The City Council Tuesday will explore whether the city can directly contract with homeless service providers rather than deliver such services through the Los Angeles Homeless Service Authority, the joint city-county agency that has been questioned for alleged misuse of funds and lack of transparency.
Council members Monica Rodriguez and Bob Blumenfield introduced a motion Nov. 22, 2024, calling for a report on the feasibility of bypassing LAHSA, which administers the city’s programs. The move comes after separate audits found the agency allegedly misused or mismanaged funds, among other issues.
The council members advanced the motion in response to findings of last year’s L.A. County Auditor-Controller. Data showed that LAHSA provided $50.8 million of Measure H to nonprofit service providers in fiscal year 2017-18 without formal agreements to determine how and when the funds would be repaid. LAHSA has taken steps to recoup that money, but it has only recovered $2.5 million, or 5%, as of July 8, 2024.
Additionally, of $8 million in funding, approximately $409,000 was given to six subrecipients, who no longer contract with LAHSA. County auditors stated that LAHSA allegedly misused funds by paying for services under another government’s funder’s contract or grant.
According to the motion, the city administrative officer, Housing Department and the Mayor’s Office coordinate and manage overlapping homelessness programs. The CAO and Mayor’s office focus more on service coordination and delivery, while housing staff provides some oversight of the city’s contract and relationship with LAHSA.
But the council members contended there’s a barrier between city oversight and service outcomes — an issue exacerbated by ongoing changes to contracts that make it difficult to track.
“As the council awaits the report on the steps for the creation of a Department of Homelessness, it is clear that the alleged mismanagement of public funds, reportable outcomes, metrics and lack of consequences for failure to perform associated with the services contracted by homeless service providers and LAHSA requires an expeditions review of immediate actionable steps to provide city oversight of the programs it funds,” the motion reads.
Council members have also authorized the creation of a new bureau to provide oversight of homeless outcomes. City staff will later report on details of the new entity, which will live in the Housing Department.
Concerned with alleged misuse of funds, and a lack of transparency about program outcomes, city and county officials are taking steps to potentially limit LAHSA’s management of public funds.
The L.A. County Board of Supervisors approved a motion to explore the creation of a county department to centralize homeless services. The city is also exploring similar action.
LAHSA officials have contended the findings of these audits and urged officials to continue their partnership. The homeless agency has led significant efforts to bolster transparency through the creation of accessible databases, which in turn better track available shelter beds and outcomes of services.
Last week, the agency stated they anticipate a 5% to 10% decrease in unsheltered homelessness in the region, which would mark the second consecutive year of such a decline.
The preliminary results are in line with last year’s outcome, which showed a 10.7% and 5.1% decrease in unsheltered homelessness within the city and the county of Los Angeles, respectively. The final results of the 2025 count are expected to be released in late spring or early summer.
“When I first came to LAHSA, I publicly stated that we wanted to reduce unsheltered homelessness within three years,” LAHSA CEO Va Lecia Adams Kellum said in a statement. “We’ve done it in two.”
The agency hailed the early results, which officials say show the region is on the right track to “solving” homelessness.