Our goal is to have human centered design approaches applied to all four proposed solutions that will be procured. Human-centered design is deeply embedded in the philosophy of the LA County Homeless Initiative. Its focus may range from customer interactions between people experiencing homelessness, service-providers, and case managers, to the design of mobile digital services, and even the design of reporting and geo mapping systems. It is a holistic approach to understanding the desired outcomes for LA County customers.

Our Vision for this Solution

1. Expand access to services for homeless individuals through centralizing housing and service applications for homeless clients; and
2. Improve access to case management data and improve data quality to allow for better coordination of care for homeless clients by allowing for electronic form submission, and real-time tracking of available housing.

Proposed Solution Capabilities

• Direct line of communication and engagement to address needs between clients and caseworkers / service-providers
• Holistic resource that feeds into other existing LA County resources and navigates to areas of need (such as linkages with program applications and assessments)
• Real‐time availability or access to existing systems that offer connections to related services (such as screening opportunities and referral to treatment services)
• Proactive updates provided to clients and service-providers on status of applications and eligibility forms submitted

Required Security Requirements 

The Information Security Requirements sets forth information security procedures to be established by Contractor before the Effective Date of the Technology Innovation Challenge and Services Agreement. It is Contractor’s sole obligation to (i) implement appropriate measures to secure its systems and data, including Personal Data, Protected Health Information, and County Confidential Information, against internal and external threats and risks; and (ii) continuously review and revise those measures to address ongoing threats and risks.

In accordance with County of Los Angeles Board policies 6.100 – 6.105 & 5.200; reference Board of Supervisors website for more information.

Primary Customers / Users

• Homeless clients
• County departments / agencies serving homeless clients with programs and services such as:
  • LA County Department of Health Services (DHS)
  • LA County Department of Mental Health (DMH)
  • LA County Department of Public Health (DPH)
  • LA County Department of Family and Children Services (DCFS)
  • LA County Department of Public Social Services (DPSS)
  • LA County Department of Workforce Development, Aging and Community Services (WDACS)
  • LA County Public Defender
  • LA County Development Authority (LACDA)
  • Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA)

• Homeless service-providers and caseworkers (As of now, there are over 400 contracted homeless service-providers in the County’s homelessness services realm.)

Total Contract Funding Authority

The Technology Innovation Challenge funding request cannot exceed $500,000 (you will have the opportunity to share and explain total projected costs to implement the solution, which can total more than $500,000).

Required Technologies

• Web application must implement a responsive design that adjusts the UX/UI based on the user’s screen size (Mobile, Tablet, PC).
• Web application must be developed to natively utilize cloud computing services and infrastructure.
• Web application must be API driven with endpoints for all major functions.
• Web application must be extensible, allowing the County to expand the Portal based on future needs.
• Any web API or endpoint access should utilize a cloud-based API management platform.
• Solution must have the ability to integrate with on-premise County endpoints (RESTful web services and SOAP).
• Any web platform API should be RESTful, communicating with a JSON payload.
• Protocols around access and exposure of PII and PHI data must be in compliance with all rules and regulations.
• All data must be encrypted at rest and transit.
• Portal should be customized to client profile/needs.

Preferred Technologies

• Cloud-based solution build as either Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) or on a Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) provider
• Java or .Net Core
• Cloud-based database (SQL or No SQL)
• HTML 5, JavaScript, CSS3
• Interface with LA County’s Modern Identity Framework (Azure Active Directory utilizing OAuth2) for all identity and authentication needs
• Authentication using a biometric technology
• IoT