Successfully Tackling Family Homelessness: California’s Integrated Approach  

Families Facing Homelessness

The lives of families living in poverty and experiencing homelessness are often complex. They are constantly navigating difficult and unpredictable circumstances while seeking or keeping a job and caring for children. According to the statewide Homeless Data Integration System (HDIS), families with children represented a third of people accessing homelessness services — and on a single night in California in 2025, 181,934 people experienced homelessness. Studies show that families experiencing homelessness are more likely to spend most of their nights in a sheltered setting compared to their single counterparts.

Behind every statistic is a family facing overwhelming challenges, striving for stability and a brighter future. Children in these families are at a higher risk of chronic disease, mental health and behavioral issues, difficulty learning, and struggles with relationships. These children are also at greater risk of harmful substance use, sexual abuse, and domestic violence. Supporting families with stable housing is key to making sure children can thrive.

Confronting Homelessness and Supporting Families

California continues to confront homelessness head-on and has made significant progress in the face of federal actions that have diminished the safety net we have worked hard to build. Communities across California are now reporting declines in homelessness and California is outperforming the nation across multiple measures of homelessness reduction. Key among these successful state efforts are several locally administered housing programs tailored to help the most vulnerable families experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

The California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) Housing Support Program (HSP), launched in 2014, and the Bringing Families Home (BFH) Program, launched in 2016, are two proven, vital programs helping families experiencing homelessness access stable housing. HSP provides housing-related supports to families in the CalWORKs program and BFH serves families in the child welfare system experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness. Additionally, BFH helps prevent foster care placement and increases family reunification. Both programs serve as essential connectors, helping families navigate complex systems and stabilize more quickly.

Given their strong record of success and in the face of significant need, these programs have greatly expanded. Since 2019, BFH has grown from 23 grantees to 78 and now serves more than 4,500 families annually. The programs have also widened their scope to better meet the housing needs of families across California. In 2019, Senate Bill 80 added Tribal governments as eligible program applicants for BFH and, as of Fiscal Year (FY) 2024–25, 25 Tribal grantees were funded to operate BFH programs to support their communities. In 2021, through Assembly Bill 135, BFH and HSP program eligibility was expanded to include families at risk of homelessness, including families who have not yet received an eviction notice, thereby providing the opportunity to address a housing crisis before it happens. These investments are driving meaningful growth and impacts to families in California.

New State Budget Investments

The recently enacted FY 2026–27 California state budget continues the state’s commitment to family-focused housing and homelessness programs. The budget includes:

• $10 million in new time limited funding for HSP, in addition to its annual $95 million allocation.
• $15 million in new time limited funding for BFH, in addition to a prior appropriation of $81 million available through June 30, 2028.

These strategic investments strengthen the foundation of California’s safety net and allow counties and Tribal governments to reach additional families with effective, locally tailored housing supports.

Real Impacts for Families

BFH and HSP are making a difference for families. At the peak of their operations in FY 2023–24, these programs served 67 percent of families receiving any local homelessness services[1] in California. HSP has served more than 105,000 families since 2014, and 51 percent of families in HSP found permanent housing, compared to 35 percent of participants receiving any local homelessness services in California in 2024[2]. A report by the state auditor from 2024 highlighted the value and cost-effectiveness of HSP in addressing homelessness, saving taxpayers money, and supporting vulnerable families throughout the state.

BFH has helped thousands of vulnerable families find permanent housing, increase family reunification, and reduce reliance on shelters. Since 2016, BFH has served more than 11,800 families, with 61 percent of BFH participants obtaining permanent housing, compared to 35 percent of participants receiving services through other local homelessness response systems in California[3].

Research from the California Policy Lab and the University of Southern California Children’s Data Network found that BFH served particularly vulnerable families even compared to the other families in the child welfare system. Family reunifications increased 68 percent for children in foster care in the BFH program, an incredible achievement. Additionally, shelter and transitional housing use was cut in half and rapid re-housing services were doubled — meaning families moved out of temporary settings like motels and moved into stable housing settings.

In addition, the CalWORKs Homeless Assistance (HA) Program provides vital support with both temporary shelter and permanent housing solutions. Temporary HA pays for shelter for up to 16 days, while permanent HA helps families secure or maintain housing through a security deposit and rent payment support. In 2025, the CalWORKs HA program helped 59,931 families with temporary shelter and 10,008 families secure or maintain stable housing.

Looking Forward

Here in California, we continue to be guided by what people need to thrive, integrating our delivery systems to the greatest extent possible and addressing the most pressing needs of our most vulnerable residents. Food, housing, health care, and other critical safety net supports are interconnected.

Impactful programs like HSP, BFH, and CalWORKs HA illustrate that embedding flexible, family-centered housing support into the broader social safety net creates positive results — not only reaching the most vulnerable populations at risk of or experiencing homelessness, but also connecting them to housing and supporting their long-term family stability.

These program investments are particularly critical to safeguard California’s safety net and ensure families and children have a safe, affordable place to call home.

1.Estimates use FY 2023–24 CDSS data and CY 2023 Homeless Data Integration System (HDIS) data.
2.The most recently available CoC data is for Federal FY 2024: https://www.hudexchange.info/programs/coc/coc-performance-profile-reports/
3.The most recently available CoC data is for Federal FY 2024: https://www.hudexchange.info/programs/coc/coc-performance-profile-reports/