Portland outlines joint Homelessness Response System, action plan and early performance metrics

Portland and Multnomah County officials on Jan. 7 presented the Homelessness Response System (HRS) and its companion Homelessness Response Action Plan (HRAP), described the new oversight committees that will guide implementation and shared early performance data showing progress on placements but gaps in shelter-to-housing exits and racial equity outcomes.

The HRAP, which the presenters said was drafted alongside an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) between the city and county and adopted as part of that agreement, sets nine goal areas and about 120 action items to better align shelter, housing, behavioral health and related systems. "Our vision is a community where homelessness is rare and brief, where people take care of one another," HRS Director Jillian Choney told the council.

Why it matters: the city and county say the plan is meant to move beyond ad hoc problem-solving by convening a steering and oversight committee, an implementation committee and a community advisory committee so that policy, investment and on-the-ground practice are coordinated across jurisdictions and service providers.

Senior advisor Ryan Deibert framed the work against national trends: "This is the first year... in which... more than three-quarters of a million people in the United States who are homeless on any given night," he said, noting a sharp year-over-year increase in 2024. Locally, staff and committee members told councilors they aim to expand shelter capacity, speed placements into housing and reduce racial disparities in who is reached by the system.

The presentation listed accomplishments and near-term deliverables: an adopted IGA; launch of the three governing committees; a shelter expansion strategy that includes an inventory target of roughly 1,000 additional shelter beds; a public dashboard (launched in October 2024, per presenters) and more than 50 HRAP action items completed to date. City Interim Administrator Mike Jordan said the implementation committee has "shortened the cycle time of solving problems" by bringing many partners into a single table.

At the same time, presenters flagged areas needing further work. The HRAP includes a goal to increase the share of adults exiting shelter to permanent housing by 15 percentage points (from a baseline in the plan). Staff reported that, as of the third quarter of 2024, adult shelter-to-housing exit rates were below the plan baseline (23% versus a 26% pre-HRAP baseline) and said additional funding and operational changes are being pursued to improve that outcome.

Equity and data issues were focal points during council questions. Staff said the HRS aims to ensure sheltering and housing outcomes are at least proportional to the composition of the unsheltered population; most priority groups met or exceeded that target, but Black/African American-identifying residents were sheltering/housing at 21% while they represented 23% of the unsheltered baseline. Presenters also explained that federal reporting tools used by many providers limit how finely race and ethnicity data can be disaggregated and that some local tools (county or state systems) offer more granular categories but are not consistently used across providers.

Councilors asked about specific items in the HRAP: Medicaid billing for outreach and crisis response, coordination with Prosper Portland and the Housing Bureau on conversions of commercial buildings to housing, eviction-prevention work groups, and youth aging-out supports. Portland Housing Bureau Director Helmy Hissarek said the bureau and Home Forward are exploring a revolving loan fund for land acquisition and development but no material decision to use tax increment financing (TIF) or other capital sources had been finalized.

Presenters emphasized governance and cadence. Per the IGA, the steering and oversight committee provides quarterly reports to city and county leadership, the implementation committee meets monthly to operationalize action items, and a community advisory committee provides lived-experience perspectives. Staff said the first quarterly report under the IGA was published in November and additional quarterly updates will be provided to council and county commissioners.

The presentation closed with staff offering to supply more detailed follow-up on multiple council questions, including the precise counts for people exiting systems into homelessness, contract and contracting timelines, the shelter-availability tool’s public access, and more granular demographic reporting. Jillian Choney said the HRS team will continue to convene partners and bring recommendations back to the steering committee and governing bodies.

Looking ahead: staff said they expect the steering committee to convene annually in advance of budget cycles to evaluate outcomes and recommend investment changes; staff indicated the next convening likely will inform the 2026–27 budget cycle. Councilors requested clearer assignment of accountable leads for each goal and more public-facing, timely shelter-availability information.