--- title: "LAHSA Sues HUD to Block Suspension of $241 Million in LA Homelessness Funding" description: "Los Angeles's lead homelessness agency has sued the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to reverse a suspension of $241 million in federal funding — money that officials say supports services for more than 11,000 people and whose loss could push many back onto the streets." category: "Los Angeles" category_url: https://herald.la/category/los-angeles author: "Gabriela Soto" published: 2026-06-30T00:48:00.000Z updated: 2026-06-30T00:48:00.000Z canonical: https://herald.la/article/lahsa-sues-hud-to-block-suspension-of-241-million-in-la-homelessness-funding tags: ["homelessness", "LAHSA", "HUD", "federal funding", "lawsuit", "housing"] --- # LAHSA Sues HUD to Block Suspension of $241 Million in LA Homelessness Funding Los Angeles's lead homelessness agency has sued the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to reverse a suspension of $241 million in federal funding — money that officials say supports services for more than 11,000 people and whose loss could push many back onto the streets. A dispute between Washington and Los Angeles over how to fight homelessness has landed in federal court — with hundreds of millions of dollars and thousands of housed Angelenos hanging in the balance. ## The lawsuit The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority filed a complaint in federal court asking a judge to block HUD from carrying out its suspension, [LAist reported](https://laist.com/news/housing-homelessness/lahsa-homeless-los-angeles-sue-hud-trump-mismanagement-fraud-contiuum-of-care-funding). The suit seeks a temporary restraining order and a permanent injunction, arguing HUD violated the federal Administrative Procedure Act and overstepped constitutional limits by commandeering a locally run program. "We are taking this step to protect formerly unhoused people who found a permanent home," interim chief executive Gita O'Neill [said in a statement](https://www.lahsa.org/news?article=1076). Commission Chair Amber Shiekh added that LAHSA "cannot stand by while an unjustified federal decision threatens to pull the rug out from under Los Angeles's homeless services system." ## What HUD did, and why HUD suspended LAHSA from federal grant activity in mid-June, citing alleged mismanagement pending an investigation, according to LAist. The department has not publicly detailed the conduct under review and did not respond to requests for comment. LAHSA rejected the framing sharply, saying in its filing that HUD relied on "an amalgamation of uncorroborated hearsay information apparently cherry-picked from the internet" and failed to identify any specific agreement the agency had violated. The agency said HUD also wrongly attributed a funding shortfall of more than $500 million to it and confused informal reviews with formal audits. ## Why LAHSA's status matters Created jointly by the city and county of Los Angeles in 1993, LAHSA coordinates the region's homelessness services and serves as the "collaborative applicant" for federal Continuum of Care grants — the channel through which local providers receive HUD money. Suspending LAHSA doesn't just freeze current funds; it jeopardizes the entire region's ability to apply for the next round of grants, with a federal application deadline of August 26. Miss it, the agency warns, and Los Angeles could lose next year's allocation on top of the frozen $241 million. ## Who is affected By LAHSA's own accounting, the $241 million currently funds services for 7,545 households — 11,423 people, including 1,923 children, 1,627 seniors and 89 veterans. Most are in permanent supportive housing. The freeze arrives as the region has shown halting progress: LAHSA data show homelessness down about 4.3 percent countywide since 2023, even as it rose nationally over the same span. ## The political backdrop LAHSA's filing casts the suspension as a "back door attempt to eliminate the Continuum of Care program in L.A.," which gives local officials wide discretion over how funds are spent — an approach at odds with the federal administration's preference for centralized control. The fight also lands amid a separate, locally driven reckoning: Los Angeles County has been weighing whether to restructure homelessness oversight and absorb some of LAHSA's functions into a new county department, a debate fueled by longstanding questions about the agency's accountability and performance. HUD, the White House and the mayor's office had not commented on the suit as of publication. A judge will first weigh whether to grant the restraining order that would freeze the suspension while the case proceeds. ## Sources - [LAHSA sues HUD over suspended homelessness funding](https://laist.com/news/housing-homelessness/lahsa-homeless-los-angeles-sue-hud-trump-mismanagement-fraud-contiuum-of-care-funding) - [LAHSA sues Trump administration to protect over 11,000 Angelenos](https://www.lahsa.org/news?article=1076)