XPost: or.politics, alt.politics.trump, alt.fan.rush-limbaugh   
   From: biased@nowhere.invalid   
      
      
      
   Newsom issues executive order for removal of homeless encampments in   
   California   
   By  TRÂN NGUY?N   
      
   Updated 9:45 AM PDT, July 25, 2024   
      
   SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive   
   order Thursday to direct state agencies on how to remove homeless   
   encampments, a month after a Supreme Court ruling allowing cities to   
   enforce bans on sleeping outside in public spaces.   
      
   Newsom's order is aimed at the thousands of tents and makeshift shelters   
   across the state that line freeways, clutter shopping center parking lots   
   and fill city parks. The order makes clear that the decision to remove the   
   encampments remains in local hands.   
      
   The order comes after a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this   
   summer allowing cities to enforce bans on sleeping outside in public   
   spaces. The case was the most significant on the issue to come before the   
   high court in decades and comes as cities across the country have wrestled   
   with the politically complicated issue of how to deal with a rising number   
   of people without a permanent place to live and public frustration over   
   related health and safety issues.   
      
   "There are simply no more excuses. It's time for everyone to do their   
   part," Newsom said in a statement.   
      
   While Newsom cannot order local authorities to act, his administration can   
   apply pressure by withholding money for counties and cities.   
      
   California is home to roughly one-third of the nation's population of   
   homeless people, a problem that has dogged Newsom since he took office.   
   Newsom touted that his administration has spent roughly $24 billion aimed   
   at cleaning up streets and housing people but acknowledged the   
   stubbornness of the issue. Newsom's administration has also come under   
   fire recently after a state audit found that the state didn't consistently   
   track whether the huge outlay of public money actually improved the   
   situation.   
      
   Newsom has worked hard to address the issue. He threw all of his political   
   weight behind a ballot measure earlier this year to allow the state to   
   borrow nearly $6.4 billion to build 4,350 housing units, which passed with   
   a razor-thin margin.   
      
   The order comes as Republicans have stepped up their criticisms of   
   California and its homelessness crisis as Vice President Kamala Harris — a   
   former California district attorney, attorney general and senator —   
   launches her presidential campaign. Harris entered the race over the   
   weekend after President Joe Biden's announced that he would not seek   
   reelection. Newsom himself has presidential ambitions.   
      
   Under Newsom's direction, state agencies — including state parks and   
   department of transportation — would be required to prioritize clearing   
   encampments that pose safety risks, such as those camping along waterways.   
   Officials should give advance notice to vacate, connect homeless people to   
   local services and help store their belongings for at least 60 days. Local   
   cities and counties are urged to adopt similar protocols.   
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