Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has declined to testify before Congress next week about the city’s homelessness rate and her government’s actions to address the issue.

In a Sept. 4 letter, Bass’s legal counsel David Michaelson rejected an invitation from Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN), in his capacity as a member of the House oversight committee, to testify on Capitol Hill on Sept. 15. Michaelson said the Democratic mayor “is not available on that date.”

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