CalMatters investigates homeless shelters

Throughout California, temporary homeless shelters have become the basis of taxpayers funded efforts to bring people out of the street and back into housing.

Our new investigation has found that the shelters instead have become a housing purgatory. They are a mess – dangerous, chaotic and ultimately ineffective When finding people’s homes.

Shelters are usually beyond the limits of anyone but staff and residents. To find out what is going on inside them, an investigative reporter Lauren Hepler obtained earlier unprecedented data on the implementation of the state; reviewed thousands of police calls and incident reports; and interviewed more than 80 shelter residents and staff.

We have found that local and government agencies have spent at least $ 1 billion on 2018 shelters, more than doubling the number of emergency beds. As officials have accumulated the camp of camp, shelters are increasingly becoming central to the reaction of the government of homelessness.

But more shelters do not equate to more homes. We have found that less than 1 in 4 people entering the shelters have moved to a permanent home. On top of that, internal records reveal allegations of mismanagement of the shelter, abuse and thousands so far undeclared deaths.

• Catherine MooreA former shelter resident: “The shelter is a voluntary prison.”
• Dennis SkhanA leading policy expert: “It doesn’t work and never.”
• Holly HerringA shelter worker who has been confronted with homelessness: “I know it is more fascinated and more out of place for me to sleep in my car than in a shelter.”

Read Full investigation hereor check only the key assumesS Let us know If you have a history of living or working in a shelter and Click here for resources about how to file a complaint against a CalMatters ‘shelter’ Byrhonda LyonsS

Since the US Supreme Court has been ordered to grant more powers to clean up stray camps with local authorities, dozens of cities in California have adopted measures prohibiting public camping or updating existing regulations for Make them more indicativeS

But to demonstrate the disadvantages of application wish to bring their cases to court hearingswrites Calmatters’ Marisa KendallS

Samantha Perez, a lawyer at the Public Defender’s service, represents Linda Vasquez, a 52-year-old resident of San Francisco, who was handcuffed and cited for camping in October. In this April, Perez will claim in court that the rule of camping in the city is too unclear in order to implement the case of Vasquez must be rejected. This will note a rare chance for a homeless man to publicly challenge his arrest before a judge.

Read more hereS

Speaking of homelessness: On Monday Governor Gavin Newsom revealed a new state website This shows what counties do to reduce homelessness, build more affordable homes and provide mental health services.

By aggregating data from local and government agencies, the site shows information such as the number of uncovered people in a county and how far along the county is the fulfillment of its housing goals. The indicators shown in red show that the county fails in any of these criteria.

Local employees often have was the purpose of the impotence of Newsom with the state ventureS

• NewsomAt an event in the online press on Monday: “The good things happen locally, but not everywhere … It calls balls and bumps and if we see that red, we will call you.”

As the more humid moist periods and the drier sushi become increasingly common in the West, the shooting of underground water is crucial for the supply of drinking water and irrigation of crops throughout the country, Calmatters’ reports Alastair BlandS But despite a string of rainy winters, California underground waters remain exhausted – Increasing concern among state water managers.

Current levels of the largest tanks in the country are More than 120% of their historical averageS Still, thousands of California wells have dried. Most of these wells are in rural low -incomes in the San Joaquin Valley.

Part of the reason is that crop producers Overdraft Delivery of groundwaterS Millions of acres of feet also escape every year, as there is no state system of pumps and pipelines to capture it. The construction of the infrastructure to fill aquifers – an underground layer of gravel or sludge that holds groundwater – also requires a lot of money and time.

The Governor’s Administration Newsom insists on more groundwater storage: In 2023 the Governor issued A series of executive orders Cancellation of environmental rules to facilitate the completion of groundwater. However, water leaders provide a decrease of 10% in the water supply of California by the 2040s.

Read more hereS

Today is the election day for two Republican legislative regions of California, holding special primary elections.

Residents in Senate Region 36which includes the cities of Orange County, they choose their next state senator after the former Republican Senator Janet Nguyen was elected in November in the Council of Orange District Bodies.

Central valley The area 32 of the Assemblywhich covers parts of the Cern and Tulare Countries holds elections after US reputation Vince Fong successfully runs for Congress. His offer for the house happened with his re -election offer at the California Assembly. Fong appeared victorious in both competitions – winning a place in the state legislator that he no longer want and cannot legally borrowS

The best two candidates in each competition will continue to face each other in the special general elections on April 29.