Federal shift away from permanent housing programs for homeless may disrupt local services 

Last edited 1:05 p.m., Jan. 26, 2026 [Editor's note: The former name of United Way Ozarks Region was used and has been updated.]

Facing a loss of nearly $1 million in federal funding to help homeless individuals find stable housing in the Springfield area, local leaders called a meeting Friday to raise awareness and answer questions. 

The Trump administration wants to shift billions in funding for homeless services from permanent housing programs to short-term interventions, including street outreach and transitional housing, according to past Springfield Business Journal reporting. 

The move by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has been challenged in court. The outcome will determine how nearly $4 billion in funding for continuums of care, the local agencies that coordinate funding and services for the homeless, will be distributed.  

The Ozarks Alliance to End Homelessness is the designated continuum of care for Greene, Christian and Webster counties. The city of Springfield serves as the lead agency and contracts with Community Partnership of the Ozarks Inc. to oversee staffing. 

The alliance has more than 125 partners including nonprofits, local government, advocacy groups and others. They work to ensure episodes of homelessness are rare, brief and non-recurring. 

Emily Fessler, continuum of care director with CPO, said if HUD wins the lawsuit, the amount spent on permanent housing programs locally is expected to fall from $1.3 million to $435,778. The annual federal funding total is $1.5 million. 

Currently, 173 people are being served in permanent housing programs. 

“We would be looking at just $400,000 for permanent housing, and so we are looking at mass evictions,” she said, in an interview after the event. “We’re looking at more visible street homelessness, which is of course going to impact our local businesses, our economic development.” 

Fessler said moving to short-term interventions will be disruptive to the local rental market, health care providers, first responders and local law enforcement. 

Springfield Police Chief Paul Williams said he has been following the proposed change closely and was excited to see a large group of people at the event. 

“We are behind the curve getting the information out to people,” he said.  

Williams said any change that puts more people who have experienced homelessness back on the streets will result in more calls for service.  

“It’s going to be an impact for us,” he said, noting it will take time away from helping victims and apprehending perpetrators. “Fortunately, we have really good community partners that we can connect with.” 

CPO, Community Foundation of the Ozarks Inc., United Way Ozarks Region, and the city of Springfield organized the meeting. More than 50 people attended and asked questions about contacting lawmakers and raising money. 

Fessler and Bob Atchley, principal planner for the city, explained that in addition to uncertainty about future funding, funding that was expected has been delayed. 

“At this point, we are not looking at having awards or contracts until August, and so that means agencies are essentially going two full quarters without funding to be able to support rental assistance for the currently housed individuals they’re working with,” Fessler said. “We have been working with agencies on contingency plans, but all of those agencies are definitely feeling concerned.” 

A decade ago, local groups working to end homelessness embraced the Housing First model, which helps individuals access services and rental assistance to secure stable housing.  

“We have built partnerships. We have built relationships with landlords who rely on that month-to-month consistent rental payments,” Fessler said. “If we were to shift away from the Housing First model toward short-term interventions, that is a dramatic structural change, not just a shift in how funding is allocated.” 

Fessler said 416 individuals are served on average annually in the local permanent housing program, and in fiscal year 2024, the most recent year for which data is available, 9% returned to homelessness. That number was 8% in fiscal year 2023. 

Some 973 individuals are served annually on average in Springfield-area emergency shelters, and 19% returned to homelessness in fiscal year 2024. On average, 242 individuals are served annually through street outreach, and 42% returned to homelessness that same year.