BLUE FOLDER ITEM
Blue folder items are additional back up material to administrative reports and/or public comments received after the printing and distribution of the agenda packet for receive and file.
CITY COUNCIL MEETING
May 12, 2026
H.10 AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO SIGN A LETTER TO THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY BOARD
OF SUPERVISORS TO OPPOSE A BOARD MOTION REGARDING A MORE
ACCOUNTABLE HOMELESSNESS GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE FOR LOS ANGELES
COUNTY INTRODUCED BY SUPERVISOR LINDSEY HORVATH
CONTACT: JOY A. FORD, CITY ATTORNEY
Attached:
Letter to oppose, unless amended, 19 May 2026 Motion by Supervisor Horvath entitled “A More Accountable Homelessness Governance Structure for Los Angeles County” Office of the Mayor
415 Diamond St.
Redondo Beach CA 90277
Tel: 310.697.3653
Redondo.org
May 12, 2026
Board of Supervisors
Los Angeles County
500 W. Temple Street, Room 383
Los Angeles CA 90012
Subject: 19 May 26 Motion by Supervisor Horvath entitled “A More Accountable Homelessness Governance Structure for Los Angeles County” – Oppose Unless Amended Dear Board of Supervisors,
The City of Redondo Beach opposes the motion unless amended.
The subject motion purports to respond to the need to address the governance structure and accountability concerns surrounding the JPA with Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority. However, in defining the proposed solutions to these concerns, the motion makes broad assumptions and directives about how homelessness services should be structured countywide. The proposed restructuring under the motion would negatively impact local programs that have proven efficient and, more importantly, effective. Rather than strengthening collaboration, portions of the motion move further away from the partnership model that is necessary to build true regional alignment. The City of Redondo’s concerns with the current motion are detailed in the following sections:
1. Alignment will not be achieved through a top-down directive. The City of Redondo encourages revisiting the original intent of the Executive Committee for Regional Homelessness Alignment, which was specifically created to bring all system partners together to define roles, align efforts, and build a coordinated regional strategy. The Board should direct ECRHA to develop a true regional plan with full participation from cities and regional partners. If this work is assigned elsewhere, cities must still have formal representation and a meaningful role in shaping the framework, including discussions surrounding HMIS, CES, and maintain full use of their Local Solutions Funds (LSF).
2. Before the County assumes additional responsibilities for homeless services, it should develop and document a clearer understanding of the current distribution of roles and responsibilities across the system. Cities are currently funding and filling critical gaps, particularly in outreach and navigation. Many of these are functions that are far more effective when disaggregated, decentralized, and assigned and performed locally.
For example, a local Housing Navigator is far more effective than a centralized Housing Navigator working across several jurisdictions. In Redondo, our Housing Navigator can respond much more quickly to a report on a homeless individual, and, perhaps more importantly, she is able to develop a relationship with the homeless in our City. That relationship is critical to homeless individuals developing the trust to participate in the options available.
Office of the Mayor
415 Diamond St.
Redondo Beach CA 90277
Tel: 310.697.3653
Redondo.org
Just as some roles, such as Housing Navigator, are more efficient and effective when delegated to local governmental bodies, others, such as mental health services, are best aggregated and performed at a regional or County level.
The Responsive Regional Plan Inventory is intended to provide that visibility across the whole enterprise, but it remains incomplete. The City of Redondo maintains that the County should direct staff to complete this enterprise-wide inventory within a reasonable timeline to ensure the County has a full understanding of existing efforts and investments across the region, and then use that knowledge as the basis to determine at what level each effort and function is most efficiently and effectively carried out.
Furthermore, the City of Redondo believes the County should prioritize strengthening performance within its current responsibilities before expanding its role further. Core functions, including those within the Department of Mental Health, which is foundational to a complete homeless program, require sustained attention and improvement. Expanding scope before stabilizing critical existing systems risks compounding the challenges already facing the region.
3. Finally, the motion also appears to further expand the assumption that the County is the authority that dictates how cities may use their Measure A Local Solutions Funds and what those funds are intended for. Local jurisdictions were entrusted with these resources because they are closest to the needs of their communities. The City of Redondo maintains any future framework should preserve local flexibility and decision making while improving coordination and accountability across the broader system.
As written today, the City of Redondo Beach is concerned the motion will have substantial negative impact on our award-winning homeless program and its proven performance. Therefore, the City of Redondo Beach opposes the motion as written unless it is amended:
1. to focus specifically on the immediate governance and accountability concerns related to the JPA,
2. to call for the completion of a comprehensive enterprise-wide inventory of County and local homeless program functions, investments and efforts; and
3. to define a collaborative process in which local jurisdictions have a seat at the table in determining how to best assign and execute those functions, investments, and efforts across all levels of the enterprise based on that enterprise-wide inventory.
Respectfully,
James A. Light
Mayor
City of Redondo Beach