“This has been a long time in the making, and in order for it to work, we all have to work together,” according to Supervisor Kathryn Barger, who introduced the motion with Supervisor Hilda Solis.
The creation of a regional oversight body was one of the recommendations offered two years ago by a county Blue Ribbon Commission on Homelessness, which called for an “executive-level action team” encompassing leaders from the county and its 88 cities, along with state input, to better coordinate homeless programs regionally.
Under the board’s action on Tuesday, Aug. 9, the new Executive Committee will include two members of the Board of Supervisors, four mayors or city council members from cities in the county, the mayor of Los Angeles, a member of the Los Angeles City Council, and a representative chosen by the governor.
That committee will in turn oversee a “Leadership Table,” which will act as an “advisory body” to the committee. The Leadership Table will also leverage private funding sources for homelessness programs. That group will include county department heads, business leaders, service providers, educators and representatives of sectors including labor, public housing, veterans, the faith community and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Also included in the Leadership Table will be the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, which has long served as a quasi city-county entity designed to oversee regional homeless-prevention efforts. The authority has been under fire in recent years over the region’s continued struggles with homelessness.
Barger stressed that the Executive Committee is not envisioned as a replacement for LAHSA, but will work in coordination with that organization. Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, who sits on the LAHSA commission, said the new committee will “complement” the work of that body. But the motion also calls for the county to work with the city to discuss changes to the authority’s governance structure and analyze its funding sources. Solis said the new panel — by expanding beyond LAHSA’s representation of Los Angeles city and county — will better incorporate efforts in all other cities and communities in the county.
“Unfortunately, our existing homelessness governance structure does not give local cities a voice in how we address this emergency,” Solis said in a statement after the vote. “That is why we need to move forward with the Executive Committee this motion proposes, as it will bring all 88 cities together with the county of Los Angeles to break long-existing silos. Through this effort, we can come up with strategies, set tangible goals, and hold the system accountable to getting results for our residents. This Executive Committee has the potential to bring the region together and chart a new path forward.”
Supervisor Janice Hahn initially hesitated about moving forward with the idea, lamenting the idea of creating yet another committee to discuss homelessness.
“I don’t want the public to think that we haven’t made huge strides, in my opinion, of coordinating, working together,” said Hahn, who ultimately voted in favor of the effort, which was approved on a 4-0 vote, with Supervisor Holly Mitchell absent.
The most recent homelessness count coordinated by LAHSA found a 9% year-over-year increase in homelessness in the county. According to the results of the point-in-time count conducted in January, there were 75,518 people experiencing homelessness in the county. That’s up from 69,144 in the county last year.
In 2018, there were 52,765 homeless counted in the county.
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Danelda the Future Eccentric says
Let’s ask ourselves this; do they really need to spend millions of grant money that supposed to be too help solve the homeless problem not make up a bunch of bull spit statistics to tell you that homelessness had gone up by whatever percentage, statistically speaking of course that they want their studies to show because it’s easy enough to create studies that will produce exact numbers you want to no need to do that because everyone knows that about 93% of statistics are made up on the spot, including this one. Heck, perhaps Ray Charles or Stevie Wonder may not so easily see how the amount of homeless people has increased significantly, but just about everyone else can see it with our own eyes no less and no need to spend millions to have a committee figure it out. How about we all agree to stipulate that yes, there is a serious homeless problem. Yes it’s getting worse and likely to continue doing so and whalaa!! Just saved a few million by not needing a committee. And why is it so rare that the homeless are every invited to speak on what they feel would help their situation? I know me n my oddball ideas again. I’m not weird, just not yet wealthy enough to be considered Eccentric… Yet
Danelda the Future Eccentric says
