An audit revealed that a contractor who had an agreement with the Los Angeles city government to provide regular meals to the homeless actually only provided cheap instant noodles.
In a report released on the 26th, the LA City Controller pointed out that a contractor who had a contract with the LA City Homelessness Department committed fraud and misused taxpayers’ money. The Controller stated that after receiving a tip and conducting a field investigation, they found that the contractor’s inventory for providing food services to the homeless was almost entirely filled with instant noodles.
The Controller expressed disbelief that a significant portion of taxpayers’ money allocated for homeless services was being used to provide only instant noodles to the homeless.
The contractor in question received funding through Mayor Karen Bass’s homeless relief program called the “Inside Safe Program”. The LA City’s budget for homeless services is approximately $950 million. The LA City Controller’s office stated that LAHSA, the homeless services agency, currently requires contractors with city government agreements to provide three nutritious meals a day.
The Controller’s office said they will continue to investigate allegations of fraud to ensure that the homeless budget is not wasted. The growing homeless population in LA has led to a booming homeless support industry, and the city government’s lack of oversight in managing these services has come under scrutiny.
The reality in LA is that an astronomical city budget is being paid out to homeless service providers through contracts, without knowing how it’s being spent.
