Seattle’s troubled homelessness agency has lost its fifth chief executive in only a few years, as the city’s progressive mayor moves to reclaim control of most of its services following a series of financial controversies.
Kelly Kinnison resigned from the King County Regional Homelessness Authority (KCRHA) this week, leaving the organization facing another leadership crisis while Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson and King County Executive Girmay Zahilay work to strip it of much of its authority.
Her departure follows a damning audit that identified major financial weaknesses, including overspending and inadequate accounting. The agency is also believed to have spent nearly $17 million on administrative expenses that cannot be recovered.
Kinnison, who became CEO in 2024, faced employee complaints and allegations that she attempted to limit access to public records.
Her resignation adds to the turmoil surrounding an agency established in 2019 to coordinate the region’s response to homelessness. Instead, KCRHA has been beset by controversy, repeated leadership changes and questions about the use of taxpayer funds.
Wilson and Zahilay have decided that Seattle and King County should assume direct control of nearly all homelessness service contracts, effectively stripping KCRHA of many of the responsibilities it was created to perform.
The reversal marks a significant change in the region’s approach to homelessness. Wilson is seeking to bring services back under City Hall’s oversight rather than leave them primarily with the independent regional agency.
The plan does not eliminate KCRHA, despite growing calls earlier this year for the organization to be dissolved.
Kelly Kinnison became the fifth CEO to leave Seattle’s troubled homelessness authority in just a few years, amid criticism of her leadership and the agency’s financial management
Instead, KCRHA will remain as a much smaller agency. Its duties will include coordinating federal grant applications, monitoring performance across the homelessness system and arranging emergency assistance for people sleeping outside during severe weather.
The federal grants managed through the agency generally amount to about $65 million each year.
KCRHA announced Kinnison’s departure on Friday, presenting it as part of the organization’s sweeping restructuring.
Agency spokesperson Lisa Edge said the resignation reflected the authority’s reduced “mission, purpose and service scope.”
Kinnison defended her tenure and said she had helped bring serious internal problems to light.
“I was asked to assess and rebuild a young organization that had significant challenges,” she said.
“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.”
Her time in office was nevertheless marked by conflict. Kinnison joined KCRHA from Washington, DC, where she had served as a policy director at the Department of Health and Human Services, and inherited an agency already struggling with years of dysfunction.
King County Executive Girmay Zahilay is working with Wilson to return homelessness services to local government after years of turmoil at the authority
Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson is reclaiming control of nearly all homelessness service contracts as her administration seeks to overhaul the troubled agency
Tents, vehicles and scattered belongings fill another Seattle encampment as the city’s homelessness agency faces a sharp reduction in its responsibilities
Service providers had reported lengthy delays in receiving reimbursements, while a high-profile downtown homelessness program failed to produce the sweeping improvements its supporters had promised.
KCRHA’s first CEO also became involved in public disputes with shelter operators and elected officials over the agency’s strategy and the funding required to address homelessness.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: Russell Brand Could Face Criminal Action in US as More Alleged Victims Expected to Come Forward
Several interim leaders followed, including one who left after sharply criticizing the involvement of former Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell.
Kinnison was selected after an extended search for a permanent CEO, but soon faced allegations of her own.
Employees filed complaints against her and later accused her of retaliation. More recently, allegations focused on her handling of the agency’s obligations under Washington state public-records law.
At the same time, KCRHA’s financial difficulties worsened, leading to an audit that highlighted serious flaws in its budgeting and accounting systems.
The findings intensified demands for the agency to be dismantled.
Wilson and Zahilay have declined to go that far, but their decision to take back almost all homelessness service contracts has left KCRHA facing an uncertain future.
Tents and makeshift shelters line a Seattle street as the city continues to confront its long-running homelessness crisis
Rows of tents crowd a public space in Seattle, where billions have been spent addressing homelessness over the years
Makeshift shelters and personal belongings spread across an encampment as officials face growing questions about the effectiveness of the region’s homelessness response
Both officials thanked Kinnison for her service and said they would recommend an interim successor.
“She took on a challenging job to lead coordination on our region’s most pressing issue amid a shifting federal landscape and structural issues within the authority,” Zahilay said.
Wilson, who chairs the governing board with Zahilay, said the transfer of services to the city was moving forward as planned.
“I have a responsibility to the people of Seattle to ensure that financial challenges at KCRHA are addressed and stabilized,” she said.
Jorge Barón, a member of the Metropolitan King County Council, said securing new leadership would be essential as the authority undergoes its sweeping transformation.
“I am focused on working with Governing Board members to name new leadership that can effectively guide the KCRHA through the significant transitions ahead,” he said.
Auburn Mayor Nancy Backus, who also serves on the governing board, said regional cooperation on homelessness could still succeed despite the latest upheaval.
“I still believe that a regional and subregional approach to addressing homelessness can, and does, work,” she said.
“Still, the structure needs to look significantly different than what we’re used to seeing.”
KCRHA’s immediate task is to find a sixth leader to guide an organization whose finances, management and fundamental role have all come under intense scrutiny.
With City Hall reclaiming services previously overseen by the authority, the next CEO will inherit an agency with far less power than the one created seven years ago.
The Daily Mail contacted Seattle City Hall and KCRHA for comment.