Shelter Plus Care Program

• HCV Program and Services
• Housing Quality Inspections
• How the HCV Program Works
• How Your Rent Is Set
• Reporting Household Changes
• Shelter Plus Care Program
• Landlord Info

The Columbia Housing Authority Shelter Plus Care Program (S+C) provides affordable housing and support services to homeless people living on the street. The Shelter Plus Care Program was created under the Stewart B. McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. Shelter Plus Care is designed to promote permanent housing with supportive service to persons with disabilities coming from the streets and emergency shelters. Shelter Plus Care grants require a supportive services match equal to, or greater than, the Housing Choice Voucher rental assistance award.

To Be eligible for the program, a person must be homeless (see definition below), with a mental illness, substance abuse problem, HIV/AIDS or dual diagnosis. In addition to receiving a rental subsidy, Shelter Plus Care participants receive support services through a network of local partnering service agencies and must be referred to us by one of those Agencies. Applications received from these agencies are reviewed for Shelter Plus Care eligibility.

Homeless includes a family or individual who lacks a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence; and has a primary nighttime residence that is:

1. A supervised public or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations (including welfare hotels, congregate shelters, and transitional housing for the mentally ill); or
2. An institution that provides a temporary residence for persons intended to be institutionalized; or
3. A public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings (street, park, hallway, freeway underpass).

Homeless Missourians Information System (HMIS)

The Homeless Missourians Information System (HMIS) was developed to meet a data collection requirement made by the United States Congress and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  Congress passed this requirement in order to get a more accurate count of individuals who are homeless and to identify the need for and use of different services by those individuals and families.  We are collecting statistical information on those who use our services and report this information to a central data collection system.

• Homeless Missourians Information System Privacy and Security Notice

For more information about this program, please contact Charline Johns, Special Programs Specialist at 573-443-2556 ext. 1414.