The Delta Veterans Group brings Contra Costa County (CCC) “Stand Down on the Delta” a Homeless Veterans’ “Hand Up” event every other year (2015, 2017, 2019….) DVG is proud to bring Stand Down on the Delta 2025, September 12-15, to the Contra Costa County Fairgrounds in Antioch.
This is a four-day event wherein U.S. military veterans receive services in Medical, Dental, Veterans Treatment Court, Housing, Job Placement, Mental Health and Drug and Alcohol Counseling.
To date the Stand Down on the Delta biennial event has helped thousands of veterans and their families, served thousands of meals, given away over 1,100 pairs of boots, over 1,500 sleeping bags, over 1,300 pairs of new jeans, $500,000 in dental care, taken over 200 veterans fishing on our Delta shores and helped many more find permanent housing.
We work with over 70 different organizations during our four day Stand Down on the Delta event. In September of 2019 over 850 Volunteers from around the State of California and even as far as South Carolina came to Antioch to help us provide these great services to our veterans.
About DVG
Delta Veterans Group is a 501(c)3 Veterans service non-profit that assists our Nation’s finest men and women with housing, employment, health, and education services. Founded in Contra Costa County in 2012 by Army veteran J.R. Wilson, DVG has now grown to provide services to surrounding Northern California areas including Alameda, Monterey, Napa, San Joaquin, San Francisco and Solano counties.
Will fund conversion of Comfort Inn to rehabilitation project
City commitment required for state funded operating subsidy
By Allen D. Payton
The Antioch City Council will hold another special meeting on Thursday, May 22, 2025. This one will be for discussing a financial commitment for the state’s Homekey+ Program to serve the city’s homeless residents. The matter is time sensitive as the State begins its Award Announcements this month. The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m.
NOFA means Notice of Funds Availability. Source: CA Dept of Housing and Community Development
According to the City staff report for the one-item agenda, “It is recommended that the City Council adopt a resolution approving the submission of an application with California Supportive Housing for the Homekey+ Program and designate City Manager to execute commitments for city capital match up to $750,000 and operating subsidy up to $1,200,000 annually for 5 years with two five year extensions contingent on the property meeting the required Homekey+ guidelines and affordable housing regulatory agreement and authorizing the City Manager or designee to execute the Agreement in a form approved by the City Attorney.”
Will Fund Conversion of Comfort Inn to Rehabilitation Project
“The City Staff is proposing a co-application with the Developer that seeks funding to acquire 2436 Mahogany Way (currently the Comfort Inn) in Antioch and undertake the rehabilitation necessary for the motel rooms to serve as permanent housing for homeless families/individuals with prior behavioral health issues.
“The CSH Mahagony Housing Project will be a rehabilitation project which will turn the current hotel into 60-85 affordable units and one two-bedroom manager unit. Each apartment will have a kitchenette, living room, bathroom, and bedroom. Non-residential conversion of the interior will include a community lounge, property management offices, resident supportive services and case management offices. One existing laundry room and the electrical room will maintain those functions, while rooms will be converted to resident services/case management and property management offices. It is also planned to keep the existing security fences, gates, and trash enclosure. Additional fencing will be added to property.
“Project Developer: California Supportive Housing (CSH) is the Project Developer. CSH is a mission-oriented 501 (c)(3) nonprofit California corporation dedicated to bringing affordable housing to people in need, including homeless, seniors, youth, people with disabilities, and families. The CSH team has over 35 years of experience in affordable housing development and is currently working on a HomeKey project in Oakland which is the conversion and renovation of a motel into 104 permanent supportive housing units for the homeless.”
About Homekey+ Program
According to the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), the state’s Homekey+ Program is funded by Proposition 1, which was “passed by California voters in March 2024…to reduce homelessness and protect our most vulnerable populations through important changes to the Mental Health Services Act and providing up to $6.4 billion in bond funding to develop and expand behavioral health treatment, residential care settings, and Permanent Supportive Housing.”
“Approximately $2 billion of the Proposition 1 bond funds will be administered by the…HCD, in collaboration with the California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) as the Homekey+ program (HK+), expanding upon the successful Homekey model. The remaining $4.4 billion of the Proposition 1 funding will be administered by the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) to award competitive grants to construct, acquire, and rehabilitate real estate assets or invest in needed infrastructure to expand the behavioral health continuum of treatment and service resources.”
By Contra Costa Health, Housing and Homeless Services
What is the Point in Time Count?
The Point-in-Time (PIT) Count provides a comprehensive snapshot of individuals experiencing homelessness—both sheltered and unsheltered—on a single night in late January. Mandated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), this annual count requires Continuums of Care to account for sheltered individuals who are in emergency shelters, transitional housing, and safe havens, as well as unsheltered individuals who live in places not meant for human habitation like cars, parks, sidewalks, and abandoned buildings.
As a result, the Continuum of Care (CoC) must submit PIT Count data to HUD. This data is collected across the country to estimate homelessness and provide information about the demographics of people experiencing homelessness.
This information is used to decide how much funding communities get to help with homelessness.
Source: CCC CoC
Data collected from the Point-in-Time Count helps identify
The causes of homelessness
Create better policies, programs and funding allocations
Track progress in reducing homelessness
What Am I Being Asked To Do?
Be part of a one-day, county-wide project to count unsheltered people in Contra Costa
Work in a pair [with someone you know or we can pair you with someone]
Either drive (if you have a car) or capture data on an iPhone-based app with someone else while they drive
Double-time pay for Antioch cops, Sycamore Drive land lease for possible police substation, potential upgrades to Amtrak Station to stave off closure
Fiscal Year ends with $3.5 million surplus, mainly due to vacant position savings, mostly in police dep’t
Will respond to Grand Jury report noncompliance letter
City awarded $6.8 million grant to clear homeless encampments
By Allen D. Payton
During tonight’s Antioch City Council meeting, on Tuesday, November 12, 2024, the mayor and two members who will no longer be on the council as of early December, will, along with the other two members, consider multiple items, including adding a second assistant city manager at a cost of over $425,000 per year, even though the current position is still vacant.
Under agenda item #’s 15 and 16, at the request of District 1 Councilwoman Tamisha Torres-Walker, the council will consider leasing the vacant property across from the Sycamore Square shopping center on the corner of Sycamore Road and L Street, and space in the center for a police substation, even though the Antioch Police Facility is just one mile away.
In addition, under agenda item #1, the council will consider upgrades to the Amtrak Station to avoid its decommissioning. According to the staff report, “the fiscal impact is unknown at this time until direction on this item is provided.”
Those are in spite of the fact the City is facing double-digit deficits over the next three years, and federal funding for a variety of current projects and programs, including the Opportunity Village, homeless hotel, runs out at the end of December. However, the council will receive good news in the form of a net surplus of $3.5 million for Fiscal Year 2023/24 that ended on June 30th which will reduce those future fiscal year deficits.
Budget Adjustments – Agenda Item #10
That good news comes in the form of the Fiscal Year 2023/24 Unaudited Closing Numbers. According to the staff report, “Fiscal Year 2023/24 closed on June 30, 2024. Revenues exceeded expenditures by $8,862,934, however, $5,358,842 of this ‘excess’ is from encumbrances and project budgets unspent as of June 30th being rolled over into FY25…for a realized net surplus of $3,504,092. This amount is being set aside in the Budget Stabilization Fund at June 30, 2024, leaving a General Fund reserve balance of $43,258,769 and a balance in the Budget Stabilization Fund of $41,131,470 as of June 30, 2024.”
The report also shows FY2024 Revenues were $2,371,877 higher than projected due mainly to $1.36M in additional interest income from the high interest rate environment of the City’s investment portfolio. Expenditures were $11,726,745 less than projected. Yet, a large amount was due to $4,866,210 in salary savings from all unfilled positions, of which $3,554,451 was in the police department due to its understaffing.
During discussion of item #10 entitled, “Appropriating Expenditures for Encumbrances and Project Budgets Outstanding to the 2024/25 Fiscal Year Budget and Approving Other Amendments to the 2024/25 Fiscal Year Budget” the new city manager is requesting a second assistant city manager. According to the city staff report for the item, “The estimated annual salary and benefit cost of the position at Step E is $425,494, with the budget impact and amendment required for 6 months of $212,747.”
The current assistant city manager position is vacant, as Parks and Recreation Director Brad Helfenberger is no longer serving as the Acting Assistant City Manager.
