By Gabby McIntyre
On Monday, February 24th, California Governor Newsom publicly announced that California is putting aside $920 million for the state’s homeless crisis and is pushing local governments to take more action to make progress toward aiding the unhoused. Newsom stated that if cities and counties did not progress in the homeless crisis and clearing out encampments, they would risk losing hundreds of millions of dollars in funding. “We’ve offered unprecedented support, and now we need to see unprecedented results,” said Newsom. In a few months, it will be a year since the US Supreme Court ruled that street camping can lead to fines and jail time in Grants Pass v. Johnson. Many unhoused are left struggling to find a camp space where they will not be fined since many cities face little shelter space. The decision has led many cities and countries across the United States to become stern with where the unhoused are permitted to camp.
Despite many believing that the law would make it difficult for people to access resources, Fremont, California issued a law making camping on public property illegal and aiding people in encampments. Also, during the summer of 2024, Newsom had ordered a call to remove all encampments from state property. That state plans to use an online database to allow citizens to track the progress of a city to hold cities accountable and to be stricter. California wants local governments to be aggressive in their approach to clearing encampments. If cities fail to show progress, they will face a finding being taken away. “I’m not inclined to fund another dollar of taxpayer money unless we have clawback provisions unless we see results,” Newsom said.
According to NPR, funding at the state level will become more important under the Trump administration. The administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) plans to target the Department of Housing and Urban Development resulting in department layoffs, budget cuts for programs, and a record-high amount of homelessness. With the potential of lacking national government aid, many local governments are faced with compliance to encampment sweeps and other measures to see results.
References:
City of Grants Pass v. Johnson, 603 U.S. 520 (2024). https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf/23-175_19m2.pdf
Ludden, J. (2025, February 24). Layoffs at federal housing agency HUD would worsen homelessness, employees say.NPR. https://www.npr.org/2025/02/24/nx-s1-5307130/layoffs-at-federal-housing-agency-hud-would-worsen-homelessness-employees-say
Office of Governor Gavin Newsom. (2025, February 24). Governor Newsom announces stronger accountability measures, launches new tool measuring local progress in tackling homelessness. State of California. https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/02/24/governor-newsom-announces-stronger-accountability-measures-launches-new-tool-measuring-local-progress-in-tackling-homelessness/