Gavin Newsom accuses SoCal city of breaking state housing law, says legal action is coming

California Gov. Gavin Newsom accused a Southern California city of breaking the state’s housing law by implementing a homeless shelter ban and promised legal action was coming.

Speaking during a press conference on the state’s new funding awards to clear homeless encampments, Newsom said that the City of Norwalk has “turned their back” on the homeless.

The remarks came in response to a question asking for Newsom’s reaction to Norwalk Mayor Margarita Rios’ comments that her city bore a disproportionate burden of homelessness due to state programs like Project Roomkey, which sought to get unhoused people off the street.

Newsom expressed some sympathy with the city’s situation but then offered a warning.

“I think that is true that there are communities that are sharing a disproportionate burden, I think that absolutely is correct and that’s exactly why everybody needs to be held to a higher level of accountability, not just some people,” he said.

But any community that fails to abide by state housing law, he added, “is, with respect, part of the problem.”

Newsom said the state will take legal action in the coming days to bring Norwalk into compliance.

“They know they’ve broken the law, it’s pretty crystal clear. I think there wasn’t anything in (the Norwalk mayor’s) comment that suggested otherwise. It said ‘We don’t care, we’re done,’ well that’s not how it works, and with respect a lot of law enforcement officers representing the people of Norwalk as well, they understand the rules of the road and I hope they abide by them. If they don’t, we all need to be held to account,” Newsom said.

The city of Norwalk released a public statement Thursday, saying that it is committed to safeguarding public safety of Norwalk residents “while retaining local control over land use decisions.”

“Our ordinance was specifically designed to protect residents by promoting responsible development. However, our experience with housing programs, particularly Project Roomkey, which placed a substantial number of homeless individuals with high acuity needs, near homes, schools, and public spaces, has raised significant concerns. This project has negatively impacted public safety and community well-being. We urgently need improved communication and collaboration from the state to address these issues; we must tackle this in a spirit of cooperation rather than under the threat of penalties,” the statement read.