This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

After a yearlong hiatus during the pandemic, thousands of volunteers will fan out across Los Angeles County this week to conduct the annual count of the region’s homeless population.

The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) canceled the event last year and then delayed it last month because of COVID-19 surges spawned by the Delta and Omicron variants.

Known as the “point-in-time” homeless count, the survey helps Los Angeles County determine where to distribute resources for homeless people and allocate state and federal funding.

This year’s count, which will take place over three days beginning Tuesday, is an especially important one for the county. It’s the first time volunteers will conduct the count electronically. It also coincides with an election year when homelessness and housing affordability have become pressing issues for voters, particularly those in the city of L.A. Millions of dollars in state and federal funding are also at stake.

Read the full story on LATimes.com.