SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Amid continued criticism over California’s housing affordability and homelessness crises, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday announced new agreements with the cities of Ontario, San Bernardino and San Diego to expand the state’s highway encampment cleanup program while defending his administration’s broader record on reducing homelessness and increasing housing production.
The three new Encampment Delegated Maintenance Agreements bring the total number of participating California cities to 13. The agreements allow local governments to partner with the California Department of Transportation, known as Caltrans, to remove homeless encampments located along state highway rights-of-way while receiving reimbursement for eligible maintenance costs.
The announcement comes as Newsom continues to argue that California’s approach of pairing encampment enforcement with investments in housing, behavioral health services and supportive programs is producing measurable results, despite ongoing public concern over visible homelessness and the state’s housing shortage…