In Funding Homeless Providers, the CoC Matters ...
... how much, however, varies by locality. The Advance explores how Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, and Stafford assess funding for organizations serving those facing, or experiencing, housing loss.
By Martin Davis
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
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The homelessness issue in Fredericksburg that has flared in recent weeks is fueled by a complex set of factors, some of which were outlined in an Advance column on Monday.
The current debate, however, was lit by the Fredericksburg City Council’s decision to reallocate $40,000 in funds originally set for the Thurman Brisban Center to three other organizations: Empower House, LoisAnn’s Hope House, and George Washington Regional Commission Rapid Housing.
The Thurman Brisbane Center has expressed concern that the scoring of nonprofits serving the homeless community by the Continuum of Care has led to this decrease in funding for the center.
In a conversation with the Advance on May 2, Executive Director David Cooper said that “in the last three years, and this current year is just through April, … we’ve served 588 people, of which about 35% were children…. at a cost of $2.9 million over those three years.” The jurisdictions “have contributed almost $680,000. That’s 23% of the cost.” Support, he continues, “has been substantially declining.”
In addition to the city of Fredericksburg, where support went from $40,000 in 2025 to $0 in 2026, Spotsylvania County’s support has declined from $50,000 in 2025 to $30,000 in 2026, and Stafford’s support has declined from $70,000 in 2025 to $60,000 in 2026.
Asked what he attributes the cuts to, Cooper points to the Continuum of Care’s scoring of agencies serving the homeless as one factor.
“The Continuum of Care has scored the Brisban Center for the previous two years, and our scoring has been the lowest score of all the other agencies providing homeless services,” he said. (Editor’s Note: Brisben was not scored in the most recent cycle.)
Because CoC is legally bound to follow the Housing First model — an approach to addressing homelessness by prioritizing shelter before dealing with ancillary issues — and the Brisben Center does not, Cooper contends the scoring by default works against the center. Measuring Brisben using the CoC model, he told the Advance, “It’s measuring apples with oranges.”
Is the CoC Scoring Model to Blame?
The CoC is an emerging and rapidly evolving federally mandated organization that is playing a more consequential role in how not just our region, but communities across the country, deal with the issue of homelessness.
To better understand the extent to which CoC scoring has affected Brisben’s funding, the Advance reached out to the city manager in Fredericksburg, as well as the county administrators in Spotsylvania and Stafford, to gain a better understanding of how they decided to allocate funds.
That inquiry revealed a variety of ways localities use the CoC scoring system. Fredericksburg, for example, leans heavily on the CoC in these funding decisions. Spotsylvania and Stafford, however, weight it to a lesser degree as a part of their approach to deciding who to fund and how much.
Editor’s Note: On Tuesday evening, Samantha Shoukas, housing and community health program director for the GWRC, gave a presentation before City Council outlining the history and development of CoC since its founding in 1994. Before proceeding, we encourage readers to spend a few minutes watching this presentation to better understand the organization and how it operates. It begins at the 23 minute, 36 second mark in the video.
Localities and Evaluating Requests for Funding
To understand how each locality employs CoC scoring of homeless organizations, the Advance asked each locality four questions:
Could you please briefly explain your process for analyzing requests from nonprofits for financial support?
Concerning supporting organizations that work with the homeless, can you briefly describe your process for making those decisions?
How important is the CoC rating of organizations to the decision-making process as it regards organizations that support the homeless?
How important is that rating as it concerns your support for the Brisben Center, Hope House, and Empower House?
Below, we reproduce each locality’s responses in their entirety.
Fredericksburg
FXBG Advance Question No. 1: Could you please briefly explain your process for analyzing requests from nonprofits for financial support?
City Response: The City requests that non-profit agency partners utilize the regional application system and we review and analyze those requests. The City's general baseline for the recommended budget is for level funding of agency partners that are non-profit (and not regional government), but we will amend that from time to time. We take applications for funding in consideration, bearing in mind the City's operations, maintenance, debt service, capital, school, and similar needs; and the overall financial forecasts and environment of the City. We also evaluate equity and reasonableness of requests - both in general (like, did the agency request a major increase in funding) and also between regional partners (are the proposed shares between the city and the counties reasonable and equitable).
FXBG Advance Question No. 2: Concerning supporting organizations that work with the homeless, can you briefly describe your process for making those decisions?
City Response: See above answer to #1
FXBG Advance Question No. 3: How important is the CoC rating of organizations to the decision-making process as it regards organizations that support the homeless.
City Response: City Management relies highly on the now annual CoC evaluations. The City still must balance funding requests with the City's overall operations and maintenance needs and the overall revenue outlooks in making final funding recommendations to City Council - as with all funding requests.
FXBG Advance Question No. 4: How important is that rating as it concerns your support for the Brisben Center, Hope House, and Empower House.
