Seattle’s homelessness agency can’t account for $13 million in public funds, audit finds

Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson says the King County Regional Homelessness Authority is unable to account for how millions in public funding were used.

The agency’s governing board includes representatives from Seattle and other Washington state municipalities. 

Ms. Wilson’s office said Wednesday that the results of a forensic audit, covering the period between the agency’s 2021 launch and last July, found that it had “serious failures of … internal controls, fiscal management and accountability.”

The audit found that the homelessness authority was over $44 million in the red as of July 31, that it was running a $4.26 million administrative operating deficit, including $1.26 million in unrecoverable interest charges, and that “a receivables balance of $8 million could not be reconciled based on available records.”

Ms. Wilson’s office said $13 million was unaccounted for.

“I have serious concerns about KCRHA’s management of city funds. We need to take swift action to protect public dollars. All options are on the table,” Ms. Wilson said in a release from her office.

In addition to the deficit, the audit found that the agency was invoicing for its expenditures with delays as long as 16 months — and that the invoices often had inconsistencies. The audit sampled 29 invoices and found that:

• 25 invoices had different amounts than those listed in expenditure details.
• 19 invoices referenced incorrect budgeted amounts.
• 13 invoices were resubmitted multiple times in the same month.
• All 29 invoices lacked a required contract payment authorization form.

King County Executive Girmay Zahilay said in a release that “we have a responsibility to ensure this system delivers results — operating with greater efficiency, full transparency, and strong accountability for every public dollar entrusted to us.

Members of the Seattle City Council, officially nonpartisan, also weighed in. Councilmember Bob Kettle said in a statement that the audit results were “damning” and show “an epic, and consistent, failure of leadership at the top of the agency.”

The audit “shows an egregious mismanagement of funds and an unacceptable lack of financial accountability,” Councilmember Maritza Rivera said in a statement, adding that “KCRHA has a history of dysfunction and inefficiency, and it is time to acknowledge that it has failed in its mission. I am calling for Mayor Wilson to provide a plan for the dismantling of KCRHA as soon as possible.”

King County Councilmember Rod Dembowski concurred, saying in a statement, “It’s now time for elected officials to bring this failed experiment to an end. The Authority has had many chances to advance its mission, and has failed miserably, over and over again.”