Response to Civil Grand Jury’s Noncompliance Letter – Agenda Item #2
In response to Mayor Lamar Hernandez-Thorpe’s letter dated Sept. 11, 2024, responding to the Civil Grand Jury’s investigation report issued earlier this year, entited, “Challenges Facing the City of Antioch”, the Grand Jury rejected the council’s response. In two letters dated Oct. 3, 2024, and received by the City on Oct. 7, Foreperson Ed Sarubbi wrote in the first, “The Grand Jury…finds that it does not comply with the requirements of Section 933.05 of the California Penal Code in the following respects: Response to Findings 6 and 13: A response of ‘The City disagrees with this finding requires an explanation.’ The Grand Jury requests that you resubmit your responses in its entirety within 10 days of the date of this letter, following the directions in the original letter of transmittal.”
Letters from the Contra Costa County Grand Jury to Antioch rejecting the council’s response to the investigation report issued in June. Source: City of Antioch
In the second letter, Sarubbi requested the same writing, “Response to Recommendations 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5: A response of ‘The City agrees with this recommendation’ is not a valid response.” He’s asking for the mayor to resubmit the council’s responses to those recommendations, also within 10 days.
The City is already out of compliance as a draft response letter was written and dated in October, but the council has yet to approve it, as the matter was not placed on the agenda until the Oct. 22nd meeting and then was continued to tonight’s meeting.
Double-Time Pay for Antioch Police Personnel in Violence Reduction Initiative – Agenda Item #11
After approving the Violence Reduction Initiative last month, allocating up to $500,000 for overtime pay and costs for the assistance of police and equipment from outside agencies, under item #11 the city council will consider adopting “a resolution authorizing the Chief of Police to pay double the standard hourly wage (“double-time”) to Antioch Police Department Sergeants, Corporals, Officers, Community Service Officers, and Dispatch personnel for working extra shifts in designated areas of the City to reduce violence.”
State Homeless Encampment Cleanout Grant – Agenda Item #12
More good news on the agenda includes the council considering adopting “a resolution accepting the Department of Housing and Community Development Division of Housing Policy Development (HCD) Encampment Resolution Funding (ERF)” Round 3 award in the amount of $6,812,686.
According to the city staff report for the item, #12, “The proposed project in Antioch aims to address a significant encampment located on wooded land near the intersection of Sunset Drive and Devpar Court. As one of the City’s two large encampments, it has been prioritized for resolution due to the vulnerability of its 30-40 residents and the hazardous conditions present at the site.”
City Attorney Oversight of City Clerk’s Office – Agenda Item #13
Under agenda item #13, outgoing City Clerk Ellie Householder is recommending that the city council adopt a resolution rescinding Resolution No. 2022/167, “Approving the City Clerk’s Request for the City Attorney to Provide Managerial Oversight of the City Clerk’s Department in Cooperation with the City Clerk” that had previously been approved.
Council Meeting Details
The meeting begins at 6:00 p.m. with a Closed Session on two lawsuits the City is facing, followed by the Regular meeting at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 200 H Street in historic, downtown Rivertown. The meeting can also be seen via livestream on the City’s website or viewed on either Comcast local cable channel 24 or AT&T U-verse channel 99. See the complete agenda packet.
Screenshot of Ron Bernal campaign’s homeless text received on Oct. 22, 2024. Photo source: Bernal campaign
County reports show 74.8% increase in Households Who Lost Their Housing, 81.1% increase in homelessness in Antioch
By Allen D. Payton
In a text for his campaign for Mayor of Antioch received on Tuesday, October 22, 2024, former city manager Ron Bernal is claiming, “Antioch’s Homelessness Crisis has increased 74% in the last four years!” The text message reads further, “This is Ron Bernal, candidate to be Antioch’s Next mayor and I have a plan to tackle this crisis!
As your next mayor, we will:
Expand mental health & addiction services
Partner with nonprofits & faith groups for real solutions
Build affordable, sustainable housing It’s time for change in Antioch!”
2022 and 2023 Contra Costa County Continuum of Care Homeless Report Housing Lost charts. Source: Contra Costa County
Antioch Households Who Lost Housing Increased 74.8% from 2022-23
To verify the accuracy of Bernal’s claims, a review of the reports by Contra Costa County Continuum of Care (CoC) and for the annual Point-In-Time homeless count was conducted. According to the 2022 CoC report 1,096 Antioch households lost their housing.
