assisting participants to understand their health needs
- Providing or helping participants obtain appropriate emergency medical treatment o Providing medication and follow-up services
Emergency Mental Health Services: Outpatient treatment of urgent mental health conditions by licensed professionals in community-based settings (e.g. streets, parks, and campgrounds) to those eligible participants unwilling or unable to access emergency shelter or an appropriate healthcare facility. ESG funds may be used only for these services to the extent that other appropriate health services are inaccessible or unavailable within the area.
- Crisis Intervention
- Prescription of psychotropic medications
- Explain the use and management of medications
- Combinations of therapeutic approaches to address multiple problems
ESG-CV Flexibilities
Additional expenses allowed under ESG-CV inlcude
- Laundry
- Personal Protective Equipment
- Vaccine Incentives
- Cell Phones+ Internet (must be provider owned and loaned to clients)
- Handwashing Stations/Portable Bathrooms
- Training on infections disease control and prevention
Documentation of Services (Case file)
Coming soon . . .
Documentation for Reimbursement (Invoices)
Case Management
- Time card/sheet documenting hours spent on outreach activities
- Paystub showing payment to staff member
Engagement
- Itemized receipts for eligible purchases (e.g. meals, blankets, clothes, toiletries)
Transportation
- Reimbursement for Staff Members: DCF Travel Form
- Client Transportation: Itemized distribution of bus passes
Client Eligibility
Category 1: Literally Homeless
- For clients staying in hotels those hotels need to be paid for by someone else. If client is paying for hotel, use the prevention program instead.
Category 2: Fleeing domestic violence
Allowable Expenses
Essential Sevices: Services provided to individuals and families who are in an emergency shelter:
- Case Management : Assessing, arranging, coordinating, and monitoring individualized services.
- Using the centralized or coordinated assessment system
- Initial evaluation including verifying and documenting eligibility
- Counseling
- Developing, securing and coordinating services including Federal, State, and local benefits
- Monitoring and evaluating program participant progress
- Providing information and referrals to other providers
- Providing ongoing risk assessment and safety planning with victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking
- Developing an Individualized Housing and Service Plan
- Child Care : “Licensed” child care for program participants with children under the age of 13 or disabled children under the age of 18.
- Child care costs o Meals and snacks
- Comprehensive and coordinated sets of appropriate developmental activities
- Education Services : Instruction or training to enhance participants’ ability to obtain and maintain housing: literacy, English literacy, GED, consumer education, health education, and substance abuse prevention.
- Educational services/skill-building
- Screening, assessment, and testing
- Individual or group instruction
- Tutoring
- Provision of books, supplies and instructional material
- Counseling
- Referral to community resources
- Employment Assistance and Job Training: Services assisting participants secure employment and job training programs.
- Classroom, online, and/or computer instruction
- On the-job instruction o Job finding, skill-building
- Reasonable stipends in employment assistance and job training programs
- Books and instructional material
- Employment screening, assessment, or testing
- Structured job-seeking support
- Special training and tutoring, including literacy training and pre-vocational training o Counseling or job coaching
- Referral to community resources
- Outpatient Health Services : Direct outpatient treatment of medical conditions provided by licensed medical professionals.
- Assessing health problems and developing a treatment plan
- Assisting program participants to understand their health needs
- Providing or helping participants obtain appropriate medical treatment, preventive medical care, and health maintenance services, including emergency medical services
- Providing medication and follow-up services
- Providing preventive and non-cosmetic dental care
- Legal Services: Necessary legal services regarding matters that interfere with the program participant’s ability to obtain and retain housing.
- Hourly fees for legal advice and representation by licensed attorneys and certain other fees-for-service
- Client intake, preparation of cases for trial, provision of legal advice, representation at hearings, and counseling Emergency Solutions Grants Eligible Expense Guide Page 7
- Filing fees and other necessary court costs
- Legal Representation : Legal representation and advice to resolve legal problems that prevent participants from obtaining or retaining permanent housing.
- Child support o Guardianship
- Paternity
- Emancipation
- Legal separation
- Resolution of outstanding criminal warrants
- Appeal of veterans and public benefit claim denials o Orders of protection and other civil remedies for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking
- Life Skills Training: Critical life management skills necessary to assist the program participant to function independently in the community.
