TRUCKEE, Calif. — The Homeless Resource Council of the Sierras, a collaborative group of agencies and nonprofits from Placer and Nevada counties, has announced that the annual point-in-time count of homeless individuals will take place on Thursday, Jan. 26.

“The point-in-time count is an opportunity to engage with our unhoused neighbors and collect information to guide ongoing efforts across the county,” said Homeless Resource Council of the Sierras Executive Director Samuel Holmes. “We are grateful to our public and private partners across Nevada and Placer Counties for continuing to demonstrate the importance of collaboration to not only plan and execute this event, but to do what is necessary to house the most vulnerable residents of each county.”

Homeless counts are required in order to receive funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and are used by State agencies to determine funding amounts for critical programs such as Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention grants. The counties will likely receive over $3 million through state and federal funding streams this year.

Point-in-time counts are not a comprehensive measure of an area’s homeless population, but rather snapshots from a single day that can be used to approximate broad trends. Typically, they are viewed as undercounts for a community’s yearly overall homeless population because many people may move in and out of homelessness throughout the year.

On Thursday, almost 150 volunteers across Nevada and Placer counties will connect with and survey individuals experiencing homelessness. Volunteers for this year’s count consist of county and city employees, nonprofit workers, and community members and will be supported by law enforcement from jurisdictions across Nevada and Placer Counties. A total of 527 people were counted in Nevada County and 750 people were counted in Placer County during the 2022 count.