California State Senate

Agenda

1. Agenda item 1

   Establishing a Statewide Framework to Address Unsheltered Homelessness, Strengthen Supportive Services, and Enhance Community Safety in California

   California has more people living on its streets than almost anywhere in the country. Most of them sleep outside, in tents, cars, and doorways, often in the shadow of some of the most expensive real estate in the world. The state has spent billions trying to fix this. The encampments are still there.

   Every city has its own answer. Some clear camps and enforce bans, especially since the Supreme Court gave them more room to do so in 2024. Others push for housing first and treatment before anything else. Residents want safer streets. Advocates warn that sweeps just move people from one block to the next. Mental health, addiction, and the cost of housing sit underneath all of it.

   Senators will have to build one statewide framework out of these competing ideas. They will need to decide who pays, who gets help first, and how far the state can go in balancing compassion with public safety.