- Budgeting resources
- Managing money
- Managing household
- Resolving conflict
- Shopping for food and needed items
- Improving nutrition
- Using public transportation
- Parenting
- Mental Health Services : Direct outpatient treatment of mental health conditions by licensed professionals.
- Crisis intervention
- Individual, family, or group therapy sessions
- Prescription of psychotropic medications or explanations about the use and management of medications
- Combinations of therapeutic approaches to address multiple problems
- Substance Abuse Treatment Services: Substance abuse treatment provided by licensed or certified professionals, designed to prevent, reduce, eliminate or deter relapse of substance abuse or addictive behaviors.
- Client intake and assessment
- Outpatient treatment for up to thirty days
- Group and individual counseling
- Drug testing
- Transportation: Costs of travel by program participants to and from medical care, employment, child care, or other facilities that provide eligible essential services; and cost of staff travel to support provision of essential services.
- Cost of program participant’s travel on public transportation
- Mileage allowance for service workers to visit participants
- Purchasing or leasing a vehicle used for transport of participants and/or staff serving participants, including the cost of gas, insurance, taxes, and maintenance for the vehicle
- Travel costs of staff to accompany or assist program participants to use public transportation
- Services for Special Populations: Otherwise eligible essential services tailored to address the special needs of homeless youth, victims of domestic violence, and related crimes/threats, and people living with HIV/AIDS in emergency shelters.
Shelter Operations – Costs to operate and maintain emergency shelter activities and also provide other emergency lodging when appropriate.
- Rent
- Security
- Fuel
- Insurance
- Utilities
- Food
- Furnishings
- Supplies necessary for the operation of emergency shelter activities
- Equipment – Equipment means tangible, nonexpendable, personal property having a useful life of more than one year).
- Maintenance – Does not materially add to the value of the building/property; does not appreciably prolong the useful life of the building/property; and does not adapt the building/property to new uses. Examples of maintenance activities could include activities such as:
- Cleaning;
- Minor or routine repairs of furnishings, equipment, and fixtures;
- Protective or preventative measures to keep a building, its systems, and its grounds in working order.
- Replacing a few shingles on a leaky roof;
- Patching leaking pipes or plumbing;
- Replacing a broken window;
- Fixing a crack in a sidewalk;
- Filling potholes in a parking lot;
- Repairing portions of a fence.
Hotel and motel voucher for family or individuals (if there is no space at area shelters)
Rennovation, Rehabilitation, and Conversion
Uniform Relocation Assistance
ESG-CV Flexibility
Additional Expenses Allowed
- PPE
- Vaccine Incentives
- Volunteer Incentives
- Temporary Emergency Shelter
- Hotel costs can include cleaning fees + repair fees
Documentation of Services (Case File)
Coming soon . . .
Documentation for Reimbursement (Invoices)
Case Management
- Time Card/Sheet documenting hours dedicated to case management services listed above
- Pay-stub
Shelter Operations/Essential Services
- Itemized Receipts for Eligible Purchases
Allowable Expenses
Hardware, Equipment, and Software Requirements
- Purchasing or leasing computer hardware
- Purchasing HMIS software or software licenses
- Purchasing of leasing equipment including telephones, fax machines, and furniture needed for HMIS input or reporting
Staff Costs for conducting HMIS activities
- Data entry
- Monitoring and reviewing data quality
- Completing data analysis
- Reporting to the HMIS lead
- Training staff on using HMIS
- Implementing and Complying with HMIS requirements
Training and Overhead Costs
- Leasing office space
- Electricity/Gas/Water/Phone/Internet for office space
- Technical Assistance
- Staff travel to HUD sponsored/approved training on HMIS
- Staff travel for intake
- Paying HHA participation fees
ESG-CV Flexibility
Additional allowable expenses:
- May use to support HMIS costs that support collection and reporting of data about the impact of coronavirus across the community even if it is not directly related to an ESG program.
Documentation for Reimbursement (Invoices)
Hardware, Equipment, and Software:
- Itemizes Receipts for Eligible Purchases
Staff Costs
- Time Card/Sheet documenting hours dedicated to HMIS activities
- Pay-stub
Travel and Overhead
- Copy of rent/mortgage payment with percentage of space used for HMIS work denoted.
- Copy of utility payments with percentage of space used for HMIS work denoted. Both invoice and payment confirmation.
