Janine Lim

The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority's (LAHSA) 2023-2025 Strategic Plan details its evolution into a full system administrator, moving beyond a grant administrator role. The plan aims to actively manage and report on all aspects of system performance to reduce unsheltered homelessness across Los Angeles County. It is structured around seven strategic objectives: prioritizing annual improvements, driving real-time systemwide performance, enhancing data collection and transparency, streamlining funding, improving communications, redistributing health and safety management, and advancing equity-based decision-making to reduce racial disparities.

This strategy outlines a plan to reduce unsheltered homelessness in Los Angeles County over the next three years by accelerating movement from shelter to permanent housing and continuously placing unsheltered individuals into available shelter beds. Key strategic changes include updating the matching policy to include factors like document readiness, prioritizing time-limited rental assistance and services as core programs for permanent housing, and redesigning housing navigation to expedite securing critical documents. The plan emphasizes improved efficiency in rehousing efforts while also highlighting the need for government partners to address systemic issues such as preventing homelessness and increasing affordable housing availability.

The committee meeting focused on several critical operational and funding matters. Discussions included the activation of motel vouchers for emergency response due to significant rain, detailing the allocation between city and county resources. A comprehensive report on interim housing covered the rollout of a new bed inventory tracking system and a booking feature via Calendarly, despite initial vendor-related technology challenges, noting 95% occupancy. Further discussions addressed the impacts of scaling down Time-Limited Subsidies (TLS), including anticipated funding losses from HAP and state sources, and the corresponding strategy for housing navigators. The committee also reviewed progress on Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) lease-ups, noting reporting adjustments for Homekey sites, and updates on matching participants from TLS to new tenant-based and project-based vouchers. Finally, significant concerns were raised regarding federal CoC funding stability and the ongoing evaluation of the master leasing program amidst fiscal constraints.

The meeting commenced with an acknowledgement of Commissioner Omoto Frius's service to the commission. Key discussions focused on the organizational transition as county funding shifts from LASSA to the new county department HSH, resulting in significant county funding cuts projected for the fiscal year 2026-2027. LASSA plans to retain core Continuum of Care (COC) administrative and data functions. The CEO reported on efforts to mitigate the impact, including exploring cost-cutting measures projected to save $1 million annually across facilities, fleet vehicles, and IT assets. Furthermore, the contracting process is being reorganized by merging units to streamline grant management and contract execution. A significant portion of the discussion involved the delayed state disbursement of HAP 6 funding, which creates severe cash flow issues for Q3 and Q4 of 2026, potentially halting critical services like rental assistance, interim housing, and access centers unless funds are released early. The commission was urged to advocate for timely funding release. Finally, the commission discussed a recent RAND report critiquing LASSA's Point In Time (PIT) count methodology, noting differences compared to RAND's neighborhood-focused study while welcoming future collaboration.

The meeting included discussions on the acceptance of minutes from the previous meeting, review and approval of the audit committee charter, and a presentation on internal audit best practices. The committee also discussed the A133 single audit process, including the selection of the audit vendor and the scope of the audit work plan.