Sacramento, California – California is preparing a new push to tackle one of its most visible and persistent challenges: the thousands of encampments that line highways, overpasses, and state-owned property across its largest cities. Governor Gavin Newsom announced the creation of the State Action for Facilitation on Encampments, or SAFE Task Force, a multi-agency team designed to speed up the removal of encampments while expanding access to shelter, housing, and health services.
The move comes just over a year after Newsom directed state agencies to take a more active role in clearing encampments and just months after he circulated new draft ordinances for local governments. Framing the initiative as both urgent and humane, Newsom said in a statement that “no one should live in a dangerous or unsanitary encampment” and emphasized that the SAFE Task Force would “pair urgency with dignity” in restoring public spaces.
The task force will bring together officials from a wide array of state agencies, including the Office of Emergency Services, Health and Human Services, the Highway Patrol, and the State Transportation Agency. Caltrans, which has already cleared more than 18,000 encampments since 2021, will play a central role in removing camps along state rights-of-way. Other agencies will coordinate services ranging from mental health and substance use treatment to housing and supportive care…