Created by the Board of Supervisors in 2015, the Homeless Initiative directs, oversees, and evaluates Los Angeles County’s ongoing effort to expand and enhance services for people experiencing homelessness or at risk of losing their home. The Homeless Initiative is largely financed by Measure H, a 1/4-cent sales tax approved by 70 percent of County voters in March 2017. In the first four years following the passage of Measure H , the County's homeless services system has lifted 75,000 people out of homelessness by placing into permanent housing. Of those placements, 41% were completely or partially funded through Measure H, representing about 31,000 people. Meanwhile, the County's homeless services system provided about 100,000 people with shelter during the same period (this tally includes a portion of the 75,000 people who were permanently housed, if the had a stint in a shelter first). Some 55% of those placements -- about 55,000 people -- received funding from Measure H. From Malibu to Claremont, Long Beach to Lancaster, and everywhere in between, the Homeless Initiative provides the strategies and funding that enable a comprehensive and diverse group of partners – from County departments and agencies to city governments, community-based nonprofit service providers, and more – to scale up the following:
• Homeless Prevention for people at risk of eviction as well as those exiting foster care, hospitals, jails and other institutions
• Outreach so that people living in encampments and vehicles can be connected to housing and supportive services
• Interim Housing, such as shelters, recuperative care facilities, and sober living facilities
• Permanent Housing with subsidized rent and, if necessary, supportive services for those with acute needs
• Supportive Services such as case management and connections to health care, mental health care, substance use disorder treatment, criminal record clearing, benefits enrollment, job training and employment, and other services to help people achieve stability and potentially self-sufficiency
Measure H, the first and only funding stream dedicated to addressing and preventing homelessness across Los Angeles County, is projected to raise about $355 million annually for 10 years, from 2017 through 2027.
