State officials describe shelter-expansion plan as ERAP-funded navigation services near June end

House Human Services members heard an update from Department for Children and Families officials on homelessness programs, coordinated entry and shelter funding during a committee meeting that included Miranda Graham, Deputy Commissioner of the Economic Services Division, and Lily Sojourner, director of the Office of Economic Opportunity.

Graham and Sojourner reviewed administration proposals in the governor’s recommended budget, explained how coordinated entry and HMIS work in Vermont, and warned that housing-stability services funded through the Emergency Rental Assistance Program will end in June unless replaced. Sojourner said the state has launched a new permanent supportive housing assistance program with contract capacity for 100 participants and noted the state’s effort to connect motel and hotel placements to longer-term housing options.

The administration told the committee it is proposing to carry several shelter-expansion items into the fiscal 2026 base budget and add some one-time funds for further expansion. Committee members asked about the scale of the budget proposals. Representative Wood asked officials to clarify whether the governor’s budget figure for hotel/motel shelter capacity was $38.6 million (the number Sojourner referenced) or another amount; Wood asked, “If we were looking at capacity, how many rooms with $38,600,000 purchase, essentially, let's just assume you had full occupancy for 12 months.…