Press Release
March 13, 2023
The Utah Homelessness Council and Utah Office of Homeless Services launch state’s new strategic plan to address homelessness statewide
SALT LAKE CITY —
Today, The Utah Homelessness Council and Utah Office of Homeless Services kicked off the state’s new strategic plan to address homelessness across the state.
State legislation passed in 2021 charged the Utah Homelessness Council and the Coordinator of the Utah Office of Homeless Services with creating a statewide strategic plan to minimize homelessness in the state.
The Utah Homelessness Council conducted a nationwide search for a consulting group to perform a careful study of homelessness in Utah and to help draft a strategic plan to minimize it. Beginning early in 2022 and working under the direction of the Utah Homelessness Council and Coordinator of Homeless Services, consulting agency Homebase undertook a comprehensive review of homelessness throughout Utah.
Homebase reviewed multiple survey reports, interviewed community leaders, Office of Homeless Services employees, homeless and social service providers, persons with lived experience with homelessness, and other stakeholders and reported their findings to the Homelessness Council. Following a round of public input that closed January 2023, the Council approved the plan in February, 2023.
“Utah’s plan to address homelessness outlines specific goals and measurable benchmarks for minimizing homelessness and for coordinating much-needed wraparound services,” said Wayne Niederhauser, State of Utah Homeless Coordinator. “The plan identifies best practices and areas for improvement, ensuring all services are provided in a safe, cost-effective and efficient manner. It outlines gaps and recommends solutions for ensuring homelessness is rare, brief and non-recurring for Utahns.”
The three documents associated with the plan are available at homelessness.utah.gov:
“Our vision for the homeless response system in Utah is to make homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurring; that all people experiencing homelessness can thrive to their fullest potential; and that our communities are stable and safe for everyone,” said Whitney Clayton, Co-Chair of the Utah Homelessness Council.
“As a council, we invite the coordinated investment and support of community members, elected leaders, public employees, and all stakeholders to study, apply and work together to achieve the vision in this Strategic Plan”, said Gail Miller, Co-chair of the Utah Homelessness Council.
The Office of Homeless Services, the Utah Homelessness Council and the Utah Homeless Network will work with partners across the state to implement the plan.
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About Utah Office of Homeless Services: The Utah Office of Homeless Services strives to work together with communities to make homelessness in Utah rare, brief and non-recurring by providing statewide support of project services, interventions and system performance measures and reporting.
About The Utah Homelessness Council: The Utah Homelessness Council ensures that services provided to individuals experiencing homelessness are utilized in a cost-effective manner and works to facilitate a better understanding of homelessness. The council is also responsible for providing final approval for the homeless services budget, strategic plan and award of funding for the provision of homeless services.