- Mileage documentation for travel reimbursement
- Itemized receipts for training/technical assistance costs and HHA participation fee
Client Eligibility
Category 2: Imminent Risk of Homelessness
Category 4: Fleeing Domestic Violence
Category 3: Additional Categories under Federal Law
*Client must fall in one of the above categories AND have an income below 30% of MFI (medium family income). See the extremely low income limits for the FWB/Crestview/Destin Area here.
Allowable Expenses
Rental Assistance
- Short-Term Rental Assistance: up to 3 months
- Medium-Term Rental Assistance: 4 to 24 months
- Payment of Rental Arrears: Onetime payment up to 6 months, including any late fees on those arrears.
- Any Combination of the Three Types of Rental Assistance Above: Total not to exceed 24 months during any 3 year period, including any payment for last month’s rent.
Relocation and Stabilization Assistance
Financial Assistance
- Moving Costs – moving costs, such as truck rental or hiring a moving company, including certain temporary storage fees.
- Rent Application Fees – application fee that is charged by the owner to all applicants.
- Security Deposit – equal to no more than 2 months’ rent.
- Last Month’s Rent – paid to the owner of housing at the time security deposit and first month’s rent are paid.
- Utility Deposit – standard utility deposit required by the utility company for all customers (i.e. gas, electric, water/sewage).
- Utility Payments – up to 24 months of utility payments per participant per service (i.e. gas, electric, water/sewage), including a 1 time payment up to 6 months of arrearages, per service.
Services
- Housing Search and Placement
- Assessment of housing barriers, needs and preferences
- Development of an action plan for locating housing
- Housing search and outreach to and negotiation with owner
- Assistance with submitting rental applications and understanding leases
- Assessment of housing for compliance with ESG requirements for habitability, lead based paint, and rent reasonableness
- Assistance with obtaining utilities and making moving arrangements
- Tenant counseling
- Housing Stability Case Management –
- Assessing, arranging, coordinating, and monitoring the delivery of individualized services to facilitate housing stability
- Using the centralized or coordinated assessment system conduct the initial evaluation and reevaluation
- Counseling
- Developing, securing, and coordinating services including Federal, state, and local benefits
- Monitoring and evaluating program participant progress
- Providing information and referrals to other providers
- Developing an Individualized Housing and Service Plan
- Mediation – Mediation between the program participant and the owner or person(s) with whom the program participant is living, to prevent the program participant from losing permanent housing in which they currently reside. Time and/or services associated with mediation activities
- Legal Services – legal services that are necessary to resolve a legal problem that prohibits the program participant from obtaining or maintaining permanent housing.
- Hourly fees for legal advice and representation
- Fees based on the actual service performed (i.e. fee for service), but only if the cost would be less than the cost of hourly fees
- Client intake, preparation of cases for trial, provision of legal advice, representation at hearings, and counseling
- Filing fees and other necessary court costs
- Subrecipient’s employees’ salaries and other costs necessary to perform the series, if the subrecipient is a legal services provider and performs the services itself
- Legal Representation may be provided for:
- Landlord/tenant matters
- Child support
- Guardianship
- Paternity
- Emancipation
- Legal Separation
- Resolution of outstanding criminal warrants
- Orders of protection and other civil remedies for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking
- Appeal of veterans and public benefit claim denials
- Credit Repair – services necessary to assist program participants with critical skills related to household budgeting, managing money, accessing a free personal credit report, and resolving personal credit problems
- Credit counseling
- Assistance cannot include the payment or modification of a debt.
ESG-CV Flexibilities
Income Limit raised from 30% (Extremely Low Income) to the Very Low Income Category (50%).
Removes 12 month limit on medium term rental assistance.
Fair Market Rent Limit waived for rental assistance (must still meet rent reasonableness)
Can use funds for sponsor based rental assistance
Additional Expenses
- Renters Insurance
- Furniture and Household Furnishings
- Essential Services available to shelter clients (see list in that category)
- PPE
- Cell Phones
- Landlord Incentives
- Hotel/Motel Costs
Documentation of Services (Case File)
Coming Soon
Documentation for Reimbursement (Invoices)
Prevention Rental/Mortgage Assistance
- Past Due Notice
- Copy of Lease Agreement or Landlord Agreement Form
- Payment Statement/Invoice
- Proof of Payment
Prevention Utility Arrears
- Past Due Notice
- Proof of Address (lease agreement)
- Payment Statement/Invoice
- Proof of Payment
Case Management
- Time card documenting time spent on services listed above
- Pay Stub of Staff Member being paid
Other expenses
- Receipts
Client Eligibility
Category 1: Literally Homeless
- For clients staying in hotels those hotels need to be paid for by someone else. If client is paying for hotel, use the prevention program instead.
