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CAO outlines options to cut 10–15% of homelessness spending; council pauses to seek project-level data
Summary
The City Administrative Officer presented a menu of options to reduce homelessness spending by 10–15% (about $42–$62 million) across categories including demobilization, small sites, city-paid leases, InsightSafe motel leasing and safe parking; the committee continued the item and requested project-level analyses, utilization data and county participation before any decision.
The City Administrative Officer on Wednesday presented a preliminary analysis of potential savings to meet a directive to reduce homelessness spending by 10–15 percent, prompting council members to ask for more project-level data before endorsing any cuts.
Matt Szabo, the city administrative officer, told the Housing and Homelessness Committee that the CAO’s initial menu of options is intended to identify projects for further study rather than to require immediate action. The analysis used an interim-housing spending baseline of about $417.8 million and estimated a 10–15 percent target would mean $42 million to $62 million in annual savings. Szabo said the CAO also calculated larger general-fund shortfalls — roughly $181 million in fiscal 2026–27 and about $247 million in 2027–28 — if existing program scope continues without new revenues.
The report breaks potential efficiency…
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