Horvath labeled LAHSA’s issues “a nightmare,” aligning with growing frustration among elected officials
Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath called for immediate action Tuesday in response to a new audit exposing deep flaws in the region’s homelessness services system, declaring the current setup “broken” and vowing to overhaul how the county tackles the crisis.
The audit, released March 9 by Alvarez and Marsal under the supervision of U.S. District Judge David O. Carter, scrutinized the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA), a joint city-county agency managing billions in homelessness funding. It found LAHSA failed to track spending accurately, verify services, or ensure accountability, heightening risks of taxpayer dollars being misspent.
“This audit is another reminder of what we already know — the current homelessness services system is broken,” Horvath said in a statement. “We cannot accept this dysfunction any longer. No more waste through duplicated resources. No more contracts for services that don’t deliver.”
Horvath announced she will introduce a motion next week to create a consolidated county department dedicated to homelessness solutions, aiming to wrest control from LAHSA. A report outlining the proposed department was released last week.
Horvath labeled LAHSA’s issues “a nightmare,” aligning with growing frustration among elected officials. LAHSA’s spokesperson attributed problems to a “fragmented” regional response, though the agency has not directly addressed its oversight failures, LAist reported.