The 2023 CoC report shows 1,916 Antioch households lost their housing, a 74.8 percent increase over the previous year, supporting the first-time candidate’s claim.
2023 and 2024 charts of annual Point-In-Time Count of homeless residents. Source: Contra Costa County
Point-In-Time Counts Show 81.1% Increase in Antioch Homelessness
The County’s Point-In-Time (PIT) Count report for 2023 shows there were 334 homeless residents in Antioch compared to 228 in 2022, which was only a 40.3 percent increase. However, the 2024 PIT Count report shows there were 413 homeless residents in Antioch, a 23.7 percent increase over the previous year and an 81.1 percent increase since 2020 more than supporting Bernal’s campaign claim.
Bernal is challenging incumbent Lamar Hernandez-Thorpe who also face the third candidate in the race, Rakesh Christian who is running for the City’s top job for a second time.
Governor Newsom awards $130.7 million in Round 3 of program to help 18 California communities
Also creating a collaborative program between the state and targeted communities to streamline the cleanup of encampments
SACRAMENTO – Oct. 4, 2024 — Expanding the state’s unprecedented support for local communities to create new housing and address homelessness, Governor Newsom announced Friday, the state is awarding $130.7 million to 18 local governments to clear homeless encampments and provide shelter, care and support. The grants are from Round 3 of the Encampment Resolution Fund (ERF) awards from the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). The Governor also announced new accountability measures, requiring award recipients to adhere to all state housing and homeless laws — as well as remain in compliance with their Housing Elements — or risk losing funding and face other enforcement actions.
The Round 3 funds awarded Friday will go to 12 cities, four counties and two Continuums of Care (CoCs) and are intended to resolve critical encampment concerns and address the housing and health and safety needs of 3,364 people living in encampments, and permanently house 1,565 people.
Of the total amount, the City of Antioch will receive $6,812,686, the City of Richmond was awarded $9,336,746 and the County of Contra Costa was granted $5,708,516. Of the 18 agencies, Contra Costa County scored the highest followed by Richmond.
“We’re supporting local communities’ efforts to get people out of encampments and connected with care and housing across the state. It’s important and urgent work that requires everyone to do their part. The state has committed more than $27 billion to help local governments tackle the homelessness crisis — and we want to see $27 billion worth of results,” said Governor Newsom.
Source: CA Dept of HCD
$1 billion in funding to clear encampments
Governor Newsom has made unprecedented investments to address the housing and homelessness crises, with $40 billion invested to help communities create more housing and $27 billion provided to communities for homelessness. Today’s new grants are part of the state’s $1 billion Encampment Resolution Funds (ERF), which help communities address dangerous encampments and support people experiencing unsheltered homelessness.
So far, the program has invested $737 million for 109 projects or encampments across 21 counties, 41 cities and 5 CoCs to help 20,888 people throughout the state, helping 20,888 people transition out of homelessness.
“These grants will ensure local communities take a person-centered, trauma-informed approach as they help their most vulnerable residents transition to safe and stable housing,” said Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency Secretary Tomiquia Moss. “The Encampment Resolution Fund grants are infusing critical resources in communities up and down California so that unhoused Californians can access the essential housing and supportive services they need to achieve long-term stability.”
Source: Office of the CA Governor
Greater accountability
As a condition of receiving the funding, the awardees must agree to increased accountability and compliance measures. These new accountability measures build on the current requirements that all grantees adhere to state and federal laws, rules, and regulations related to construction, health and safety, labor, fair employment practices, environmental protection, equal opportunity, fair housing, and all other matters applicable and/or related to the ERF program.
The Governor’s new measures expressly require local governments to maintain a compliant housing element, as well as adhere to all planning, permitting, entitlement, fair housing, and homelessness laws.
Non-compliance with these measures may result in the state revoking and clawing back awarded funds in addition to potential enforcement actions by the state’s Housing Accountability Unit. This ensures that grant recipients remain accountable and protects state funding.
Source: Office of the CA Governor
Care, compassion, collaboration
Today’s announcement follows the Governor’s executive order urging local governments to adopt policies and plans consistent with the California Department of Transportation’s (CalTrans) existing encampment policy.
