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PROGRAM GUIDESECTION I INTRODUCTIONEmergency Housing Assistance: The provision of up to 45 days of temporary housing for aVeteran family with dependents (up to 72 hours for a single Veteran) that does not require theparticipant to sign a lease or occupancy agreement. The cost cannot exceed the reasonablecommunity standard for such housing. Emergency housing is limited to short-term commercialresidences (private residences are not eligible for such funding) not already funded to provideon-demand emergency shelter (such as emergency congregate shelters).Extremely Low Income (ELI): An income category for a Veteran family whose annual income, inaccordance with 24 CFR 5.609, does not exceed 30 percent of the area median income.General Housing Stability Assistance: The provision of goods or payment of expenses notincluded in other sections but which are directly related to support a participant's housingstability, and are authorized under 38 CFR 62.34(e), which are not available through existingmainstream and community resources.Grant and Per Diem Program (GPD): See website for complete : An eligible entity that is awarded a supportive services grant.Health Care for Homeless Veterans (HCHV): See website for complete ss: The “homeless” definition has the meaning given by the U.S. Department of Housingand Urban Development (HUD) in 24 CFR ents/HEARTH ESGInterimRule&ConPlanConformingAmendments.pdf. For an at-a-glance reference meless, “Literally”: The “literally homeless” definition is a more narrow definition than“Homeless” defined above. It is this “literally homeless” definition that is a critical requirement toqualify Veterans for SSVF rapid re-housing (consistent with the Emergency Solutions Grantsprogram). This means every participant in SSVF rapid re-housing (category 2 and 3) is carefullyqualified within the parameters of “literally homeless.” Note that a Veteran who is residing inwhat is commonly referred to as a “doubled up” or a “couch surfing” situation in permanenthousing, or otherwise residing in permanent housing, would not fit the “literally homeless”definition below. Note that such persons would be considered category 1 and could qualify forhomelessness prevention. Further, persons fleeing or attempting to flee domestic violence areconsidered literally homeless and would be served as a rapid re-housing household.As per HUD 24 CFR 576.2, “literally homeless” is defined as:(1) An individual/family who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, meaning:LAST UPDATED December 2019Section I Page 3SECTION I INTRODUCTIONDEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRSSUPPORTIVE SERVICES FOR VETERAN FAMILIES

i.SECTION I INTRODUCTIONii.iii.PROGRAM GUIDEAn individual or family with a primary nighttime residence that is a public orprivate place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleepingaccommodation for human beings, including a car, park, abandoned building,bus or train station, airport, or camping ground;An individual or family living in a supervised publicly or privately operated shelterdesignated to provide temporary living arrangements (including congregateshelters, transitional housing, and hotels and motels paid for by charitableorganizations or by federal, State, or local government programs for low-incomeindividuals);An individual who is exiting an institution where s/he resided for 90 days or lessand who resided in an emergency shelter or place not meant for humanhabitation immediately before entering that institution.Homeless Management Information System (HMIS): The information system designated by theContinuum of Care to comply with the HUD's data collection, management, and reportingstandards and used to collect client-level data and data on the provision of housing and servicesto homeless individuals and families and persons at-risk of homelessness. HMIS is a valuableresource because of its capacity to integrate and un-duplicate data across projects in acommunity. Aggregate HMIS data can be used to understand the size, characteristics, andneeds of the homeless population at multiple levels: project, system, local, state, and national.Household: All persons as identified by the Veteran, who together present for services, andidentify themselves as being part of the same household.Housing and Urban Development-VA Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH): See website forcomplete details https://www.va.gov/homeless/hud-vash.asp.Notice of Fund Availability (NOFA): A NOFA is published in the Federal Register in accordancewith 38 CFR 62.40, which announces the availability of funds for supportive services grants.Occupying permanent housing: A very low-income Veteran family will be considered to beoccupying permanent housing if the very low-income Veteran family:(Category 1) Is residing in permanent housing and at risk of becoming literally homelessbut for grantee’s assistance;(Category 2) Is literally homeless, and at risk to remain in this situation but for grantee’sassistance, and scheduled to become a resident of permanent housing within 90 dayspending the location or development of housing suitable for permanent housing;or(Category 3) Is literally homeless after exiting permanent housing within the previous 90days to seek other housing that is responsive to the very low-income Veteran family’sneeds and preferences.Regarding above references to literally homeless: for specifics as to what circumstances do anddo not constitute literal homelessness, see the definition: Homeless, Literally.LAST UPDATED December 2019Section I Page 4SECTION I INTRODUCTIONDEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRSSUPPORTIVE SERVICES FOR VETERAN FAMILIES

