Powers and duties of the Interagency Council on Homelessness.

(b) In fulfilling the responsibility described in subsection (a) of this section, the Interagency Council shall:

(1) Coordinate an annual, community-wide needs-assessment and planning process to identify, prioritize, and target needs for services within the Continuum of Care. The needs-assessment shall take into account existing data, including the number of homeless youth and the number of LGBTQ homeless youth in the District, and include input from at least one public hearing, which shall be held at least once each year;

(2) At least every 5 years, prepare and publish a strategic plan for services within the Continuum of Care that takes into account existing data and community input;

(3) Prepare an annual plan detailing how the District intends to provide or arrange for services within the Continuum of Care that takes into account existing data and community input, including an assessment of the need for services among subpopulations of homeless individuals or families, including LGBTQ youth;

(4) Review on a regular basis the efforts of each member of the Interagency Council to fulfill the goals and policies of the annual plan prepared pursuant to paragraph (3) of this subsection, including a review of the number and nature of contracts and grants entered into by each agency to provide services within the Continuum of Care;

(5) Prepare and submit to the Mayor an annual written report evaluating the efforts of each member agency of the Interagency Council to meet the goals and policies of the annual plan prepared pursuant to paragraph (3) of this subsection;

(6) Direct the Department of General Services to identify vacant public buildings or tax-foreclosed buildings to be used as shelter and supportive housing facilities;

(7) Provide input into the District’s planning and application for federal funds for services within the Continuum of Care. All applications for federal funds shall take into account the strategic plan developed by the Interagency Council prepared pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection;

(8) Have access to data collected and generated by a computerized information system as set up by the Mayor pursuant to § 4-753.02(d) . The data may include the number of beds or units available in the District’s shelter and supportive housing facilities, the availability of supportive services in the District, and the current usage of and unmet demand for such beds, units, and services;

(9) By September 1 of each year, develop a plan, consistent with the right of clients to shelter in severe weather conditions, describing how member agencies will coordinate to provide hypothermia shelter, identifying the specific sites that will be used as hypothermia shelters, and including protocols on how to provide shelter services for unaccompanied minors; and

(10) Review reports of the fair hearings and administrative reviews requested or received by clients within the Continuum of Care, which shall include the provider party to the appeal, the subject matter of the appeal, and the final disposition of the appeal.

(b-1) Beginning 5 years from May 3, 2014, and every 2 years thereafter, the Interagency Council shall evaluate the service needs of the District’s LGBTQ homeless youth as compared to homeless youth in the general population. If the Interagency Council determines, based on data, that the needs of LGBTQ homeless youth are being met at a rate equal to or higher than the needs of homeless youth in the general population, the provisions of § 4-755.01(c) shall expire.

(c) The Mayor shall, no later than February 1 of each year, make available to all Interagency Council members the District’s proposed budget breakdown of each agency’s appropriations for services within the Continuum of Care. The Interagency Council shall give comments to the Mayor regarding the proposed budget.

(d) Each member agency of the Interagency Council shall:

(1) Conduct or commission an annual audit of any private entity designated by the agency to approve or allocate any grants or contracts, on behalf of the Mayor, for services within the Continuum of Care, and make available a report of the audit to all Interagency Council members;

(2) Offer training and technical assistance to its employees who directly provide services within the Continuum of Care and to any providers with which the member agency or its designee contracts to deliver the services; and

(3) Report to the Interagency Council on a quarterly basis currently available data on the number of individuals and families that applied for homeless services and the number of homeless individual or families that were served by the agency and its contractors.

(e) The Department of Human Services shall administer the Homeless Prevention Program, established pursuant to Chapter 7B of this title [ § 4-771.01 ], in consultation with the Interagency Council on Homelessness.