"California GOP Demands Accountability for $24B Homelessness Spending"

California GOP leaders are demanding accountability after a state audit revealed that around $24 billion spent on homeless and housing programs over the past five years did not consistently track whether the funds improved the crisis. The audit found that the California Interagency Council on Homelessness stopped tracking program effectiveness in 2021 and failed to collect and evaluate outcome data due to a lack of consistent method. Republican leaders blamed the Newsom administration for the mismanagement of taxpayer money, while Democratic Sen. Dave Cortese emphasized the need for improved data and transparency at both state and local levels. Despite the audit's findings, the California Interagency Council on Homelessness has stated that it has made improvements in data collection and is shifting blame to local governments for not being held more accountable.