California Emergency Solutions and Housing (CESH)

Purpose

The California Emergency Solutions and Housing (CESH) Program provides funds for a variety of activities to assist persons experiencing or at risk of homelessness as authorized by SB 850 (Chapter 48, Statues of 2018). The California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) administers the CESH Program with funding received from the Building Homes and Jobs Act Trust Fund (SB 2, Chapter 364, Statutes of 2017)

Assistance Type and Terms

HCD grants CESH Program funds in the form of five-year grants to eligible applicants.

Eligible Activities

CESH funds may be used for five primary activities: housing relocation and stabilization services (including rental assistance), operating subsidies for permanent housing, flexible housing subsidy funds, operating support for emergency housing interventions, and systems support for homelessness services and housing delivery systems. In addition, some administrative entities may use CESH funds to develop or update a Coordinated Entry System (CES), Homeless Management Information System (HMIS), or Homelessness Plan. Refer to the current Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for any limitations on these activities.

Eligible Applicants

Eligible applicants are Administrative Entities (AEs) — local governments, non-profit organizations, or unified funding agencies — designated by the Continuum of Care (CoC) to administer CESH funds in their service area.

Get Funding

HCD allocates its funding to the state’s CoC service areas using a formula method set forth under Health and Safety Code Section 50490.2(a) which allocates funding based on the following factors:

1. The 2017 Point-In-Time Count;
2. The number of extremely low-income households in rental housing that pay more than 50 percent of household income on rent; and
3. The percentage of households below the federal poverty line.

The allocation amounts to each CoC service area are available in Appendix A of the NOFA. Administrative Entities designated by the Continuum of Care to administer CESH funds in their service area can request an allocation by submitting an application.

Current NOFA

• 2018 & 2019 CESH NOFAs – Amended (PDF)
• 2019 CESH Resolution – Amended (PDF)
• 2019 CESH Designation Letter (PDF)
• STD 204 - Payee Data Record (PDF)
• TIN Form (PDF) (File may need to be opened using Internet Explorer)
• 2019 CESH Webinar Presentation (YouTube)
• 2019 CESH FAQs (PDF)
• 2019 CESH Applications Received (PDF)

Reporting Requirements

Annual Report (XLS) - Last Updated 05/20/2021 – The Administrative Entity must submit a completed annual report each year by July 31 for the term of the contract with HCD that reports all activities from the previous fiscal year (July 1 – June 30). The Annual Reports shall be submitted electronically to CESHNOFA@hcd.ca.gov.

Program Forms

Grant Management Documents

• CESH Request for Funds Form (XLS) — After opening form, select Enable Content at the top of the form.
• CESH Expenditure Report Form (XLS)
• CESH Budget Revision Form (XLS)
• CESH Authorized Signatories Identity Form (XLS)

CESH State Statute

• State CESH Statute (SB 850, Section 4, Chapter 48, Statutes of 2018)

Related Federal Regulations/Publications

• HUD Emergency Solutions Grant Regulations 24 CFR Parts 91 and 576 (PDF)
• HUD Continuum of Care Regulations 24 CFR Part 578
• HUD Coordinated Entry Process Self-Assessment (PDF)