California spends less than 0.5% of its state-controlled funds on homelessness

California’s leaders have repeatedly promised to tackle homelessness. But they don’t consistently make it a high priority for using state funds, researchers found.

By: Benjamin F. Henwood, University of Southern California, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: June 10, 2026

Words: 1,035

Last Updated: 1 day, 12 hours ago

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By Benjamin F. Henwood, University of Southern California

California’s leaders have repeatedly promised to tackle homelessness.

“I know homelessness can be solved,” Gov. Gavin Newsom declared in his 2020 state of the state address. “This is our cause. This is our calling.”

But six years later, his state is spending just a small sliver of its budget, less than 0.5%, on helping the state’s estimated 181,934 people who are homeless on any given …

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