Sacramento lawmaker urges regional joint powers authority to coordinate homelessness services

Sen. Caroline Ashby, the bill’s author, told the Assembly Housing and Community Development Committee that SB 802 would require Sacramento County, the City of Sacramento, Elk Grove, Rancho Cordova, Citrus Heights and Folsom to form a joint powers authority to coordinate homelessness services across the region. Ashby said the region has long struggled with “dysfunction on the streets of Sacramento” and that local governments have repeatedly failed to form a JPA despite prior resolutions and grand jury recommendations.

Former Sacramento mayor Darrell Steinberg, introduced by the senator as an expert witness, told the committee he supported the bill as a mechanism to combine municipal shelter and housing authority with county‑run behavioral health and substance‑use services. “Governing together will allow all the issues underlying unsheltered homelessness to be considered and decided together,” Steinberg said, arguing that a JPA would have legal authority to manage funds, enter contracts and pursue grants.

Dozens of local officials and nonprofit providers described support for the measure. Representatives from SEIU California, WellSpace Health, Sacramento Regional Business Leaders Council, LifeSteps and local city leaders testified that a regional body could reduce duplication, align priorities and make more efficient use of nearly $1 billion in recent state funding the senator said the region has received over four years.

Some local officials and county staff said they prefer voluntary, locally negotiated arrangements but acknowledged recent amendments and a letter of intent among many jurisdictions to convene a task force this July to discuss forming a regional structure. Justin Raffel, mayor of Folsom, said his city signed a letter of intent and would participate in the task force but remained wary of a state mandate: “We are committed to regional collaboration, but we remain opposed to the state mandating any joint powers authority.”

During questioning, committee members praised the author’s outreach to local governments and recognized that earlier opposition from some cities shifted after amendments and negotiations. The author said SB 802 does not replace local control but rather “centralizes it” as a way to amplify coordination and accountability.

The committee did not take a final vote on SB 802 during the hearing; the author said she would continue work with local partners and welcomed further amendments. The bill is expected to return for a committee vote after continued outreach and the July task force discussions.