Newsom Will Order California Officials to Remove Homeless Encampments

Gov. Gavin Newsom will order California state officials on Thursday to begin dismantling thousands of homeless encampments, according to members of his administration, calling on government leaders to act on a recent Supreme Court decision “with urgency and dignity.”

The executive order, which is expected to affect tens of thousands of people, represents the nation’s most sweeping response to a June ruling that gave governments greater authority to remove homeless people from their streets.

Homeless encampments have vexed California, where housing costs are among the nation’s highest, more than any other state. An estimated 180,000 people were homeless last year in California, the most in the nation, and about 123,000 homeless people on any given night were unsheltered, according to the most recent count. Unlike New York City, most jurisdictions in California do not guarantee a right to housing.

Governor Newsom will advise California cities and counties on how best to ramp up enforcement on a signature issue of his administration, but he cannot force them to take action. He also will mandate that state agencies not simply move campers along, but also work with local governments to house people and provide services into which the state has pumped billions of dollars.

“The state has been hard at work to address this crisis on our streets,” Mr. Newsom said in a statement.

“There are simply no more excuses,” he added. “It’s time for everyone to do their part.”

Mr. Newsom, who is widely viewed as having presidential aspirations, has channeled about $24 billion into homelessness since he took office in 2019. His administration says it helped move more than 165,000 homeless people into temporary or permanent housing two fiscal years ago, the most recent period for which data is available.