San Antonio releases first annual homeless report; council presses for more prevention data

San Antonio Department of Human Services presented the city’s first fiscal year 2024 homeless response annual performance and spending report Tuesday, laying out system inventory, funding sources and outcomes while councilmembers pressed staff for more prevention-focused data and clearer outcome tracking.

The report, delivered by Melody, a Department of Human Services official, summarizes the structure of the coordinated homeless response system, federal and local funding flows and system achievements. It shows the city allocated about $32.3 million to homelessness in FY2024—roughly half from the general fund and half from federal grants—and reports that 2,484 people were sheltered and 888 were unsheltered in the Bexar County point-in-time count in January 2024.

Why it matters: the report is intended to make spending and performance more transparent and to provide a baseline for policy discussion as council and staff consider budget priorities, shelter capacity and prevention strategies ahead of next year’s budgeting cycle.

Melody told the council the FY2024 report “was developed by the Department of Human Services in response to a request from Councilmember White” and that it includes data on system governance, inventory and outcomes. The presentation noted coordination with Close to Home (the lead homelessness agency for Bexar County), Haven for Hope, Salvation Army, Bexar County, United Way and the Texas Department of…