Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Homeless individuals without an ID cannot end their homelessness. They cannot sign a lease, they cannot get a job, they cannot access available medical or nutritional benefits, and they cannot enroll their children in school. It can be difficult to get an ID without an ID and for 35 years the Homeless ID Project has helping clients to solve this problem. The Homeless ID Project is the only full-time provider of replacement identification services to homeless and at-risk individuals and families in the state of Arizona - and in the nation.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Homeless ID Project
To empower individuals and families to end their homelessness and rebuild their lives by providing the necessary first step of identification replacement services.
Where we work
External reviews

Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of State IDs provided to homeless individuals allowing them to gain access to housing, employment, medical care and other services needed to end homelessness
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Homeless people
Related Program
Homeless ID Project
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
State IDs are needed by everyone. Lack of an ID keeps homeless people homeless, unemployed and without access to social services including medical insurance and nutritional assistance.
Number of Birth Certificates provided allowing homeless individuals and families to gain a State ID as well as access to housing, employment, and school enrollment for homeless children
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Homeless people
Related Program
Homeless ID Project
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Birth Certificates are often required to gain a State ID. They are needed for housing and to enroll children in school.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
In a broad sense, we seek to end homelessness. Specifically, our mission is to empower homeless individuals and families to end their homelessness and rebuild their lives by providing the critical first step of identification replacement services. We seek to provide this service where needed, beginning in Phoenix and Maricopa County but ultimately across the state of Arizona and beyond.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
We are located on the Human Services Campus in downtown Phoenix, AZ, home to 16 providers of service to the homeless. In 2022 we saw 79 individuals per day to assure they have the documents they need to access services. Total Document count for the year was 12,143. We also provide secure storage for documents so that those living on the street do not have those documents lost or stolen. We currently have eleven outreach programs across Maricopa and Pima Counties and work with the clients of 50 partner agencies to provide documents needed to take advantage of opportunities for housing and employment. We will expand into Northern AZ during 2023. In addition to providing direct service, we advocate for our mission. In 2018 we proposed HB2575 which provides a fee waiver for state IDs for homeless military veterans. This is now law. In 2021 we proposed a bill allowing kids aged 16 and 17 in foster care or homeless to get their own vital documents (State ID and Birth Certificate) without parent or guardian signature, thus assuring that these young people will have access to housing, employment and basic human services as they seek their way in the world. In the current legislative session, we proposed a bill, which provides a fee waiver for a new or replacement State ID for all individuals experiencing homelessness in Arizona. HB 2222 is working its way through the State House of Representatives.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
We currently employ six individuals and 7 to 10 volunteers. We have a strong and focused Board of Directors and 35 years of experience, giving us the knowledge needed to walk clients through the often-difficult process of obtaining State IDs, birth certificates and other supporting documents. We have experience in this process with all 50 states and territories.
We are exploring a national solution for the problems caused by lack of identifying documents and have discovered that, while this is a 50-state problem, there are no more than a handful of agencies doing this work. Thus, we created an organization we call The National Conversation About IDs. (nationalconversation.org). There are currently more than 500 members in all 50 states.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
In the past six years, as our mission has been solidified and our efforts redoubled, we are providing a record number of documents each month with increasing efficiency. For example, in the period of 2016-2019 we provided an average of 7,500 documents per year at an average cost of $50 per document (including documents and all related expenses). Following a record number of 8,276 documents in 2021, the document count jumped to 12,143 - with an average fully loaded cost of less than $40 per document.
In addition to two primary locations, we run 12 outreach/shared location programs. We expect to be operational in six additional cities across Arizona by mid-2023.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Homeless ID Project
Board of directorsas of 02/20/2023
Chris Rich
Goldenhawk Professional Associates, LLC
Term: 2019 -
John Warner
Brent Downs
Steve Messa
Helen Purcell
Don Altvater
Richard Calhoun
Tobias Deardorff
Loren Hendry
Ilana Lowery
Joel Weiss
Shira Zias
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? No -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? No -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? No -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? No -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
No data
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data