Salt Lake City urges state action after report shows 18% rise in homelessness

Salt Lake City’s mayor, speaking at a press event announcing the Utah Office of Homeless Services’ 2025 annual report, said the state’s point‑in‑time count showed 4,584 people experiencing homelessness on a single night — an 18% increase from 2024, an additional 715 people — and urged state leaders to provide both capital and operating funding for new shelter space.

The mayor said the city has plans for 1,300 additional shelter beds and has made land available but has secured only about one‑third of the capital funding needed and no operational funding for the initial phase. "We have a plan for 1,300 more shelter beds. We have made land available. Yet as of today, we have only 1 third of the capital funding needed to build the first phase and not a penny of operational capital," the mayor said.

The may…