Sacramento County to review major leadership change in homeless nonprofit
The Sacramento County Board of Supervisors will be reviewing the leadership of Continuum of Care, a nonprofit that oversees homeless prevention fundings and services, possibly bringing in local leaders to join the organization’s board.
The supervisors have received two recommendations from Mosaic Solutions and Advocacy, a consulting firm, that seeks to improve homeless services in Sacramento County. The main recommendation would shift the majority of Continuum of Care’s leadership to local elected officials. The recommendations are the result of the county’s joint homeless meeting with the city of Sacramento and the region’s suburbs on Oct. 28, according to the county’s report. If approved, this new board will be established in spring 2026.
Continuum of Care receives federal and state funding. In the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the organization received more than $40 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. This money purchased shelter beds and funded housing initiatives, according to Sacramento Steps Forward.
This regional revamp was proposed after the county received feedback that Continuum of Care was not “integrated into broader community work on homeless,” the county’s report stated.
Sacramento Steps Forward, a nonprofit that works alongside Continuum of Care, found that almost 9,000 residents are homeless in Sacramento County. Agencies that fund homeless prevention efforts include Continuum of Care and Sacramento Steps Forward.
Sacramento County paid Mosaic Solutions and Advocacy nearly $75,000 to not only assist in organizing October’s joint homeless meeting, but also draft recommendations. These recommendations are as followed:
- Reconstruct the Continuum of Care’s leadership so the majority voting members are county supervisors, city of Sacramento council members and an elected official from the region’s suburbs.
- The Sacramento County Board of Supervisors and the Sacramento City Council will collaborate with Continuum of Care on this “structural change.” If Continuum of Care is “unable or unwilling” to change its structure, Sacramento city and county will create a new board or commission, according to Mosaic Solutions and Advocacy’s report.
- Under this new structure, Sacramento County and the city of Sacramento will direct funding to a new board. Their focus must be on local resources, the report stated.
- Sacramento County and the city of Sacramento must sign a new or updated memorandum of understanding that explains the new model and its goals.
- Sacramento County is to work with the remaining cities to create memorandums of understanding on homeless prevention. Mosaic Solutions and Advocacy wrote that progress in homeless prevention currently is “at risk.” This is due to an absence of any formal agreement or partnership between these cities and the county, its report stated.
If Continuum of Care does not agree to a restructure, with the county creating its own Homeless and Housing Board, the organization would not receive the “same level of funding” as the county or city of Sacramento, Sacramento County’s report stated.
“Continuum of Care can continue to operate,” Sacramento County’s presentation stated. “...The (organization) can determine if it wants Sacramento Steps Forward as (a) Lead Agency. The relationship to Sacramento Homeless and Housing Board) would be informal.”
The discussions come as homeless prevention funding is uncertain. During the joint meeting in October, Lisa Bates, chief executive officer of Sacramento Steps Forward, said the county is at risk of losing funds that go to 1,000 affordable housing units.
“Sacramento has what is needed to transform its response to homelessness proactively before significant changes begin impacting the fiscal situation in California,” Mosaic Solutions and Advocacy’s report stated. “But success will depend on decisive action, unified leadership, and a sustained commitment to collaboration at every level of government.”
The Board of Supervisors will review these recommendations on Tuesday inside county chambers at 700 H St., Suite 1450, starting at 9:30 a.m. The meeting will also be livestreamed at metro14live.saccounty.gov.
This story was originally published December 8, 2025 at 12:08 PM.
