Background
The Continuum of Care (CoC) Program (24 CFR Part 578) is a federal initiative administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to help communities address homelessness.It supports efforts to quickly connect individuals, families, youth, and survivors of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking with housing and services. The program also focuses on improving access to mainstream resources and promoting housing stability and self-sufficiency.
The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) serves as the Collaborative Applicant for the Los Angeles Continuum of Care (CoC). As the Collaborative Applicant, LAHSA coordinates the CoC’s responsibilities, which include operating the CoC, designating and overseeing the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS), conducting annual gaps analysis of homelessness needs and services, establishing and following a collaborative process for developing and submitting the annual HUD funding application, and monitoring project and system performance. LAHSA also helps coordinate efforts to address homelessness across Los Angeles City and County by facilitating community planning, stakeholder engagement, and evaluation of system-wide outcomes.
CoC Program NOFO Competition
HUD manages the Continuum of Care (CoC) Program funding process by releasing a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) when funding is available. Through this competitive process, CoCs across the country apply for federal funds to support housing and services for people experiencing homelessness. The Los Angeles CoC evaluates local projects, ranks applications based on HUD and community priorities, and submits a consolidated application for funding consideration.
Although Congress authorized a two-year CoC Program NOFO in FY 2024, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) may opt to change course and release a NOFO in 2025.
LAHSA greatly appreciates the continued collaboration and commitment of its CoC partners. Updates will be shared here when they are available.
For any questions or comments, please email NOFA@lahsa.org (Note: LAHSA will still use this email address, even though the CoC Program Competition was renamed as "NOFO" in FY 2021).
CoC Program Competition Archives
CoC Program Policies and Resources
The Los Angeles CoC maintains a set of current policies, procedures, tools, and informational materials to guide the local Continuum of Care (CoC) Program Competition process. These documents reflect HUD requirements outlined in the Continuum of Care (CoC) Program Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) and incorporate local funding priorities and performance standards established by the Los Angeles CoC.
Available materials include the LA CoC’s performance evaluation and local scoring methodology, reallocation and performance improvement processes, and guidance on project review, ranking, and selection. LAHSA publishes these resources to ensure transparency and help applicants understand how projects are evaluated and recommended for inclusion in the annual CoC Consolidated Application submitted to HUD.
| Policy/Guidance |
Last Updated |
Description |
| FY 2025 LA CoC Program Performance Evaluation Methodology |
06/27/2025 |
CoCs are required to establish performance targets appropriate for population and program type, evaluate outcomes, and take action against poor performers. An annual performance evaluation methodology for CoC Program renewal projects is developed to align with performance measurement and funding priorities that are scored as part of the annual CoC Program Consolidated Application.
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FY 2024-2025 CoC Program Performance Improvement and Reallocation Policy
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06/28/2024 |
CoCs are required to consider moving funding, in whole or in part, from existing grants that are underutilized, not cost effective, or underperforming to create new and/or expanded housing-focused projects and/or system-level projects that meet critical CoC needs and improve system performance. |
| FY 2024 CoC Program Priority List Ranking Policy |
09/27/2024 |
CoCs are required to review and either accept and rank, or reject, all project applications submitted to the CoC for inclusion in the CoC Consolidated Application to HUD. All approved project applications must be listed on the CoC Priority Listing in rank order within two tiers (Tier 1 and Tier 2) to encourage continuous performance improvement and local competition. Communities must consider policy priorities established in the NOFO and local priorities when ranking project applications.
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| LA CoC Performance Improvement Policy Guidance |
04/10/2024 |
The LA CoC provides all project operators with technical assistance prior to any CoC-funded project being considered for involuntary reallocation and developed guidance to define the performance improvement process, procedures, and expectations for CoC-funded projects in the LA CoC that have been identified as having performance deficiencies. The Guidance also establishes objective standards for what constitutes successful completion of a performance improvement plan as well as unsuccessful completion that may result in reallocation of program funding.
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FY 2025 GRANT INVENTORY WORKSHEET (GIW)
The Grant Inventory Worksheet (GIW) is a tool used by HUD to document all projects within a CoC that are eligible for renewal in a given funding cycle. The GIW lists each project’s grant number, operating year, and Annual Renewal Amount (ARA), which HUD uses to calculate the CoC’s total renewal funding amount for the year.
CoC-funded agencies should complete their Grant Inventory Worksheet (GIW) review by submitting the Intent to Renew Certification no later than July 14, 2025.
FY 2025 INTENT TO RENEW CERTIFICATION
The CoC Program Intent to Renew Certification is a process used by the Los Angeles CoC to confirm which projects plan to seek renewal funding during the upcoming HUD CoC Program funding cycle. LAHSA, as the Collaborative Applicant, collects this information from CoC-funded agencies to help with local planning, project evaluation, and preparation of the Grant Inventory Worksheet (GIW). Completing the certification does not guarantee funding but ensures that the project is considered in the CoC’s planning and application process.
The Intent to Renew Certification should only be completed by agencies with projects currently funded through the CoC Program. This certification is not a funding opportunity and does not serve as an application process for new or additional funding.
Please Note: Due to the branching functionality of the form, some questions viewable in the above pdf will not be required for respondents. The PDF version of the Intent to Renew Certification is provided for reference only. All submissions must be completed through the designated online form. PDF copies will not be accepted for submission.
CoC Grant Management Resources
| CoC Specific Requirements |
| CoC NOFO |
CoC funds must be administered in accordance with the NOFO in which they were awarded and the issues and conditions contained in the grant agreement. The FY 2024 & FY 2025 NOFO is available here.
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| CoC Program Regulations |
The CoC Interim Rule is available in 24 CFR §578 here.
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| Definiton of "Homelessness" and Recordkeeping Requirements |
A helpful summary of the CoC Criteria for Defining Homelessness and the corresponding Recordkeeping Requirements is available here: At a Glance Criteria and Recordkeeping Requirements for Definition of Homeless (hudexchange.info).
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| CoC Virtual Binders |
CoC Virtual Binders (available here) cover foundational topics from the CoC program, with the goal to transfer basic knowledge to grantees in order to more successfully administer their projects. Each binder reflects a range of learning styles and offers a variety of ways to interact with the topics.
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| Match |
Recipients of new and renewal CoC Program grants must adhere to 24 CFR 578.73 and 2 CFR 200.306 and must match the total grant, except leasing, with no less than 25 percent cash or in-kind contributions from other sources and match must be used for the eligible CoC Program costs outlined in Subpart D of the CoC Program interim rule. 24 CFR 578.97(c) provides that rents and occupancy charges collected by the recipient or subrecipient from program participants are program income. H.R.4366 - 118th Congress (2023-2024): Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024 | Congress.gov | Library of Congress (Sec. 226) permits costs paid by the program income of grant recipients to count toward the recipient's matching requirements for FY2015-FY2024 Continuum of Care funds.
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| Quarterly Draw Requirement |
The CoC program regulation “timeliness standards” at 24 CFR §578.85 require recipients to draw down funds at least once per quarter of the program year, after eligible activities commence.
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| Annual Performance Reporting |
Recipients of CoC funding required to submit an Annual Performance Report (APR) electronically to HUD every operating year in the in the Sage HMIS Reporting Repository. Final eLOCCS voucher requests and the final APR submission through Sage is due no later than 90 days after the period of performance end date. To assist you with this reporting, please take note of the following resources:
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