The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority said it is terminating its contracts with a nonprofit interim housing provider and revealed it received notice that federal authorities seized cash at an address linked to the nonprofit’s founder.
In a news release Tuesday, LAHSA said the nonprofit, Home At Last Community Development Corp., notified LAHSA last month that it would close two of its temporary homeless housing sites, saying that LAHSA was late in paying Home At Last to operate.
Late payments to nonprofit providers have been a recurring problem for LAHSA, which the Trump administration recently cited as a reason it was suspending federal funds to the joint city-county agency.
But in its Tuesday announcement, LAHSA said it had paid Home At Last sufficient funds to operate. It also noted that last month the IRS informed the agency that it had seized cash from an address linked to one of Home at Last’s founders, Michael Young.
LAHSA said the IRS told it that the cash was subject to criminal forfeiture and that LAHSA might be able to claim the money.
Young and Home At Last did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
According to the organization’s 2024 tax filings, Young worked 40 hours a week at the nonprofit for which he was paid more than $150,000.
The revelation about the IRS seizure comes at a time of heightened scrutiny over taxpayer funds used to fight the homelessness crisis.
In the last year, federal authorities have brought at least three fraud cases involving misuse of homeless money, including a case against the executive director of a homeless housing nonprofit named Abundant Blessings, alleging the nonprofit leader used public money to pay for houses, vacations and a $125,000 Range Rover.
LAHSA said that after Home At Last notified the agency it would cease operations at two of its facilities within four weeks, LAHSA moved to terminate the nonprofit’s contracts for cause, citing a failure to perform contracted services.
The termination is expected to become effective July 22.
LAHSA said following Home At Last’s notification to close two sites, the agency worked to find shelter for the residents and most of the 181 individuals have since been rehoused.
“Our absolute priority throughout this transition was the safety, stability, and well-being of the unhoused residents living at these sites,” Gita O’Neill, LAHSA’s interim chief executive, said in a statement.
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