NOFO FAQs,

Talking Points for TH Projects,

&

Steering Committee NOFO Decisions

Dear Colleagues,

We hope you are doing well. This email is to share 1) Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)-related Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), 2) plus two additional resources for projects transitioning to transitional housing (TH), and 3) the results of the Steering Committee vote.

NOFO Frequently Asked Questions

As you know, the changes being required by HUD in the 2025 NOFO are monumental. Naturally, there have been many questions related to those changes. To ensure that everyone receives clear and consistent information we have asked that people submit questions in writing so that we can develop and share a comprehensive document with responses that will benefit the full CoC. To that end, here is the first version of the 2025 NOFO FAQ. Feel free to continue sending questions to ctboscoc@gmail.com and we anticipate releasing additional versions of the FAQ.

Resources for TH Projects

Steering Committee NOFO Vote

After the CT BOS special NOFO Steering Committee meeting last week, Steering Committee Members voted to approve the following motions. Please note, some of the motions were only voted upon by Non-Conflicted Steering Committee Members.

Motion #1: Service Participation Requirement

All CoC-funded projects must require participation in supportive services as a condition of applying for new and renewal funding. Projects prohibited by other statutes (e.g., VAWA) from doing so may be unable to immediately implement the requirement while awaiting court guidance to resolve such legal conflicts.

Motion #2: Adjust Renewal Evaluation Criteria & Rescore for use in 2025

Ranking

Add a threshold criterion for adopting a service participation requirement for all CoC funded projects (projects that do not do so will get zero points) and adjust Renewal Evaluation Criteria to score increases in earned income and set associated points at 25% of total points.

Motion #3: Permanent Housing Retention Guiding Principles

Use the following principles to determine which projects will retain Permanent Housing funding in the 2025 CoC NOFO :

  • Be strategic regarding HUD priorities
  • Retain as many Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) units as possible.
  • Move supportive services out of retained PSH and into SSO grants where services will follow eligible CoC participants across projects
  • Don’t retain PSH units that have an alternative source available to fund the CoC funded activities
  • Transition all Rapid Rehousing (RRH) and Joint Transitional Housing (TH)/RRH projects to TH
  • Provide PSH grantees the opportunity to convert to TH (any grantee that wants to can convert)
  • Use transition grant applications whenever feasible.
  • Retain project-based and sponsor-based rental assistance subsidies (PRA and SRA) for PSH units in tax credit and congregate projects
  • Retain PSH SNOFO units for People Experiencing Unsheltered Homelessness
  • Retain PSH Units in each Coordinated Access Network (CAN)
  • Protect scattered site PSH units with a non-profit recipient
  • Use Renewal Evaluation scores to rank within prioritized buckets

Motion #4: New Bonus Project Application Types

The CoC will accept the following New Project Application Types for Submission to HUD:

  • TH/Interim Housing (Scored by Committee)
  • HMIS (HMIS Lead is only eligible applicant)
  • SSO-CES (DOH is applicant)
  • Other SSO Grants (applicant(s) TBD)
  • DV Bonus (SSO-CES and TH only, any eligible applicant can submit a project application in Esnaps; scoring TBD)

Motion #5 – Proposed Ranking Policy

The CT BOS CoC will rank projects as follows:

  1. Tier 1: Retained PSH housing subsidies – ensure PSH in all CANs; ranked in order of adjusted renewal evaluation score
  2. Tier 2: Supportive Services Only (SSO) projects reallocated from retained PSH ranked with the best mathematical advantage
  3. Other Projects in Tier 2 – ranking adjusted as needed to ensure the best mathematical scoring advantage to maximize funds received

i. Renewal HMIS

ii. Renewal SSO Coordinated Entry

iii. Renewal SSO Street Outreach and Youth Navigator

iv. Renewal TH

v. Former PSH, RRH and Joint projects transitioned to TH that have been

evaluated in order of adjusted renewal evaluation score

vi. Remaining Former PSH, RRH and Joint projects transitioned to TH

(unscored)

vii. New TH CoC Bonus Projects (order based on project application scores)

viii. New SSO-Coordinated Entry

ix. New HMIS

x. Other New SSO projects to reach maximum bonus request

xi. New DV Bonus Projects

As always, much appreciation to you all for the meaningful work you do. Feel free to contact us with questions at ctboscoc@gmail.com.

Sincerely,

CT BOS Team

Category: News

Author: Paul Schmitz