Local governments could form teams to connect homeless people with services

A county or large city may establish or approve a team to connect homeless people with housing and support services. A county outside a city with a population of one million or more, or a city with a population of one million or more, may establish or approve a team. A county must let personnel from a city within it join if that city asks, unless their participation would materially hinder the team's goals.

Team members may share confidential information with one another to identify homeless people and families, assess their needs, and connect them with services. This applies to members of an authorized team, including health care providers sharing information for these purposes. Shared information must remain confidential, and discussions and records may not be used as evidence in legal proceedings. Other laws on confidentiality remain in force except where this title expressly provides otherwise.

Each team must write protocols for handling information and overseeing access, security, and privacy. Each team must distribute its protocols to participating members and make them available to the department. Protocols must limit information to what is reasonably needed, identify who may access it, set secure sharing methods and retention rules, and require confidentiality agreements and ongoing privacy and security training. They must follow state and federal law, but do not need prior approval from a state agency.