Today, leaders from Sacramento County and the cities of Folsom and Sacramento, as well as the Continuum of Care gathered to strongly oppose Senate Bill 802 (Sacramento Area Housing and Homelessness Agency).
Elected leaders stood united against the prospect of mandatory state oversight and control, speaking out against the false assertion that there is no collaborative effort to address homelessness and affordable housing across Sacramento County jurisdictions.
While local leaders and staff support and currently engage in regional coordination and shared accountability, there are significant concerns about the impacts and unintended consequences of this proposal. SB 802 would significantly restructure and expand governance, complicating funding and program delivery in ways that may inadvertently disrupt the progress already underway in each community.
Every locally elected governing body in the County, including the Board of Supervisors, has invested substantial resources to expand shelter, build affordable housing and respond to homelessness. These programs are rooted in deep local knowledge and longstanding partnerships, the efficacy of which materialized with fewer Point-In-Time Count metrics.
Each local jurisdiction’s leadership has committed to county-wide collaboration and will continue to enhance these efforts. Discussions around shared governance and any associated decision-making, however, should be made transparently and with input from all stakeholders, with adequate time to assess the long-term implications.
“While we appreciate Senator Ashby’s shared concerns regarding affordable housing and more effectively serving our unhoused constituents, SB 802 is not the way to achieve the outcome we all desire,” said Chair of the Board and First District County Supervisor Phil Serna. “As-is, the bill is neither the product of collaboration with affected agencies, partner service providers, nor our nonprofit community. Furthermore, its current construct stands to actually put at risk our collective ability to better serve and shelter those we work to support.”
"We all support regional collaboration, but it must be balanced with local control," said City of Folsom Mayor Sarah Aquino. "This bill threatens to divert local resources and decision-making authority, effectively punishing cities like Folsom that are already delivering affordable housing projects and making strides in reducing homelessness."
“Regional coordination is paramount to addressing homelessness”, said Sacramento City Mayor Kevin McCarty. “Sacramento recognizes and is committed to collaborative solutions while respecting specific local knowledge established over years of work. Senate Bill 802 overreaches, placing housing and Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) dollars in SHRA's — renamed but not reimagined — hands without local input. We need to move away from SHRA's expensive model that helps too few for too high a cost. This bill is a step in the wrong direction.”