Why Measure ULA Matters for Los Angeles
Los Angeles is facing a housing affordability and homelessness crisis that touches nearly every part of our city. Rents are high, wages have not kept pace, and too many families are one unexpected expense away from losing their homes. For years, community leaders, advocates, and residents have called for solutions that address this reality not just at the point of crisis, but before families fall into homelessness.
Measure ULA grew out of that work. Angelenos voted to create a dedicated, locally controlled source of funding to keep people housed, build more affordable homes, and prevent homelessness before it starts. At its core, ULA is about stabilizing a broken housing system by pairing housing production with tenant protections, homelessness prevention, and strong public oversight.
Through our work in the housing justice sector, Liberty Hill knows that housing production is an essential part of the solution. We also know that building affordable housing at scale is complex, costly, and takes time. ULA was designed with that reality in mind. It invests in long-term solutions while ensuring that experts, advocates, and community members help guide how resources are used, rather than leaving those decisions to political pressure or short-term budget needs.
The recent City Council decision to delay consideration of a ballot measure that would amend ULA reflects an understanding of how consequential these choices are. We appreciate the Council’s decision to proceed thoughtfully and center community voice in this process. That decision reinforces what we have long known about ULA: it reflects values Liberty Hill and our partners have advanced for years, including preventing displacement, expanding affordable housing, and ensuring that people most impacted by the housing crisis have a meaningful role in shaping the solutions.
ULA is already helping stabilize families and communities. The programs it funds are keeping people housed, supporting affordable housing projects, and preventing homelessness among renters and working families who often have nowhere else to turn for help. These are not abstract policy goals. They are lifelines for people trying to remain rooted in their neighborhoods.
We welcome honest feedback, critical analysis, and ongoing evaluation of ULA’s effectiveness. But as a voter-mandated policy, ULA deserves to be assessed based on data and outcomes, not political reactions or premature conclusions. Efforts to bypass its oversight structures or weaken its core commitments risk undermining progress at a moment when Los Angeles is beginning to see signs of stabilization.
Liberty Hill remains committed to housing justice rooted in dignity, stability, and democratic accountability. We stand with our partners in staying the course and allowing community-centered solutions the time and space they need to work. Building a more just and stable Los Angeles requires seriousness, care, and a long-term view — and Measure ULA is an important part of that work.
Shane Murphy Goldsmith
President & Chief Executive Officer
Liberty Hill Foundation
