Sacramento Mulls a New Homeless Strategy: Legally Mandating Housing

The mayor called for a “right to housing” law as the homelessness crisis intensifies in cities across California.

SACRAMENTO — The mayor of Sacramento on Wednesday announced a plan to legally obligate California’s capital city to house its growing homeless population, a policy shift that would open a new front in the state’s struggle to address what has become a signature California social ill. Californians “are becoming homeless faster than we can get people the help they need,” said the mayor, Darrell Steinberg, as he proposed a municipal “right to housing” and a parallel “obligation” for homeless people to accept shelter when it is offered. If passed by the City Council, the measure would be the first of its kind nationally, and would impose a legally enforceable municipal mandate to deal with a humanitarian crisis that has spread in California as the state’s median home value has soared and rents have exploded. It could also help the city comply with federal court rulings, such as those in Los Angeles and Boise, Idaho, that have made it increasingly difficult to enforce laws against homeless encampments if officials do not provide alternatives to sleeping outdoors.