PROGRAM GUIDESECTION I INTRODUCTIONParticipant Household: A very low-income Veteran family occupying permanent housing who isreceiving supportive services from a grantee.Permanent Housing: Community-based housing without a designated length of stay where anindividual or family has a lease in accord with state and Federal law that is renewable andterminable only for cause. Examples of permanent housing include, but are not limited to: ahouse or apartment with a month-to-month or annual lease term, or home ownership. 1Private non-profit organization: Any of the following:(1) An incorporated private institution or foundation that:i.Has no part of the net earnings that inure to the benefit of any member, founder,contributor, or individual;ii.Has a governing board that is responsible for the operation of the supportiveservices provided under the SSVF Program; andiii.Is approved by VA as to financial responsibility.(2) A for-profit limited partnership, the sole general partner of which is an organization meetingthe requirements of paragraphs (1)(i), (ii) and (iii) of this definition.(3) A corporation wholly owned and controlled by an organization meeting the requirements ofparagraphs (1)(i), (ii), and (iii) of this definition.(4) A tribally designated housing entity (as defined in section 4 of the Native American HousingAssistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4103)).Rapid Re-housing: An intervention designed to help individuals and families quickly exithomelessness and transition to permanent housing. Rapid re-housing assistance is offeredwithout grantee required preconditions such as employment, income, absence of criminalrecord, or sobriety. Support services are tailored to the unique circumstances of each individualparticipant household to facilitate a rapid transition to permanent housing. The three corecomponents of rapid re-housing are identifying housing, providing rent and move-in financialassistance, and offering case management and related services. While a rapid re-housingprogram must have all three core components, it is not required that a single entity provides allthree services nor that a household utilize them all.State: Any of the several States of the United States, the District of Columbia, theCommonwealth of Puerto Rico, any territory or possession of the United States, or any agencyor instrumentality of a State exclusive of local governments. The term does not include anypublic or Indian housing agency under the United States Housing Act of 1937.Subcontractor: Any third-party contractor, of any tier, working directly for an eligible entity.1 Note:Transition in Place (TIP) programs where the very low-income Veteran family maintains an independent leasewith a landlord and maintains lease rights to the unit throughout TIP program enrollment and conclusion withoutexception are considered permanent housing.LAST UPDATED December 2019Section I Page 5SECTION I INTRODUCTIONDEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRSSUPPORTIVE SERVICES FOR VETERAN FAMILIES

PROGRAM GUIDESECTION I INTRODUCTIONSupportive services: Any of the following provided to address the needs of a participant:(1) Outreach services as specified under 38 CFR 62.30.(2) Case management services as specified under 38 CFR 62.31.(3) Assisting participants in obtaining VA benefits as specified under 38 CFR 62.32.(4) Assisting participants in obtaining and coordinating other public benefits asspecified under 38 CFR 62.33.(5) Other services as specified under 38 CFR 62.34.Supportive services grant: A grant awarded under the SSVF Program.Supportive services grant agreement: The agreement executed between VA and a grantee asspecified under 38 CFR 62.50.Suspension: An action by VA that temporarily withdraws VA funding under a supportive servicesgrant, pending corrective action by the grantee or pending a decision to terminate the supportiveservices grant by VA. Suspension of a supportive services grant is a separate action fromsuspension under VA regulations implementing Executive Orders 12549 and 12689,“Debarment and Suspension.”VA: Department of Veterans AffairsVBA: Veterans Benefits AdministrationVery low-income Veteran family: A Veteran family whose annual income, as determined inaccordance with 24 CFR 5.609, does not exceed 50 percent of the median income for an areaor community (current income limits can be found .Veteran: Veteran: A person who served in the active military, naval, or air service, regardless oflength of service, and who was discharged or released there from. Veteran excludes a personwho received a dishonorable discharge from the Armed Forces or was discharged or dismissedfrom the Armed Forces by reason of the sentence of a general court-martial. The length ofservice restrictions under 38 U.S.C. 5303A do not apply.Veteran family: A Veteran who is a single person or a family in which the head of household, orthe spouse of the head of household

The Stafford Act allows SSVF to provide greater flexibility in the types and amounts of services available to Veteran households while the national public health emergency is in place. Details of related guidance can be found on the SSVF website and will be communicated vi a weekly program emails, web broadcasts and SSVF Regional Coordinators.