Who’s responsible for the homeless?

From: POLITICO California Playbook - Wednesday Apr 12,2023 01:25 pm

Apr 12, 2023

By Lara Korte, Jeremy B. White, Ramon Castanos and Matthew Brown

THE BUZZ: It’s the crisis in nearly every district, and the biggest problem facing the state.

But California officials often struggle over who is responsible for the state’s 170,000 homeless residents, many of whom spend the night on sidewalks, in tents, and under overpasses.

Today, local government officials are gathering in downtown Sacramento for the first joint summit between the California State Association of Counties and the League of California Cities to discuss creating a comprehensive plan for tackling homelessness.

It may seem like a simple start to a gnarled and nuanced issue, but it gets at one of the key problems of the crisis — on the local level, who is in charge of what?

That question has, in the past, put cities and counties at odds. The two government entities provide different services to the same homeless population, like housing and medical treatment, but often don’t work in perfect harmony, creating a patchwork of services that frequently sees people falling through the cracks.

That system isn’t working for local leaders, who are under increasing pressure to make progress. Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Legislature are funneling billions of dollars to cities and counties in hopes of curbing the crisis, and the governor has made it clear that he wants to see a return on that investment — fast. As a result, local leaders are getting more aggressive when it comes to clearing encampments. After a court battle, Oakland this week began removing the last residents of a sprawling homeless community that has long been a source of public outrage and political fighting.

The relationship between counties and cities on this front can be tricky, but some are trying to make it work. After months of negotiations last year, Sacramento County and City officials signed onto a five-year joint agreement that lays out the roles and responsibilities for both sides.

CSAC last month debuted a new plan, AT HOME, with a similar goal of getting everyone on the same page. A comprehensive plan with clear roles for every level of government is critical for solving the problem, CSAC argues.

And of course, it always comes back to money.

Cal Cities argue that the billions of dollars in state grants are helpful, but not sustainable. Ahead of the summit today, the organization is hosting a rally at the Capitol, calling for an ongoing source of funding to the tune of $3 billion a year.

“This is not a one-time problem,” said Carolyn Coleman, executive director and CEO of Cal Cities. “This is decades in the making, and the solutions that we move forward with must be commensurate with that and must be long-term and sustainable in nature.”

BUENOS DÍAS, good Wednesday morning. You thought we were done talking about Big Oil? Think again. Senate Bill 252 would require the state’s massive pension funds, CalPERS and CalSTRS to divest from fossil fuels. The bill, authored by Sens. Lena Gonzalez, Henry Stern and Scott Wiener, will be heard in the Labor, Public Employment and Retirement committee this morning. A similar bill passed the Senate last year, but didn’t make it out of the Assembly.

Got a tip or story idea for California Playbook? Hit us up at jwhite@politico.com and lkorte@politico.com or follow us on Twitter @JeremyBWhite and @Lara_Korte.

WHERE’S GAVIN? Returning from personal travel.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: "You have a very ambitious guy in California. But he’s done a terrible job with the state. I used to get along great with him, you know, when I was president. Got along really good, Gavin." Former President Donald Trump talking to FOX's Tucker Carlson about his relationship with the governor during his tenure in the White House.

TWEET OF THE DAY:

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MAYORS CLUB — America’s mayors are on the frontlines of crises hitting cities across the country, finding themselves consumed with fighting drug epidemics, homelessness and the devastating effects of climate change.

Yet mayors aren’t often heard from on the national stage. Until now.

POLITICO today is launching the Mayors Club, a first-of-its-kind roundtable of 50 mayors, one from each state. We convened these mayors to tell us how they’re tackling the issues their own voters are demanding action on – and what they want from state and national leaders.

To kick it off, San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria spoke to POLITICO about what keeps him up at night. Read his and other mayors’ answers here.

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TOP TALKERS

— Biden admin sidesteps painful decisions for Colorado River cuts by POLITICO’S Annie Snider: The Biden administration declined to take a side Tuesday on whether California or Arizona should bear the brunt of potential cuts in water deliveries from the drought-shrunken Colorado River.

The Interior Department plan lays out three options and a final report is expected this summer. But the Biden administration may have already reached a conclusion per The New York Times. The NYT quoted Deputy Secretary Tommy Beaudreau as saying he was “pretty comfortable” that allocating the cuts evenly would meet administration goals.

— “California approved $300 million in state-backed home loans. Who got the money?,” by CalMatters’ Alejandro Lazo and Ben Christopher: “The fact that the program ran out of cash in a two week spree speaks to just how voracious demand is for housing in California. It also suggests that some of the people who made use of the program were already well into the house hunting process.”

— “Could California decide control of Congress? A Democratic super PAC plans to spend $35 million in the state,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Seema Mehta: “Wasserman said Democrats’ strategic decisions have historically teetered between the need to win House seats in states like California and the cost of campaigning in areas with such expensive media markets.”

CAMPAIGN MODE

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — BIG McBUCKS: The fast food fight continues in California. McDonalds is putting up $1 million in an independent expenditure committee, POLITICO has learned, to defend the “franchise business model,” which it says is under attack in California.

Chief among the offenders for the fast food giant is Assembly Bill 1228 by Chris Holden, which would make corporations liable for legal violations committed in individual franchises. That was a provision stripped out of last year’s AB 257, the FAST Act, which McDonalds is also challenging in a referendum process. McDonalds joins dozens of other corporations in opposing the bill, which will be heard this afternoon in the Labor and Employment Committee.

