SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) – Final data verified Tuesday by Oregon Housing and Community Services shows the state has met all three goals set through the homeless emergency declaration signed by Gov. Tina Kotek in her first full day in office. I confirmed that I did.
Data shows that after the signing of EO 23-02 and the passage of House Bill 5019 to fund the executive order:
- 1,047 low-barrier shelter beds were installed, exceeding the original goal by 447 beds (175% of the goal).
- 1,833 families experiencing unsheltered homelessness were rehoused, exceeding the original goal by 633 families (153%).and
- 8,993 households were prevented from experiencing homelessness, exceeding the original goal by 243 households (103%).
This represents 15 more shelter beds, 535 more converted households, and 1 more households avoided homelessness than preliminary data released on January 9th showed. This means an increase of 107 households.
“This effort is made possible through unprecedented collaboration between state leaders, state agencies, local governments, and communities,” said Governor Kotek. “This is proof that setting targeted, ambitious goals and working together to achieve them can get results. But while this is good news, there is still work to be done. With the creation of a regional multi-agency coordination (MAC) group that worked with OHCS to implement this emergency funding, we now have the infrastructure in place to maintain the pace of solving this crisis.”
On January 9, Governor Kotek signed EO 24-02 to maintain additional capacity in the state’s shelter system, rehouse people experiencing homelessness, and prevent homelessness. Measurable outcomes of the new order will be developed in collaboration with local communities based on need and capacity and will be announced by the end of February.
