King County, Seattle strip KCRHA of contract oversight in sweeping homelessness system reset

King County and the city of Seattle are stripping the King County Regional Homelessness Authority (KCRHA) of one of its biggest responsibilities, announcing Wednesday that roughly $200 million in homelessness service contracts will be transferred back to local governments as officials attempt to stabilize an agency plagued by leadership turnover and financial concerns.

King County Executive Girmay Zahilay and Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson unveiled a three-part plan Wednesday to stabilize, "right-size" and reset KCRHA following an independent forensic evaluation released in April that identified significant concerns with the agency's financial management, governance and internal controls.

Beginning in January 2027, King County's Department of Community and Human Services and Seattle's Human Services Department will assume responsibility for administering homelessness service contracts. KCRHA will focus on its core regional functions, including coordinating federal funding applications, overseeing the region's coordinated entry system, managing homelessness data and conducting the biennial point-in-time count.

"KCRHA was created because homelessness is a regional challenge, and I continue to believe a regional response is the right approach," Zahilay said in a news release. "But believing in a regional response also means making sure it works."

https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2026/07/02/seattle-king-county-shift-200m-in-contracts-away.html