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TACIR hearing finds Continuums of Care provide coordination but face capacity, rural access and data gaps
Summary
A TACIR panel on continuity of care and homelessness services said CoCs provide vital planning, coordinated entry and data collection but face shortages of shelter, limited rural access and gaps in systemwide data that make it harder to target federal HUD funds.
A TACIR panel on the federal Continuum of Care (CoC) program and homelessness services told commissioners the CoC network is a valuable planning and coordination forum but is strained by limited resources, geographic gaps in access and data‑collection challenges, especially in rural Tennessee.
Panelists from nonprofit providers, local CoCs and the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services described local practices, shelter capacity, data from homeless management information systems (HMIS) and state actions that support outreach and housing creation.
Why this matters
CoCs coordinate outreach, prioritize housing through coordinated entry and manage competitive federal HUD funding. Gaps in capacity or data, panelists said, can mean people experiencing homelessness miss services or face longer stays in emergency settings.
Panel highlights and numbers
- Scott Foster, executive director and founder of The Journey Home (Murfreesboro/Rutherford County), said CoCs are useful for planning and data gathering but can be cumbersome when bodies that meet do not align with operational service delivery.
- Erin Reed, executive director of the Knoxville‑Knox County Office of Housing Stability (TN‑502 CoC), said two federal requirements have helped: a mandate for CoCs to select a governing body and the coordinated‑entry system for assessing vulnerability and prioritizing limited housing resources. She said Knoxville is overhauling its coordinated‑entry processes to reduce roadblocks and create a “no‑wrong‑door” access system.
- Victoria (Vicky) Blake of Jackson‑Madison County (TN‑507 CoC) described rural West Tennessee, which serves 23 counties (about 571,000 people). She said last year more than 5,000 people contacted coordinated‑entry access points, and about 2,000 unduplicated clients appeared in HMIS as having received housing or supportive services; another roughly 3,000 received diversion or resource assistance. TN‑507 reported serving 223 homeless youth (ages 18–24) in a HUD youth demonstration program. Its point‑in‑time counts were 765 in 2024 and 747 in January 2025.
- Matt Yancey, deputy commissioner for Behavioral Health Community Programs (Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services), and Nehru Gobin (director, Office of Housing and Homeless Services) summarized state programs that interface with CoCs: the PATH outreach program (federally funded), regional housing facilitators and consumer housing specialists under the “Creating Homes” initiative. Gobin said Creating Homes partners have leveraged about $1.3 billion to create more than 36,000 housing opportunities to date.
System strengths and challenges
Panelists credited CoCs with bringing public and private stakeholders to the table, organizing coordinated entry and improving data collection. Challenges noted included: uneven participation by local providers; limited shelter and permanent supportive housing capacity in some regions; transportation barriers in rural areas; and the administrative burden of coordinated‑entry systems that can slow access to services.
Policy questions raised
Commissioners asked whether Tennessee should produce a statewide report on CoC system performance using HUD system‑performance measures (average length of stay, returns to homelessness, exits to permanent housing). Panelists supported the idea; Deputy Commissioner Yancey noted the state already funds programs that collect performance data and that expanding reporting could help identify gaps. Panelists also urged stronger interagency coordination across housing, mental health, corrections and workforce systems.
Local practices
TN‑507 (West Tennessee) described regular street outreach, weekly housing‑navigator meetings to match individuals to openings, biweekly case conferences and quarterly coordinated outreach events. The region reported 32 emergency beds and 274 permanent supportive housing beds across its coverage area.
No formal commission action
The session was informational; TACIR staff recorded the panel discussion and plans to include stakeholder input in the commission’s forthcoming report requested by public chapter 445 (Acts of 2025). Panelists asked for better state‑level coordination and data sharing and applauded the Department of Mental Health’s “Creating Homes” initiative as a source of housing resources and navigation support.
Quotes
“Coordinated entry in many ways is the foundation of COC programs,” Erin Reed said, describing how vulnerability assessments help prioritize scarce resources. “We don’t want anyone not to be able to access services simply because our coordinated‑entry system isn’t fast enough.”
Speakers and attribution
Speakers on the record included Scott Foster (The Journey Home), Erin Reed (Knoxville Knox County Office of Housing Stability), Victoria Blake (Jackson‑Madison County General Hospital/TN‑507 CoC), Matt Yancey (Deputy Commissioner, Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services) and Nehru Gobin (Director, Office of Housing and Homeless Services). Their remarks and the session materials will inform TACIR staff’s draft report.
