Federal judge frustrated over missing data on LA homeless spending

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A federal judge is demanding answers in an ongoing audit of how the city and the county of Los Angeles are spending public funds to solve the homeless crisis.

Federal Judge David O. Carter expressed frustration over the lack of action by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority.

At Thursday's status hearing, the issue centered around the absence of data needed to complete the current audit of homeless spending.

"If there isn't documentation of the work being done, it's not being done. That can be our only conclusion," Carter told the court.

The judge also put pressure on LAHSA to speed up its reporting.

"You're not working on your time frame now. You're working on mine," Carter said.

"Everybody comes into court and says they're trying very hard," said Matthew Umhofer, an attorney for the LA Alliance for Human Rights. "The city and the county have been saying for decades - they're trying really hard on homelessness, but we have to see results on the streets.

"An audit like this is a tool that helps us try and figure this out, but at the end of the day we need more beds. We need more services. If the city and county don't know where the documentation is that shows beds and services are being provided, we've got a massive problem."

Since 2020, Carter has been tasked with presiding over a lawsuit brought by the Alliance for Human Rights, a group of business owners, residents and members of the unhoused population upset over how taxpayer dollars are being spent on homelessness.

Since entering office, L.A. Mayor Karen Bass has complained about the lack of data when it comes to homelessness. Progress has been made, but not enough. The judge has asked for the audit to be completed by October or November.

"He can impose sanctions on the city and county and at some point, if the city and the county aren't complying with our agreements, the judge can appoint a receiver," Umhofer said. "He can takeover homeless services here in L.A. city and L.A. County. That's a big thing to do."