Category 4: Fleeing Domestic Violence
Allowable Expenses
Rental Assistance
- Short-Term Rental Assistance: up to 3 months
- Medium-Term Rental Assistance: 4 to 24 months
- Payment of Rental Arrears: Onetime payment up to 6 months, including any late fees on those arrears.
- Any Combination of the Three Types of Rental Assistance Above: Total not to exceed 24 months during any 3 year period, including any payment for last month’s rent.
Relocation and Stabilization Assistance
Financial Assistance
- Moving Costs – moving costs, such as truck rental or hiring a moving company, including certain temporary storage fees.
- Rent Application Fees – application fee that is charged by the owner to all applicants.
- Security Deposit – equal to no more than 2 months’ rent.
- Last Month’s Rent – paid to the owner of housing at the time security deposit and first month’s rent are paid.
- Utility Deposit – standard utility deposit required by the utility company for all customers (i.e. gas, electric, water/sewage).
- Utility Payments – up to 24 months of utility payments per participant per service (i.e. gas, electric, water/sewage), including a 1 time payment up to 6 months of arrearages, per service.
Services
- Housing Search and Placement
- Assessment of housing barriers, needs and preferences
- Development of an action plan for locating housing
- Housing search and outreach to and negotiation with owner
- Assistance with submitting rental applications and understanding leases
- Assessment of housing for compliance with ESG requirements for habitability, lead based paint, and rent reasonableness
- Assistance with obtaining utilities and making moving arrangements
- Tenant counseling
- Housing Stability Case Management –
- Assessing, arranging, coordinating, and monitoring the delivery of individualized services to facilitate housing stability
- Using the centralized or coordinated assessment system conduct the initial evaluation and reevaluation
- Counseling
- Developing, securing, and coordinating services including Federal, state, and local benefits
- Monitoring and evaluating program participant progress
- Providing information and referrals to other providers
- Developing an Individualized Housing and Service Plan
- Mediation – Mediation between the program participant and the owner or person(s) with whom the program participant is living, to prevent the program participant from losing permanent housing in which they currently reside. Time and/or services associated with mediation activities
- Legal Services – legal services that are necessary to resolve a legal problem that prohibits the program participant from obtaining or maintaining permanent housing.
- Hourly fees for legal advice and representation
- Fees based on the actual service performed (i.e. fee for service), but only if the cost would be less than the cost of hourly fees
- Client intake, preparation of cases for trial, provision of legal advice, representation at hearings, and counseling
- Filing fees and other necessary court costs
- Subrecipient’s employees’ salaries and other costs necessary to perform the series, if the subrecipient is a legal services provider and performs the services itself
- Legal Representation may be provided for:
- Landlord/tenant matters
- Child support
- Guardianship
- Paternity
- Emancipation
- Legal Separation
- Resolution of outstanding criminal warrants
- Orders of protection and other civil remedies for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking
- Appeal of veterans and public benefit claim denials
- Credit Repair – services necessary to assist program participants with critical skills related to household budgeting, managing money, accessing a free personal credit report, and resolving personal credit problems
- Credit counseling
- Assistance cannot include the payment or modification of a debt.
ESG-CV Flexibilities
Removes 12 month limit on medium term rental assistance.
Fair Market Rent Limit waived for rental assistance (must still meet rent reasonableness)
Can use funds for sponsor based rental assistance
Additional Expenses
- Renters Insurance
- Furniture and Household Furnishings
- Essential Services available to shelter clients (see list in that category)
- PPE
- Cell Phones
- Landlord Incentives
- Hotel/Motel Costs
Documentation of Services (Case File)
Coming soon . . .
Documentation for Reimbursement (Invoices)
Rapid Rehousing Rental Assistance
- Copy of Lease Agreement of Landlord Agreement Form
- Proof of Payment
Rapid Rehousing Utility Assistance
- Letter stating arrears from utility company
- Deposit Requirements/Information from utility company
- Proof of Payment
Case Management
- Time Card/Sheet documenting hours dedicated to the case management services above
- Paystub of staff member being paid