Mayor Karen Bass Declines Sept. 15 House Subcommittee Hearing on LA Homelessness Funding

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has declined an invitation to appear before a House Oversight subcommittee hearing scheduled for Sept. 15 that will examine federal homelessness funding and possible mismanagement at the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA).

Mayor Says She Is Unavailable, City Preparing Records

In a Sept. 4 letter, Bass' attorney, David Michaelson, informed the subcommittee that the mayor "is not available on that date." Michaelson said the mayor's office is assembling the documents requested by the panel and expects to deliver relevant records by Sept. 14. He cautioned that gathering records dating back to January 2020 "could take some time."

Scope of the Inquiry

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee's Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency is probing whether more than $1 billion in federal funds sent through LAHSA since 2021 reached intended recipients and whether adequate safeguards existed to prevent improper contracting, conflicts of interest and misuse of taxpayer dollars. The committee noted LAHSA received about $220 million in 2024.

“It's a shame Mayor Bass is afraid to come testify about her policies that have increased homelessness in Los Angeles and enabled a culture of corruption,” a committee spokesperson said.

City Response and LAHSA Governance

Bass' office disputed claims that homelessness has uniformly worsened under her tenure, citing an 11% decline in street homelessness since 2023 and pointing to programs such as Inside Safe, an initiative to move people from encampments into interim housing. Michaelson also emphasized that LAHSA is independent of city government: its 10‑member governing commission is evenly split between five city appointees and five appointees of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.

Data Paints A Mixed Picture

LAHSA's 2026 count, released in July, estimated 45,194 people experiencing homelessness in the city, a 3.4% increase over the prior year; countywide homelessness rose 1.2% to 73,040. The agency said neither overall change was statistically significant. However, unsheltered homelessness in the city rose 7.9% to 29,115, reversing earlier declines.

LAHSA said stalled progress stems largely from reduced rental-assistance funding, which slowed exits to permanent housing and reduced available temporary beds. Permanent housing placements fell to 23,532 in 2025 from 28,625 in 2024.

Federal Funding Dispute And Next Steps

The congressional inquiry comes amid a related funding dispute: the Department of Housing and Urban Development suspended funding to LAHSA in June over alleged financial-management and oversight failures. A federal judge temporarily blocked the cuts in August.

The subcommittee has said it will proceed with the Sept. 15 hearing despite Mayor Bass' absence. The mayor's office's document production, expected by Sept. 14, will be the next scheduled step in the investigation.

Reactions

Republican critics, including Rep. Tim Burchett (R‑Tenn.), who requested Bass' testimony, have pressed for accountability. Spencer Pratt, a Republican mayoral primary candidate, tied Bass' decision to criticisms of the city's response to the January 2025 wildfires. City officials maintain they are cooperating by producing the requested records.

Reporting note: Original reporting credited to Newsmax. All facts in this piece reflect the public record cited by the investigating committee and LAHSA’s released reports.