Gov. Newsom announces plan to invest $12 billion to tackle the homeless crisis in California
One of the goals would be to end family homelessness within five years by investing in homeless prevention and rental support.
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday proposed $12 billion in new funding to get more people experiencing homelessness in the state into housing and to "functionally end family homelessness" within five years.
The funding is part of Newsom's $100 billion California Comeback Plan, an economic recovery relief plan aimed at addressing five of the state's biggest challenges.
Newsom's plan was announced in a statement and he provided more details at a media event Tuesday morning in San Diego County. The first-term Democrat faces a recall election, mounted by Republicans and others unhappy with the way he has handled the pandemic, the economy and government.
Newsom said the proposal comes with "greater accountability and transparency measures" to make sure investments are put toward effective solutions to combat the homeless crisis.
The nation's most populous state has an estimated 161,000 people experiencing homelessness, which is more than any other state.
A new state database shows that nearly 250,000 people sought housing services from local housing officials in 2020. Of that number, 117,000 people are still waiting for help while nearly 92,000 people found housing.
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Newsom - a former mayor of San Francisco, where the homelessness is very visible - seized the twin crises of homelessness and affordable housing even before the pandemic started last year.
He launched projects "Roomkey" and "Homekey," using federal funding to house homeless residents in hotels and motels during the pandemic and helped cities, counties and other local entities buy and convert motels and other buildings into housing.
Newsom's new proposal includes $8.75 billion to expand on "Homekey" and to convert existing buildings into 46,000 units of housing. Newsom officials said $800 million spent on the program last year created 6,000 more housing units from motels, houses, dorms and other repurposed buildings, providing shelter for 8,200 people.
The average cost to convert a unit into housing for people experiencing homelessness was nearly $150,000, Newsom administration officials said at a recent briefing. They said that is much cheaper than building housing from scratch.
Local leaders have welcomed Newsom's focus on the problem. Big city California mayors are seeking $20 billion from the state over five years to address housing and homelessness.
Advocates for the homeless say there's simply not enough affordable housing to help people who slip into homelessness, which is why tent camps and sleeping bags still clutter highway ramps and city sidewalks.
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Newsom's proposal also includes $3.7 billion in efforts to prevent people from becoming homeless, including rental payment assistance to end family homelessness within five years, the statement from Newsom's administration said. It's not known how the administration will measure that.
The $100 billion spending proposal comes from an astounding $76 billion estimated state budget surplus and $27 billion in new funding from the federal government's latest coronavirus spending bill.
A February audit criticized the state for its fragmented approach to addressing homelessness, and urged the state to track spending and set statewide policy.
It identified at least nine state agencies that spent $13 billion on 41 programs to address homelessness without evidence to show what was effective.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
