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A Game-Changing Approach to Reducing Homelessness

Homelessness in LA County is on the rise, according to the latest homeless count report released by LAHSA

Despite the fact that the City and County of Los Angeles are placing more individuals into housing than ever before, the number of unhoused people in LA County has increased by 4.1% since 2020. The ‘point-in-time’ count taken in February tallied 69,144 individuals in the county (41,980 of which are in the City of LA) who were living on the streets or in shelters. Officials are saying that the rise in homelessness actually slowed during the pandemic more than in previous years, and attribute it to policies and investments that helped people remain in their homes.

While eviction protections and rent relief programs were critical in keeping people housed during the height of COVID-19, they can’t fix California’s affordable housing crisis, which has been growing steadily for decades. We need long-term and sustainable solutions to make housing more affordable for our most vulnerable neighbors. 

This is why LISC LA is supporting Measure ULA on the November ballot. ULA is a game-changing approach to reducing homelessness. If passed, it would:

With only hours before the release of the 2022 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count census results, the experts and homelessness service providers who wrote Measure ULA gathered beneath LA’s iconic U.S. Bank Tower on September 7, 2022, to illustrate how the measure would use the biggest marquee real estate sales in Los Angeles to fund protections and homes for seniors, people with disabilities, and others experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

How would it work?
Measure ULA would tax real estate that sells for more than $5 million in the City of Los Angeles and invest it back into our communities. This one-time tax would raise an estimated $923 million a year to reduce homelessness, immediately provide housing for people living on the streets, send emergency assistance to vulnerable tenants including low-income seniors in danger of becoming homeless, and provide legal aid to renters. According to Analysis of Measure LA released this month, “Measure ULA’s tax would affect approximately 4% of real estate transactions in a given year and 72% of its revenue would come from properties sold for over $10 million. Under 3% of single-family homes or condos sold in a given year would be affected.” The vast majority of Angelenos will remain unaffected.

Who is behind the measure?
Measure ULA was drafted by homeless service providers, affordable housing nonprofits, labor unions, and renters’ rights groups. LISC LA is proud to be a part of a coalition of sector leaders advocating for this solution to homelessness that was crafted by experts and is backed by a permanent source of funding.

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