How California's gubernatorial candidates would tackle homelessness
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Illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios
Editor's note: This is part 2 of our series hearing from California's gubernatorial candidates on pressing issues in our state. Go here to read part 1.
Homelessness continues to be one of the biggest problems in California, and we asked the candidates for governor how they'd handle it.
The big picture: Three candidates responded to our questions submitted by readers.
- We got responses from Democratic businessman Tom Steyer, fellow Dem and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan and Republican political commentator Steve Hilton.
- Axios also reached out to Xavier Becerra, Chad Bianco, Katie Porter, Tony Thurmond and Antonio Villaraigosa but did not get a response.
Q: Do you think California's homelessness plans are working? If not, what would you do differently?
Tom Steyer thinks the state has focused too much on permanent supportive housing and too little on bridge housing, leading to many dollars spent and few units to show for it. He would:
- 🪣 Match housing type to the population being served.
- ❤️🩹 Pair the right housing with the right level of care.
- 🏠 Give chronically homeless individuals intensive support to get off the street, while staying committed to Housing First.
Matt Mahan believes California is failing by spending billions while still housing nearly half the nation's unsheltered homeless people. He would:
- 🏘️ Scale San José's model statewide, which cut unsheltered homelessness by nearly a third using tiny homes, converted motels, and wraparound services.
- ⚡ Prioritize faster, lower-cost interim housing that gives people a real path indoors.
- 📋 Set clear expectations that when shelter or treatment is available, people should come indoors.
Steve Hilton thinks California's homelessness crisis is a policy failure, with 10% of the U.S. population but nearly 50% of its homeless population. He would:
- 🚔 Use state law enforcement to clear illegal encampments.
- 💊 Require drug and alcohol recovery in exchange for permanent services.
- 🧠 Massively expand mental health bed capacity, including by adopting the IMD waiver that other states have already used to build larger, more efficient facilities.