Cities, counties come together to underscore the urgent need to find shared solutions to homelessness

Local governments took center stage last week in Sacramento. The League of California Cities' budget ask press conference and special joint convening with the California State Association of Counties drew the attention of Capitol insiders at Politico, CalMatters, Los Angeles Times, and The Sacramento Bee, as well as multiple regional outlets.  

Both events took place last week at the City Leaders Summit, which drew over 350 city officials from throughout the state. During the Summit, city officials met with over 50 legislators to discuss homelessness, affordable housing, unfunded mandates, and other city priorities.

On April 12, over 100 city officials gathered outside the Capitol to urge the state to invest $3 billion in ongoing funding to prevent and reduce homelessness and increase affordable housing.

The press conference coincided with the release of a survey on cities’ response to homelessness. The survey found that 84% of cities have implemented programs to prevent and reduce homelessness. Of the cities surveyed, nearly 90% have concerns about their ability to provide those programs long-term.

“We need help,” San Luis Obispo Mayor Erica Stewart said. “We believe every single person deserves housing. ... Look at everyone here. We are your partners, and we want to do this.”

Later that day, local government officials, state lawmakers, and federal officials gathered to discuss collective solutions for preventing and reducing homelessness.

“It is a new day in Sacramento, and it needs to be a new day in the state of California,” Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg said in his opening remarks.

Steinberg was joined by Sacramento County Supervisor Rich Desmond. The duo highlighted a new encampment engagement partnership between the city and the county. “We cannot do it alone and neither can the county,” Steinberg said. “It is only together that we can deliver what the people expect.”

Other counties and cities echoed the need for more funding and partnerships. “In most small rural cities, we don’t get funding, so our resources are stretched,” Grass Valley Mayor Jan Arbuckle said. “Small cities really need partnership.”

“There is no one government agency that can solve homelessness on its own,” San Diego County Supervisor Nora Vargas said. 

One-time funding gets one-time results 

State and federal officials also shared their perspectives on the ongoing homelessness crisis. Helene Schneider, a senior regional advisor for the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, spoke about the need to make systemic-level reform and invest in innovative partnerships. “It is time we stop blaming people and start blaming bad policy,” Schneider said.

Lourdes Castro Ramírez, who co-chairs the California Interagency Council on Homelessness, expressed optimism about the progress made thus far. “The results we are seeing on the ground are promising,” she said. “It’s important to take stock, so we build forward on what everyone is doing.” 

For their part, state lawmakers acknowledged the need for some sort of ongoing funding to help local governments better address homelessness. 

“With one-time funding we are only getting short-term results,” Asm. Luz Rivas said. “If homelessness is a top priority in California, then our budget needs to reflect that.”

“It shouldn’t take a disaster to get funding to build more affordable housing,” Asm. James Gallagher said, after advocating for streamlined funding. The sentiment was shared by Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones, who noted one of the best things the state can do is give cities money.

Speakers offered possible solutions, with many emphasizing the need to double down on partnerships of all sizes and existing social programs — even in the face of growing budget deficits. Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly Mitchell, a former state senator, noted that social programs are often the first on the chopping block when a budget shortfall arrives. 

“None of us can afford to take our foot off the accelerator,” she said. 

Speakers were also frank about the systemic challenges facing the state, counties, and cities. A lack of collaboration, accountability, and funding, combined with an excess of finger-pointing and in some cases, intentional systemic hurdles, means this crisis will not be resolved overnight.