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      [HUDX-231-AD] LSA Quick Guide

      FY2024 Release Date: 11/01/2024

      Overview

      The Longitudinal System Analysis (LSA) export is a requirement from HUD which replaces the Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR).

      The LSA export from Clarity Human Services is not intended to be in a format that is usable, as is, for informing communities. HUD intends to have a reporting end product available from HDX following upload to HDX 2.0. The most recent LSA Report Specifications and Tools have been made available on the HUD Exchange. 

      Export Format

      The LSA export is similar to the standard HUD HMIS CSV export. Output from Clarity will be in the form of a zipped set of CSV files. There are 12 files that make up this CSV -  7 mimicking the HMIS CSV export and 5 specific to the LSA Export (LSAReport, LSAPerson, LSAHousehold, LSAExit, and, LSACalculated). 

      Generating the LSA Export

      Three versions of the export will be available:

      Systemwide Export

      1. Navigate to the Administrator Reports folder, [HUDX-231-AD] LSA Export, Run
      2. LSAScope: Select "Systemwide" to generate the LSA Export
        • The LSAScope "HIC" option will generate the LSA Export for HIC uploads per LSA Programming Specifications, has slightly different logic, and will not be accepted for LSA submissions in HDX. 
      3. CoC: Choose the CoC to be included in the report
        • Programs will be included if the selected CoC was chosen for the program
        • If an expected program is not included, edit the Program in Clarity, add the appropriate CoC code(s)
      4. Client ID Selection: Select "Clarity Unique Identifier"(default) or "HUD Unduplicated Personal ID" 
      5. Report Date Range
        • For example for FY 2024 LSA submissions, use 10/01/2023-09/30/2024
      6. Submit
        • Once complete, the report will be delivered as a zipped set of CSV files

      Note: Due to the substantial size of the Systemwide LSA Export, which necessitates considerable processing power, the export may take up to 2-3 hours to complete for larger Continuums of Care (CoCs) and approximately 30-40 minutes for smaller CoCs. 

      Project-based Export

      1. Navigate to the HUD Reports folder, [HUDX-231] LSA Export - Project-Focused LSA, Run
      2. LSAScope: Select "Systemwide" to generate the LSA Export
        • The LSAScope "HIC" option will generate the LSA Export for HIC uploads per LSA Programming Specifications, has slightly different logic, and will not be accepted for LSA submissions in HDX. 
      3. CoC: Choose the CoC to be included in the report
        • Programs will be included if the selected CoC was chosen for the program
        • If an expected program is not included, edit the Program in Clarity, add the appropriate CoC code(s)
      4. Agency Status: Choose whether to include inactive agencies
      5. Agencies: Choose agencies to include
        • Agencies will be included depending on the access level of the user running the export
      6. Program Status: Choose whether to include inactive programs
      7. Project(s) Type: Select the type(s) of projects to include in the export
      8. Programs: Choose programs to include
      9. Client ID Selection: Select "Clarity Unique Identifier"(default) or "HUD Unduplicated Personal ID" 
      10. Report Date Range
        • For example for FY2024 LSA Submissions, use 10/01/2023 - 09/30/2024
      11. Submit
        • Once complete, the report will be delivered as a zipped set of CSV files

      Note: Due to the substantial size of the Systemwide LSA Export, which necessitates considerable processing power, the export may take up to 2-3 hours to complete for larger Continuums of Care (CoCs) and approximately 30-40 minutes for smaller CoCs. 

      Project Descriptor HDX Upload Test

      1. Run the report for the selected CoC
      2. Upload to HDX per instructions received from HUD.
        • An error report will be returned in HDX:
          • Ignore the missing_files error, this is intentional because as client data was excluded
          • Review and repair any project descriptor errors that are reported in the error report

      Upload to HDX 2.0

      Only the Systemwide LSA is to be uploaded to HDX 2.0 for LSA submissions. 

      The zipped CSV files that will be uploaded to HDX 2.0 should never be modified.

      • Only the zip file name can be modified.
      • If the CSV files are manually changed, problems are likely to be created.
      • Fix the data in Clarity. That is the only way to correct problems.

      For details about submitting the LSA export to HDX 2.0, review Overview of the LSA Submission Process. 

      Data Quality Clean-up

      Four LSA Data Clean Up Dashboards have been created to assist with LSA preparation. More information on these four dashboards can be found in the 2024 LSA Toolkit article.

      The four dashboards include:

      • LSA Data Cleanup: HoH Data
        • This dashboard contains looks related to common issues surrounding the head of household (HoH) data including program enrollments without an HoH.
      • LSA Data Cleanup: Funding Source, Bed Inventory, CoC Configuration
        • This dashboard contains looks for common LSA errors around funding sources, bed inventory, and potential CoC Configuration issues.
      • LSA Data Cleanup: Geocode, Project Descriptor, Length of Stay, and Utilization
        • This dashboard contains looks to help locate errors around geocode, project descriptors, length of stay, and utilization issues.
      • LSA Data Cleanup: Overlapping Enrollments
        • The dashboard contains multiple looks to help drill down on overlapping enrollments. Please note that due to the complexity of these looks, this dashboard might take a little longer to load.

      Data Dictionary

      The latest data dictionary for the LSA export can be found on HUD Exchange. The dictionary may be a helpful resource in understanding the information included in the export.

      Additional Resources

      The following are links to additional HUD Exchange resources.

       

      Updated: 10/25/2024