HMIS Newsletter: April 2026

Table of Contents

• Announcements
• Federal Reporting Updates
• Help Desk Reminders
• Data Quality Dashboard
  
• Upcoming Events 
• Bitfocus is Hiring

Announcements

Quarterly Assessment Month: May

A friendly reminder that May is an Assessment Month. This means, as per the recently updated Quarterly Assessment Policy, that both Current Living Situation (CLS) and Status Update Assessments are required to be submitted before the end of the month for each of your clients that are enrolled in an HMIS-participating program. You can download a pdf of the Quarterly Assessment Policy by visiting the Santa Cruz Bitfocus Homepage under the Policies & Procedures section.

If you have any questions please reach out to your HMIS Lead Loren White at loren.white@santacruzcountyca.gov.

Federal Reporting Updates

Point-in-Time Count & Housing Inventory Count

We’re thrilled to share that the Point-in-Time Counts (PIT) and Housing Inventory Count (HIC) has been finalized and submitted to HUD! A huge thank you to everyone in the CoC for helping us ensure that our HUD reporting accurately reflects the scale and impact of our collective work to end homelessness.

2026 HIC/PIT Recap

On January 28, 2026, our community conducted the 2026 Point-in-Time (PIT) Count, providing a vital snapshot of both sheltered and unsheltered individuals. 

The Inventory: Alongside the PIT, we completed the Housing Inventory Count (HIC) for HMIS participating and non-participating programs. The HIC is a snapshot of our housing programs; available beds in your housing program, utilization of those beds, and client demographics for those served on the night of the HIC/PIT.

Whether you submitted a Non-Participating Program form or prioritized HMIS data cleanup, your help in this process ensures our community’s data is accurate and complete. Thank you for your commitment to making every person count!

Interested in more detailed information about HUD’s requirements for HIC and PIT? Learn more on the HUD Exchange website here.  

Reminders from Our Help Desk Team

Pro-Tip: Want a speedier resolution when you email Help Desk? Including all the details in the first email help us move faster! By knowing the "what, where, and when" from the start, we can route your request to the perfect team member and jump into troubleshooting immediately!

Please include, as applicable:

• Steps to replicate the issue (Step 1, Step 2, Step 3, etc.)
• Impacted client records or reports (for example, specific client record Unique IDs or the Report Name)
• Screenshots and/or screen recordings of the issue (avoiding any client Personally Identifiable Information)
• What happened Vs. What you expected to happen
• How this prevents you from getting your work done

Need Help with a Client Records?
When you need assistance with client records, please include:

• Details for the issue/request
• Client Unique IDs and/or Record URLs
• Do not include Client PII in the email body or in attachments
  

User Accounts (Clarity or Looker)
When you need assistance with a user account, please include:

• User’s full name
• User’s email address
• Access role (if known)
• Agency name
• Link/URL to the Clarity instance the user needs access to for example: santacruz.clarityhs.com/login
• Any other details that may help us process your request

Reporting / Federal Reporting / Looks / Dashboards
When you need help with reports or dashboards, please include:

• Name and/or number of the canned report, link to the Look, or Dashboard
• Reporting parameters (date ranges, filters, etc.)
• Agency/Program name
• Details of the issue (what is wrong or not working as expected)
• Client Unique IDs involved (if applicable)
• User(s) experiencing the issue

Data Quality Dashboard

Please see below for the agency-level data quality dashboard and report content updates. This is updated monthly.
Download the PDF file by clicking here.

Upcoming Events

Housing for Health - HMIS Office Hours | May 25, 2026 at 1-2:30PM | Click here to open the Zoom Registration link

Housing for Health and Bitfocus host office hours every fourth Monday of each month (in lieu of HMIS Workgroup meetings). Drop-in for as long or as short as you’d like to ask any and all questions related to the HMIS. All users are welcome. Please join us within the first 15 minutes or we will assume nobody will be joining us for Office Hours.

Want more details?

Check out our full events calendar.

Bitfocus is Hiring

Join our Team!

• Visit bitfocus.com | Jobs | About Bitfocus

• Work with us at Bitfocus! Join a team committed to innovation, collaboration, and real-world impact in human services.  

Questions?

Your HMIS Administrators are happy to help.

Phone: 831-713-2288

Email: santacruz@bitfocus.com