WHEREAS, According to the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, there were 115,738 homeless people in California in 2015, by far the most of any state in the nation; and
WHEREAS, Rising rents, rapidly declining numbers of low-income housing units, and slow wage growth have all contributed to homelessness; and
WHEREAS, Of the nation’s top 10 most expensive rental markets, four are located in California; and
WHEREAS, The median rent for a one-bedroom apartment is $3,590 in San Francisco, $2,290 in San Jose, $2,270 in Oakland, and $1,970 in Los Angeles; and
WHEREAS, San Francisco’s Point-in-Time Homeless Count in 2015 identified 7,539 homeless adults and youth, a 7-percent increase since 2005; and
WHEREAS, A report by the San Francisco Budget and Legislative Analyst’s Office found that while the initial costs associated with housing homeless residents increased when those individuals entered supportive housing, the city’s costs were reduced drastically as those formerly homeless individuals were stabilized; and
WHEREAS, The County of Los Angeles now has an estimated 46,874 homeless people on any given night, up nearly 6 percent from last year, according to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority; and
WHEREAS, On any given night in Sacramento, more than 2,500 individuals are without a home, and an estimated 5,200 more will become homeless over the course of the next year; and
WHEREAS, San Diego’s homeless population rose to 8,742 in 2015 from 8,506 in 2014, a 2.8 percent increase that makes the homeless population in San Diego one
of the top four in the nation, and 1,100 of that homeless population are veterans; and
WHEREAS, In 2015, the homeless population in Fresno increased for the first time in almost eight years; and
WHEREAS, Homelessness has risen to historic levels throughout the state, and now is the time for state action; and
WHEREAS, Being homeless is dangerous, especially for youth in San Francisco who experience a mortality rate more than 10 times higher than that of the state’s general youth population; and
WHEREAS, In March of 2016, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors requested Governor Brown to issue a statewide declaration of emergency to help coordinate the response and resources for homeless individuals and families; and
WHEREAS, The Los Angeles Board of Supervisors unanimously approved an unprecedented
plan to address the crisis in the county by allocating $100 million in one-time funding for homeless services; and
WHEREAS, The City of Los Angeles has already declared a state of emergency as it relates to the lack of shelter for homeless in the city; now, therefore, be it