Hahn and Mitchell Aim to Better Serve Homeless Families
September 29, 2026
Los Angeles, CA – The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors today approved a proposal by Supervisors Janice Hahn and Holly J. Mitchell aimed at better serving homeless families and moving them more quickly into permanent housing.
Ensuring Families in Every Situation Qualify for Help
Families often don’t fit the profile of people experiencing homelessness, and that can affect the services and housing they are eligible for. Some families may be “couch surfing” with friends or relatives. In other cases, children may temporarily stay with relatives while their parents sleep in vehicles or remain unsheltered, making it challenging for them to get assistance specifically designated for homeless families with children.
Hahn and Mitchell’s motion directs the Department of Housing and Homeless Services to review current eligibility policies for family housing and identify changes that would allow families in different circumstances to qualify for the assistance they need.
“The desperate steps parents take to try to protect their children shouldn’t make it harder for them to get the help they need,” said Supervisor Hahn. “Our system needs to be flexible enough to meet families where they are – no matter what their living situation looks like.”
“The homelessness response system was not created for families and it’s time to change that. This is a system originally built to address unhoused single men. Today’s action centers the changing demographic needs of our families experiencing homelessness,” shared Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell.
Addressing the “28-Day Shuffle”
Last week, Hahn met a couple during her commute on the Silver Line who is experiencing firsthand another challenge facing families in temporary housing.
Enrique recently suffered a heart attack and his wife, Anna, is deaf and has epilepsy. The couple has four children and are currently living together in a motel room while waiting for permanent housing. To make matters worse, they are being forced to move across town to a new motel every 28 days – disrupting their lives and their children’s schooling.
The practice, sometimes referred to as the “28-day shuffle,” has long been associated with efforts by some motel and hotel operators to prevent guests from establishing tenancy rights under California law. Legislation signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in 2024 sought to address the issue, but Enrique and Anna’s experience proves the problem continues.
“Anna and Enrique are in an impossible situation,” said Hahn. “They are doing everything they can to give their kids some sense of normalcy and stability but are being forced to move every month from motel to motel. We need to find a way to make sure families who are already going through a difficult time aren’t being forced to uproot their lives over and over while waiting for a permanent place to live.”
The motion approved today directs County Counsel to provide a confidential analysis of both state and local law regarding tenancy and direct the Department of Housing and Homeless Services to report back to the Board in 60 days with any recommendations to change county policies, contracts, or provider requirements to reduce these unnecessary relocations.
Connecting Families to Permanent Housing Faster
The motion also looks at ways to move families from shelters and motels into permanent housing more quickly.
Families can wait for extended periods while providers work to find them permanent housing, in part because affordable apartments with multiple bedrooms are in short supply. Hahn and Mitchell’s proposal directs the County to explore whether some smaller families who are willing to do so could be placed in smaller, more readily available apartments, allowing them to move into permanent housing sooner.
The goal of these reforms is to give families more options while reducing the amount of time children spend moving between temporary housing arrangements.