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MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
Rhode Island Permanent Supportive Housing Pilot Program – Phase I
This Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) dated December 6, 2005 outlines the agreement between the
Rhode Island Housing Resources Commission (HRC), the United Way of Rhode Island (“United Way”),
Rhode Island Housing and Mortgage Finance Corporation (“RI Housing”) and the Corporation for
Supportive Housing (“CSH”), collectively referred to as “the Parties,” for the Rhode Island Permanent
Supportive Housing Pilot Program – Phase I (“the Program”). This agreement is designed to describe the
Program and the roles, responsibilities and commitments of the respective Parties under the Program, and
to further define certain program assumptions and terms.
The Parties hereby agree upon the following:
1. Goal of the Program: The goal of the Program is to create at least 50 units of permanent supportive
housing serving chronically homeless adults through the use of existing, privately owned apartments, and
to assess its effectiveness. Supportive housing is permanent, independent and affordable housing
combined with on-site or visiting case management, support and employment services.
2. Purpose of the Program: The purpose of the Program is to end long-term homelessness, reduce
usage of high-cost emergency and crisis services, and foster improved health, self-reliance and
employment among adults who are repeatedly or persistently homeless.
This initiative will include a program evaluation, which will assess whether stable housing with
supportive services reduces the need for expensive health and social services over time, enhances the
quality of life for the residents, and allows residents to become more self sufficient.
3. Program philosophy: The Program is grounded in the concepts of “housing first” and “low
demand” housing. The goal of "housing first" is to immediately house people who are homeless. Housing
comes first no matter what is going on in the person’s life, and the housing is flexible and independent so
that the individual is housed easily and stays housed. “Low demand” housing emphasizes ease of entry
into housing and ongoing access to services with minimal requirements. The focus is on helping tenants
retain their housing, rather than layering the housing within various program participation requirements.
Both approaches have been found to be highly effective in addressing the needs of people experiencing
long-term homelessness.
4. Target Population of the Program: The target population for the Program are adults (age 18 and
older) who:
a. are experiencing an extended or repeated pattern of homelessness (sleeping in places not meant
for human habitation or in emergency homeless shelters);
b. may have health, mental health, or substance use issues that may impact their ability to function
in housing;
c. at the time of placement in the housing are not enrolled in the Community Support Program of
the Rhode Island Department of Mental Health, Retardation and Hospitals (MHRH).
Referrals to the program may come to the program service provider (“the Provider”) from any source.
The Provider will also conduct in-reach into shelters to identify and engage eligible persons. The
Provider will determine the eligibility of persons for the program.
4. Housing Approach: The supportive housing units will be created through the use of available
apartments. Public housing authorities or private housing owners will reserve existing, subsidized
apartments for occupancy by the target population through a written agreement with the Provider. The
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agreement between the owner and provider should clearly identify the number of units to be set aside and
the protocol for referral and selection of tenants (which may vary depending on the source of the housing
subsidy). The property owner will be responsible for the final selection of tenants. The lease between the
owner and the tenant should specify the terms and conditions under which the tenant will reside in the
housing.
5. Selection of Housing Units.
a. Identification of the housing units. CSH will work with the Provider to identify housing units
for the program that meet the standards below. In doing so, CSH and the Provider will coordinate
the following:
1) RI Housing, which will identify potential units financed through the Neighborhood
Opportunities Program and HUD Continuum of Care programs
2) Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless Housing Locator program
3) Property owners and managers of subsidized apartments.
b. General standards of housing units.
1) All housing units in the program will be private apartments. Apartments will single room
occupancy size or larger containing, at minimum, a private kitchen and/or private
bathroom. Efficiency and one-bedroom apartments will be preferred over SRO or shared
units.
2) Affordable to the target population. As a basic principle, tenants of the housing should
not have to pay more than 30% of their income for housing costs. Housing units to be
identified should match the needs of the target population and what they can afford
3) Good quality (meet HUD housing quality standards) and conform to state and local fire
and building codes. The subsidy provider is responsible for inspection of the unit. CSH
will defer to the subsidy provider to ensure compliance with this standard.
4) Accessible to public transportation
5) Provide for the safety and security of the tenants.
6) Located in the state of Rhode Island.
c. Other considerations in the selection of housing units
1) The housing selected should not make tenancy conditional on sobriety or the tenant’s
participation in services. As in other rental housing, landlord/tenant law applies and the
tenant is responsible for compliance with the lease.
2) The funding for the housing will determine certain eligibility requirements for tenancy. It
is important to have a mix of settings to provide flexibility in placement.
