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Council members seek clarity after state cuts shown for encampment resolution funding
Summary
Councilmember Moore pressed city intergovernmental staff on April 21 about proposed reductions to the state encampment resolution program; city staff said both House and Senate budget proposals show $45 million per year, down from prior references of $75 million, and promised follow-up.
Councilmember Moore asked the Office of Intergovernmental Relations on April 21 to clarify reports that the state reduced funding for the encampment resolution program from $75 million to $45 million a year.
“Could you talk a little bit about the homelessness response funding and the proposed budgets?” Moore asked during the legislative briefing, noting the program had been “very successful” in getting people into shelter quickly.
Mina Hashemi, director of the Office of Intergovernmental Relations, said both the House and Senate proposed budgets listed $45 million a year for the program and that city staff believed that level would be sufficient to maintain existing bed capacity but not to increase it. “I think there's certainly a lot of discussion about that, and can keep you in the loop,” Hashemi said.
Moore followed up, asking how a $30 million difference could sustain current beds; Hashemi said the city would follow up with the agencies that administer the program to get firm operational detail.
Why it matters: the encampment resolution program funds services intended to move people out of right-of-way encampments and into shelter or housing; changes in state funding could affect the scale of the program’s operations and the city’s coordination with state contractors.
What’s next: Office of Intergovernmental Relations staff said they would follow up with the agencies that administer the program and report back to council members with specifics about bed counts and program scope under the $45 million level.
