California Governor Gavin Newsom issues order to clear out homeless encampments

(The Center Square) - California Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order to remove homeless encampments from state property, citing new legal authority under a recent United States Supreme Court ruling. Critics on the left wondered where the removed homeless would go and questioned the effectiveness of periodic “sweeps” that could soon see encampments return to the same location. California Republicans, who had proposed similar policies before, questioned why Newsom didn't act earlier.

“Agencies and departments subject to my authority shall adopt policies, generally consistent with California Department of Transportation’s Maintenance Policy Directive 1001-R1, to address encampments on state property, including through partnerships with other state and local agencies, and shall prioritize efforts to address encampments consistent with such policy,” wrote Newsom. “Local governments are encouraged to adopt policies consistent with this Order … to humanely remove encampments from public spaces, prioritizing those encampments that most threaten the life, health, and safety of those in and around them.”

Newsom’s order requires policies to be modeled on the Caltrans removal program that requires at least 48 hour notice of an encampment removal, requesting outreach services, and storing property collected during encampment removal for 60 days. Newsom’s order applies to state property, but encourages local governments to adopt similar policies covering local public property.

“You get your highway off ramp clean for a moment only,” said Assemblyman Alex Lee, D-San Jose, on X, formerly known as Twitter. “While the administration is stepping up with meaningful reforms like Prop 1, I’ve also been frequent critic that the governor has prioritized encampment sweeping dollars in our tight budget year than actual affordable housing dollars — the real solution to homelessness.”

California Republicans had worked with Democrats to proposed a bill, SB 1011, to ban homeless individuals from sleeping or camping on public property if offered shelter, but the bill failed in committee.

"I introduced a proposal earlier this year that would have provided even greater and more immediate solutions," said SB 1011 author and Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones, R-San Diego, in a statement. "While I am cautiously optimistic that the governor has finally taken note of the urgency of this problem, albeit many years later than needed, Californians deserve government for the people, not the PR hits.”

California has over 180,000 homeless individuals. It’s unclear where removed homeless are going to go. Earlier this month, Newsom vetoed a unanimously supported bill that would have required greater accountability for the state's homelessness spending, which in recent years has surpassed a cumulative $24 billion.

Newsom’s order dividing Democrats comes days after Democrats closed ranks behind Vice President Kamala Harris, who formerly served as a California senator and the state’s attorney general. With Newsom having backed the Supreme Court case overturning a lower court’s ban on encampment clearing, the order appears consistent with Newsom’s existing direction on homelessness.