NEWS RELEASE
February 6, 2024
Media Contact
Elisabeth Shepard, Press Secretary to Governor Kotek
Elisabeth.Shepard@Oregon.Gov
Final Data Confirms State Exceeded Goals For Homelessness State of Emergency
EO 23-02 led to more than 10,000 Oregon households moving out of unsheltered homelessness
Salem, OR — Today, final data validated by Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS) confirmed that the state exceeded all three goals set by Governor Tina Kotek through her homelessness state of emergency, which she signed on her first full day in office.
The data showed that following the signing of EO 23-02 and passage of House Bill 5019 to fund resources for the executive order:
- 1,047 low-barrier shelter beds were created, surpassing the original goal by 447 beds (175% of the goal);
- 1,833 households experiencing unsheltered homelessness were rehoused, exceeding the original goal by 633 households (153%); and
- 8,993 households were prevented from experiencing homelessness, exceeding the original goal by 243 households (103%).
This was 15 more shelter beds, 535 more households who were rehoused, and 107 more households prevented from homelessness than was indicated in preliminary data released on January 9.
“This work was made possible through an unprecedented collaboration between state leaders, state agencies, local governments, and communities,” Governor Kotek said. “It’s more evidence that when we set targeted, ambitious goals and then work together to achieve them, we get results. But while it is good news, we have more work to do. Through the creation of regional multi-agency coordination (MAC) groups that worked with OHCS to implement this emergency funding, we now have the infrastructure in place to keep up the pace on fixing this crisis.”
On January 9, Governor Kotek signed EO 24-02 to maintain the added capacity to the state’s shelter system, rehouse people experiencing homelessness, and prevent homelessness. Measurable outcomes for 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.
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