City Response: See answer to #1 and #3
Spotsylvania County
FXBG Advance Question No. 1: Could you please briefly explain your process for analyzing requests from nonprofits for financial support?
Spotsylvania Response: The process of request for nonprofits financial reports is completed on an annual basis. Organizations that are interested in applying for funding from Spotsylvania County, submit their application through the regional application process by the identified submission date. The DSS Advisory Board meets to review and discuss each application to determine what the recommended amount will be for each organization, based on the reported performance metrics and community needs. Once the process has been completed, the recommended funding options are forwarded to the Spotsylvania County Board of Supervisors for their review and vote.
FXBG Advance Question No. 2: Concerning supporting organizations that work with the homeless, can you briefly describe your process for making those decisions?
Spotsylvania Response: All organizations must submit their request through the regional application process. All applications are reviewed by the DSS Advisory Board. The committee considers the funding amount, the agency’s impact/contribution to support Spotsylvania County community, and their future impact/support of the Spotsylvania County community.
FXBG Advance Question No. 3: How important is the CoC rating of organizations to the decision-making process as it regards organizations that support the homeless.
Spotsylvania Response: The CoC rating is a completely different process and goes through the Fredericksburg Regional Continuum of Care evaluation process.
FXBG Advance Question No. 4: How important is that rating as it concerns your support for the Brisben Center, Hope House, and Empower House.
Spotsylvania Response: The CoC rating is a completely different process and goes through the Fredericksburg Regional Continuum of Care evaluation process and has no influence on the DSS Advisory Board recommendations.
Stafford County
FXBG Advance Question No. 1: Could you please briefly explain your process for analyzing requests from nonprofits for financial support?
Stafford Response: All agencies must submit their funding requests via the E-Cimpact platform. This platform contains a uniform application accessed by all five localities in Planning District 16 to view the funding request. Once agencies submit their requests, each program is reviewed and scored. A committee of 12-15 human services professionals assists in scoring the requests. At least three people evaluate each request. The resulting scores are averaged. The scores are based on the following criteria:
Area of Service:
Program meets a core service area of basic shelter, basic sustenance, or essential safety.
Population serviced meets the criteria of the vulnerable.
Program prevents harm or exposure to imminent and significant safety or health risk- or- is responsive to individuals/families that experience significant physical harm or compromised health.
Program Description:
Program Narrative
The organization has the ability (management/capacity) to carry out the program.
Relationships with other community efforts/partners, and their role in this program
This program is not unnecessarily duplicating another program.
Realistic resource analysis and budget, other funding sources identified
Target Population:
Identify and reach target population(s)
Significant representation of Stafford County residents
Program Track Record:
Previous efforts/activities/outputs of this program
Previous outcomes for this program
The program has a system in place for tracking the data and comparing it from year to year
Program Outcomes:
Clear statement of problem or need
The program has defined at least one outcome (change in client behavior or situation)
Outcomes are clearly defined
Outcomes are realistic and attainable
Outcomes are measurable
FXBG Advance Question No. 2: Concerning supporting organizations that work with the homeless, can you briefly describe your process for making those decisions?
Stafford Response: All programs are evaluated based on criteria. Several programs are also analyzed by the Fredericksburg Regional Continuum of Care, a federally mandated local planning body that coordinates housing and services for homeless families and individuals. These programs are from several agencies that request funding from localities.
FXBG Advance Question No. 3: How important is the CoC rating of organizations to the decision-making process as it regards organizations that support the homeless.
Stafford Response: It is one factor of many utilized when evaluating programs requesting funding from the County.
FXBG Advance Question No. 4: How important is that rating as it concerns your support for the Brisben Center, Hope House, and Empower House.
Stafford Response: Again, it is one factor of many used to evaluate the funding requests.
A Changing Approach
The approach that localities take depends on processes designed to fit their particular approaches to funding the homeless. How much the relatively new CoC approach plays into those processes depends on the governing bodies. Fredericksburg more than Spotsylvania or Stafford has embraced trusting CoC’s expertise in helping guide its decision-making.
Spotsylvania and Stafford, possibly because their governments are larger and can leverage more in-house expertise, consider CoC’s findings, but these are just one factor among many.
The issue of homelessness, however, is no longer — and in fact it never has been — an issue that just affects the city of Fredericksburg. The surrounding counties are increasingly facing visible homelessness and are adjusting their approaches to the problem.
That increased homeless population in the counties will likely fuel an increasingly regional approach. This is the role that CoC’s were designed to play when they were created.
Regional approaches, however, take time and cooperation to develop. Barring a defunding or significant reduction in funding for CoCs — a possibility under the Trump Administration — expect CoC to play an increasingly central role in addressing homelessness.
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