By Gabby McIntyre
The city of San José is a hotspot for the unhoused in California and officials have been struggling to figure out a solution to the crisis. In January, San José Mayor Matt Mahan announced a permanent funding shift for the city with plans to release more information in later months. Now in March, new announcements and plans have been released. With Mahan and the city of San José shifting towards more short-term solutions to aid the unhoused, the new controversial program titled Homeward Bound has been proposed. Homeward Bound’s main purpose is to bus out homeless people to family and friends who are willing to take the person in.
While discussing the plans, Mayor Mahan stated, “…it’s the right program for anyone trying to get home, trying to restart their lives and reconnect with family or friends who are willing to help.” The plan will set aside $1000 per person for a bus or train ticket to anywhere as far as the East Coast. Homeward Bound will be run by San José’s contractors and outreach workers, using $200,000 of the city’s money. With no well-defined long-term goals, many have critiqued the city’s new plan. Many feel that this is a way of sending away homelessness instead of acting on changing it. A way to push homelessness down the list of situations San José needs to deal with. From 2022 to now, 1,159 people have used San Francisco’s relocation services according to the city’s Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing, information on where the people end up has not been released.
The program concerns a professor at UC Berkeley’s School of Social Welfare, Dr. Jamie Chang, due to a lack of data on where relocated individuals end up and evidence supporting the long-term effectiveness of the plan. “I think that while these programs might temporarily be effective at removing people from an area, without a system in place to ensure their success elsewhere, I’m skeptical about its overall efficacy,” said Dr. Chang. The program’s success will depend on the support a person receives after relocation according to Dr. Change.
References:
Geha, J. (2025, February 26). San José adopts controversial plan to bus homeless people out of the city. KQED. https://www.kqed.org/news/12028615/san-jose-adopts-controversial-plan-to-bus-homeless-people-out-of-the-city
Marzorati, G. (2025, February 10). San José mayor proposes permanent shift in homeless funding from housing to shelter.KQED. https://www.kqed.org/news/12026437/san-jose-mayor-proposes-permanent-shift-homeless-funding-from-housing-shelter
San Francisco Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing. (n.d.). Relocation assistance programs. SF.gov. https://www.sf.gov/data–relocation-assistance-programs