Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a $12 billion funding package for housing and homelessness Monday, the largest such investment in sheltering and supporting homeless residents in the state’s history.
The funding, which will be used over the next two years, will support efforts across the state to spur housing construction and the expansion of mental health services at the local level.
The state will use $5.8 billion of the funding to convert more than 42,000 hotel and motel rooms into housing units specifically for homeless residents and people struggling with severe mental health conditions.
The state launched the hotel room conversion program, known as Homekey, last year in a partnership with the federal government that enabled the state to reimburse the costs of acquiring hotel and motel properties.
Speaking at a Homekey site in Sebastopol, Newsom acknowledged that the state’s strategies in recent years to help homeless residents get off the streets have been failures.
“The state of California, with all due respect, has been nowhere to be found on the issue of homelessness for far too long,” he said.
Sonoma County Supervisor James Gore said state and local governments have played “whack-a-mole” with homelessness over the last three decades with little to show for it.
“We have never encountered such an issue as homelessness, where everybody wants it fixed but nobody wants to be inconvenienced by the solution,” he said.
In addition to the $12 billion funding package for homelessness, the state also plans to spend $10.3 billion on developing affordable housing units.
Newsom argued that the state plans to be more proactive in tying funding to whether local governments are actively housing homeless residents rather than simply throwing money at the problem.
“There’s six metrics that counties have to meet, and if you meet them we’re actually attaching bonuses, an 18-percent bonus opportunity, for actually delivering on the plan,” he said. “No plan, no money.”
Roughly $2 billion of the funding package will be paid to local governments through Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention grants, which have specific accountability measures that grant recipients must meet.
Since being elected in 2018, Newsom has frequently reiterated his intent to spur more housing development and, in turn, help homeless residents get off the streets.
Last year, just a month before the state shut down in March due to the pandemic, Newsom even went so far as to devote his entire State of the State address to issues of housing and homelessness.
In that time, however, the state’s revenue used to tackle issues like homelessness has fluctuated wildly, from a projected $54.3 billion deficit last spring to a surplus of nearly $80 billion earlier this year.
But while the funding package Newsom approved Monday is only a one-time expenditure, the governor said he plans to forge ahead with spending on housing and homelessness in future years.
“So long as I’m governor of California, that’s not going to be an issue,” he said.
40 comments
The Dude is out of control.
I guess everyone will be happy with $10 / gallon gasoline and $25,000 / yr property taxes.
Can’t wait to Vote this Tool out in September.
+1
Well that’s more expensive than a tent in the desert. The next thing it will do is draw the homeless from all over the country. You would think we wouldn’t want that to happen. Oh well. !!!
Wow laying it on thick green hat a sleeze
So now tax payers are buying hotels to support bums
Only in several years they state will sell those and split the profit amongst themselves
Effectively money laundering our tax money
Can’t make this up
You voted for the newscum
The Putin of komifornia
I didn’t vote for Newsom. I voted for Cox and you should, too. Cox garnered 30% of the vote against Newsom in the last gubernatorial election, and that was before we discovered that Newsom is a weak and needy dictatorial autocrat. We are gifted with a “do over” in this recall vote, and the opportunity to get it right this time.
what a crock….his last ditch effort to save his job.
,,,, +1 this and his new guaranteed income plan of giving away our tax $ …. put it to the voters and I bet it’s voted down … would he? noooooooo he’s gotta go
Is it a coincidence that this is happening at the exact time that the Newsom workers are in a big push to get the homeless people to vote?
Throwing good money after bad is no solution.
I wonder what $12 Billion would do if it were put toward mental health facilities?
It’s a bandage on an open wound and housing may help a few.
But homing the homeless is a bottomless pit of a money hole.
A real representative of the people would do things a lot better.
Cure the cause.
The recall is meaningless.
The grease ball has dominion computers in his pocket.
That 12B would do much better good back in the pockets of taxpayers. Anything else is flushing it down the toilet that is now CA.
“The grease ball has dominion computers in his pocket.”
It’s how Newsom won and Trump lost California.
The dominion computers are ready and waiting to re-elect Newsom.
Your vote means nothing.
What a joke.. now he’s trying to make people think he’s a good person by doing this.. smh. He’s trying too hard. Just stop buddy.
Please inform Gov. Newsom that homeless people don’t pay taxes.
But they vote… unfortunately. All the filth votes to take our money. An somehow, even though the filth doesn’t pay into the system, they get the same vote as the rest of us. And they keep voting to steal our hard-earned money.
“The state of California, with all due respect, has been nowhere to be found on the issue of homelessness for far too long,” Hmm, . . . ?
Before newsom became governor in 2019,
he was Lieutenant Governor from 2011 – 2019.
What was his record on homelessness from 2011 – 2019 ?