Prioritizing encampments that pose a threat to the life, health, and safety of the community, Caltrans provides advance notice of clearance and works with local service providers to support those experiencing homelessness at the encampment, and stores personal property collected at the site for at least 60 days.
Since July 2021, California has cleared more than 12,000 encampments and has removed 267,611 cubic yards of debris from encampments along the state right of way in preparation for Clean California projects.
Source: Office of the CA Governor
Delegated Maintenance Agreements
The Governor also announced today a new collaborative program that will help streamline the cleanup of encampments by establishing agreements between the state and targeted local communities. The agreements will remove jurisdictional boundaries and allow locals to address encampments on state property and receive reimbursement for their efforts.
Below are the other 10 cities, three counties and two Continuums of Care awarded Round 3 ERF grants:
City of Berkeley – $5,395,637
City of Carlsbad – $2,994,225
City of Los Angeles – $11,351,281
City of Palm Springs – $5,106,731
City of Petaluma – $8,098,978
City of Redlands — $5,341,800
City of Sacramento — 18,199,661
City of San Jose —- $4,821,083
City of Victorville — $6,365,070
City of Visalia —- $3,000,000
County of Riverside — $12,612,779
County of San Bernardino — $11,000,000
City and County of San Francisco – $7,975,486
Humboldt County — Continuum of Care – $3,784,294
Pasadena – Continuum of Care – $2,772,801
“Our team is energized by this opportunity to help bring people-centered, Housing First solutions to Californians who are unsheltered throughout the state,” said Gustavo Velasquez, Director of the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), which has administered ERF since the start of the 2024-25 fiscal year. “Combined with the investments in permanent supportive housing made possible by voter approval of Proposition 1, the state has unprecedented momentum to make monumental progress on a crisis of homelessness that has been growing for decades.”
The awards announced Friday utilize all remaining FY 2023-24 ERF funds. An additional appropriation of $150 million in the FY 2024-25 State Budget allowed HCD to award all eligible ERF Round 3, Window 2 applicants. The budget also included $100 million in ERF funds for FY 2025-26, bringing to $1 billion this investment to address encampments through proven housing solutions.
Each agency was required to apply for the ERF program.
The grants will provide stable, safe housing for individuals living in encampments in their respective communities. The awarded proposals will assist individuals living in encampments with compassion and dignity by providing a range of housing solutions: permanent housing; interim housing for individuals seeking coordinated entry system resources or housing vouchers; housing navigation services and rapid rehousing subsidies; support for accessing permanent housing by providing security deposits and other moving expenses; and allowing awardees to acquire property for housing.
Pablo Espinoza, Deputy Director of Communications, CA Department of HCD Mediaand Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.
A state worker cleans out an encampment under a freeway overpass. Gov. Gavin Newsom contributes to the effort following the announcement of his executive order on Thursday, July 25, 2024. Video screenshots. Source: Office of the CA Governor
Following U.S. Supreme Court ruling
Encourages local governments to adopt similar policies
“We’re done. It’s time we move with urgency at the local level to clean up these sites. This executive order is about…getting the sense of urgency that’s required of local government to do their job.” – Gov. Newsom
What you need to know: Governor Newsom today issued an executive order directing state agencies to urgently address homeless encampments while respecting the dignity and safety of Californians experiencing homelessness. The Governor’s order, which follows the Supreme Court’s decision in Grants Pass, also urges local governments to use substantial funding provided by the state to take similar action.
SACRAMENTO, CA — Building on California’s ongoing work and unprecedented investments to address the decades-long issue of homelessness, Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order today ordering state agencies and departments to adopt clear policies that urgently address homeless encampments while respecting the dignity and well-being of all Californians.
With the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in Grants Pass v Johnson, local governments now have the tools and authority to address dangerous encampments and help provide those residing in encampments with the resources they need.
“This executive order directs state agencies to move urgently to address dangerous encampments while supporting and assisting the individuals living in them — and provides guidance for cities and counties to do the same. The state has been hard at work to address this crisis on our streets. There are simply no more excuses. It’s time for everyone to do their part.” said Newsom. “We’re done. It’s time we move with urgency at the local level to clean up these sites. This executive order is about…getting the sense of urgency that’s required of local government to do their job.”
