Austin Develops Homeless Encampment Dashboard as Officials Rework Social Service Funding
By Isabel Neumann
Reporting Texas
Austin officials are developing a new online tool to allow residents to see how the city responds to homeless encampments and spends money on related services as Austin faces millions of dollars in projected social service cuts.
The effort is meant to give the public a clearer view of where public money is going. Officials say the tool will allow residents to track encampment cleanup efforts and responses to campsite reports.
In recent months, Austin has reduced funding for social service contracts after voters last November rejected a $100 million property tax increase intended to support homelessness services. Officials warn deeper cuts may still be coming.
“Just a few months ago, over $5 million was cut from our social service contracts,” City Council Member Vanessa Fuentes said. “As additional cuts are projected, I believe it is essential for us to work with our city staff and community partners to set forward a plan that centers community needs and priorities.”
City leaders have warned that up to $16.8 million in social service contracts could be reduced during fiscal 2026-27. Fuentes said the City Council’s Public Health Committee has proposed developing a rubric, or scoring system, to help review existing contracts as Austin restructures its social service programs.
Fuentes said the proposal is designed to ensure community voices play a role in shaping funding decisions. Through that engagement process, nonprofits would have the opportunity to share their experiences and explain how funding changes could affect their programs.
Austin is not alone in experimenting with tools like the dashboard. Portland, Oregon, is among cities that have launched similar systems in recent years as homelessness has become a persistent policy challenge across the country.
The public dashboard, meanwhile, remains under development and is expected later in 2026, though city officials have not provided details about what information it will include.
The dashboard is expected to show data such as campsite reports, assessments and removals. Tools like this are becoming more common in cities grappling with homelessness, said John Bonura, a policy analyst with the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative Austin-based think tank.
“I think what cities are trying to accomplish is transparency and building public trust,” Bonura said. “Showing that their efforts are working and that taxpayer dollars are going toward the shared goal of helping homeless individuals.”
However, Bonura said, data used in homelessness reporting can sometimes be misleading because cities rely on imperfect measurement systems.
One commonly used metric is the federal “point-in-time count,” an annual survey in which volunteers physically count people experiencing homelessness on a single night.
In Austin, the survey is coordinated by the Ending Community Homelessness Coalition, or ECHO, which organizes volunteers to find and survey people living outside and report the data to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Chris Davis, a spokesperson for ECHO, said the count helps communities and federal officials understand homelessness trends over time.
“It’s an important opportunity for volunteers and service providers to meet people face to face and get to know more about the everyday needs homeless people have,” Davis said.
Davis said the count is only one way communities measure homelessness and noted that local officials also rely on administrative data from the Homeless Management Information System to better understand how people interact with services.
However, Bonura said data used in homelessness reporting can sometimes be misleading because cities rely on imperfect measurement systems.
The point-in-time count, Bonura said, is “literally where volunteers go out and count homeless individuals in specific locations. But it doesn’t capture people who are couch surfing or staying temporarily with friends, so it’s not always a complete picture.”
Despite those limitations, Bonura said dashboards can still help residents better understand how homelessness programs operate.
Portland launched a similar encampment data dashboard in 2022 through its Impact Reduction Program. Portland officials created the dashboard after a city audit called for greater transparency in the city’s homelessness response.
According to Laura Rude, communications and data coordinator for Portland’s Impact Reduction Program, the dashboard allows residents to track campsite reports, assessments and removals.
“The primary goal is to provide the public a transparent look at the work being done,” Rude said. “It is a way to be accountable to the public.”
Portland officials say the dashboard has reduced the number of follow-up calls and emails from residents asking whether their campsite reports were received.
The site averages about 120 views per day and provides data on the scope of the city’s response efforts. In the last fiscal year, crews removed more than 6,000 tons of material from public spaces across the city.
Bonura said dashboards should go beyond simple counts of encampment removals or shelter placements.
Instead, he believes cities should track whether homelessness programs help individuals achieve long-term stability.
Metrics such as employment, mental health treatment and interactions with law enforcement could offer a clearer picture of program effectiveness, he said.
“What we should be measuring is whether people are returning to self-sufficiency,” Bonura said. “Are they getting job training? Are they receiving treatment? Are they able to support themselves?”
Fuentes said city leaders are balancing rising costs, declining revenue projections and limits on property tax increases imposed by the Texas Legislature.
To balance the budget, the city cut $19 million across departments and reduced social service contracts by 10%.
For city leaders, the challenge now is determining how to maintain essential services while addressing budget constraints.
“It’s a monumental task, Fuentes said. “One with no simple solution.”