Mayor Farrell urges state funding and prevention programs to address homelessness

Mayor Mark Farrell on Tuesday used his mayoral question time to press the Board of Supervisors to prioritize homelessness prevention and to coordinate with state leaders for large-scale funding.

Farrell described homelessness as “the challenge of our time,” said San Francisco already has about 7,500 supportive housing units — the most per capita among major U.S. cities — and argued the city must invest more in prevention programs that help people at risk avoid becoming homeless. “We need to invest in homelessness prevention and diversion programs,” the mayor said, urging support for eviction prevention, move-in assistance, flexible grants, conflict resolution and family reunification services such as Homeward Bound.

The mayor said such problem-solving services are cost-effective compared with rehousing services for people already living on the street and cited Homeward Bound outcomes he said the city had tracked: about 800 people used the program last year and roughly 6 percent returned to San Francisco service networks. Farrell argued targeted financial assistance — paying rent arrears, small grants, or help with transportation costs — can keep families housed and reduce longer-term costs to the city.

Farrell said he planned to travel to Sacramento to join mayors from California’s largest cities to seek “more than $1,500,000,000 in funding for homelessness initiatives” and to push for state resources that would complement local efforts, including permanent housing and rental assistance. He thanked state legislators he named for past allocations to San Francisco and said he would work with the Board of Supervisors during the budget process.

The mayor also reiterated his preference that the city avoid piecemeal supplemental budget actions that would undermine the regular budget process, but he said he wanted a collaborative approach to budget decisions that reflect the city’s needs.