California: Governor Newsom announces stronger accountability measures, launches new tool measuring local progress in tackling homelessness
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Feb 24, 2025

Governor Newsom announces stronger accountability measures, launches new tool measuring local progress in tackling homelessness

Releases $920 million in additional homelessness funding

What you need to know: Governor Newsom today announced stronger accountability measures to hold local governments accountable if they fail to make progress in addressing homelessness. The Governor also unveiled a new online accountability tool to help the public track their community's progress on housing, homelessness, and behavioral health, in addition to $920 million in new funding.

SACRAMENTO — As part of the state's ongoing efforts to address the national homelessness crisis, Governor Newsom today announced strong accountability measures for local jurisdictions to demonstrate results to continue receiving state homelessness funding. Governor Newsom is also launching a new online tool, accountability.ca.gov, which brings together thousands of locally reported data points to provide a clear picture of local communities' work on California's most pressing issues, including homelessness, housing, and behavioral health.

"No one in our nation should be without a place to call home. As we continue to support our communities in addressing homelessness, we expect fast results, not excuses. While we are pleased by the progress many communities have made to address the homelessness crisis, there is more work to do."

Governor Gavin Newsom

Accountability.ca.gov

Stronger accountability

Today, Governor Newsom is announcing additional accountability measures for communities that receive state funding. The announcement comes alongside new Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) funding to support local homelessness efforts, tied to performance benchmarks and the ability for the state to withhold funding allocations if local communities do not make progress. The funding also comes with flexibility for communities that need to modify their plans in the case of natural disasters, such as the recent Los Angeles area firestorms.

More results

Communities that receive awards through the newest round of HHAP funding must adhere to increased accountability, transparency, and compliance measures. These include an increased focus on resolving encampments, requirements that recipients have a compliant housing element to obtain future funding, and requirements that grantees obligate and expend past awards before receiving new funds. These strengthened measures will better ensure real, measurable results and will improve the tracking of data and outcomes.

As part of the proposed 2025-2026 budget, the Governor has called for even stronger accountability measures as a condition on any additional state funding, including requirements that grantees have and maintain a compliant housing element, prioritization for communities designated as "pro-housing," and mechanisms to claw back funding from local governments that fail to demonstrate progress.

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Find out how your community is doing

Today's announcement comes alongside the debut of a new online tool accountability.ca.gov, which brings together thousands of locally reported data points to provide an accurate picture of local communities' work to address homelessness, create housing, and create behavioral health supports.  The new accountability tool will allow Californians to quickly and clearly assess the progress being made by their local governments on these pressing issues, and learn more about the process and funding provided to communities by the state.

Funding for local governments

Today, the state is announcing awards of roughly $160 million and the availability of $760 million in new funding for communities — providing local communities with additional funding to:
  • Address encampments: The state is providing local governments with $118.7 million in Encampment Resolution Funding to support 14 projects that will move people out of encampments and into shelters and housing. Of this funding, Los Angeles is receiving three separate awards totaling $56.4 million to address three encampments near I-10, Hollywood Boulevard, and the LA River.
  • Create new shelter and support: Additionally, the state is announcing the release of nearly $42 million of additional HHAP Round 5 funding for five regions as well as the availability of more than $760 million for HHAP Round 6. Key priorities for HHAP Round 6 include preserving, developing, and supporting permanent housing solutions; ensuring interim housing and outreach services have sustainable funding structures; aligning funding with strong regional partnerships that make notable progress on homelessness solutions; and ensuring meaningful engagement with tribal governments and people with lived experience of homelessness.

Full list of ERF and HHAP award recipients at HCD.ca.gov

Reversing decades of inaction

As states throughout the nation continue to see ever-higher increases in homeless populations, California has dramatically slowed the growth in homelessness and reduced the number of veterans and youth experiencing homelessness — more than any other state.

Homelessness continues to increase nationwide, increasing in 2024 by more than 18%, but California is bucking the national trend by holding the statewide increase to 3%. This is a lower rate than in 40 other states.

California is also one of the few states that have dramatically blunted the increases in unsheltered homelessness, holding it to 0.45%. By comparison, in 2024, nationwide unsheltered homelessness grew by nearly 7%. Unsheltered homelessness growth in other large population states like Illinois, Florida, New York, and Texas surpassed California's in terms of percentage and number.

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The Newsom Administration is making significant progress in reversing decades of inaction on homelessness. Between 2014 and 2019, unsheltered homelessness in California increased by approximately 37,000 people — more than double the increase seen during the Newsom Administration.

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