Defending Evidence-Based Homelessness Prevention Strategies

Public Counsel, the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles, and Steptoe LLP represent the Los Angeles Continuum of Care (LA CoC), a body of local stakeholders—including unhoused people, nonprofit homeless assistance providers, and local governments and agencies—who work together to decide how federal homelessness dollars are spent in the Los Angeles region.

Under a system required by Congress, LA CoC manages homeless response systems, sets the region’s funding priorities, and applies for federal homelessness funding, currently in partnership with the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA). In June 2026, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) unlawfully suspended LAHSA, cutting off the LA CoC’s ability to apply for funding for the region and immediately ending the information tracking, matching, and management systems necessary to move people off the streets and into housing. HUD then used LAHSA’s and LA CoC’s suspensions as a pretext to seize control of the funding process itself, stripping the Los Angeles region of congressionally-mandated local decision-making over approximately $240 million in annual funding that keeps more than 11,000 residents housed.

LAHSA sued HUD to challenge its suspension on June 29, 2026. LA CoC intervened in the lawsuit on August 6, 2026 to ensure the court hears from the coalition that Congress tasked with deciding how the region responds to homelessness. LA CoC’s participation ensures that the thousands of individuals, families, veterans, and people with disabilities who depend on this funding have a voice in the case.