The governor’s executive order directs state agencies and departments to adopt humane and dignified policies to urgently address encampments on state property, including by taking necessary and deliberate steps to notify and support the people inhabiting the encampment prior to removal.
Governor Newsom has made record-level investments to address the housing crisis, investing over $24 billion across multiple state agencies and departments, including billions of dollars in funding to assist local jurisdictions in providing services and wrap-around support to people living in encampments. In Fiscal Year 2022-2023, these investments helped lift more than 165,000 people out of homelessness and into interim or permanent housing.
California blueprint
Governor Newsom’s order directs state agencies and departments to adopt policies and plans consistent with the California Department of Transportation’s (Caltrans) existing encampment policy. Since July 2021, California has resolved more than 11,000 encampments, and has removed 248,275 cubic yards of debris from encampments along the state right of way in preparation for Clean California projects. Prioritizing encampments that pose a threat to the life, health, and safety of the community, Caltrans provides advance notice of clearance and works with local service providers to support those experiencing homelessness at the encampment, and stores personal property collected at the site for at least 60 days.
The order encourages local governments to emulate the state’s successful model to adopt local policies and to use all available resources, including those provided by the state’s historic investments in housing and intervention programs, to address encampments within their jurisdictions.
Proposition 1 funding available for local governments
Governor Newsom also encourages local governments to apply for the newly available $3.3 billion in competitive grant funding from Proposition 1 to expand the behavioral health continuum and provide appropriate care to individuals experiencing mental health conditions and substance use disorders — with a particular focus on people who are most seriously ill, vulnerable, or homeless.
Proposition 1 includes two parts: a $6.4 billion Behavioral Health Bond for treatment settings and housing with services, and historic reform of the Behavioral Health Services Act (BHSA) to focus on people with the most serious illnesses, substance disorders, and housing needs. The state also recently released the Proposition 1 Behavioral Health Services Act: Housing Supports Primer (July 2024) for counties, which explains how to spend the projected $950 million annual BHSA revenue on housing interventions.
Unprecedented investments to support communities
Governor Newsom is tackling California’s homelessness crisis head-on. Since he took office, the state has developed a Statewide Action Plan for Preventing and Ending Homelessness and the Governor has demanded unprecedented accountability from local governments to do their part to end the homelessness crisis through regionally coordinated action plans. The Governor has also pioneered nation-leading homeless and housing reforms and invested more than $24 billion to address this crisis with state and local support, including $4.85 billion for Homeless, Housing Assistance and Prevention Grants for local jurisdictions to prevent and reduce homelessness, $1 billion in Encampment Resolution Funding to assist local jurisdictions in providing services and supports to people living in encampments, and $3.3 billion for Homekey to rapidly expand housing for persons experiencing homelessness.
WHEREAS California is experiencing a homelessness crisis decades in the making, with over 180,000 people estimated to have experienced homelessness on any given night in 2023, including 123,000 people who experienced unsheltered homelessness, living in tents, trailers, and vehicles across the state; and WHEREAS within the first year of my Administration I fast-tracked the development of shelter through Executive Order N-23-20, which directed departments to assess and facilitate the use of available state land and resources for short-term emergency homeless shelters; and WHEREAS since the beginning of my Administration, the State has made unprecedented investments to address the homelessness crisis head on, investing more than $24 billion across multiple state agencies and departments, including $4.85 billion in flexible funding to local jurisdictions to prevent and reduce homelessness through Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention grants, $1 billion in Encampment Resolution Funding to assist local jurisdictions in providing services and supports to people living in encampments, and $3.3 billion to rapidly expand housing for persons experiencing homelessness through Homekey; and
WHEREAS the State has redoubled its commitment to holding local jurisdictions accountable to reduce homelessness, including by strengthening and enforcing requirements that local jurisdictions plan for their fair share of housing and by conditioning state homelessness funding on rigorous reporting and measurable performance metrics; and
WHEREAS it is imperative to act with urgency to address dangerous encampments, which subject unsheltered individuals living in them to extreme weather, fires, predatory and criminal activity, and widespread substance use, harming their health, safety, and well-being, and which also threaten the safety and viability of nearby businesses and neighborhoods and undermine the cleanliness and usability of parks, water supplies, and other public resources; and
