Why now: The L.A. County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday after meeting in closed session for roughly five hours. After coming out of closed session, the supervisors voted to officially name the new unit the Department of Homeless Services and Housing.
Why it matters: The inaugural director will help lead the county’s overhaul of the homeless services system after officials moved to pull nearly $350 million in funding from the region’s top homeless services agency, the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, otherwise known as LAHSA.
The backstory: The change, led by Supervisors Lindsey Horvath and Kathryn Barger, followed a series of harsh audits that highlighted major issues at LAHSA, including an inability to properly account for billions in taxpayer dollars and failing to track whether contracts with service providers were followed.
What’s next: A spokesperson for Horvath said the new director won’t be named publicly until their employment contract is finalized and the supervisors approve the salary. The county has not said when that is expected to happen. The annual salary range was listed at $219,000 to $423,000 on a job posting for the position. For comparison, county supervisors are paid a little more than $232,000 a year.
What Horvath says: Horvath said in a statement to LAist that the county is making progress toward launching the new department. She mentioned the county’s Emergency Centralized Response Center, which connects unsheltered people with housing, treatment and other services and has started taking requests from the public. She also said the county has started to transition funding away from LAHSA to the new homelessness department. “If you believe in building a more coordinated, results-driven system to end homelessness, now is the time to engage,” the supervisor said.
How to get involved: You can submit questions and comments about the the new department here and learn more about the county’s transition here.
