Politics · United States · 16 hrs ago
Seattle homelessness agency loses CEO as city and county take back services
Kelly Kinnison resigned as CEO of the King County Regional Homelessness Authority, the body set up to coordinate homelessness services in Seattle and the surrounding county.
She is the agency's fifth CEO to leave in a few years.
Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson and King County Executive Girmay Zahilay plan to take back most service contracts and manage them directly.
The change follows an audit that found overspending and poor accounting, as well as concerns about administrative costs.
The authority will remain, but with fewer responsibilities: it will coordinate federal grant applications, monitor system performance and arrange emergency help during severe weather.
The grants it administers typically total about $65 million a year.
The shift moves service oversight back to local government, while leaving the agency with a smaller coordination role.
Kelly Kinnison resigned as chief executive of the King County Regional Homelessness Authority after Seattle and King County decided to take back most homelessness service contracts.
The authority is expected to remain, but with a smaller role coordinating federal grant applications, monitoring system performance and organizing emergency aid during severe weather.
The decision follows a damning audit that found financial problems, including overspending and poor accounting practices.
The agency is also believed to have spent nearly $17 million on administrative costs it cannot recover.
Kinnison said she helped identify structural problems in the agency’s finance department.
- Who
- Kelly Kinnison resigned as chief executive of the King County Regional Homelessness Authority. Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson and King County Executive Girmay Zahilay are taking back most homelessness service contracts.
- What
- The authority is losing most of its service responsibilities and will continue in a smaller role.
- When
- Kinnison’s departure was announced on Friday. She took charge in 2024.
- Where
- Seattle and King County, Washington.
- Why
- The city and county decided to oversee most homelessness services directly. The authority has faced financial problems and leadership turmoil.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
The King County Regional Homelessness Authority was created to coordinate the region’s response to homelessness.
Kelly Kinnison took charge of the authority.
The authority announced Kinnison’s resignation.
- Agency
- King County Regional Homelessness Authority (KCRHA)
- Departing CEO
- Kelly Kinnison
- Mayor
- Katie Wilson
- County executive
- Girmay Zahilay
- Administrative costs
- Nearly $17 million that the agency is believed to be unable to recover
- Federal grants
- Approximately $65 million annually
What people are saying
I was asked to assess and rebuild a young organization that had significant challenges
I'm proud of what I've achieved, including surfacing structural issues in our finance department and contributing to the path forward for a more accountable homelessness response system.
mission, purpose and service scope