"Rand's researchers, who canvass the three neighborhoods every two months, found that the shortfalls coincide with an increase in the percentage of people "sleeping rough," without the protection of a vehicle or tent. "This means that the places with the highest needs are becoming the very places where the county's official count is most underestimated," said the report, released Wednesday."
"The shift to rough sleeping likely results, at least in part, from the success of city encampment reduction programs such as Inside Safe. Since 2021, programs offering motel rooms to people living in tent encampments, nearly halved the number of tents identified by Rand. "However, as the initiatives drove a real decline in unsheltered homelessness, they also removed the easiest-to-count unsheltered subpopulation," likely contributing to the annual count's growing inaccuracy, the report said."
Los Angeles County's annual homeless survey increasingly misses people in Hollywood, Venice and Skid Row, falling short by nearly a third. The shortfalls coincide with a rise in people sleeping rough without tents or vehicles. City encampment reduction programs such as Inside Safe offered motel rooms and nearly halved the number of identifiable tents since 2021. Those initiatives removed the easiest-to-count unsheltered subpopulation and likely increased undercounting of the harshest conditions. Undercounting rough sleepers risks distorting local and federal fund distribution tied to the point-in-time count. Areas with more rough sleepers may receive fewer resources than areas with tents or vehicles.
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