The mayors of California’s 11 largest cities and a group of state lawmakers are pushing for $1.5 billion funding to address homelessness.
The homeless population in California increased to 134, 278 in 2017, according to statewide counts.
Earlier this month, the mayors sent a letter to legislative leaders encouraging them to set aside a portion of the $6.1 billion state budget surplus. Gov. Jerry Brown proposed setting aside $5 billion into the state’s Rainy Day Fund. He wanted California to prepare for the next recession.
On Thursday, the mayors and state lawmakers introduced AB-3171 Homeless Persons Services Block Grant. Assemblyman Phil Ting is the author of the legislation. His principal co-author is state Senator Ricardo Lara. Ting has more than 20 co-authors for the legislation.
Homelessness is a humanitarian, statewide crisis
In a statement, Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg said, “Homelessness is first and foremost a humanitarian crisis.” He added that cities cannot tackle the problem alone. Steinberg is leading the Big 11 mayors asking for assistance to alleviate the issue.
