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BACKGROUND The City implemented its HHSG program in 2010. Funding for this program comes from Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), HOME Investment Partnership Program (HOME), Low Income Housing Fund (LIHF) and City General Funds. These four sources annually provide grant funds for local human service providers Annually, during the March meeting, the commission provides a recommendation to fund HHSG program applicants. After the March meeting, a few commissioners brought forward questions and ideas to improve the process for next year. DISCUSSION The City of Pleasanton HHSG process involves commissioners and staff evaluating over 20 applications. There is a large volume of information within the applications, each including multiple pages to review and evaluate. Staff,has reviewed the process based upon commissioner questions and feedback and provided a number of process improvement suggestions below to start the discussion. Additional ideas, suggestions and questions are encouraged for further discussion. Statement of Priorities Each fall the commission approves a Statement of Priorities. This document is provided to all grant applicants at the December Grants Information Workshop as a guideline to follow as they apply for Pleasanton grant funds. The Statement of Priorities addresses the most critical needs and barriers to service delivery in Pleasanton. As commissioners and staff evaluate all of the grant proposals, they are asked to make sure grant requests align with one or more of the project or program areas listed below: • Disability Services and Access • Food and Nutrition • Health Care and Behavioral Health • Homelessness in the Tri -Valley • Senior Services • Service Provider Critical Initiatives • Workforce Development/Unemployment • Youth Services Staff recommends that in future years the commission rank the program areas, focusing on current Tri -Valley core safety net service gap areas first. This ranking will help the commission prioritize current Tri -Valley needs and associated funding. Verbal Presentations The current process asks new project/applicants to provide a verbal presentation to the commission on grant request details. Each agency is allocated 10 minutes to present and answer questions. After all new projects/applicants have spoken, anyone else is asked to speak, occasionally prompting other applicants to speak on behalf of their application. Once all public comment is completed, the commission typically references an attachment to the Agenda Report, an Excel spreadsheet with grant funding details Page 2 of 3