A newly released city audit has uncovered widespread failures within the City of Dallas’ Office of Homeless Solutions (OHS).
Findings highlight the department’s lack of strategic direction, failure to track performance outcomes, and inability to validate how millions in public funds are being spent.
The audit, conducted by the Dallas City Auditor’s Office and released in June, evaluated how well OHS manages its $18 million annual budget and whether the city’s “Four-Track Strategy” effectively addresses homelessness.
It found that while OHS collects data on services provided — such as meals or shelter stays — it does not measure whether people are actually exiting homelessness, thereby undermining the city’s ability to evaluate progress.
“The Four-Track Strategy does not include quantifiable outcomes that define success within each track,” the audit stated (p. 14). “Absent of strategy coordination and quantifiable outcomes, the City is limited in its ability to define and validate success to holistically measure progress on its strategic initiatives as a whole.”
The report also found little coordination between the city’s strategy and that of Housing Forward, the lead agency of Dallas’ All Neighbors Coalition, raising concerns about duplication and inefficiency.
“Documentation provided by Housing Forward and OHS does not support that the two strategies were initially assessed or continually reassessed for needed coordination,” the audit noted (p. 15).
Furthermore, OHS was found to lack basic oversight of its outside contractors. Out of 10 contracts reviewed:
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60% had unreconciled performance data
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40% were missing key documentation
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80% failed to meet the required number of site visits (p. 19)
Contractors such as Housing Forward, The Bridge, The Stewpot, and Catholic Charities of Dallas were cited for failing to provide source data or track the outcomes of “wrap-around” services, including case management and housing retention, despite receiving public funds.
“OHS does not have a consistent process to effectively monitor and validate contractor performance,” the audit warned (p. 17).
One of the most startling findings is that Housing Forward used only 2% of the money allocated under two separate contracts, meaning Dallas cannot evaluate the impact of those programs (p. 19).
The audit issued 11 high-priority recommendations, urging OHS to define clear success metrics, improve contractor monitoring, align with Housing Forward, and overhaul its reporting systems.
Meanwhile, as The Dallas Express previously reported, the city’s homelessness spending has come under mounting scrutiny. Council Member Cara Mendelsohn has criticized claims of progress, noting that 311 complaints have risen 45% over the last three years, even as officials cite marginal decreases based on annual “point-in-time” counts.
“The residents are so fed up, and they are fed up of hearing homelessness is decreasing when they see it every single day,” Mendelsohn said, according to Fox 4. “They report it, it gets closed and it does not get addressed. These are people who truly need help, and it’s not happening.”
While city leaders have promoted efforts like “Safe In The City” downtown, recent audit findings suggest broader citywide failure to coordinate or measure real outcomes.
Critics also say Dallas’ Housing First approach — which focuses heavily on immediate housing without mandates for treatment or accountability — has failed to deliver sustainable solutions. As previously reported by The Dallas Express, organizations like Refuge for Renewal are proposing a more holistic model, with centralized services and treatment-first sheltering inspired by San Antonio’s Haven for Hope.
The new audit lends weight to calls for reform. It paints a picture of a city spending tens of millions of dollars with no clear way of knowing if it’s working.
The Dallas Express reached out to the Office of Homeless Solutions and Housing Forward but did not receive a response by the time of publication.