Congress summons Los Angeles Mayor Bass to testify on $1 billion homeless fund allegations
The House Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency has scheduled Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass to appear at a Sept. 15 hearing to address accusations of waste, fraud and abuse involving more than $1 billion in federal homelessness money routed through LAHSA.
A House subcommittee led by Rep. Tim Burchett has issued a subpoena for Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass to testify at a Sept. 15 hearing in Washington titled “Fixing Fraud and Failure in Federally Funded Homelessness Services.” The investigation targets the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, which has received over $1 billion in federal homelessness aid since 2021, including $220 million in 2024, and alleges that many recipient nonprofits are misusing the money.
Bass must turn over records from Jan 1 2020 to the present on LAHSA’s internal controls, fund allocations and correspondence with city, county and state bodies by Sept. 14. The committee highlighted a HUD inspector-general report alleging false statements and weak financial safeguards, leading HUD to suspend additional funding pending corrective measures. Specific concerns include a $2.1 million contract awarded by former LAHSA CEO Va Lecia Adams Kellum to her husband’s employer and unusually high compensation for 1736 Family Crisis Center CEO Carol Adelkoff. The scrutiny comes amid a rising homelessness count in Los Angeles, now exceeding 45,000 individuals in the city.
Why it matters
Potential misuse of federal homelessness dollars threatens aid for vulnerable residents and raises questions about grant oversight.
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