Trump administration officials said on Thursday that they were pulling federal funds from a troubled homelessness agency in Los Angeles, prompting an outcry from local leaders who said that the move could force thousands back onto the streets.<\/p>\n
In a letter<\/a>, officials with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development said they were immediately suspending funding for the agency, the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, which has received almost $1 billion in federal money over the past five years.<\/p>\n \u201cUnder President Trump\u2019s leadership, HUD will fund results, not corrupt failure or the homeless industrial complex,\u201d Scott Turner, the housing secretary, said in a statement. \u201cTaxpayers will no longer bankroll an organization that puts its own self-interests ahead of the Americans it was created to serve.\u201d<\/p>\n Federal officials cited numerous reports<\/a> and investigations from recent years that found that the agency, known as LAHSA, had misspent millions of dollars and failed to properly account for its spending. <\/p>\n Los Angeles had received more federal homelessness funding than any other jurisdiction in the country, and remained the epicenter of the nation\u2019s \u201cdrug-fueled homelessness crisis,\u201d HUD officials said.<\/p>\n LAHSA is receiving $69 million, about 8 percent of its overall budget<\/a>, from the federal government this fiscal year, which ends June 30. Historically, the agency has relied more on the city and county governments of Los Angeles for its funding.<\/p>\n President Trump was already critical of the ways local agencies have long funded homelessness services. He plans to shift funding away<\/a> from a \u201chousing first\u201d approach that prioritizes shelter, and wants to require people to enter drug treatment or find work as a condition of receiving a place to stay.<\/p>\n There has been widespread criticism of LAHSA\u2019s spending, even from those who believe in its philosophical approach.<\/p>\n LAHSA officials said in a statement that they were making recommended changes to \u201cmodernize our financial systems\u201d and that they were exploring options to contest the federal decision. The agency has 30 days to request a hearing to persuade federal officials to reverse course, according to the letter.<\/p>\n Los Angeles leaders said that the decision to pull tens of millions of dollars in federal funding entirely \u2014 rather than redirect it to other agencies \u2014 was just the latest politically motivated attack on a region that has been targeted by the president.<\/p>\n \u201cThis stunt is for publicity, not for results,\u201d said Lindsey Horvath, a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, who has led its homelessness committee. \u201cI have been calling for change and accountability at LAHSA, but if this administration desires accountability, too, they should work with L.A. County.\u201d<\/p>\n Mayor Karen Bass\u2019s office said in a statement that the funding cuts would lead to dire consequences. \u201cUltimately people will lose their lives,\u201d her office said.<\/p>\n The agency was founded in 1993 when a court ordered the city and county of Los Angeles<\/a> to start a joint venture to better coordinate the two governments\u2019 response to homelessness.<\/p>\n Both Ms. Horvath and Ms. Bass, as well as other local officials, judges and outside auditors have in recent years demanded reforms from LAHSA. The agency has been essentially in charge of paying contractors and staff members who help people find housing<\/a> and other services that they need to remain out of encampments and off the streets.<\/p>\n But over the years, as Los Angeles\u2019s housing crisis grew, LAHSA became unwieldy and its operations were mired in various layers of bureaucracy.<\/p>\n Last year, Los Angeles County officials, including Ms. Horvath, decided to pull some $300 million from LAHSA to instead start their own department to address homelessness. City leaders have been weighing the same approach, but LAHSA remains the city\u2019s main homelessness clearinghouse until they find another path.<\/p>\n \u201cThis action by the federal government is exactly what I have been concerned about, and why I have pushed for years for the city to build the capacity needed to manage our own contracts, programs and dollars,\u201d said Nithya Raman, a Los Angeles City Council member who serves as chair of the city\u2019s housing and homelessness committee.<\/p>\n Ms. Raman, a progressive Democrat, is headed to a mayoral runoff in November against Ms. Bass<\/a>, a former ally of hers.<\/p>\n