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Committee seeks clarity as DHS prepares mass FRSP exits tied to BSA subtitle
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Summary
DHS projected an average of 50 family exits per month from the Family Rapid Stabilization Program (FRSP) but said a proposed BSA subtitle could force a one-time exit of 1,167 families on Sept. 30. DHS officials told the Committee on Human Service they have not built explicit assumptions for how many of those families will return to shelter.
Councilmember Matt Fruman pressed Department of Human Services officials on June 12 about planned exits and the fiscal implications for the Family Rapid Stabilization Program (FRSP). DHS told the Committee on Human Service it expects to exit an average of 50 families per month as it resumes regular time-limit enforcement, but the proposed Budget Support Act (BSA) subtitle would produce a concentrated set of exits at the end of the fiscal year.
Fruman cited a DHS projection that “out of the 1,167 families DHS projects exiting all at once on September 30” the department has not modeled how many will return to shelter. Pierre said the agency lacks post-COVID return-to-shelter data and that “pre COVID… about 12 percent of families returned to shelter from FRSP.” She said many families slated for exit are connected to other housing resources — notably housing authority vouchers — and the agency hopes voucher lease-ups will reduce returns to shelter.
The proposed FY26 budget includes approximately $30,000,000 for FRSP rents and about $14,000,000 for case management for a combined $44,000,000 line item. Committee members questioned the per-family assumptions behind the rent total, noting DHS told the committee that the department sometimes assumes families will remain in FRSP for the full 12 months and that reconciliation is done against actual spend.
Fruman asked why DHS projects 50 exits per month; Pierre said the figure is tied to anticipated 12-month program limits and current caseload dynamics after a pause in entries earlier in FY25. DHS noted that families currently in appeal may remain in the program during appeal timelines, but new BSA language would allow exits at 12 months without continuation of services during appeal.
Committee members expressed concern that DHS has not incorporated return-to-shelter projections for the cohort being exited and asked for a more explicit budget scenario analysis that accounts for possible returns. Pierre said staff will follow up with data and that pre-COVID figures suggested a roughly 12% return rate, but that post-COVID data are limited.
Ending: Committee members requested follow-up briefing materials and a detailed reconciliation of FRSP per-family cost assumptions; DHS agreed to provide more granular calculations outside the hearing.
