1. PIT/HIC Guidance for Communities
The Michigan Coalition Against Homelessness
PIT/HIC Guidance for Communities
January 10, 2017

2. Topics for Today’s Webinar
PIT/HIC Overview
Important Changes for 2017
Activities to Get Ready for the PIT/HIC
“Do’s and Don'ts” of the 2017 PIT/HIC

3. PIT/HIC Overview

4. HUD Resources for the PIT/HIC
PIT/HIC Data Collection Notice: Data-Collection-Notice.pdf
Point in Time Count Methodology Guide: Guide.pdf

5. What is the PIT and HIC
PIT: PIT stands for Point in Time Count. It is a count of who is homeless in a community on a single night of the year
HIC: HIC stands for Housing Inventory Count. It counts the beds available in a community for homeless individuals/families

6. Federal Requirements for the PIT
According to HUD, the PIT is a “count of sheltered and unsheltered homeless persons carried out on one night in the last 10 calendar days of January or at such other time as required by HUD.”
All North Carolina communities conduct a sheltered and unsheltered PIT count annually.

7. The PIT/HIC in North Carolina
All North Carolina CoCs will be conducting the PIT on Wednesday, January 25, 2017 unless a waiver has been requested.
Contact your CoC leadership if you believe your community has received a waiver.
Data is submitted to HUD through the HUDHDX.info website, and the typical submission window is during the month of April (With April 30th being the usual due date.)

8. PIT/HIC Changes for 2017

9. PIT Changes for 2017
HUD convened a team of experts regarding the most appropriate ways to collect data on gender identity. As a result, HUD is expanding the gender identity options in the PIT count to include an additional gender option – “Don’t identify as male, female, or transgender.”
HUD is requiring CoCs to report persons experiencing chronic homelessness by household type – persons in households with at least one adult and one child, persons in households without children, and persons in households with only children. For this reason, HUD will not require CoCs to report persons who are experiencing chronic homelessness under the subpopulations section of HDX.
HUD is clarifying that when reporting on any chronically homeless households – whether or not there are children – if one member of the household qualifies as chronically homeless, then all persons in the household should be counted as chronically homeless.

10. HIC Changes for 2017
HUD removed the DEM project type, associated with projects funded under HUD’s Rapid Rehousing Demonstration Program, because this designation is no longer necessary.
HUD has created a new data collection field for CoCs to indicate for each project whether it is funded through other federal funding sources than HUD McKinney-Vento funding.
The VA designates a limited number of GPD projects as “Transition in Place” (TIP) projects. For 2017, the VA has clarified that CoCs should report the beds and units associated with the GPD TIP projects under the “Other Permanent Housing” (OPH) project type. Because the GPD TIP beds and units are reported under the OPH project type, persons in those beds and units will not be included in the CoC’s sheltered PIT count.

11. HIC Changes for 2017 (cont.)
HUD has clarified that when reporting beds dedicated for youth, CoCs should also include beds dedicated for members of a youth headed household (i.e., the children of parenting youth). This is similar to reporting dedicated beds for people who are chronically homeless and veterans, which should include beds dedicated for other members of a chronically homeless or veteran household

12. HIC Changes for 2017 (cont.)
HUD is renaming and expanding the scattered site field in the organization and project information section to require CoCs to indicate whether the project is:
1) Site-based – single site
2) Site-based – clustered / multiple sites
3) Tenant-based
The new field name will be “Housing Type.”
CoCs are required to enter an address for all projects that are site-based. If a site-based project has multiple sites, the CoC should enter the address for the site where most beds and units are located. For tenant-based – scattered site projects, CoCs will be required to enter the zip code where most beds and units are located. HUD is removing the TH Unit Type question because it would be redundant with the information reported in the Housing Type field.

13. Activities to Get Ready for the PIT/HIC

14. Activities to Get Ready for the PIT/HIC
Verifying HUD Standards on your Provider Pages
Training Count Volunteers and Workers
The Homeless Definition for the PIT
The Count Window
Data Collection Forms
Issues of Safety and Client Confidentiality

15. Verifying HUD Standards on Your Provider Pages

16. Verifying HUD Standards on Your Provider Pages

17. Verifying HUD Standards on Your Provider Pages (cont.)
Of Particular Importance:
If your project is a Permanent Housing type, make sure the appropriate PH category is selected. Remember, Rapid Rehousing is now considered a category of Permanent Housing.
Make sure you have entered the correct CoC codes for all of your projects.

18. Training: The Homeless Definition
The Homeless Definition used for the PIT Count is a subset of the HUD Homeless Definition and includes only persons who are:
“living in a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designated to provide temporary living arrangement (including congregate shelters, transitional housing, and hotels and motels paid for by charitable organizations or by federal, state, or local government programs for low-income individuals)” (Sheltered)
living “with a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings, including a car, park, abandoned building, bus or train station, airport, or camping ground” (Unsheltered)

19. Training: The Homeless Definition (cont.)
This means that:
Individuals who are imminently at risk for homelessness but not physically unsheltered or residing in a primary nighttime residence for homeless persons should not be counted. (Category 2)
Individuals who meet other federal definitions of homelessness, such as the McKinney-Vento Educational definition, but do not align with the prior subset of the definition should not be counted. (Category 3)

20. Training: The Count Window
12:01 am Date of Count
12:01 am Date After Count
The Date of the Count
The Night of the Count
Sunset Date of Count
Sunrise Date After Count
If your Count Date is Wednesday, January 25th, your Count window will be from Sunset on the 25th through Sunrise on the 26th.

