Newsom again urges cities to ban homeless camps

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday again urged California cities and counties to ban homeless encampments, increasing his pressure campaign on local governments to follow the state’s lead and remove tents from sidewalks and other public property.

“It is time to take back the streets,” Newsom said during a virtual press conference. “It’s time to take back the sidewalks. It’s time to take these encampments and provide alternatives and the state is giving you more resources than ever, and it’s time, I think, to just end the excuses.”

Homelessness is a challenging political issue in California driven largely by the high cost of living in the state, lack of affordable housing and a shortage of behavioral health and drug treatment opportunities. The lack of progress threatens to define the legacy of the state’s 40th governor, who repeatedly blames cities and counties for not doing more despite receiving billions in state funding.

Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks in October, as Mayor Karen Bass looks on, during a news conference to announce new state funding to confront the homelessness crisis in Los Angeles.

(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)

The Democratic governor released a model ordinance for local governments to adopt that his office described as a starting point before jurisdictions craft their own policies. Newsom’s plan asks locals to prohibit persistent camping in one location and encampments that block sidewalks. It also requires local officials to attempt to offer shelter before removing a temporary dwelling.

L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger celebrated the ordinance, saying it balanced public safety and compassion for homeless people.

“The model ordinance provides local governments with clear guidelines while emphasizing outreach and services. This is a practical step forward in helping communities responsibly manage encampments and connect people to the support they need,” Barger said.

The city of Los Angeles bars homeless encampments within 500 feet of schools and daycare centers, with citations possible for violations. It’s also illegal for unhoused Angelenos to refuse to clear space for wheelchairs or put up tents within five feet of a doorway.

Newsom coupled the announcement with the release Monday of $3.3 billion in funding from Proposition 1, approved by voters in 2024, for communities to expand behavioral health housing and treatment options for their mentally ill and homeless populations. The funding is not contingent on cities banning encampments.

Tents line a block of 7th Street in downtown Los Angeles.

(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)

The governor’s office said the funding adds to $27 billion the state has already given to local governments to address homelessness.

Advocates for the homeless repeatedly argue that the state does not have enough supportive housing and shelter beds to funnel those removed from tents and sidewalks into better conditions. The governor casts homelessness as a humanitarian crisis and a health and safety issue.

“I’m just not interested in this state continuing to fund programs that aren’t fundamentally addressing that issue,” Newsom said about homelessness money.

Last year Newsom issued an executive order requiring state agencies to remove homeless encampments on state property and similarly urged local governments to do the same.