The Trump administration is moving forward with plans to divert billions of dollars in homelessness funding earmarked for permanent housing, a decision state and local officials warn could push thousands of formerly homeless Californians back to the street.<\/p>\n
The plans redirect the funds toward shorter-term housing and outreach efforts, prioritizing programs that impose work requirements, mandate addiction or mental health treatment and help police close encampments, among other conditions.<\/p>\n
California officials estimate the policy shift could mean a loss of $250 million to $300 million in grant money this year for local homeless housing sites<\/a> and rental assistance programs statewide.<\/p>\n \u201cTrump\u2019s plans will only exacerbate the problems created by his administration\u2019s failures, putting formerly homeless people who have found stable housing back out on the streets,\u201d the office of Gov. Gavin Newsom, a critic of the president, said in a statement.<\/p>\n The long-anticipated updates were made official on Thursday, when the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development posted notice for $3.9 billion in Continuum of Care funding, the primary source of federal homelessness dollars.<\/p>\n According to the new funding guidelines, local governments will only be allowed to use 30% of those dollars on permanent housing or rental aid, freeing up more money for transitional housing and sober-living programs. In California, 87% those funds currently go toward long-term housing services, officials said.<\/p>\n \u201cOur philosophy for addressing the homelessness crisis will now define success not by dollars spent or housing units filled, but by how many people achieve long-term self-sufficiency and recovery,\u201d HUD Secretary Scott Turner said in a statement<\/a>.<\/p>\n The news has sent homelessness service nonprofits across the Bay Area scrambling to understand the impact on their programs. Providers worry that, without finding ways to fill the funding gaps, they may be forced to close housing sites and end rental aid efforts, leaving thousands without a crucial lifeline in one of the country\u2019s most unaffordable rental markets.<\/p>\n \u201cThis overnight change is going to be a jolt to the system, at the peril of the most vulnerable in our communities \u2014 it\u2019s devastating,\u201d said Vivian Wan, chief executive of Abode Services, which receives Continuum funding to help operate 28 housing facilities across the region.<\/p>\n The changes come as President Donald Trump has sought to prevent local governments from using federal homelessness funds on what his administration describes as \u201cillegal DEI\u201d programs, issued an executive order aimed at forcing homeless people into involuntary treatment and proposed steep cuts to housing vouchers<\/a> and homelessness programs in the next federal budget.<\/p>\n Earlier this year, Santa Clara County and San Francisco, along with other local governments, sued to overturn the funding restrictions<\/a> for homelessness programs that consider diversity, equity, and inclusion in their services.<\/p>\n Administration officials have argued the shift away from permanent supportive housing and voluntary services is necessary to reverse what they describe as decades of failed polices that have led to rising homeless populations and an explosion in dangerous encampments.<\/p>\n In California, homelessness has surged 62% over the past decade to an estimated 187,084 people, though some large counties reported encouraging declines this year. The Bay Area\u2019s estimated homeless population reached 38,891 last year, a 46% spike since 2015<\/a>. The increases came as housing costs have also soared over the last decade.<\/p>\n Additionally, the Trump administration contends that federal homelessness funding has gone to support unsafe housing sites<\/a> where people frequently use drugs without getting the help they need.<\/p>\n \u201cWe can\u2019t subsidize a destructive lifestyle \u2014 we need to take that into account,\u201d said Wayne Winegarden, a senior fellow with the Pacific Research Institute, a conservative think tank in Pasadena, while acknowledging some of the concerns raised by critics of the funding shift.<\/p>\n While moving people directly from the street into permanent housing can be effective for some, Winegarden said others need the structure and stability of treatment-based, abstinence-only programs before transitioning to a long-term home. He added that investing in temporary housing options, such as tiny homes, is a more cost-effective solution than building expensive permanent housing.<\/p>\n