Part 8/12:
Despite claims of progress—such as LA Mayor Karen Bass announcing a 10% decrease in homelessness—skeptics question whether these figures tell the full story. Critics argue that the reported decline may be artificially inflated, potentially due to counting discrepancies or undercounting certain populations.
Recent reports from the RAND Corporation highlight a growing undercount of the homeless population, especially those living in rough sleeping conditions or in vehicles—difficult groups to track accurately as programs like “Inside Safe” have removed many encampments. Current counts suggest that only about 68% of the unsheltered homeless are being counted, raising doubts about the accuracy of reported reductions.