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THE BOTTOM LINE -
Los Angeles has spent nearly $3 billion a year fighting homelessness. Yet today, more people are living on its streets than a year ago.
That should alarm every taxpayer—and every elected official.
According to the latest homeless count, homelessness in the City of Los Angeles increased approximately 3.4% this year, while the number of people living unsheltered on sidewalks, in tents, vehicles, and encampments rose by nearly 7.9%. Those numbers erase much of the progress City Hall celebrated only a year ago.
After years of emergency declarations, unprecedented spending, and repeated promises that Los Angeles was finally turning the corner, the question is no longer whether government is trying hard enough. The question is whether government is delivering results.
According to multiple reports, city and county governments now devote nearly $3 billion every year to addressing homelessness. That includes emergency shelters, motel rooms, permanent supportive housing, affordable housing construction, outreach teams, rental subsidies, Tiny Home Villages, Project Homekey, Proposition HHH developments, and an expanding network of service providers.
This year alone, Los Angeles budgeted nearly $100 million for Mayor Karen Bass’ signature Inside Safe initiative. City budget documents estimate the program costs roughly $34,000 per participant, funding motel rooms, outreach operations, interim housing, and supportive services. Los Angeles County separately approved a $908 million homelessness budget, while Measure A is expected to generate more than $1 billion annually through a permanent countywide sales tax dedicated to homelessness services.
No one can seriously argue that government is not spending money. The question is whether taxpayers are receiving measurable results.
For Mayor Karen Bass, who made homelessness the defining priority of her administration and now her reelection campaign, these figures represent more than disappointing statistics. They challenge the central claim that the city’s strategy is producing lasting progress.
The mayor has pointed to rising housing costs, inflation, reductions in state and federal funding, and Los Angeles County’s responsibility for mental health and addiction treatment as significant contributors to this year’s increase. Those challenges are real. Homelessness is one of the most complex public policy issues facing any major city.
But complexity cannot become a substitute for accountability.
Government cannot celebrate declining numbers as proof of success one year and then attribute rising numbers entirely to outside forces the next. Leadership requires accepting responsibility for both.
Perhaps the most troubling statistic is not the overall increase. It is what happened to Inside Safe, the administration’s signature homelessness initiative.
The program has moved thousands of people from encampments into hotels, motels, and interim housing. Yet LAHSA data indicates that approximately 41% of participants had returned to homelessness.
That should concern every taxpayer.
Temporary shelter is not permanent success. If nearly half of those helped through the city’s flagship program ultimately return to homelessness, taxpayers deserve an honest assessment of whether the current strategy is delivering lasting results.
The larger concern is no longer simply whether enough money is being spent. It is whether anyone can clearly demonstrate which programs are working and which are not.
Recent audits have identified significant weaknesses in financial oversight. Courts have criticized accountability surrounding homelessness spending. Federal officials have suspended grant funding administered through the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority while reviewing its operations. Los Angeles County has already begun shifting hundreds of millions of dollars away from LAHSA after concluding the existing structure required major reform.
Even Mayor Bass acknowledged that “the money wasn’t tracked, providers went unpaid, and public trust eroded.” She is right. Recognizing failure is an important first step. Correcting it requires more than new explanations it requires structural reform, measurable benchmarks, and transparent public reporting.
Paul Webster, executive director of the LA Alliance for Human Rights, captured the frustration shared by many Angelenos when he said:
“If there was a competent agency dedicated to outcomes, transparency, and accountability for the billions spent every year, we may have a glimpse at what should be done to solve this humanitarian crisis.”
Whether one agrees with every aspect of that statement or not, one conclusion is becoming increasingly difficult to dispute: accountability has been missing from Los Angeles’ homelessness response.
Meanwhile, the consequences continue unfolding across the city. Encampments remain in too many neighborhoods. Businesses struggle with vandalism, declining foot traffic, and public safety concerns. Families avoid parks they once enjoyed. Thousands of homeless individuals remain trapped in addiction, untreated mental illness, and chronic instability despite record public spending.
The homelessness crisis also reflects a broader pattern of city governance. Aging infrastructure, understaffed public safety agencies, and delayed basic services have eroded public confidence that City Hall can effectively manage its most urgent responsibilities. Homelessness has become the most visible symbol of that broader failure.
Every crisis seems to produce the same response: another study, another task force, another press conference, another promise but too often, too few measurable results.
Los Angeles does not suffer from a shortage of ideas. It suffers from a shortage of execution.
Compassion and accountability are not competing values. A compassionate city owes vulnerable residents’ effective programs that genuinely move people into stable housing, while taxpayers deserve confidence that every public dollar is producing measurable outcomes.
Programs that succeed should be expanded. Programs that fail should be reformed or ended. That is how responsible government earns public trust.
The latest homeless count should not become another political talking point. It should become a turning point.
After years of record spending, Angelenos are entitled to ask one unavoidable question:
If nearly $3 billion a year isn’t reducing homelessness, what exactly is the current strategy accomplishing?
Three billion dollars a year should buy fewer tents, fewer encampments, and fewer lives lost on the streets.
Until it does, Los Angeles doesn’t need another excuse. It needs accountability
(Mihran Kalaydjian is a seasoned public affairs and government relations professional with more than twenty years of experience in legislative affairs, public policy, community relations, and strategic communications. A respected civic leader and education advocate, he has spearheaded numerous academic and community initiatives, shaping dialogue and driving reform in local and regional political forums. His career reflects a steadfast commitment to transparency, accountability, and public service across Los Angeles and beyond.)
