With our free press under threat and federal funding for public media gone, your support matters more than ever. Help keep the LAist newsroom strong, become a monthly member or increase your support today during our fall member drive.
Orange County Will Count Its Unhoused Population For The First Time In 3 Years

Orange County will conduct its first count since 2019 of people experiencing homelessness starting Monday night.
Doug Becht, director of the county's Office of Care Coordination, says tallying the count will take about two months to complete, and inital data will be available around May or June. A more comprehensive report with city and subpopulation breakdowns will be available shortly afterward.
"At the end of this process, we'll be able to not only state how many people are experiencing homelessness in Orange County," Becht said.
"But we'll be able to tell a lot about them — their age, race demographics, whether they've received services before, if their current episode of homelessness is their first episode of homelessness, or if they've been experiencing homelessness for quite some time.”
Service workers and volunteers will survey unhoused people through Thursday. The initial count on Monday night will focus on people staying in shelters, Becht said.
Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday will be devoted to counts of individuals experiencing unsheltered homelessness, including people
living on the streets, in cars, or "anywhere else that's not meant for human habitation," Becht said.
The state and federal governments use the results to determine how to disperse funding to local jurisdictions.
The count was supposed to take place in January but it was postponed because of the omicron surge in Orange County.
The extra time has allowed Becht and his office to recruit more volunteers and ensure safety with fewer COVID cases in the region. Volunteers must be fully vaccinated or provide a negative CPR test within 48 hours of their volunteer shift. Masks are required.
The last count in 2019 showed just under 4,000 people experiencing homelessness. That resulted in the county bringing in around 1,000 shelter beds over three years, which increased shelter numbers.
"But we're hoping that will mitigate a potential rise in the unsheltered homeless count," Becht said.
At LAist, we believe in journalism without censorship and the right of a free press to speak truth to those in power. Our hard-hitting watchdog reporting on local government, climate, and the ongoing housing and homelessness crisis is trustworthy, independent and freely accessible to everyone thanks to the support of readers like you.
But the game has changed: Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.
We’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission.
Thank you for your generous support and belief in the value of independent news.

-
A tort claim obtained by LAist via a public records request alleges the Anaheim procurement department lacks basic contracting procedures and oversight.
-
Flauta, taquito, tacos dorados? Whatever they’re called, they’re golden, crispy and delicious.
-
If California redistricts, the conservative beach town that banned LGBTQ Pride flags on city property would get a gay, progressive Democrat in Congress.
-
Most survivors of January's fires face a massive gap in the money they need to rebuild, and funding to help is moving too slowly or nonexistent.
-
Kevin Lacy has an obsession with documenting California’s forgotten and decaying places.
-
Restaurants share resources in the food hall in West Adams as Los Angeles reckons with increasing restaurant closures.