On January 12, 2011, the California Assembly’s Select Committee on Homelessness (referred to as “The Road Home”) will hold a hearing in Sacramento to discuss actions the Legislature should pursue to address homelessness in California. CSH California will recommend the Committee consider take action and take advantage of Affordable Care Act (national health reform) opportunities available to California to fund services in supportive housing; to create state data systems that promote “no wrong door” policies; and to promote a supportive housing program for parolees experiencing homelessness.
We strongly encourage everyone working to end homelessness in California to attend this hearing. The more people attending the hearing, the better indication Committee members will receive about the importance of the issues to Californians.
The Assembly Speaker created the Select Committee on Homelessness this year to determine the scope and impact of homelessness on California, and to promote policies that would streamline resources and work to end homelessness. Chair Toni Atkins intends for the Committee members to pursue a package of bills designed to address issues that arose throughout the series of four Committee hearings.
The first was in Sacramento on April 28th to explore the scope of homelessness and current strategies for addressing it. The second and third were held in July in San Diego and Los Angeles. Both hearings included testimony from multiple community-based experts. The fourth and last hearing, in Sacramento on January 12, will attempt to draw on lessons learned from the previous hearings to discuss policy solutions.
