The mission of the Governor’s Interagency Council on Homelessness is to make homelessness a rare and brief occurrence in Maryland. The Council is comprised of representatives from 11 state agencies which affect and/or are affected by homelessness. The Secretary of DHR serves as Chair of the Council.

Working with service providers, representatives of federal/state/local government, advocates and consumers, the Council has drafted a 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness. Click here to see this document.

The agencies appointed to the Council are:

• Office of the Governor
• Department of Human Resources
• Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
• Department of Housing and Community Development
• Department of Disabilities
• Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services
• Maryland State Department of Education
• Department of Aging
• Department of Transportation
• Department of Business and Economic Development
• Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation
• Governor’s Office for Children, Youth, and Families

The Council shall have the following duties:

• Coordinate State policy and working relationships among state agencies;
• Determine comprehensive and effective collaborative strategies and best practices for remediation and prevention of homelessness in Maryland, addressing in particular the differing needs of the state's geographic areas;
• Review and analyze the need for, and availability of, resources available to address the needs of Marylanders statewide who are homeless;
• Recommend changes necessary to alleviate or prevent the situation of homelessness, to include making recommendations to the appropriate State agencies and organizations regarding effective distribution of resources and access to available services and programs;
• Disseminate information and educate the public about the causes and responses to homelessness; and
• Solicit input from the advocacy community, the business community, the faith community, and consumers regarding policy and program development.