Program Goal:
The goal of AFS is to create a stable living environment by providing money management services to indigent people with disabling HIV/AIDS living in San Francisco. AFS’ Money Management program focuses on the particular demands of how to stabilize low-income PWAs who are not only homeless or marginally homeless, but whose frequent substance abuse and/or mental health issues work against their finding and maintaining stable housing.To accomplish this goal, AFS: 1) provides the money management that ensures its clients’ rent will be paid promptly, and 2) establishes relationships with landlords that, because of guaranteeing rent payment, will open an impossibly small housing market to clients whose previous difficulty managing their money made housing an unreachable goal.
Who is Served?
The population served by this program is very low-income persons (as defined by HUD) with disabling HIV/AIDS living in San Francisco. This diverse community includes youth, families, transgender individuals, chronic substance abusers, previously incarcerated individuals, emotionally disturbed individuals, recovering and active substance abusers, and persons who have become impoverished because of disabling HIV/AIDS.
Services Provided
Each of AFS’ 693 clients receive monthly services, which include budget planning, authorizations for disbursement, cutting of checks, checkbook reconciliation, maintenance of client financial files, negotiations with landlords, communication with entitlement agencies such as the Social Security Administration, and disbursement of funds.
After prospective clients meet with the Program Manager in order to make certain the client understands what the program entails, the client is assigned to a personal Money Manager. To be eligible for AFS, an individual must have
- a verifiable letter of diagnosis of disabling HIV/AIDS,
- proof of San Francisco residency,
- verification of low-income status (as defined by HUD).
Once eligibility is established, the Money Manager explains to each client their rights and procedures for filing a grievance, as well as all other procedures of the program. Application is then made to Social Security Administration if the client receives SSI/SSA, the Department of Human Services if the client receives General Assistance, or other agencies, thus designating AFS as the representative payee/money manager.
Upon approval of entitlements, the client signs a Letter of Agreement with Lutheran Social Services, which specifies, at minimum, the client’s authorization for LSS to issue a check for the client’s rent. It will also specify that LSS will provide the client with personal expense money, if available in their account after payment of rent, according to an individual personal expense budget agreed upon by the client. Besides rent payment, benefits counseling and bill paying services will be offered to all clients.
At the time of enrollment, LSS will add the individual name to the operating client system liked to a collective account for the AFS program. Check signing authority is limited to authorized LSS staff only. Checks are written by LSS staff and mailed by the Money Manager or picked up by the client at the AFS office location. There are no cash disbursements.
When Do Services End?
Clients are discharged from the AFS program when they move out of the geographical area of service, when they die, or when they fail to comply with the Letter of Agreement for AFS. If a one-month period passes with no contact from the client, a letter will be sent to their last known address. If at three months there is still no client contact, that file is considered to be inactive. Inactive files will be followed up with contact to the client’s case manager, if applicable. If a client is not seen or heard from in three months, the client’s file will be closed and a letter will be sent to the entitlement agency. All remaining funds in the client’s account will be forwarded to the issuing administration or agency.
