Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass’ Inside Safe program, aimed at helping the homeless, has faced criticism for a lack of budget transparency.
One of the nonprofits working with the program was found to have received expensive food reimbursements from the city, only to provide instant cup noodles to the homeless.
In a recent press release, the Los Angeles City Controller’s Office, led by Kenneth Mejia, revealed that an on-site audit of one of the organizations involved in the Inside Safe program uncovered the provision of substandard food to homeless individuals.
According to the City Controller’s Office, the audit revealed that the organization served only instant noodles and canned food, despite being paid $110 per homeless person per day for nutritious meals. The organization reportedly engaged in fraudulent practices by providing only inexpensive instant food, while claiming to offer fresh ingredients, some of which were donated.
Currently, the Los Angeles Mayor’s Office and the Los Angeles County Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) outsource the Inside Safe program to nine nonprofit organizations. These organizations use Inside Safe funds to house homeless individuals in motels or hotels and provide them with three meals a day.
The City Controller’s Office has urged the LA Mayor’s Office and LAHSA to improve their oversight of the nonprofits administering the Inside Safe program. Additionally, the Controller’s Office announced that its Fraud, Waste, and Abuse unit will increase on-site audits of agencies.
“The City of Los Angeles is spending nearly $950 million this year on homelessness,” said Mejia. “This is taxpayer money. The people of Los Angeles will not understand that homeless people are eating instant ramen after so much money has been spent.”
In response to the City Controller’s criticism, LAHSA acknowledged addressing the issue of poor food quality but did not identify the organization involved.
According to the Controller’s Office, the City of Los Angeles spent a total of $341.06 million on the Inside Safe program from December 2022 through the end of May this year. Of the total budget, 61% went to housing for homeless individuals, while 31% was allocated to labor costs for nonprofits and other homeless support organizations. Only 5.6% was directed toward permanent housing, which is considered a long-term solution to homelessness.
BY HYOUNGJAE KIM, HOONSIK WOO [kim.ian@koreadaily.com]
