A model for removing encampments in Lodi? Newsom pushes cities to do more to tackle homelessness
May 13—Gov. Gavin Newsom is again asking cities to address homelessness this week, urging leaders to remove tents from sidewalks and other public properties.
Newsom released a model ordinance on Monday that his office described as a starting point for local jurisdictions to craft their own policies without delay.
His plan calls for cities to prohibit persistent camping in one location, as well as encampments that block sidewalks.
It also requires local officials to offer shelter to homeless individuals before removing a temporary dwelling.
"There's nothing compassionate about letting people die on the streets," Newsom said in a statement. "Local leaders asked for resources — we delivered the largest state investment in history. They asked for legal clarity — the courts delivered. Now, we're giving them a model they can put to work immediately, with urgency and with humanity, to resolve encampments and connect people to shelter, housing, and care. The time for inaction is over. There are no more excuses."
The announcement was coupled with the release of $3.3 billion in Proposition 1 funding approved by voters in 2024, for communities to expand behavioral health housing and treatment options for their mentally ill and homeless populations.
The funding adds to the $27 billion the state has already given to local governments to address homelessness, and is not contingent upon cities banning encampments.
Lodi Mayor Cameron Bregman supported the governor's announcement.
"We, as a city, should hold all citizens to the same laws and standards across the board. That includes our homeless population," he said. "Any action to be taken on the front of cleaning up our city, we should take. We have decreased the number of tents and camps within the city over the last 2 1/2 years and will continue to push for such."
Newsom's office said the model draws from the state's approach that has cleared more than 16,000 encampments and more than 311,873 cubic yards of waste and debris from sites since July of 2021.
The governor issued an executive order last year requiring state agencies to remove homeless encampments on state property and urged local governments to do the same.
Councilwoman Lisa Craig echoed concerns Newsom highlighted in Monday's statement that encampments pose a serious public safety risk, including fires, unsanitary conditions and exposing encampment residents to increased risk of sexual violence, criminal activity, property damage and break-ins.
"After the Grants Pass decision, the City of Lodi was an early enactor of an anti-camping ordinance, making changes to relevant sections of our municipal code defining and prohibiting camping in public or private space not permitted or authorized for camping," she said. "(Giving individuals) 48-hour notice, the discretion of law enforcement to determine what possessions should be inventoried and stored, and issuance of citations has given our Lodi PD the additional tools they needed to protect the public from the serious threats that homeless encampments have brought to our city."
In a 6-3 decision in Grants Pass v. Johnson last summer, the Supreme Court ruled that cities enforcing anti-camping bans are not violating the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment, even if homeless individuals have to place to go.
The ruling struck down the Martin v. Boise decision of 2018, that said cities cannot enforce anti-camping ordinances if they do not provide enough homeless shelter beds for their unsheltered populations.
Craig said the city has spent more than $22 million in grant funds to address homelessness, including $7.7 million on the access center located at 714 N. Sacramento St.
More than $11 million in grant funds is encumbered in contracts to build the permanent center, she said, leaving about $805,000 for continuation operation of the temporary center and an additional $2.8 million for future operations.
The San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors received an update on the access center Tuesday morning. Since 2021, the county has allocated about $11 million toward the project, which will provide 100 beds and wrap-around serves to unsheltered individuals once complete.
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