6. Supportive Service Approach:
a. The supportive services to the tenants of the housing units will be provided by an integrated
service team (the Provider). The integrated service team will offer, at minimum, a combination of
outreach, case management, peer support, service coordination, vocational services, money
management, and clinical health and behavioral health care to the tenants of the supportive housing
units. These services are designed to make it possible to move men and women experiencing long-
term homelessness into housing as quickly as possible, and to support their ability to achieve and
retain permanent housing, increase their skills and income, and achieve greater self-determination.
b. The services funded through the Program are not meant to be duplicative of community-based
services already available to the target population.
c. To encourage participation in services, the Provider will utilize strategies to engage tenants and
make services attractive and accessible. Through formal and informal contacts with tenants, Provider
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staff will build relationships and encourage tenants to take advantage of available services.
d. The desired average staff to client ratio of the Provider team is 1:8-10. The caseload can be
larger for clients once they have begun to stabilize in the community.
6. Selection of the Provider
a. Identification of the Provider. HRC will select the Provider through a request for proposals.
United Way, Rhode Island Housing and CSH agree to review and provide timely input on drafts of
the RFP, if requested by HRC. In making its selection of the Provider, HRC will commission a
Technical Review Committee, which will make selection recommendations to the HRC, and will be
guided by the following criteria. United Way funding will be conditioned on approval of the selected
Provider by all of the Parties to this agreement.
b. Provider selection criteria.
1) The Provider must be structured as an integrated services team.
2) The Provider team must represent, at minimum, a partnership between a nonprofit
organization providing substantial services to individuals who are homeless and a nonprofit
behavioral health services organization.
3) The Provider team must include, or document linkage to, one or more providers of primary
health care services.
4) The Provider team must have the ability and capacity to deliver services statewide.
5) There is a clear delineation of the team structure and roles and responsibilities of the team
members, and a clear identification of which organization will be the team leader and
responsible for the day-to-day supervision of the team and overall functioning of the
program.
6) The Provider must demonstrate a positive track record in the delivery of services to people
experiencing long-term or repeated homelessness and people with substance addiction and
mental illness.
7) The Provider’s proposed service approach must be consistent with the Program philosophy
and with the service program guidelines outlined in the RFP. The Provider must demonstrate
an understanding and commitment to the goals of the Program and to “housing first” and
“low demand” housing approaches.
8) The Provider’s service approach must also:
a. Reflect the importance and value of connecting tenants with mainstream resources,
including employment and training programs, federal and state entitlement programs, and
healthcare programs. The service plan must describe existing and planned linkages with
vocational, educational and healthcare providers.
b. Incorporate natural supports (families, peers, faith communities, etc.);
c. Articulate strategies for relapse prevention and management and linkages to treatment
that will be developed to support these.
d. Ensure that services are available for as long as is needed by the individual tenant. The
service plan must articulate under what circumstances, if any, a client would be
“discharged” from Program services.
9) The Provider must demonstrate the ability to deliver services in the most cost-effective
manner possible while remaining true to the service model.
10) The Provider must be willing to participate in a structured evaluation of the program, which
may include the development of outcome measures, tracking of client outcomes,
documentation of units of service, and costs of services delivered.
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6. Supportive Service Funding:
a. United Way
1) The United Way will provide, for a period of at least two years, funding for a portion of the
tenant support services to be provided under the Program. United Way will provide this
funding via a grant contract directly with the Provider selected by HRC through the RFP
process, provided that the selected Provider is approved by all of the Parties to this
agreement.
2) United Way will fund the Program at an amount not to exceed $225,000 per annum, based
upon an average of $9,000 per unit for services to clients living in up to 25 of the housing
units. In total, United Way funding will not exceed $450,000. United Way will use a portion
of this amount, up to $50,000, to pay for an evaluation of the Program, and the remainder will
be used to fund services.
3) The selected Provider must comply with the United Way’s Community Accountability
Standards in order to receive United Way funding.
4) United Way funding will commence upon selection of the Provider and execution of a United
Way grant agreement with the Provider. A portion of the first year funds from United Way
may be used by the provider to conduct in-reach into the shelters and to engage homeless
individuals for participation in the Program, and to negotiate set-aside agreements with
landlords. The goal is to have individuals placed in housing within six months of
engagement.
5) The United Way reserves the right to not renew funding after the first year if the
identification and reservation of units and placement of tenants in significantly under
expectations.
6) United Way will extend the period for funding beyond the two years if their funds are not
fully expended within the period due to the following:
a. additional funds are available to the program for supportive services from the State or
another source, and the United Way funding on an annual basis is reduced as a result;
b. first year funds are not fully expended due to reasonable delays in Program start-up.
b. State of Rhode Island Office of Housing and Community Development
1) HRC will provide, subject to annual appropriation, funding for a portion of the tenant support
services to be provided under the Program during the first two years. HRC will provide this
funding via a grant contract directly with the Provider.
