Homelessness in North Dakota decreased prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a recently released report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The department released its 2020 Annual Homeless Assessment Report Part 1 to Congress Thursday. The report found that 541 people experienced homelessness in North Dakota on a single night in January 2020, a decrease of 2.9%. North Dakota had one of the lowest percentages of unsheltered homeless individuals with 34, or 6.3%.

The report found that between 2019 and 2020, homelessness increased nationally among unsheltered populations and people experiencing chronic homelessness. Veteran homelessness did not decrease compared with 2019, and homelessness among family households did not decrease for the first time since 2010. The report also found that people of color are significantly over-represented among people experiencing homelessness.

Part 1 of the two-part report provided to Congress by HUD gives Point-in-Time estimates, offering a snapshot of homelessness–both sheltered and unsheltered–on a single night. The one-night counts are conducted during the last 10 days of January each year.

On a single night in January 2020, 580,466 people – about 18 of every 10,000 people in the United States – experienced homelessness across the United States. This represents 2.2 percent increase from 2019.

“The findings of the 2020 AHAR Part 1 Report are very troubling, even before you consider what COVID-19 has done to make the homelessness crisis worse,” said HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge. Under President Joe Biden, the American Rescue Plan includes efforts to address homelessness.