PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — As the pandemic began, researchers with The National Alliance to End Homelessness warned the impacts of COVID-19 could "greatly increase" the problem in communities across the United States. This year's annual report from Florida's Council on Homelessness said it's too early to know the impact it had on the homeless in this state. 

In Pasco County, homelessness can be a side of life that's often hidden away. Seeking out those without shelter is part of the job for Code Enforcement Field Supervisor Amalio Vera. Spectrum Bay News 9 followed along with Vera and his team back in August during one of their sweeps of homeless camps on the west side of the county.

"How many people here with you?" Vera asked one woman they found camped out in a wooded area.

"Just two," the woman, who said her name was Jennifer, replied.

Vera tries to find out what services people like Jennifer need to get back into a home.

"Nobody should be living out here," Vera told her during their conversation.

"This is a first for me," Jennifer replied.

Vera and his team make regular sweeps of homeless camps across the county. Even though they visited many of the spots before, he said there's one concern that's always top of mind.

"The safety is the utmost importance. Then, once we get there, then we start assessing the area. We'll assess the area, the location where we're at, and then what we find dictates our next action," Vera said.

They're part of Pasco's PACE team, or Proactive Code Enforcement. They never know exactly what they'll find on one of these sweeps. Sometimes, their job means providing the most basic needs on a blazing hot Florida day.

"It may not be much, but it's what we have right now," Code Enforcement Officer Richard Karo said as he handed two bottles of water to one man the team encountered. 

"Hey, it's more than I got right now," the man said.

According to the United Way, 32% of households in Pasco fall into an income level classified as asset-limited, income-constrained, employed (ALICE). That means people may be earning above the federal poverty level, but not enough to meet basic needs. 

"Well, yeah, there's been an uptick on it," said Vera when asked if the pandemic seemed to make Pasco's homeless situation worse.

Then, he gestured to a camp the group was leaving.

"But this one, we were here recently, a couple of weeks ago. A little less people now than they were before. I don't know if they're out," he said.

Vera said the first and second meetings with a person are always about trying to secure help, even if he has to reach out for that himself.

The challenge is that not everyone wants help. Karo said there could be a lot of reasons for this.

"They may be a little scared and hesitant, but lately what we've been dealing with is people are a little bit more open and accepting about our help," Karo said.

That's part of what Vera said keeps him going. There's always going to be that next camp to visit, but sometimes what he finds there is reason to hope.

Driving down US-19 in Port Richey, Vera pointed out a window and said, "That homeless encampment, we just went and visited last week. There's no one there now."

According to the Florida Council on Homelessness, millions of dollars in federal funds were allocated across the state in response to the pandemic to help with services like emergency shelter, rapid rehousing and street outreach.