Staff Reports
Mayor Karen Bass told a House Oversight subcommittee she won’t be available to testify next week about alleged waste and fraud tied to Los Angeles homeless services. Her lawyers say the city will hand over documents, but the mayor skipping the hearing looks a lot like ducking accountability. Taxpayers and people living on the streets deserve straight answers, not a scheduling excuse.
The request and the reply
The Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency, led by Subcommittee Chair Tim Burchett, asked Mayor Karen Bass to appear at a Sept. 15 hearing called “Fixing Fraud and Failure in Federally Funded Homelessness Services.” The subcommittee asked for a broad set of records about LAHSA, contracts, and federal grant money. Bass’s counsel, David Michaelson, wrote back that the mayor “would not be available” that date and said the city is starting to collect documents. The reply also pushed back on some of the committee’s claims, noting the city says unsheltered homelessness has fallen about 11% since Bass took office.
Why Congress is asking questions
This probe is not hair-splitting. HUD moved to suspend the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority after citing problems with financial controls and repeated false statements. LAHSA has taken in more than $1 billion in federal funds since 2021, and local reporting has raised red flags about strange contracts and high nonprofit executive pay. HUD’s action and LAHSA’s legal fight to block the suspension are what triggered the Oversight inquiry. When federal dollars that are supposed to help homeless people are in doubt, Congress has a duty to follow the paper trail.
Skipping a hearing won’t settle the facts
Claiming you’re busy is a poor answer when serious questions about tax dollars and vulnerable people are on the table. The mayor’s office can produce documents, and that helps — but documents don’t replace sworn testimony under oath. The Oversight Committee can accept a new date, or it can issue subpoenas. If Mayor Bass wants to show leadership, she should make time to explain the city’s plan, LAHSA’s role, and how taxpayer money was spent. If she refuses, the committee will have to consider tougher steps.
What to watch next
Keep an eye on three things: first, whether the city actually turns over the records the committee asked for and whether those records answer the most serious allegations; second, whether the Oversight subcommittee accepts another date or issues a subpoena to compel testimony; and third, how the LAHSA lawsuit with HUD and any inspector general findings play out. The public deserves a clear timeline and real answers about how federal homelessness funds were used in Los Angeles.
Mayor Bass ran for office promising fixes and compassion. Refusing to sit down with Congress while a federal probe and millions in grants hang in the balance undermines that promise. Transparency isn’t optional. If the mayor wants to restore trust, she should show up, answer questions under oath, and let the facts — not finger-pointing or talking points — decide the story.
