Brim-Edwards: Get money out faster for homeless services
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) -- More people once again became homeless after staying in a shelter than people who got permanent housing, a new audit of the Joint Office of Homeless Services showed. The audit also revealed more than half the people who left shelters were unaccounted for.
On Tuesday the Multnomah County Commissioners a report by the Multnomah County Auditor's office that recommends finding better ways to expand shelter capacity and access, plus hold service providers more accountable for helping people move to permanent housing.
Some commissioners, including Julia Brim-Edwards, still question whether the Joint Office -- a partnership between Multnomah County and the City of Portland -- is getting tax money out fast enough to help reduce homelessness.
"Sometimes the delay is 6-7 months to get the money out the door," Brim-Edwards told KOIN 6 News. "It could be used for shelters, it could be used for day centers, it could be used for any number of services that people need -- behavioral health, navigation services."
The Joint Office of Homeless Services was created by Multnomah County and the City of Portland in 2016 as a way to centralize planning, policy, and funding for homelessness programs. For fiscal year 2024, the Joint Office’s budget was around $279 million, with about 100 staff members, according to the audit.
Since the Joint Office was created, the number of shelter beds has more than tripled in Multnomah County, the audit notes. In 2015, the county reported 521 shelter beds, which increased to 2,053 in 2022. For fiscal year 2024, the Joint Office budgeted for 3,220 shelter beds.
The city and county pledged to work together better to coordinate services and building shelters, such as 1000 more short-term shelter beds. There is also a need for more accountability from service providers to track what happens to people after they leave temporary shelters.
Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson told KOIN 6 News the city and county will be able to meet their goal of reducing the homeless population by half by 2026.
This is the second report from the Multnomah County Auditor's Office about the Joint Office of Homeless Services. The earlier audit on contract management, communication and equity was released in August 2023, officials said.