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SALT LAKE CITY — Despite ever-growing investments into fighting homelessness in Utah, the state marked a nearly 200% increase in residents experiencing homelessness since 2016, according to a new audit.
"Both the Legislature and private donors have expressed concern as to whether this increased funding is producing tangible results given the growing number of individuals experiencing homelessness," auditors from the Office of the Legislative Auditor General wrote in the lawmaker-requested report.
Though improvements continue to be made after the 2021 Legislature created a central leader on the issue with the new state homeless coordinator — who now leads the newly formed Office of Homeless Services — auditors say the state and local homelessness agencies still need to develop robust strategic plans and performance measures to know where best to use funds.
The change came after a previous critical audit by the same auditors in 2018, which found numerous problems with the homelessness system, including the need for better financial analysis. That issue remains, according to the new report, as auditors say they "question whether large increases in funding will produce the desired results."
Record investments
During the 2021 session, legislators also announced that $50 million for affordable housing and homelessness initiatives set aside in the state budget would be multiplied to $730 million through community donations and investment.
In 2019, funding for homeless services surpassed $300 million, according to an estimate from the Governor's Office of Planning and Budget.
Despite all the money pumped into the system, auditors expressed concern about the increasing numbers of unsheltered residents in Utah.
Last year, auditors noted a per capita rate of 9.8 of 10,000 residents were unsheltered, which is lower than that of all other Western states. By comparison, neighboring Nevada has a per-capita rate of 22.4 of 10,000 residents who are unsheltered, Idaho has 13 per 10,000, and California has 40.9 per 10,000, auditors stated.
While Utah's number of homeless residents has increased over the past five years — and sheltered residents decreased by 6% — changes in the way homeless individuals are counted have likely impacted the current tally.
"These data suggest that the problems associated with homelessness are more manageable in Utah than in other states," auditors said.
Housing first?
The report urges the homeless coordinator and the Utah Homelessness Council to create a "more effective strategy" that clarifies whether the system intends to simply help homeless individuals find housing, or if the system also intends to "help them overcome obstacles to independent living."
Now, the homeless services system determines its success based on how quickly it helps people find and stay in housing, auditors said.
"If this is the primary objective, evidence suggests that Utah is making progress. Even within the chronic homeless population, once they obtain housing, most remain housed. One of the challenges of this housing-focused strategy is to provide enough housing for all those who need it," according to the report.
But the high cost of housing represents a barrier to the housing-based strategy, and it will cost hundreds of millions of dollars with cost estimates placing each unit at $250,000 or more.
The auditors pointed to a new supportive housing complex, the Magnolia in Salt Lake City, which was touted earlier this year as an example of the type of housing service providers would like to build. The 65-unit building cost $17 million.
Existing supportive housing sees low turnover, according to the auditors, because residents "choose not to address the mental illness or substance abuse issues that led them to homelessness and are therefore unable to achieve self-sufficiency."
Based on interviews, the auditors also said some residents might have addressed obstacles but choose to stay in permanent supportive housing due to the sense of community they experience there, as well as the benefits of subsidized housing. Some residents want to move to other options for subsidized housing, auditors said, but are unable to do so because they cannot receive a housing voucher, or they can't find an apartment that accepts housing vouchers.
Homeless services leaders estimated the demand for housing units at 1,200, which could mean more than $300 million to create, not including the cost of ongoing maintenance and client services, auditors said.
Ongoing funds would also be needed to address growth in homelessness each year, as there have been 200 new chronically homeless people in the state during each of the past two years.
While auditors found that most service providers "recognize the need to help people overcome the personal obstacles they face," the goal of helping people become self-sufficient isn't "prevalent" in strategic plans, nor thoroughly measured by agencies.
"We believe it is imperative that the expected outcomes of the system be agreed upon, clearly stated, and measured. With the recent appointment of a new state homelessness coordinator, now is an ideal time to reexamine system goals and objectives," auditors wrote.
In a response letter, Wayne Niederhauser, state homeless services coordinator, said it is "pleasing to learn that the auditors found improvement since the release of the 2018 audit."
"We also appreciate the auditors' work identifying additional steps that can be taken to create a more accountable, data-driven and results-oriented system.
Clarifying the goals and objectives of the homeless services system is a policy decision for the Utah Homelessness Council. The Office of Homeless Services will work closely with the members of the council to implement the audit recommendations," Niederhauser wrote.
He emphasized his office's commitment to helping other leaders find "solutions which create the best opportunity to make homelessness rare, brief and nonrecurring."
