A congressional subcommittee sent Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass a letter this week asking her to testify at a Washington hearing focused on fraud and failure in the region\u2019s homelessness system.<\/p>\n
U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.), chair of the Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency, said in his four-page letter that his panel is concerned about \u201cpotential misallocation of federal dollars\u201d by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, or LAHSA.<\/p>\n
Bass sits on LAHSA\u2019s 10-member board and appoints half of its members. The other half are selected by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.<\/p>\n
In his letter, Burchett said homelessness has gotten worse during Bass\u2019 tenure as mayor, particularly in Skid Row.<\/p>\n
\u201cYet, your administration continues to pursue \u2018Housing First\u2019 and \u2018Harm Reduction\u2019 policies that fail to address the mental health and drug abuse crises perpetuating the cycle of homelessness in Los Angeles,\u201d he wrote. \u201cThe result is deteriorating public health, increased lawlessness and a bleak environment for small businesses.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bass spokesperson Paige Sterling confirmed that the mayor had received the letter and is preparing a response. She did not say whether Bass will attend the Sept. 15 hearing.<\/p>\n
Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Long Beach), a ranking member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, denounced the inquiry, calling it \u201canother attempt by Donald Trump and House Republicans to launch a witch hunt against Mayor Karen Bass and Los Angeles.\u201d<\/p>\n
Garcia said the Trump administration has been trying to strip the region of critical homelessness funding, only to be blocked by a federal court.<\/p>\n
\u201cOversight Democrats will fight this partisan effort,\u201d he said in a statement.<\/p>\n
LAHSA officials issued their own statement, saying the agency \u201cconsistently welcomes audits and external assessments to continually improve its work.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNone of these reviews have ever found evidence of fraud or corruption,\u201d the agency said.<\/p>\n
The inquiry comes nearly three months after the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development announced it was moving to suspend LAHSA<\/a> from applying for and spending federal funds, saying the agency was plagued by fraud and mismanagement and had been the subject of damaging audits for years.<\/p>\n Because LAHSA was suspended, it also could not submit an application, due Aug. 26, for $240 million in federal funding on behalf of 140 homeless services organizations.<\/p>\n LAHSA filed a lawsuit challenging HUD\u2019s action, calling it a pretext for the Trump administration to impose its own policies on homelessness on the region \u2014 emphasizing substance abuse treatment, mental health services and short-term housing instead of permanent housing.<\/p>\n Last month, U.S. District Judge David O. Carter issued a preliminary injunction<\/a>, calling HUD\u2019s action arbitrary and capricious. He said the suspension of LAHSA would \u201csignificantly harm the public interest.\u201d<\/p>\n HUD has filed papers indicating it will appeal.<\/p>\n The congressional inquiry comes as Bass faces a tough reelection fight against Councilmember Nithya Raman, who has been sharply critical of Bass\u2019 stewardship on homelessness. Raman spent three years in charge of the council\u2019s housing and homelessness committee.<\/p>\n LAHSA\u2019s latest homeless count found that homelessness went up in L.A. this year<\/a> after two years of decreases. Bass, while acknowledging those setbacks, said unsheltered homelessness \u2014 the number of people living outside or in their vehicles \u2014 had still fallen by 11% since she took office in 2022.<\/p>\n According to LAHSA\u2019s count, an estimated 45,194 homeless people were living in the city of L.A. when the count was conducted at the start of the year.<\/p>\n Burchett, in his letter, said his subcommittee is concerned about reports of \u201cblatant corruption\u201d at LAHSA. He cited reporting from LAist<\/a> on Va Lecia Adams Kellum, who signed a $2.1-million contract between LAHSA and her husband\u2019s employer, the nonprofit group Upward Bound House, even though she was supposed to have recused herself.<\/p>\n In a document filed in federal court, an attorney for LAHSA said the signature was applied by a staff member who did not realize the contract was related to the nonprofit that employed Adams Kellum\u2019s husband. Adams Kellum had informed the LAHSA commission of her conflict of interest and had instructed her staff to install an \u201cethical wall\u201d around the contract that would keep her from making decisions on it, the lawyer said. <\/p>\n