Governor Awards $130.7 Million to Help 18 California Communities House People Living in Encampments

October 4, 2024

graphic of california map with text Grants awarded to help address health, safety and housing needs of unsheltered people

Sacramento, CA —

Governor Gavin Newsom today announced nearly $130.7 million in Encampment Resolution Funding (ERF) program grants to help 18 cities, counties, and Continuums of Care (CoCs) resolve critical encampment concerns and address the housing and health and safety needs of 3,364 people living in encampments, and permanently house 1,565 people.

“We’re supporting local communities’ efforts to get people out of encampments and connected with care and housing across the state. It’s important and urgent work that requires everyone to do their part. The state has committed more than $27 billion to help local governments tackle the homelessness crisis — and we want to see $27 billion worth of results,” said Governor Newsom.

According to the Governor’s Executive Order N-1-24, 123,000 people in California experienced unsheltered homelessness on any given night in 2023, living The ERF program supports implementation of the Executive Order, which directs state agencies to address encampments in the state with urgency and with dignity for those living in encampments. It is a competitive grant program for which awardees must demonstrate a clear connection to permanent housing solutions. Projects must be person-centered and tailored to address the needs of the specific individuals experiencing unsheltered homelessness and living in encampments.

"These grants will ensure local communities take a person-centered, trauma-informed approach as they help their most vulnerable residents transition to safe and stable housing,” said Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency Secretary Tomiquia Moss. “The Encampment Resolution Fund grants are infusing critical resources in communities up and down California so that unhoused Californians can access the essential housing and supportive services they need to achieve long-term stability.”

“Our team is energized by this opportunity to help bring people-centered, Housing First solutions to Californians who are unsheltered throughout the state,” said Gustavo Velasquez, Director of the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), which has administered ERF since the start of the 2024-25 fiscal year. “Combined with the investments in permanent supportive housing made possible by voter approval of Proposition 1, the state has unprecedented momentum to make monumental progress on a crisis of homelessness that has been growing for decades.”

To date, ERF has invested $736,789,510.95 in 109 projects or encampments across 21 counties, 41 cities, and 5 CoCs to help 20,888 people transition out of homelessness. The awards announced today utilize all remaining FY 2023-24 ERF funds. An additional appropriation of $150 million in the FY 2024-25 State Budget allowed HCD to award all eligible ERF Round 3, Window 2 applicants. The budget also included $100 million in ERF funds for FY 2025-26, bringing to $1 billion this investment to address encampments through proven housing solutions.

The awards announced today will provide stable, safe housing for individuals living in encampments in their respective communities. The awarded proposals will assist individuals living in encampments with compassion and dignity by providing a range of housing solutions: permanent housing; interim housing for individuals seeking coordinated entry system resources or housing vouchers; housing navigation services and rapid rehousing subsidies; support for accessing permanent housing by providing security deposits and other moving expenses; and allowing awardees to acquire property for housing.

Below are the 12 cities, four counties, and two CoCs awarded: