California’s homeless service providers have a problem: They aren’t getting paid on time, and it’s making it even harder for them to get people off the street.
Nonprofits that provide everything from shelter beds, to counseling for homeless residents, to affordable housing, say they regularly are kept waiting weeks, if not months, for the city, county and state funding they rely on. That means they’re struggling to pay their employees, make rent payments for their clients, and, in some cases, even keep the lights on.
Some are turning down new projects despite the massive need for services in their communities. Others are borrowing to stay afloat, ending up paying tens of thousands of dollars each month in interest — money they would rather spend on helping homeless Californians. It’s hampering the state’s efforts to solve what is arguably its biggest problem: Nearly 186,000 people have nowhere to call home.
“It is the single biggest factor in our inability to grow and serve more people,” said Vivian Wan, CEO of Abode Services, which provides shelter, housing and other aid for unhoused people across seven Bay Area counties. “This is a huge issue.”
And it’s getting harder to ignore. With inflation driving up expenses and the growing homelessness crisis driving up need, some nonprofits have reached their breaking point. After a group of Los Angeles-based homeless service providers raised the alarm earlier this year, the county Board of Supervisors overhauled the way it doles out funds. Providers hope the move will be replicated throughout the state.
Why are nonprofits missing millions of dollars?
It’s the kind of…
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