ROUDA STEPS BACK — Former Rep. Harley Rouda suspended his 2024 campaign for Rep. Katie Porter’s open CA-47 seat Tuesday, citing a fall last month that left him with a “moderate traumatic brain injury.” He is ending the campaign on the advice of physicians, he said. In a statement, Rouda added it was “not the outcome I wanted, but my family comes first.”

Speaking of CA-47, another Republican has entered the mix. Newport Beach businessman Max Ukropina launched his campaign Tuesday, challenging fellow Republican Scott Baugh and Democratic State Sen. Dave Min.

EARLY ENTERS LATE — He might be a few weeks behind his Democratic opponents, but Republican Eric Early is hoping his bid for U.S. Senate will be a successful one. Early entered the race to replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein on Tuesday, joining the likes of Reps. Katie Porter, Adam Schiff and Barbara Lee. Early has run numerous unsuccessful races in California, and most recently lost last year’s Republican primary in his bid to unseat Attorney General Rob Bonta.

— “As a single Black mom, Barbara Lee felt unrepresented. Now she runs for the U.S. Senate,” by The Sacramento Bee’s Gillian Brassil: “Without representation, Lee said, the Senate misses a voice on important topics that she faced throughout her life — issues from poverty to disparities in democracy, healthcare, housing, nutrition and education.”

CALIFORNIA AND THE CAPITOL CORRIDOR

LAUSD COMES TO SACTOWN — Los Angeles Unified School District head Alberto Carvalho will be in Sacramento today meeting with lawmakers after a trying few weeks, POLITICO’s Blake Jones reports.

The district just emerged from a worker strike that shuttered schools for three days in late March, placing the superintendent in the national eye just over a year into his tenure. He'll spend the day around the Capitol advocating for LAUSD's legislative priorities, which range from mandating kindergarten attendance to helping districts remodel playgrounds to provide more shade to kids.

— "Should California push sexually-transmitted disease vaccine for college? Bill could mandate it,” by The Sacramento Bee’s Lindsey Holden: “The newer version of the bill would instead require the HPV vaccine in the University of California and California State University systems. Students enrolling at public colleges would need to get HPV shots to attend classes.”

— “California reparations task force could face uphill battle in Legislature,” by CalMatters’ Wendy Fry: “The news media’s preoccupation with a final dollar figure has become a point of frustration, task force members said. The task force and its experts have produced thousands of pages of documentation, data and research into various categories of injustice — everything from encounters with the criminal justice system to barriers to homeownership.”

— “California bill requiring schools to out transgender students to parents dies,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Salvador Hernandez: “AB 1314 was assigned to the Assembly Education Committee, but the chair of the committee, Al Muratsuchi (D-Torrance), announced Monday that he would not set a hearing date for the bill, meaning it was effectively dead before being considered for a vote.”

BIDEN, HARRIS AND THE HILL

— White House announces increased sanctions to combat fentanyl trafficking, POLITICO’s Matt Berg: “President Joe Biden’s push to counter drug traffickers also coincides with numerous lawmakers’ critiques that his administration has not done enough to stem the tide of drugs flowing from Mexico.”

— Angered by Kanye West’s antisemitism, Doug Emhoff takes a stand, by the Los Angeles Times’ Courtney Subramanian: “Kanye West, now known as Ye, had spent weeks giving Americans a crash course in antisemitic lies. He posted on Instagram that the rapper Diddy was being “controlled” by Jews.”

— “S.F. corruption scandal: City audits thousands of properties connected to indicted former officials,” by the San Francisco Chronicle’s St. John Barned-Smith: “Records obtained by The Chronicle show that the department identified 5,445 properties the two men had worked on during their careers. The probe was meant to “identify potential issues resulting from public integrity breaches,” department spokesperson Patrick Hannan said, on projects handled by Santos or Curran, especially focused on potential safety issues.”

GO INSIDE THE 2023 MILKEN INSTITUTE GLOBAL CONFERENCE: POLITICO is proud to partner with the Milken Institute to produce a special edition "Global Insider" newsletter featuring exclusive coverage, insider nuggets and unparalleled insights from the 2023 Global Conference, which will convene leaders in health, finance, politics, philanthropy and entertainment from April 30-May 3. This year’s theme, Advancing a Thriving World, will challenge and inspire attendees to lean into building an optimistic coalition capable of tackling the issues and inequities we collectively face. Don’t miss a thing — subscribe today for a front row seat.

SILICON VALLEYLAND

— “California economy is on edge after tech layoffs and studio cutbacks,” by The New York Times’ Kurtis Lee: “Thousands of Californians have been laid off in the last few months, the cost of living is increasingly astronomical, and Gov. Gavin Newsom revealed in January that the state faced a $22.5 billion deficit in the 2023-24 fiscal year — a plummet from the $100 billion surplus a year ago.”

MIXTAPE

— “Waymo says dense S.F. fog brought 5 vehicles to a halt on Balboa Terrace street,” by the San Francisco Chronicle’s Rachel Swan

— “Discovery of antibiotic-resistant superbugs in L.A. wastewater sparks worry,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Alex Wigglesworth

— “Theranos' Elizabeth Holmes loses bid to stay out of prison,” by The Associated Press’ Michael Liedtke

— “High-paying California state jobs: See latest list of openings in Sacramento County,” by The Sacramento Bee’s Brianna Taylor

BIRTHDAYS

Fred Ryan … Katherine Rodriguez of DoorDash ... Tommy Schanzer … Nick Campbell

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