Homelessness
The causes of homelessness are multi-faceted and require that multiple levels of support be made available.
Our region needs a comprehensive strategy as well as a commitment to, and regional collaboration on, a strategic homelessness plan. We support policies, partnerships, and funding to increase our stock of housing for low- and extremely-low-income individuals and families. We support enforcement policies for people who refuse shelter and to ensure that supportive services to address mental illness and drug dependency are not elective. Funding should support safe and structured short- and long-term interim solutions to the homelessness challenges that are having a negative impact on our entire community.
Enforcement, Services and Housing
We support aggressive action locally to secure funds for shelter and wraparound services as the first step to getting people experiencing homelessness back into our society, increased support for local behavioral health (i.e., mental health and substance abuse) services, and best practices advice to local jurisdictions to assist them in grappling with this challenge. This funding must be tied to data and to accountability, prioritizing programs that have demonstrated results, such as the “Be Well” center in Southern California. County funding should support proven local jurisdictional programs for shelter and prevention services.
Addressing unlawful behavior is not the criminalization of homelessness itself. We support law enforcement efforts to stop and prosecute property and violent crime and to stop risky health and safety conditions throughout the community including our homeless population. We support proposals for conservatorship reform and the institution of conservatorship programs so that those who are unable to make decisions for themselves due to behavioral health issues are provided care rather than left to live on the street.
Increased housing production is key in addressing the homelessness crisis, with an emphasis on building housing that is affordable for low-income residents. A comprehensive approach to increased housing options should include additional interim and long-term solutions such as tiny homes, sanctioned camp sites, RV and car parking locations. We encourage incentives, protecting dedicated local housing funds, and securing partnerships and initiatives to build or repurpose shelter for the unhoused with wraparound services.
While shelter is a critical foundation for services to be effective, the way that Housing First has been implemented, decoupling housing from services, ignores the root causes of homelessness. This has been expensive, ineffective, and is not setting up our community or our most vulnerable for success.
