Homeless Case Management Services Grant​ (HCMS)

​​​​​​​​​Program Overview

The Homeless Case Management Services (HCMS) grant program was created through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant program and through Wisconsin Act 59 (statue §16.3085).  As such, all funding provided via the grant is subject to TANF rules and regulations.  The grant centers on providing families experiencing homelessness intensive case management services across four focus areas.  Each year up to 10 annual grants of $50,000 each will be awarded.

Client Eligibility

Eligible families are defined by TANF regulation as one of the following:

  1. ​Homeless adults (age 18 or older) accompanied by minor children (under age 18 for whom the homeless adults are legally responsible, or under 19 but a full-time student in high school, working on an equivalency degree, or enrolled in basic vocational or technical education)
  2. Homeless pregnant women
  3. Homeless adults, unaccompanied by children, who are non-custodial parents of children under the age of 18
  4. Homeless adults, unaccompanied by children, who are over age 18 but younger than age 25 and accompanied by another person related by blood or marriage

Please note, families headed by a person under 18 cannot be served.  Priority is given to servicing the first two types of families, however all families as defined above can be served.

Intensive Case Management Services Focus Areas

Families entered into the HCMS grant program must be provided intensive case management services focusing on at least one of the following areas:

  1. ​Financial management
  2. Employment
  3. Ensuring school continuation for children
  4. Enrolling unemployed or underemployed parents in W-2 or the Food Share employment and training program

Eligible Activities & Costs

Eligible activities and funds to cover them are divided into two categories: case management and administrative.  Administrative funds can be 0% to 15% of the total grant with the balance being case management funds.  

Case Management

Case management funding should be used for social workers, case managers and associated case management services needed to directly provide intensive case management across the four focus areas to eligible families experiencing homelessness.

Caveats: Costs for staff to be on call to provide services are not eligible for reimbursement.  Case management supervisory costs are also not eligible for reimbursement using case management funds however they are eligible for reimbursement using administrative funds.

Administrative​​

Can pay for administrative costs such as, but not limited to, the cost of office space, computers, office supplies, and salaries for agency wide functions such as accounting.  Pleas​​e note these costs will need to be prorated to reflect the percentage of the staff person's time or the percentage of the resource dedicated to the HCMS program.  

The percentage allocation between case management funds and administrative funds will be specified in the grantee's contract. 

Applicant Eligibility

Eligible applicants are limited to shelter facilities and motel voucher programs housing families experiencing homelessness.  Further, to be eligible, applicants are required to use either the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) database or an HMIS comparable database. 

Program Manual

Further information and guidelines on the HCMS grant program can be found in the​ 2023 HC​MS Program Manual.

Application Materials & Timing

Applications for the 2023 grant year were posted on February 16, 2023 and were due March 27, 2023 at 11:59PM CST.  Applicants were scored, based on their application using the application scorecard, and then were ranked.  The top ten applicants were awarded grants. The performance period will run from July 1, 2023 until June 30, 2024.

2023 HCMS Application (Closed)

2023 HCMS Application Scorecard (Closed)​​

​2023 HCMS Grant Recipients​

A list of the 10 grant recipients for 2023 can be found here: 2023 HCMS Grant Recipients.pdf

Helpful Links, Resources & Tools

​Contact Information

All questions can be directed towards the HCMS Grant Specialist, Emily Bourne, at:​

Emily.Bourne@wisconsin.gov

608-261-7068​