Council Exploring Options after Recovery Housing Legislation Vetoed

In a surprising and disappointing twist, Governor Newsom last week vetoed AB 255 by Assemblymember Matt Haney, Bay Area Council-sponsored legislation to allow a portion of state homeless programs to support drug-free permanent supportive housing projects known generally as as recovery housing. The bill, co-sponsored by San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie and the Salvation Army, was passed unanimously by both houses of the legislature.

Overdose deaths among California’s homeless population soared 488 percent since 2010, casting a pall of despair over every corner of the region and state. California currently funds sober transitional (i.e., 1-2 year) housing yet prohibits state funds from supporting sober permanent housing. For homeless addicts who complete a transitional housing program and then qualify for permanent housing (due to disability, for example) a placement in permanent supportive housing forces them to once again return to a life surrounded by drugs.

In his veto message, the Governor argued recent guidance by the Interagency Council on Homelessness on recovery housing made AB 255 moot. The guidance, which appears to have been released the day of the veto, argues recovery housing can be operated in a manner consistent with housing first law provided ongoing drug users aren’t required to relocate. Of the $26 billion invested by the State of California into homelessness since 2020, $0 has gone to recovery housing.

The Bay Area Council thanks Assemblymember Haney, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie, the Salvation Army, and the unanimous California State Legislature for supporting AB 255. We look forward to working with the administration to make recovery housing work. To engage with the Council’s Homelessness Committee please contact Senior Vice President of Public Policy Adrian Covert.