Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
Federal Judge Gives Los Angeles Leaders 60 Days To Map Out $1 Billion Of Homelessness Spending
Skid Row in downtown Los Angeles is a focus of U.S. District Court Judge David Carter's injunction about the city and county's approach to homelessness.
(
FREDERIC J. BROWN
/
AFP via Getty Images
)
A federal judge is giving Los Angeles leaders more time to comply with a sweeping homelessness order.
Last week, U.S. District Court Judge David Carter ordered the city and county of L.A. to offer shelter to every Skid Row resident by mid-October, part of a far-reaching injunction that would also put the city’s $1 billion in planned homelessness spending into escrow.
The city and county are fighting Carter’s preliminary injunction — requesting a stay of the order and appealing the case to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
On Sunday, the judge mostly denied the request for a stay but agreed to put the escrow part of the order on hold — instead giving L.A. city leaders 60 days to provide details of the $1 billion spending plan, including funding sources and goals for the number of people who will be housed.
Support for LAist comes from
Carter scheduled a hearing on the case for May 27 and says he wants L.A. County Board of Supervisors Chair Hilda Solis and Mayor Garcetti to meet with him to discuss a settlement.
The judge also denounced what he called “squabbling” between the city and county over responsibility for the homelessness crisis.
Carter, who is overseeing a March 2020 lawsuit by a coalition of downtown business owners called The L.A. Alliance for Human Rights, is known for bold, unpredictable action aimed at forcing public officials to take greater responsibility for the homelessness crisis.
Last May, Carter stunned local leaders with a bombshell court order requiring the city and county to pursue “humane relocation” of people living near freeways. That led to an agreement to provide 6,000 new shelter beds by the end of 2021. But some question whether Carter’s methods are on firm legal footing.
In a statement last week, Skip Miller, partner at the Miller Barondess law firm and outside counsel to L.A. County, said, “Deciding how to spend taxpayers’ money and deliver services to people experiencing homelessness is a legislative, not a judicial, function.”
Read Carter's full April 25 order, which was amended on Monday, here.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
The critical findings are part of long-awaited after-action report was released Thursday. It contains recommendations for increasing emergency staffing and updating old systems. -
Diving has changed, mountain biking has been added. Here's where to watch the Olympics in person in 2028. -
'A Great Day in the Stoke' is a free, daylong event in Orange County billed as 'the largest gathering of Black surfers in history.' The fourth annual festival is set for Saturday in Huntington Beach. -
Kimmel returned less than a week after ABC suspended his show over comments he made about the assassination of right wing activist Charlie Kirk. -
Southern California might see some light rain tonight into Wednesday morning. After that, cooler weather is on the way, but expect the humidity to remain. -
A gate tax at Disney? It's a possibility.
Best of LAist