Homeless nonprofit’s contracts nixed by LAHSA after service failure and IRS cash seizure, agency says
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- The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority is canceling contracts with Home At Last after the nonprofit moved to shutter two interim housing sites.
- LAHSA said Home At Last claimed LAHSA was behind in paying the nonprofit, but LAHSA said it had provided enough money for operations.
- LAHSA also disclosed it received a letter from the IRS informing the agency it has seized cash from an address tied to founder Michael Young and LAHSA may be able to recover the money.
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 Internal Revenue Service 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 did not respond to an email seeking comment. In an email, an attorney for Home at Last pinned the blame on LAHSA.
“If LAHSA had not stopped paying invoices, or even offered assurances of forthcoming payments, the situation may have ended differently and Home at Last would still be providing the quality services that are its mission,” said Shana Elson, an attorney with Schneiders & Associates.
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 that the agency has worked to find shelter for residents of the two sites and that most of the 181 individuals have 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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