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1 <br /> ORANGE COUNTY <br /> BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br /> ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br /> Meeting Date: December 10, 2024 <br /> Action Agenda <br /> Item No. 7-a <br /> SUBJECT: Orange County Partnership to End Homelessness — Data Report <br /> DEPARTMENT: Housing <br /> ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT: <br /> Data Update Presentation Blake Rosser, Director, 919-245-2490 <br /> 2023 OCPEH Annual Report Danielle Butler, OCPEH Manager, 919- <br /> 2024 Point-in-Time (PIT) Count 245-2490 <br /> Infographic <br /> PURPOSE: To provide an overview of the work of the Orange County Partnership to End <br /> Homelessness (OCPEH), including updated system level data about homelessness in Orange <br /> County submitted to the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) <br /> earlier this year, as well as obstacles and successes. <br /> BACKGROUND: The Orange County Partnership to End Homelessness (OCPEH) was created <br /> in 2005 to coordinate funding and activities to end homelessness in Orange County. OCPEH is <br /> jointly funded by Orange County (39.5%) and the Towns of Carrboro (14.3%), Chapel Hill (39.7%), <br /> and Hillsborough (6.5%). <br /> Overview <br /> This year has seen a series of transitions as the community recovered from the COVID 19 <br /> pandemic in several ways. COVID-era relief funding has been exhausted. Community partners <br /> have experienced reductions in grant and small donor revenue which has resulted in diminished <br /> program capacity at a time when community need remains high. This period has also highlighted <br /> the importance of local and regional collaboration to address the rise of homelessness. <br /> The Orange County Partnership to End Homelessness (OCPEH) uses a variety of funding <br /> sources to support community-level planning, coordination and evaluation efforts. Funders <br /> include federal and local government, foundations, and private partners. <br /> Challenges <br /> Orange County has seen a significant increase in Fair Market Rents leading to over half of the <br /> rental households in this community being cost-burdened. Compounding the rental pressures are <br /> the expiration of COVID-era Emergency Housing Assistance (EHA) funds. New eligibility criteria <br /> and benefit caps have increased demand on the homeless system and increases in first-time <br /> homelessness. While emergency shelter capacity has increased in 2023 and served more people <br /> than ever before, the need for emergency shelter during inclement weather outstripped shelter <br /> capacity. Like many communities, Orange County has also seen the loss of institutional <br />