Hawaiʻi County Committee Unanimously Advances Auditor Review of $33.5M Homeless Fund

The Hawaiʻi County Council’s Committee on Governmental Operations and External Affairs unanimously advanced a resolution that asks the County Auditor’s Office to conduct a performance audit of the Office of Housing and Community Development’s Homelessness and Housing Fund. The fund, a five-year program created in 2022 and totaling $33.5 million, now faces formal review after the committee vote on Jan. 27, 2026. The resolution moves to the full County Council for consideration.

Council Chair Holeka Inaba framed the audit as a check on both process and outcomes, saying the audit, expected this fall, will examine how grants are awarded, whether funds are spent according to approved budgets and whether programs are achieving their intended goals. Inaba emphasized the need for street-level accountability, telling Aloha State Daily, "For community and for us on the council, it’s what you’re seeing when you’re out there on the streets. Your numbers can say whatever it wants, it can say we have 200 more homeless in town or 200 less, but what are we seeing on the streets?"

The audit’s scope, as described by county sources, will include a review of grant-awarding practices, budget compliance and program performance. The review will also look into concerns that some nonprofit contractors received multiple awards with overlapping cost categories such as insurance and utilities. Those overlapping costs have raised questions about whether administrative expenses are being properly reported under the county’s 10% administrative cap.

Housing Administrator Kehaulani Costa said the Office of Housing and Community Development supports the audit and will cooperate with the County Auditor’s Office. "We view this as an opportunity to better understand the scope of the county’s homelessness-related investments and to ensure transparency, accountability and continuous improvement," Costa told Aloha State Daily.

For Big Island residents, the review could affect how local homelessness programs are funded and administered in the coming years. Taxpayer dollars allocated through the Homelessness and Housing Fund are intended to translate into housing placements, shelter capacity and support services. The audit will test whether papers on file match outcomes seen in Hilo, Kona and rural parts of Hawaiʻi County and whether nonprofit partners are using grant dollars in ways that align with county policy.

Next steps include full-council consideration of the resolution and, if authorized, the County Auditor’s Office scheduling and carrying out the performance audit expected this fall. Hawaiʻi County residents can look for meeting notices from the Council and for the Auditor’s public work plan once it is released. The review has the potential to reshape grant oversight, clarify administrative cost rules and produce recommendations that could change how homelessness investments are tracked and reported locally.