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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBudget_HomelessnessFunding_20180612City of San Luis Obispo, Office of the City Council, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo, CA, 93401-3249, 805.781.7114, slocity.org June 12, 2018 Senator Holly Mitchell Senate Budget Conferee Budget Conference Committee State Capitol, Rm. 5080 Sacramento, CA 95814 FAX: (916) 651-4930 Senator Nancy Skinner Senate Budget Conferee Budget Conference Committee State Capitol, Rm. 2059 Sacramento, CA 95814 FAX: (916) 651-4909 Senator Richard Roth Senate Budget Conferee Budget Conference Committee State Capitol, Rm. 4034 Sacramento, CA 95814 FAX: (916) 651-4931 Senator John Moorlach Senate Budget Conferee Budget Conference Committee State Capitol, Rm. 2048 Sacramento, CA 95814 FAX: (916) 651-4937 Senator Jim Nielsen Senate Budget Conferee Budget Conference Committee State Capitol, Rm. 2068 Sacramento, CA 95814 FAX: (916) 651-4904 Assembly Member Philip Ting Assembly Budget Conferee Budget Conference Committee State Capitol, Rm. 6026 Sacramento, CA 95814 FAX: (916) 319-2119 Assembly Member Joaquin Arambula Assembly Budget Conferee Budget Conference Committee State Capitol, Rm. 5155 Sacramento, CA 95814 FAX: (916) 319-2131 Assembly Member Richard Bloom Assembly Budget Conferee Budget Conference Committee State Capitol, Rm. 2003 Sacramento, CA 95814 FAX: (916) 319-2150 Assembly Member Rocky Chávez Assembly Budget Conferee Budget Conference Committee State Capitol, Rm. 2170 Sacramento, CA 95814 FAX: (916) 319-2176 Assembly Member Jay Obernolte Assembly Budget Conferee Budget Conference Committee State Capitol, Rm. 4116 Sacramento, CA 95814 FAX: (916) 319-2133 RE: Support for Homelessness Funding The Honorable Senate and Assembly Conferees of the Budget Conference Committee: The City of San Luis Obispo strongly encourages you to prioritize and support, in the final FY 2018-19 State Budget, significant new funding to assist cities’ efforts to address the homelessness crisis that is affecting nearly every region of the state. After steady declines in homelessness between 2007-2014, California has seen an unfortunate spike in homelessness, with a significant increase in the number of unsheltered people in our communities. Domestic violence, lack of affordable housing and livable wage employment opportunities, woefully inadequate mental health and addiction treatment services, and the cost of health care have also pushed individuals into homelessness. Even our small City currently has more than 400 homeless individuals in need of housing and services. The human toll of homelessness is devastating and apparent any time you visit our City’s downtown and most certainly in the areas surrounding the creeks that run throughout our community. In addition to the direct human toll, the escalation of homelessness has strained our local law enforcement resources, courts, shelters, faith-based organizations, and has generated ongoing concerns regarding impacts on the City’s downtown business areas and tourist economy, as well as the environmental and water quality impacts of encampments and waste accumulation in and along the City’s creeks. It is clear that homelessness is a statewide problem that eludes a one-size-fits-all solution. This is why cities and are at the forefront of responding to this crisis. However, cities cannot adequately address the homelessness crisis alone. State resources are desperately needed to bolster local services and programs targeting homelessness. Cities in particular need a direct allocation of flexible funding that can be used for emergency responses to homelessness that include shelters, navigation centers, bridge housing, motel vouchers and trained staff to assist individuals in connecting with the programs and services that will help them transition out of homelessness. In 2017-18 the City of San Luis Obispo invested over $900,000 in solutions to address homelessness, including contributions to our local homeless shelter and women’s shelter, removal of 25 tons of trash from our parks, open space and creek areas, responding to over 300 emergency medical calls involving homeless individuals, and funding a two officer Police Community Action Team that focuses primarily on proactive outreach, coordination with our County courts and social services partners, and responds to community calls for service involving homeless individuals. With increasingly constrained local resources and ever- increasing demands allocation of the funding contained in the State Budget is imperative to the continuation and enhancement of the City’s support of real solutions for homelessness. State funding for local homelessness programs is extremely important to ensure quality of life and economic viability for all Californians. The City of San Luis Obispo strongly encourages you to maximize homelessness program funding, while also providing a direct allocation of flexible funding that can be used immediately by cities for emergency responses to homelessness. We look forward to continuing to work with you and stakeholders on the final budget proposal. Sincerely, Heidi Harmon Mayor City of San Luis Obispo. cc: The Honorable Edmond G. Brown, Jr., Governor, State of California; FAX: (916) 558-3177 The Honorable Toni G. Atkins, President pro Tempore, California State Senate; FAX: (916) 651-4939 The Honorable Anthony Rendon, Speaker, California State Assembly; FAX: (916) 319-2163 San Luis Obispo City Council State Senator Bill Monning, fax (916) 651 – 4917 State Assembly Member Jordan Cunningham, fax (916) 319-2135 Dave Mullinax, League of California Cities, dmullinax@cacities.org Meg Desmond, League of California Cities, cityletters@cacities.org