21. Training: The Count Window (cont.)
This means that to count a person, they must:
Have stayed in a place unfit for human habitation starting on the night of the count and ending on the night after the count. (Unsheltered Counts Only)
Have been in an ES, TH or Safe Haven defined facility for homeless persons starting on the night of the count and ending on the night after the count.

22. Training: The Count Window (cont.)
Unsheltered Count for 2017: When conducting street counts, there are two primary strategies communities often use:
Night of the Count Approach: Communities send count teams throughout the entire jurisdiction, or into known locations on the night of the count to identify homeless individuals.
Service Based Approach: Communities are permitted to go to places that offer homeless based services up to seven days after the night of the count to identify persons who were homeless on the count night.

23. Training: The Count Window (cont.)
If using a Night of the Count approach, a community should:
Send street teams out at a time after which shelters have stopped receiving new clients for the evening on the night of the count.
Define coverage areas for each team to avoid “double coverage” of specific areas in the CoC.

24. Training: The Count Window (cont.)
If using a Service Based approach, a community should:
Ensure that their data collection methods can unduplicate clients so they aren’t counted multiple times.
Ensure that the client was homeless on the night of the Count. If the count night is January 25th, persons who were homeless on the 26th, 27th, etc but not the 25th cannot be counted.

25. Training: The Count Window (cont.)
HUD guidelines permit that communities use a mixed strategy of both a Night of the Count Approach and a Services Based Approach, provided that communities ensure that clients are unduplicated, and that they are asked whether they were homeless on the night of the count itself.

26. Training: Data Collection Forms
To collect PIT Data, Communities can use:
Forms developed by NCCEH can be located at:

27. Training: Data Collection Forms (cont.)
Environments where Data will be collected in:
HMIS Participating Agencies
Non-HMIS Participating Homeless Service Providers
Domestic Violence/Victim Service Providers
Unsheltered Persons Counted by CoC Partners/Local Volunteers

28. Training: Data Collection Forms (cont.)
HMIS Participating Agencies: As long as standard workflows are used and all clients are entered into the system on the night of the count, no additional work should be necessary to ensure that clients pull properly into the Bowman developed PIT Report

29. Training: Data Collection Forms (cont.)
Non-HMIS Participating Agencies: Data collection forms should be distributed to all Non-HMIS Participating Agencies within the community. The forms can either be completed by agency staff, or by volunteers whom the agencies are partnering with to collect client information for the PIT night. This information will then be entered into HMIS following the count.

30. Training: Data Collection Forms (cont.)
Unsheltered Count: Data collection forms should be distributed to each count team participating in count activities. These forms should be completed in the field when engaging with clients, then secured in a confidential envelope and delivered directly to the data entry staff who will put the data into HMIS.

31. Training: Data Collection Forms (cont.)
Victim Service Provider Agencies: Data collection forms should be distributed to each DV agency within the CoC. DV agency staff should complete the forms using the specific DV related instructions on the form and in the form instructions document. Forms should be secured in a private envelope and returned to the data entry staff who will be responsible for the PIT Count data.

32. Training: Data Collection Forms (cont.)
A few follow up notes on Data Collection Forms:
DV information can be recorded on these forms as long as the information is being collected in the field, or not inside a victim service provider agency.
Gender now has a option to indicate when an individual does not identify as male, female, or transgender.

33. Issues of Safety and Client Confidentiality
**CRITICAL** Always provide training to ALL PIT volunteers prior to sending them out in the field. This training should include:
A fundamental understanding of the homeless definition used for the count.
Instructions on properly filling out the forms
Information on how to effectively interview homeless clients
Basic principals on safety and confidentiality

34. Issues of Safety and Client Confidentiality
If using Count Teams in the field on the Night of the Count:
Have Count Teams wear identification badges so people know who they are. Make sure they identify themselves as they approach individuals in the field.
Always make sure Count Teams are made up of multiple individuals, four persons is ideal.
Have Count Teams carry flashlights when walking around after dark.
Each Count Team should have at least one member with a cell phone and instructions to call 911 in case of an emergency. They also should have the phone number of a PIT Team Organizer to call with questions.

35. Issues of Safety and Client Confidentiality
If using Count Teams in the field on the Night of the Count:
Count Teams should never walk into situations that make them feel uncomfortable. They should not enter abandoned buildings, go into places not easily accessed or closed off from view. If text messaging technology is available, they should frequently report changes of location to PIT organizers to keep them informed on where they’re at.
A PIT Team Organizer should be available at all times at a central team dispatch location to answer questions and provide count guidance

36. Issues of Safety and Client Confidentiality
If using Count Teams in the field on the Night of the Count:
If available, PIT Team members should receive training ahead of the count on the fundamental principles of conflict de-escalation by counseling professionals. (Often, counselors from CoC mental health, substance and alcohol use agencies are happy to provide this service as part of the PIT training process.)