“… the governor said he plans to forge ahead with spending on housing and homelessness in future years.
“So long as I’m governor of California, that’s not going to be an issue,” he said.”
newsom was in SF a member of SF Board of Supervisors, 1997 – 2004.
In 2004 he became mayor and June 30, 2004 he gave a press conference promising, in ten years the worst of San Francisco’s homeless problem would be gone.
Timing on this ? ? ? Is it the recall, or Venice Beach homeless press coverage, or (add your own here)
Throwing money at the problem will solve nothing. Homelessness will never end until it becomes illegal to be homeless and a drain on society. Force people into treatment programs for mentally ill and addiction. Train individuals with skills so they can be employed and be self sufficient. But I realize this realistic approach is abhorrent to liberals.
But how would the liberals get their kickbacks and keep skimming off the top????
It’s just another Democrat stunt that helps himself from the shame that California stands for. Homelessness is a big problem and he’s trying to strengthen his political self and make us believe that his policies are true. We are at a very SAD TIME. Things are going to get worse. I just don’t want to be here when the missiles fly.
Can’t give away that borrowed Communist China money fast enough.
And this is why I cheat on my taxes…
I don’t support this crap at all..
…. why not put the $12B into new rain water retention facilities and desalination plants? nooooooo 🙁
This will change nothing! As a matter of fact, if we look at previous history, more money and government intervention will only make the problem worse! This state is so screwed lol!
“The state will use $5.8 billion of the funding to convert more than 42,000 hotel and motel rooms into housing units specifically for homeless residents and people struggling with severe mental health conditions”
If he keeps them locked in there it’s a deal.
It will be like The Grapes Of Wrath.
Hobos will swarm California once again…
“Wait til I get to Californi I’m gonna light up and smoke me a doobie whenever I want it….. with some wine too. Now there’s somethin’ I ain’t never had enough of”
In the meantime, the California democrat government officials do absolutely nothing for middle class, tax paying, financially responsible, and honest law abiding citizens. Over time, I’ve written emails to the democrat so-called county and state representatives voicing my concerns. I never once even gotten a confirmation that they received my message. It shows what they really care about is criminals, bums, people in the state illegally and lifetime welfare recipients. They view taxpayers only as a resource to found their career promoting personal agendas.
At what point in life do you make the decision, I’ve grown up in this state, now, I must completely break it and make it the worst state in America on every account? This will be an awesome legacy I must achieve. Newscum is just a sad person. His wife and kids must be sooo proud.
I used to think he was simply disconnected and arrogant. Now its clear, he truly is a dipsh**. And for that, there is no cure. Perhaps someone held him underwater, or dropped him on his head as a child.
Recall Newsom before he does further damage. Even if he is successful in disqualifying Larry Elder, vote Newsom out.
On today’s episode of Gavin ‘Make it Rain’ Newsom…
It was nice having 4-5 star hotels here while it lasted. Good bye to all the fine hotels and good bye to those tourists who will decide not to come due to that all the hotels will be taken over by homeless. Newsom is a joke! He’s got to go!
And the plan to not make this another CA money pit is ?????
Fiscally illiterate politicians at work!
“people struggling with severe mental health conditions”
Hmm, free range housing or housing with lock down and care? No brainer.
Fix the pot holes – hire the homeless to do it.
C’mon liberals…. Aren’t you gonna defend YOUR governor slickback?
Didn’t think so…. But you’ll still vote against the recall; and that’s saying plenty about YOU.
The world’s 5th largest economy is gonna go bankrupt, as the conservatives leave the state…
Hahaha!
“In addition to the $12 billion funding package for homelessness, the state also plans to spend $10.3 billion on developing affordable housing units”
They’d better add a few billion more for extended trash pick ups & janitorial crews…… they’re gonna need ’em.
Of the $12,000,000,000 DOLLARS in this bribe, $11,500,000,000 will go to salary, benefits and the astronomically generous retirements for the mandarins hired to “help” the homeless.
Nice racket you have there, Mister French Laundry.
Vote John Cox in September!
Vote Larry Elder for Governor
Why is it up to the tax payers to find this? Homeless people are being rewarded for their inability to make good decisions. The tax payer, who at the minimum does what they need to and contributes their share to the state and federal government, os being punished. This is just political theatre, the majority of homeless people are willing alcoholics and drug addicts. They chose their lifestyle.
The Homeless Industrial Complex is what I will steer my children into for employment opportunities. If you want to get wealthy but aren’t too bright, go into this field by either working for or starting your own “Non-profit” in the Homeless Industrial Complex.” The gift that keeps on giving!
California has become a failed state During Newsom’s tenure as Governor…
A quote from Stalin ” It doesn’t matter who votes, what matters is who counts the votes.”
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