Why do they need to form yet ANOTHER committee to try and solve this problem. It’s not that difficult people. Seriously! The answer is in the the weird describing the state of these people s residence or lack thereof. Ok there was a hint. Homeless. Ok homeless means to not have a home. Send answer would be too house them. The little 4-5 million or more they spend for this little committee or that one to do all these studies in how to solve the problem could be spent on housing. Maybe take some of the city owned desert land and turn it into somewhere safe where people living in rvs and vehicles can park, put in some showers and toilets so the people aren’t spending their day just to clean up, perhaps initiate a program that assists some of these people with car registration and repairs so they can drive the vehicles to seek employment and so taking licenses to drive from people who are late with child support and charging them 10% interest on the arrears of they are unable to pay that prevents many from being able to drive to give employment and with mayor Rexy Poo poo instructing sheriff’s and code cops to run the homeless or to the middle of nowhere it’s a major project just to have water to drink or bathe and takes all freaking day. Many of the homeless are willing to work but it’s difficult if you have to spend most of the day trying to fix your vehicle so you can move it from one place to another when cops run ya off from where you are then the next trying to get clear to the other side of town to take a shower which by the time you spend 12 hours walking in extreme weather and wind you may well not have bothered with cuz your filthy all over. I think the problem should be helping them with basics of life that would allow those who are willing to get off the street to at least have a chance to do so and also provide a safe place where they have trash receptacles because most people use them if they are there and toilets and showers for sanitation which seems to be a big concern if the community which is understandable but whatever the frick they do they should spend some of this insane amount of grant money that government is giving only to government agencies for the most part and actually help the homeless not line wrex n his buddies and all those in similar positions pockets spending millions in worthless committees that are keep money from it’s intended purpose. If all those who sit on these committees, multi-million dollar committees for the most part can’t figure out the sheet them perhaps we need people with a little more common sense. Hell with college degrees because you do not need letters after your name to figure out that if you have homeless people, the word homeless itself tells you they lack homes which common sense not a college degree will tell you could be better solved by providing a safe place to live and resources to enable people to get home s of their own and gainful employment while addressing sanitation and other concerns of the community at the same time than forming yet ANOTHER danged ol committee of any kind.
But maybe I’m just weird. Well nevermind that’s a given but maybe try it cuz nothing has come out of these committees so solve the problem yet.
ACE CARTER says
WHAT’S NEEDED HERE AND IN THE VALLEY ARE MORE RV PARKS FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVE MOVED UP FROM TENTS TO RV’S…
PUT THE HOMELESS IN RV PARKS WITH CAMP GROUNDS WITH WATER, POWER AND MOST IMPORTANTLY – TOILETS –
THAT WAY THEY ARE ALL IN SAFE PLACES THAT CHARITIES CAN SERVICE –
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Enough is Enough! says
This is where the billions of dollars in taxes we’ve all paid actually end up. They go to form more “executive committees” in Downtown LA and more money gets siphoned off to executive and administrative positions and support staff. What’s left of the money trickles down to Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) who basically do the same thing (“committees” made up of executives and admin) and then finally the very last to get any money are the social workers, counselors and field people who actually due the most work and get paid a pittance. This has become such a windfall that nobody actually wants to solve homelessness, they’d rather keep it prolific and keep the gravy train chugging along.
This whole thing stinks and it has become a cottage industry to pocket money and pad retirements of certain government people at the executive level.
The only real solution here is to stop wasting taxpayer money on “committees” and new branches of government that waste money. Instead, find a big parcel of land somewhere in New Mexico and turn it into a massive treatment/rehabilitation facility where these people can be shipped and housed and given the skills to re-enter society. If that’s not what they want, then they will, clean up, shape up and quickly find a job and a relative’s couch to crash on.
There needs to be some accountability where NGOs and government committees show progress or they lose finding and get shut down. Enough is enough!
Carlos Ledesma says
The problem hasn’t been solved because “activists” refuse to draw distinction between homeless people and bums. Homeless people are always temporary. They hate being homeless. Bums see things different.
Templer says
Homeless crisis? Maybe a domestic immigration issue. More than half of the so called homeless are recent arrivals from other states where living this way isn’t possible. When are our local politicians going to seek or pursue legal action for funding from the states they originate from. It’s far overdue for federal help. Granny flats and subdivision and devaluing our neighborhoods isn’t the answer for this massive problem.