37. Issues of Safety and Client Confidentiality
Important Notes on Confidentiality:
Always look for ways to ensure communication between individuals being interviewed is confidential. When interviewing persons, attempt to do so in a fashion that keeps their responses out of the hearing range of others.
When writing responses on data collection forms, keep them out of the line of sight of others in the vicinity. Once data collection has been finished, forms should be returned to a privacy envelope. After the interviewing process is complete, only the person entering the data into HMIS should be permitted to see the completed forms.

38. A Few Final Notes
Each community in North Carolina is responsible for entering their data in the HMIS. There also must be an HMIS licensed individual for each CoC who will update local provider pages.
CoCs are also responsible for running final PIT/HIC reports and entering the data into HUDHDX.

39. “Do’s and Don’ts” of the 2017 PIT/HIC

40. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
Don’t: Count persons who are doubled up or couch surfing on the night of the PIT Count.
Do: Count persons who are fleeing Domestic Violence situations and are staying with Victim Service Providers (see instructions on how to record this information in the data collection form instructions.)

41. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
Other Populations that should not be included in the 2017 PIT:
Persons in Institutional Settings (i.e. jails, hospitals, nursing homes, 3/4 housing, foster care, detox facilities) on the night of the count. However, persons staying in waiting rooms of hospitals or jail lobbies can be counted, and these locations are frequently targeted by Count teams.
Persons staying in hotels/motels that they pay for themselves, or another individual pays for, even if they are homeless on days surrounding the count and do not have the resources to provide their own housing.

42. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
Housing Types that SHOULD be included in the 2017 PIT:
Persons in Emergency Shelters, Transitional Housing Programs or HUD defined Safe Haven programs. This includes non-HMIS participating and Victim Service Providers.
Persons staying in Congregate or Rotating Shelters, including those funded and run by faith based groups.
Persons staying in hotels/motels paid for by government, faith-based, or non- profit organizations whose purpose is to serve homeless/low-income individuals in a housing crisis.

43. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
Housing Projects that SHOULD be included in the 2017 HIC:
Emergency Shelters, including projects providing hotel/motel vouchers for homeless persons
Safe Havens
Transitional Housing
Permanent Housing, including Permanent Supportive Housing (disability required), Permanent Housing with Supportive Services (no disability required), Permanent Housing Only, and PH: Rapid Rehousing

44. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
In general, persons who meet Categories 2 and 3 of the homeless definition are not included on the PIT Count. The PIT Count focuses on individuals and families that align with Categories 1 and 4.

45. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
Don’t: Count only parts of your CoC and neglect other parts where homelessness exists.
Do: Make sure you cover all of your CoC where homelessness exists.

46. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
Don’t: Put yourself in situations that make you feel uncomfortable or outright scared when serving on a count team. Use discretion in choosing where to go.
Do: Pair your count teams with at least one experienced homeless service individual or person who is formerly homeless.

47. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
When building homeless count teams, consider the following:
Build teams of four individuals.
Pair your homeless count teams with an individual who is an experienced homeless service professional or an individual who is formerly homeless themselves.
Ensure at least one member of the team is familiar with the area they will be counting in.

48. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
Don’t: Allow Television crews to accompany homeless count teams into the field
Do: Encourage media to cover the homeless count from organization locations, or homeless service organizations, where people may be willing to share their story

49. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
Media coverage of homeless issues in your community can be one of your greatest tools for increasing awareness and support for your local work. Appropriate ways to generate media coverage include having media interview the following:
Executive Directors, service staff or frontline homeless service workers at key local agencies.
Formerly homeless individuals willing to share their experiences and their journey out of homelessness.
Currently homeless individuals who make an informed choice to share their story with the media.

50. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
Don’t: Talk openly about clients and their conditions that you have encountered in the field.
Do: Encourage PIT team members to share their personal stories of how the PIT count has affected them. Provide opportunities for them to speak on how their experiences have impacted the way they see homelessness around them.

51. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
ALWAYS focus on protecting the privacy and anonymity of those we serve who are in crisis situations.

52. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
Don’t: Forget the lessons learned throughout the PIT/HIC Process
Do: Make a binder and document key processes and lessons learned as a local community during the PIT season.

53. Do’s and Don’ts of the 2017 PIT/HIC
Experience has shown the MCAH team that we see about a 50% turnover rate in key CoC personnel/leadership between each biennial PIT Unsheltered Count. Without proper documentation, the experience and lessons learned in one count can be lost by the time the next count comes around. Make sure to document your processes and procedures so the information can be shared with future count leadership!

54. 2017 PIT/HIC Guidance for Communities
Questions? Comments! Thoughts you would like to share on today’s webinar.

55. 2017 PIT/HIC Guidance for Communities
The MCAH and NCHMIS Staff are always here to help you with PIT/HIC questions you might have:
Elizabeth Hurkman
Gerry Leslie Marti Morris
Jill Shoemaker Sue Saul