The San Bernardino area is receiving another $10 million in state funding to address homelessness and expand housing options, officials said Thursday.
San Bernardino County, the city of San Bernardino and the local Continuum of Care, or CoC will receive the sizable grant from the state’s Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention program through from the California Department of Housing and Community Development. A key portion of the funds will go toward expanding permanent housing for people experiencing homelessness and bolstering initiatives intended to prevent homelessness.
The funding will support converting underutilized buildings and existing interim housing into permanent housing, officials said. The state grant will also support services such as street outreach, intensive case management, housing navigation, harm reduction services, rental assistance, security deposits and other programs intended to help prevent homelessness and support county residents who have no place to stay.
“This funding is an important investment in our comprehensive approach to addressing homelessness,” county Board of Supervisors Vice Chair and 5th District Supervisor Joe Baca Jr., who also chairs the county’s CoC Board.
“It will expand permanent housing for people who need it most while also strengthening prevention efforts so fewer people fall into homelessness. Ultimately, these resources will help San Bernardino County and its partners better support individuals and families on the path to stable housing,” Baca said.
The county, city and CoC, which is comprised of city, county and nonprofit representatives, submitted a joint application to secure the state funds.
“We are grateful to our city and community partners for joining us in this effort,” the county’s Office of Homeless Services Chief Marcus Dillard said in a statement. “This partnership allows us to make a real difference in providing housing and support to San Bernardino County’s most vulnerable residents.”
Staffers from San Bernardino Mayor Helen Tran’s office participated in community meetings that helped shape the grant application, and she emphasized the importance of collaboration.
“These funds will directly improve lives across our community and help more families achieve stability,” Tran said in a statement. “The city of San Bernardino is proud to be a partner with the county and local organizations on this effort.”
CoC Vice Chair Shanikqua “Shaq” Freeman, executive director of the nonprofit Knowledge and Education for Your Success, noted the impact this funding will have on local residents who need housing assistance.
“This award is a result of strong collaboration between the county, city partners and local organizations,” Freeman said in a statement. “These resources will help residents get the support they need and make meaningful progress toward independence.”
Program Manager Za Zette Scott of the nonprofit Family Assistance Program, who also attended community meetings about the grant application, said the collaboration shows the shared commitment of local governments and nonprofits to address homelessness.
“This collaborative effort demonstrates how the county, city partners and nonprofits can work together to address complex community challenges,” Scott said in a statement. “By working together, we can create opportunities that help people rebuild their lives and strengthen our community as a whole.”
According to the 2025 Point-in-Time Count, homelessness in San Bernardino County decreased by 10.2% compared with 2024. County officials attribute the drop to expanded outreach efforts and more state and federal funding aimed at reducing homelessness. Continued support through grants such as HHAP help sustain this progress, officials said.
State officials announced more than $159.3 million in HHAP Round 6 funding March 2.
“HHAP grants provide essential funding that help local regions collaborate to expand housing opportunities and scale programs that are proven to reduce homelessness,” said California Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency Secretary Tomiquia Moss. “Across multi-year funding rounds, the cumulative results of these efforts are bringing stability and hope to so many vulnerable Californians in a time when it matters most.”
The Round 6 grants were for 20 county regions — Alameda, Contra Costa, El Dorado, Fresno and Madera, Humboldt, Imperial, Kings and Tulare, Marin, Mendocino, Monterey and San Benito, Napa, San Bernardino, San Joaquin, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Sonoma, Tehama and Ventura. Collectively, the municipalities in these 20 regions are dedicating 83% of their HHAP budgets to permanent and interim housing, according to state housing department.
In each HHAP region, counties, cities and local “continuum of care” agencies that address homelessness were required to work together on joint applications and commit to coordinating with each other and clearly stating who is responsible for which parts of their joint regional homelessness efforts, state housing officials said.
HHAP is a multiyear grant available to the state’s 58 counties, 14 large cities with populations over 300,000 residents and 44 continuums of care.
For more information on the county and the CoC’s efforts to address homelessness, please visit sbchp.sbcounty.gov.