WHEREAS while every jurisdiction must do more to address encampments, state and local agencies taking proactive steps to remove encampments have been stymied in those efforts by lawsuits and injunctions, leaving officials without the tools or guidance necessary to address the crisis on their streets; and
WHEREAS in September 2023, I called on the United States Supreme Court to grant review in City of Grants Pass v. Johnson to clarify that state and local officials can take reasonable actions to resolve encampments while respecting the humanity of all Californians; and
WHEREAS in June 2024 the Supreme Court overturned Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals precedent that restricted the government’s authority to enforce laws regulating encampments, recognizing that jurisdictions may tailor their enforcement practices to reflect policy-driven approaches to addressing homelessness; and
WHEREAS with the threat of these types of injunctions removed, there is no longer any barrier to local governments utilizing the substantial resources provided by the State, in tandem with federal and local resources, to address encampments with both urgency and humanity, or excuse for not doing so; and WHEREAS guidelines that prioritize offers of shelter and services as a first step to resolving any encampment best respect the dignity of every Californian and provide meaningful paths to ending homelessness; and
WHEREAS the California Interagency Council on Homelessness leads California’s efforts to prevent and end homelessness; and
WHEREAS the California Department of Transportation maintains a policy directive that prioritizes removal of encampments that pose threats to life, health, and safety, while partnering with local governments and nonprofit providers to facilitate offers of shelter and supportive services in advance of a removal; and WHEREAS the California Department of Transportation has, since July 2021, removed 11,188 encampments and 248,275 cubic yards of debris from these encampments along the state rights of way.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GAVIN NEWSOM, Governor of the State of California, in accordance with the authority vested in me by the State Constitution and statutes of the State of California, do hereby issue the following Order to become effective immediately:
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT:
1) Agencies and departments subject to my authority shall adopt policies, generally consistent with California Department of Transportation’s Maintenance Policy Directive 1001-R1, to address encampments on state property, including through partnerships with other state and local agencies, and shall prioritize efforts to address encampments consistent with such policy. Such policies shall include the following:
a. Whenever feasible, site assessment in advance of removal operations to determine whether an encampment poses an imminent threat to life, health, safety or infrastructure such that exigent circumstances require immediate removal of the encampment.
b. Where exigent circumstances exist, as much advance notice to vacate as reasonable under the circumstances.
c. Where no exigent circumstances exist, posting of a notice to vacate at the site at least 48 hours prior to initiating removal
d. Contacting of service providers to request outreach services for persons experiencing homelessness at the encampment.
e. Collection, labeling, and storage for at least 60 days of personal property collected at the removal site that is not a health or safety hazard.
2) All departments and agencies not under my authority are requested to adopt policies consistent with the guidelines in Paragraph 1.
3) Local governments are encouraged to adopt policies consistent with this Order and to use all available resources and infrastructure, including resources provided by the State’s historic investments in housing and intervention programs where appropriate and available, to take action with the urgency this crisis demands to humanely remove encampments from public spaces, prioritizing those encampments that most threaten the life, health, and safety of those in and around them.
4) The California Interagency Council on Homelessness shall develop guidance and provide technical assistance consistent with this Order for local governments to follow in implementing their local homelessness programs.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that, as soon as hereafter possible, this Order be filed in the Office of the Secretary of State and that widespread publicity and notice be given of this Order. This Order is not intended to, and does not, create any rights or benefits, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity, against the State of California, its agencies, departments, entities, officers, employees, or any other person.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of California to be affixed this 25th day of July.
First-of-its-kind measure to help build and preserve more than 70,000 homes
Contra Costa County would receive $1.9 billion
By John Goodwin, Assistant Director of Communications & Rebecca Long, Director, Legislation & Public Affairs, Metropolitan Transportation Commission
The Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA) on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, adopted a resolution to place a general obligation bond measure on the November 5 general election ballot in each of the nine Bay Area counties to raise and distribute $20 billion for the production of new affordable housing and the preservation of existing affordable housing throughout the region. BAHFA is jointly governed by the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG)’s Executive Board and by the BAHFA Board, which is comprised of the same membership as the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC).
