The Office of Homeless Services appreciates our communities statewide that worked with us to provide critical winter resources. Together we moved to understand the details of the code and improved communication and collaboration throughout the season. The 2025-2026 season will run October 15th – April 30th.
Register for Code Blue notifications here.
Interested in volunteering during Code Blue? Volunteer here.
Warming centers and shelters often rely on volunteers to help with a variety of tasks, especially during the winter months when the demand for these services increases. Organizations often need Guest Registration, Food Preparation and Distribution, Providing Comfort and Support, Managing Supplies, Cleaning and Maintenance, Transportation Assistance, Providing Health and Wellness Services, and Laundry Assistance. Volunteering in these settings is not only essential for keeping the shelters running but also makes a significant difference in the lives of those who depend on these services. A list of volunteer opportunities will be listed here for the 2025-2026 season.
Utah Counties of 1st-4th Class
Utah Counties of 1st-4th Class
- Box Elder
- Cache
- Carbon
- Davis*
- Duchesne
- Iron
- Juab
- Millard
- Morgan
- San Juan
- Sanpete
- Sevier
- Uintah
- Tooele
- Washington*
- Weber*
- Summit
- Utah*
- Wasatch
- Salt Lake County*
*County of 1st or 2nd class: *Effective 5/1/2024: 35A-16-502. Winter response plan required
Code Blue Abbreviated Intake Process
A sample intake form can be found here.
In accordance with Utah State Code 35A-16-703 (2), shelters throughout the state must work with their Local Homeless Council (LHC) to implement expedited intake procedures in the event a code blue event is declared for that area. In order to ensure statewide consistency and to ensure that enough data is collected to understand and plan to address the need for additional shelter during extreme weather events, The Office of Homeless Services has established the following common standards for intake during a code blue event.
On-going Shelter Projects: These are projects that operate regularly outside of a declared code blue event. These include year-round and winter response shelters.
✔ Collect all data in the HMIS entry assessment
🗶 Do not conduct housing problem-solving at intake. Clients may be engaged in problem-solving while staying in the facility
✔ Coordinate with LHC to identify other ways to improve the efficiency of intake for the duration of the code blue event
Code Blue Specific Shelter Projects: These are projects that open in response to a code blue declaration and are not expected to operate outside the duration of the declaration.
✔ Collect the following data elements to create a deduplicated count of those accessing the shelter
and understand eligibility for other projects – Full Name, Date of Birth, Social Security Number, Gender
🗶 Do not collect other data elements in the HMIS entry assessment
🗶 Do not conduct housing problem-solving at intake. Clients may be engaged in problem-solving while staying in the facility
✔ Coordinate with LHC to identify other ways to improve the efficiency of intake for the duration of the code blue event