Or. Admin. Code § 813-270-0015 - Definitions

Terms used throughout this division (OAR 813-270) may be defined in Oregon Revised Statute (ORS) or in the OHCS General Definitions (OAR 813-005-0005). Terms used within this division observe those definitions, except as defined below:

(1) "Acquisition" means action taken to acquire a building for the purpose of permanent or transitional housing. This does not include the acquisition of bare land.

(2) "Block leasing" means a type of lease that gives the lessee the right to control and sublease the property during the lease, while the owner retains the legal title. For example, a housing authority or service provider would be the lessee, allowing them to sublease the property to its tenants. An example of an eligible expense would be those related to a property manager on site as part of the block leasing agreement.

(3) "Code of Conduct Agreements" means agreements that may be required by some Oxford Housing Models and Alcohol & Drug Free Community Housing models. A Code of Conduct Agreement can require that participants adhere to the housing facility's rules and expectations of behavior and may or may not be required to be signed by the participant. Code of Conduct Agreements are not the same as Occupancy/Lease/Rental Agreements.

(4) "Construction" has the meaning provided in ORS 456.515.

(5) "Conversion" means in general, an activity that does materially add to the value of an existing structure, appreciably prolong its useful life, or adapt it to new uses.

(6) "Culturally Responsive Organization" means an entity that provides services to a cultural community and the entity has the following characteristics: Comprehensively addresses power relationships throughout the organization by methods that include addressing conflicts and dynamics of inclusion and exclusion; Has relationships with and is responsive to communities that the organization serves, including communities of color; Hires, promotes, trains and supports staff who are culturally and linguistically diverse in ways that reflect the communities that the organization serves, including communities of color; Provides culturally responsive service; and has adopted governance structures, policies and cultural norms to hold its leadership and staff accountable and to continue improvements.

(7) "Culturally Responsive Service" means a service that: Is adapted to maximize the respect of and relevance to the beliefs, practices, culture and linguistic needs of the diverse client populations and communities being served, including clients and communities of color; Has the capacity to respond to the issues of diverse communities; and assures competent language access and incorporates diverse cultural approaches, strengths, perspectives, experiences, frames of reference, values, norms and performance styles of clients and communities to make services and programs more welcoming, accessible, appropriate and effective for all eligible and intended recipients.

(8) "Domestic Violence" means those activities including, but not limited to, domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, attempting to cause, or intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causing or placing another in fear of imminent serious physical injury or emotional, mental, or verbal abuse, and using coercive or controlling behavior. This does not include other criminal acts such as violence perpetrated by a stranger, neighbor, acquaintance, or friend, unless those persons are family members, intimate partners, or household members.

(9) "Grantee" means the entity receiving funds and entering into agreement with Oregon Housing and Community Services.

(10) "Homeless Management Information System" or "HMIS" has the meaning provided in 24 CFR 576.2. Victim Service Providers must use an HMIS Comparable Database.

(11) "Occupancy Agreements", "Lease Agreements", or "Rental Agreements" means agreements used for temporary or permanent housing, which includes Transitional Housing. Occupancy/Lease/Rental Agreements are not the same as a Code of Conduct Agreement.

(12) "Participant" means a household who is receiving OHCS funded services.

(13) "Priority Population" means persons that the grantee/subrecipient has determined as having the greatest need and will receive services first.

(14) "Progressive Engagement" means an approach to helping households end their homelessness as rapidly as possible, despite barriers, with individually tailored financial and support resources. Through progressive engagement, assistance may be provided to any household entering the homelessness system at a level needed by that household. In many cases, a household may need a small amount of assistance to stabilize, while others may need more resources and tailored assistance.

(15) "Rapid Rehousing Activities" means those services performed to enable households to obtain permanent housing when they are currently homeless. Rapid rehousing is used when a household's housing status is literally homeless (category 1), homeless under other federal statues (category 3), or when a household is fleeing or attempting to flee a domestic violence situation (category 4).

(16) "Rehabilitation" or "Rehab" means action taken to return a property to a useful state by means of repair, modification, or alteration. Bringing a property to the point where it is usable, safe, comfortable, hygienic, etc., but not necessarily bringing it back to its previous state or improving the property.

(17) "Renovation" means the process carried out to upgrade an existing structure and to improve performance by either altering the scope of structure, providing additional facilities, or improving existing facilities. Improving the property.

(18) "Repair and Maintenance" means the actions taken to keep a building at a certain level of integrity, or to restore a structure to such a condition that it can be effectively used for its designated purpose. Actions that make improvements that will raise the building to a higher level of integrity or allow the building to be used for a new activity are not considered repair or maintenance. Bringing a property back to its original condition or taking action to keep a property at its current condition.

(19) "Stand-Alone Policy" means a written policy that includes all the requirements for such a policy and is either its own separate document or it is included in a larger document, such as a policy and procedures handbook, that can easily be separated from the larger document for the purpose of approval and review by OHCS.

(20) "Street Outreach" means service delivery that targets unsheltered homeless individuals and households. Street outreach includes reaching out to people who do not otherwise seek assistance. Street outreach involves going outside of the agency to connect with individuals and households where they build rapport and meaningfully engage with unhoused individuals and families. Street outreach includes connecting with individuals and households experiencing homelessness who may be disconnected or alienated from supports and services and is focused on moving people into permanent housing without preconditions for receiving assistance.

(21) "Subrecipient" means entities that, by contract with the grantee agency, provide assistance payments/services and may receive funding directly from the grantee agency. Through its agreements with grantee agency, subrecipients must comply with all requirements for the program. Subrecipients include a grantee's subcontractors, contractors, vendors, subrecipients and any subcontractors, contractors, vendors or subrecipients of a subcontractor, contractor, vendor, or subrecipient.

(22) "Support Network" means entities including, but not limited to, family, friends, and faith-based or other social networks.

(23) "Target Population" means persons a grantee/subrecipient wishes to reach out to who are under-represented in their service population, but delivery of funds cannot be limited to only the target population.

(24) "Transitional Living Programs" means those programs that facilitate a homeless youth or young adult's transition to permanent housing and is offered to participants for no more than 24 months. Transitional living programs are designed to provide interim support to successfully move a participant to, and help them maintain, permanent housing. Transitional living programs will require program participants to sign either a lease or an occupancy agreement. Transitional living programs are not the same as Transitional Shelter, which requires no lease/occupancy agreement.

Notes

Or. Admin. Code § 813-270-0015

OHCS 24-2025, adopt filed 05/23/2025, effective 5/23/2025

Statutory/Other Authority: ORS 456.555 & 456.559

Statutes/Other Implemented: ORS 458.390, 458.392 & 456.561