The bond could create 72,000 new affordable homes – more than double what would be possible without a bond. Without more funding, only about 71,000 affordable homes will be built or preserved in the Bay Area over the next 15 years – a status quo that is failing to meet the needs of the people who live and work here.
Currently, the Bay Area doesn’t have enough homes for the people who live here. As a result of the region’s housing shortage:
In 2022, 37,000 people were unhoused in the Bay Area.
1.4 million people—23% of Bay Area renters—spend over half their income on rent.
High rents and home prices force people to live far from work, making congestion and pollution much worse, and putting a major strain on working families.
Too many Bay Area residents live in overcrowded and unsafe housing.
Vital employees and community members are leaving the area.
Wednesday’s unanimous vote by the BAHFA Board marks the final discretionary step in the process to place the measure on the November ballot. Under state law, each Bay Area county will now take a non-discretionary, ministerial vote to place the measure on the ballot in that county, in accordance with election deadlines.
The BAHFA bond measure currently would require approval by at least two-thirds of voters to pass. Voters throughout California this November will consider Assembly Constitutional Amendment 1 (ACA 1) — which would set the voter threshold at 55 percent for voter approval of bond measures for affordable housing and infrastructure. If a majority of California voters support ACA 1, the 55 percent threshold will apply to the BAHFA bond measure.
“Today’s vote is the culmination of so many years of effort by so many people all around our region,” observed BAHFA Chair and Napa County Supervisor Alfredo Pedroza. “The Bay Area’s longstanding housing affordability problems affect all of us, our friends, our neighbors and our family members. This vote is about preserving opportunity for everyone.”
Source: BAHFA
The proposed BAHFA bond measure calls for 80 percent of the funds to go directly to the nine Bay Area counties (and to the cities of San Jose, Oakland, Santa Rosa and Napa, each of which carries more than 30 percent of their county’s low-income housing need), in proportion to each county’s tax contribution to the bond. In consultation with its cities and towns, each county would determine how to distribute bond funds to best meet its jurisdictions’ most pressing housing needs. These distributions would include:
Contra Costa County: $1.9 billion
Alameda County: $2 billion
Marin County: $699 million
Napa County: $118 million
San Francisco County: $2.4 billion
San Mateo County: $2.1 billion
Santa Clara County: $2.4 billion
Solano County: $489 million
Sonoma County: $553 million
City of Napa: $246 million
City of Oakland: $765 million
City of San Jose: $2.1 billion
City of Santa Rosa: $242 million
The remaining 20 percent, or $4 billion, would be used by BAHFA to establish a new regional program to fund affordable housing construction and preservation projects throughout the Bay Area. Most of this money (at least 52 percent) must be spent on new construction of affordable homes, but every city and county receiving a bond allocation must also spend at least 15 percent of the funds to preserve existing affordable housing. Almost one-third of funds may be used for the production or preservation of affordable housing, or for housing-related uses such as infrastructure needed to support new housing.
Source: BAHFA
The California Constitution currently does not allow bond funds to be used for tenant protections such as rental assistance, but planned investments in new housing and affordable housing preservation will protect tens of thousands of low-income renters and vulnerable residents.
The BAHFA Board also adopted, on Wednesday, resolutions approving the Authority’s Business Plan and its Regional Expenditure Plan, which explain the prioritization for use of the funds that would be directly administered by BAHFA.
Oversight and accountability provisions to be included in the BAHFA bond measure include the creation of a special bond proceeds account; establishment of a Citizens’ Oversight Committee that would review the expenditure of bond proceeds and report to the BAHFA and ABAG Executive Boards on whether the funds were spent appropriately; an independent annual performance audit; a requirement that all bond-projects be consistent with state laws on labor standards; a requirement that administrative costs not exceed the amount prescribed in state law; and a prohibition against any public official who voted to send the ballot measure to the voters bidding on any work funded with proceeds from the bond.
The ABAG Executive Board voted unanimously at its April meeting to adopt a resolution approving BAHFA’s Business Plan and its Expenditure Plan, as well as to endorse placement of the bond measure on the November ballot. In her remarks preceding the vote, ABAG President and Napa County Supervisor Belia Ramos noted, “This is a remarkable milestone moment for our region. Housing stability is essential for our community to thrive, and this proposal is a once-in-a-generation opportunity.”
