Hundreds of shelters and organizations that help the homeless in Iowa will complete surveys today (Tuesday) counting the number of people they serve. Monica Fischer is co-ordinating the survey for the Iowa Finance Authority and says it’s an annual proposition that helps determine how much federal money comes to Iowa. She says this year it’s being done on a single day to give a true snapshot of the number of homeless people being served. She says the single day survey is known as a “point in time study.” She says since it’s a point in time study, it avoids overcounting and undercounting because it doesn’t capture people who’re moving from shelter to shelter or throughout different programs. Fischer says the survey is pretty simple. She says the providers are asked to provide information on the services they provide and the number of people they serve. Fischer says the Iowa information is sent to the feds who figure out how much money the state will get for the programs. She says it’s reported electronically to the Iowa Finance Authority and they report it to the U-S Department of Housing and Urban Development. Fischer says the state gets around five million dollars each year for programs that support or help the homeless in Iowa.
