We’re back, baby!
And today we’re discussing how California’s unhoused community was forced to deal with nearly three weeks of storms, while both local and statewide elected officials made calls for more violent sweeps.
To begin, Shannon discusses what went down here in Sacramento during the deluge, and how guests at Maryhouse were affected. Thousands of our neighbors are fighting for their lives, and yet elected officials such as Sacramento County Supervisor Phil Serna are focused on carrying out more unconstitutional homeless sweeps.
On the state level, Governor Gavin Newsom has given fiery speeches trying to place blame on municipalities for the state’s rise in homelessness. However, if you look at the budget he proposed this month, you’ll see that he’s actually trying to *decrease* the state’s commitment to affordable housing.
A recent study by the Corporation for Supportive Housing found that California could house all its unhoused constituents if we spent about $8 billion per year–just 3% of the state’s total budget–over the next 12 years. But the governor doesn’t want to do that, and Josh Gohlke at the Sacramento Bee rightly raked him over the coals for his refusal to take responsibility.
Even if Newsom did support that budget, is the political will there for legislative Democrats? The party owns a combined 94 of 120 seats in the California Assembly and Senate combined (62 and 32, respectively), but just 29 of those legislators are in the Progressive Caucus (and let’s not forget that last year their Legislative Caucus chair, Asm Ash Kalra, let the CalCare bill die without a vote).
Of those 29 members, 11 counted the California Real Estate PAC as a top-ten donor in the last election cycle.
So, again, is the political will there in Sacramento to actually fund a solution to homelessness?
Thanks for listening, defund the police and, as always:
Twitter: @youknowkempa, @ShanNDSTevens, @Flojaune, @guillotine4you
Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/voicesrivercity
Sacramentans can hear us on 103.1 KUTZ Thursdays at 6 pm and again Fridays at 8 am.
If you require a transcript of our episodes, please reach out to info@voicesrivercity.com and we’ll make it happen.
And thank you to Be Brave Bold Robot for the tunes.
Comments
