Los Angeles County will create a plan to take over payments to homeless service providers and embed county workers into the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority to help the struggling joint city of Los Angeles-L.A. County agency make back payments in order to ensure services to homeless people continue.

The action was taken by the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday by a 5-0 vote on the plan put forth in a motion by Third District L.A. County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath.

It comes in response after Horvath revealed on Thursday severe problems in LAHSA’s financial payment obligations, specifically not paying county-funded service providers despite a new agreement in place since last year in which the county advances LAHSA the money to pay providers on time.

“This problem is not new. We learned (in late February) that LAHSA cannot provide real financial information and has refused to allow county workers to provide them help, while county service providers remain unpaid,” Horvath said. “My phone is ringing off the hook from service providers.”

Last week, Gita O’Neill, LAHSA interim chief executive officer, responded to Horvath’s claims and a county letter sent to her about the missed payments. In an emailed response, O’Neill wrote that LAHSA takes responsibility for passing on taxpayer dollars to pay homeless service providers and is working quickly to move the funds that continue services for the unhoused in L.A. County.

She said the agency was flooded with invoices that became overwhelming. The backlog was due to a combination of contracting delays, outdated internal policies and the loss of key mid-level leaders with institutional knowledge. “We have identified many of the problems and are already taking corrective action,” O’Neill responded.

Joseph Nicchitta, the county’s acting CEO, said the county must work with LAHSA until the end of the current fiscal year. After that, monies for service providers will stay with the county, specifically administered by the county’s new Department of Homeless Services & Housing.

He added that LAHSA has been known to carry over accounts, so payments and invoices may continue beyond July. He said currently, LAHSA has $11 million in payments that he is awaiting documentation from LAHSA.

Specifically, the board motion does three things:

• The county will pay homeless services providers for work performed under county-funded programs.

• Fund the embedding of county staff to help to address fiscal issues.

• An audit of LAHSA will begin on Thursday, led by Oscar Valdez, the auditor-controller for Los Angeles County. It will take about two to three weeks fo flush out issues of cash balances and cash flow, he told the board. Valdez will provide an oral presentation of his department’s audit, plus a corrective action plan and ensure timely contractor payments and transparency to the Board of Supervisors at the April 14 board meeting.

“I did meet with the county’s auditor-controller and the Homeless Services & Housing department leadership,” Nicchitta said on Tuesday. “We all agreed a review of LAHSA policies, procedures, financial records and advances was warranted. In order to make sure this does not happen again.”

Nicchitta has scheduled a meeting for later this week with O’Neill and hopes to hear more answers, he said.

LAHSA has said it is willing to work with the county auditor-controller’s office so that it can provide “insight and assistance.”

Nicchitta has also been meeting with L.A.’s City Administrative Officer Matthew Szabo and his staff. “Information is being shared at those meetings. We are communicating,” he told the Board of Supervisors.

“I will await to see what the auditor will report back. And for money to go to those providers. Our constituents want to know,” said First District Supervisor and Board Chair Hilda Solis.