Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order Wednesday calling for state land, vacant state hospitals and travel trailers to be used to help with California’s homelessness crisis.
Newsom’s next state budget, to be announced tomorrow, has nearly $750 million (out of a total $1.4 billion in the proposal) earmarked for homelessness and behavioral and mental health, with an emphasis on rental assistance for those experiencing street homelessness. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development estimates almost 90,000 homeless Californians live unsheltered, according to Capital Public Radio. Newsom’s executive order seeks to temporarily convert vacant state properties like fairgrounds and Cal-Trans facilities into emergency shelters. Los Angeles and Sacramento Mayors Eric Garcetti and Darrell Steinberg are asking Newsom to commit hundreds of millions more to their respective homelessness efforts (Steinberg wants $500 million dollars to support the state’s ailing board and care homes).
Guests:
Marisa Lagos, correspondent for KQED’s California Politics and Government Desk and co-host of the weekly show and podcast, Political Breakdown; she tweets
Rev. Andy Bales, CEO of Union Rescue Mission; he tweets
Anya Lawler, Western Center on Law and Poverty Housing Policy Advocate, she’s a member of the state’s homelessness task force, which advises solutions to address the crisis; she tweets