Another homeless ballot measure could go to Sacramento voters. Here’s what it would do
Sacramento County Supervisor Patrick Kennedy plans to ask his colleagues to place a measure on the November ballot that would require the county to open thousands of shelter beds and housing units for homeless individuals.
It mirrors a proposed ballot initiative that would apply to the city of Sacramento that also could go before voters this fall. Daniel Conway, former chief of staff to former Mayor Kevin Johnson, filed paperwork with the city last week to start collecting signatures for that version.
Mayor Darrell Steinberg, who’s been talking about a similar idea statewide for years, said he would consider bringing the city measure to the council to put it on the ballot, negating the need for signatures. Those discussions are ongoing, Steinberg said Monday.
“I would be very encouraged if Supervisor Kennedy puts forward an initiative that obligates county government to house and shelter homeless people, and provide thousands the services so many desperately need,” Steinberg said in a statement.
The county ballot measure would make it harder for residents to kill homeless shelter and affordable housing projects, Kennedy said. He said he would put the proposal on the agenda, likely sometime in April.
“While we at the county are doing great things, and I firmly believe we are making a difference, we continue to nibble around the edges of a problem that is growing,” said Kennedy, who represents South Sacramento and Pocket/Greenhaven. “A measure like this will deal with unhoused people respectfully and appropriately while protecting our public spaces, business districts, and neighborhoods, while pressuring the state to match resources with their rhetoric.”
Conway said he’d like to see both the Board of Supervisors and City Council vote to put measures on the ballot. If that happens, city voters would see both measures on the November ballot.
“My hope is that the city and county can quickly come together around a coordinated and comprehensive framework that they can then take to the governor and Legislature so that Sacramento can be first in line for the record levels of funding available for these types of programs and services,” said Conway.
In order to put the county measure on the ballot, four of the five supervisors would need to vote in favor, county spokeswoman Janna Haynes said.
That might be a hard number to reach. Supervisor Phil Serna Monday raised concerns with language in the measure that would allow citizens to sue the county if it does not meet strict deadlines to create the new beds and housing.
“If we’re going to consider a ballot measure, let’s take the temperature of the board to see if there’s an appetite to do that,” said Serna, who mostly represents the city. “If there is, then let’s think clearly about how we design it that all five of us can support it and it achieves the goal of adding capacity by reasonable means so we set ourselves up for success and we’re not just setting ourselves up for a lawsuit.”
Elizabeth Mitchell, an attorney who worked on the city ballot measure, said the legal consequences in the ballot measure is what gives it “teeth.” If the local government does not create the beds by the deadline, it would be a violation of a mandatory duty.
Thousands of beds
The measure Kennedy wants to bring forward would require the county to create enough shelter, Safe Ground camping spaces or designated affordable housing for 75% of the the county’s unhoused individuals.
The last federally mandated “point in time” count found 10,000 to 11,000 residents would experience homelessness in the county throughout the course of 2019. If that number was used, the county would need to have at least 7,500 shelter beds or housing units — a major lift.
The minimum number of beds likely would go up after the next count, which is scheduled for later this month. A Sacramento State researcher said the number of camps has easily doubled since the January 2019 count.
The proposed city ballot measure would also add language to the city code to prohibit people from storing “hazardous waste,” such as needles and feces, on public or private property. Violating that rule would be a misdemeanor, which the city could charge either with civil or criminal action.
Steinberg wanted the misdemeanor removed for the city version. For the county, Kennedy said he’s OK with it.
Homeless camps grow around Sacramento
Under Martin v. Boise, a 2018 decision by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, government officials cannot cite unhoused people for camping on public property unless a shelter bed is available. All Sacramento shelter beds are full on any given night.
As a result, large camps have sprung up on public property across the city, including at Cesar Chavez Plaza and along the American River Parkway. Under the proposed ballot measure, residents can file paperwork with the city to demand the city manager “abate the nuisance” if they are harmed by a camp on city property. In order to “abate the nuisance,” the city would need to offer everyone shelter beds and spaces so they can leave the property.
Councilwoman Katie Valenzuela has mixed feelings about a city ballot measure, but said she is open to it, especially after none of the 20 sites in the council’s $100 million siting plan it approved in August has opened.
“Maybe we’re at the point where a ballot measure is the only way,” said Valenzuela, who represents the central city and East Sacramento. “Ninety percent of the constituent correspondence I get is about homelessness ... I’m sick of telling people there’s nothing else we can do. It looks like we’re stuck. Maybe it’s time for the people to weigh in.”
This story was originally published February 15, 2022 at 3:00 AM.