2) For the first two years of the Program, HRC service funding will not exceed $300,000 per
annum, based upon an average of $9,000 per unit for services to clients living in up to 34
housing units.
3) HRC will seek to increase its service funding for the Program to at least $450,000 per annum
beginning in the third year of the program once the United Way funding has expired, The
provision of such funding is subject to appropriation.
4) HRC funding will commence upon selection of the Provider and execution of a State grant
agreement with the Provider. A portion of the first year funds from HRC may be used by the
provider to conduct in-reach into the shelters and to engage homeless individuals for
participation in the Program, and to negotiate set-aside agreements with landlords. The goal
is to have individuals placed in housing within six months of engagement.
5) HRC reserves the right to not renew funding after the first year if the identification and
reservation of units and placement of tenants in significantly under expectations.
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c. Uses of service funding
1) Service funds from United Way and HRC will be used to cover the cost of support services
only. The service funds may not be used to cover rental assistance or to fund the costs of
operating, acquiring, constructing or rehabilitating housing.
2) Funded services will be rehabilitation serves provided by the Provider team and its
contractors. These services may include:
a. Primary medical care delivered regularly by a mid-level practitioner (such as a nurse),
physician, psychiatrist, a health outreach worker, and/or a health educator.
b. Behavioral health care delivered by a licensed clinical social worker and other
professional staff with strong clinical skills and linkages to mental health and substance
use treatment services;
c. Case management;
d. Training in independent living skills;
e. Peer support from a team member who has personal experience with homelessness,
mental illness, recovery from drug or alcohol addiction, and/or HIV/AIDS;
f. Vocational, pre-employment and employment services sensitive to the needs of people
with multiple barriers to employment;
g. Service coordination to facilitate effective teamwork and coordination with property
management staff of the housing to prevent crises and intervene quickly to prevent loss of
housing;
h. Community-building, social, cultural, and recreational activities;
i. Money management;
j. Outreach and engagement (to bring eligible persons into the housing);
k. Housing coordination (coordination with landlords, unit inspections, apartment search,
etc.);
l. Client support (transportation, furnishings, etc.) where there is no available funding from
other sources;
m. Benefits consultations and assistance with applications;
n. Administrative costs, not to exceed rates set by HRC.
7. Program evaluation: United Way will fund an independent evaluation of the program aimed at
accomplishing the purposes laid out in Section 2, above. The cost of the evaluation is budgeted at not
more than $50,000. CSH will prepare a basic design, scope and budget for the evaluation and identify an
outside evaluator; these will be subject to approval by HRC and United Way.
8 Program oversight: The Parties will work through the CSH Advisory Committee to provide advice
on the Program design and implementation and to trouble shoot issues during the Program’s
implementation. CSH will ensure that all of the Parties have representation on its advisory committee,
and will have additional members representing government, housing, behavioral health, homeless
services, corrections, the nonprofit provider community and the nonprofit development community.
The CSH Advisory Committee will meet quarterly, or more often if needed. CSH will facilitate the
meetings and provide staff support to the committee.
9. Role of CSH: The Corporation for Supportive Housing will be responsible for the following:
a. Assisting in developing the housing and service design for the Program;
b. Along with the Provider, identifying eligible housing units as described in Section 5;
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c. Providing technical expertise, assistance and trainings to the housing and service providers
participating in the program;
d. Developing a design for monitoring and evaluation of the program;
e. Providing staff support to the Program Advisory Committee;
f. In tandem with HRC, United Way and RI Housing, monitoring the program and assessing its
performance on an on-going basis and troubleshooting problems.
CSH may contract with experienced agencies to provide a portion of these services.
10. Role of RI Housing: Rhode Island Housing will be responsible for the following:
a Assisting in developing the housing and service design for the Program;
b Helping to identify eligible housing units as described in Section 5, particularly housing units
funded through the Neighborhood Opportunities Program and McKinney-Vento programs.
c Providing technical expertise and assistance to the Parties and the Provider on tenant selection
and rental subsidy issues.
d In tandem with HRC, United Way and CSH, monitoring the program and assessing its
performance on an on-going basis and troubleshooting problems.
11. Program Timeline: The following are timeframe goals for accomplishing the above tasks:
Issue RFP to select the Provider by October 1, 2005
Select the Provider by December 1, 2005
Place tenants in eligible housing units by April 1, 2006
Provide technical assistance and trainings Ongoing
Develop evaluation design by October 31, 2005
First evaluation report by March 2007
Evaluation follow up by March 2008, March 2009
11. Termination: This agreement will be subject to termination upon mutual agreement of the Parties.
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have executed this agreement the day and year written
above.
Name Name
Title Title
United Way of Rhode Island Rhode Island Housing Resources Commission
Name Name
Title Title
Corporation for Supportive Housing Rhode Island Housing and Mortgage
Finance Corporation
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