Downtown San Diego, California. Gaslamp Dist. (Photo: Johan Erkki, Shutterstock)
Why is Homelessness Getting Worse?
El Cajon Mayor says there’s a strong financial incentive to keep homelessness a problem, with 65 homeless service providers in San Diego County
By Bill Wells, August 30, 2023 10:18 am
To most, it appears that homelessness is rampant in almost every community in San Diego County without a viable solution being presented.
Homelessness is a complex situation, and I could go on for hours about causes and possible solutions. However, today, I wanted to discuss the broken and disjointed system we have to address homelessness in our region.
I appreciate the work the San Diego Taxpayers Education Foundation has been doing to expose the weaknesses in our homeless approaches.
A study revealed that between 2015 and 2022, $2.37 billion in funds went from local governments to homeless service providers. El Cajon staff recently identified at least 65 homeless service providers in San Diego County. Clearly, there is a strong financial incentive to keep homelessness a problem. How can a region spend nearly $2.4 billion over a few years, and the homeless problem has worsened substantially?
First, we fail to address the real problem—mental health and drug addiction. But, also, the system by which we govern these billions of dollars is broken.
Most Federal and State resources are funneled through the two largest jurisdictions in the region—the City of San Diego and the County of San Diego. They are followed by the Regional Task Force on Homelessness, which serves as the Continuum of Care for the San Diego Region. The regional Task Force oversees millions in homeless funding. However, this regional organization’s boards comprise only two elected officials—one from the City of San Diego and one from the County.
Remember, these two organizations already receive the most direct homeless funding. The rest of their boards are made up of service providers.
Interestingly, the organization meant to represent the region only has elected officials from the two largest governments in the County, while the other 17 cities do not have any representation.
It is also interesting that board members come from agencies and organizations that receive funding from the task force.
Restructuring these two boards is critical to ensure more transparency and equity in how money is spent in our County.
Second, it is unclear to me how success is being measured. Inputs are an essential measurement by the County and the Regional Task Force. However, we know governments funded according to inputs have little reason for better performance. However, if funding were tied to outcomes, governments become pretty good at figuring out the right solutions.
Those deciding how billions of tax dollars are spent should be accountable to voters. It is time to restructure how we govern the Regional Task Force. Second, the billions of dollars flowing to our region should be more equitably divided, focusing on getting people off the street and into permanent housing.
Until these two issues are addressed, we will continue to feed the homeless industrial complex while homelessness problems escalate.
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March 29, 2021
Treatment IS housing. The homeless industrial complex is self-perpetuating offering no solutions.
Treatment is not housing when the homeless have severe mental health and substance abuse issues.
Of the $2.37 billion in funds went from local governments to homeless service providers, how much of that money was siphoned off for administrative costs of nonprofits and consultants connected with the corrupt Democrat party that mostly controls San Diego?
You can ask the Grand Jury of San Diego County to find out the answer to that question. Which btw is a good one.
Most of it, certainly! It’s why there’s never a “solution” to the problem; those people would be unemployed if the problems were solved, and we can’t have that!!
Homelessness getting worse as it’s the perfect plan to contain and control the masses.
Private sector job creation: Begin making in America all the s**t we buy from China. Cali once was the home to all but two aerospace companies to now being the home to none.
America was built on an industrial complex selling to the balance of the world: This not withstanding we find ourselves buried in debt the result of denial of our fall from greatness.
What would you expect from an operative feeding from the public trough? Nothing complex about it; in fact the author’s subtle conveyance is homelessness is here forever.
Karen Bass, the mayor of LA understands the problem: Fund the cops to the max as all hell and chaos is the only possible result; she knows time to prepare as all hell about to break loose. Soon the cops will be on poop detail cleaning the streets. The homeless will constitute 70% of the population, they’ll be contained in encampments while the elites enjoy the beauties of Cali.
The general public is starting to figure it out. Billions “spent” to reduce homelessness funneled to non-profits run by political allies who in turn guarantee support to politicians who approve more billions. You get paid by the number of homeless you “serve” not by reducing homelessness. Very cynical.
When radical federal judges decide that the “homeless” cannot be made to leave public property until a local government can find them housing, and that same judge declares that the homeless person’s hoarded crap, and trash, is “personal property” that can’t be thrown away, the problem only gets worse and worse. We will need a torches and pitchforks revolution to solve this problem.
You nailed it, Abe! What really infuriates the rest of us, is that if WE park a car on the street longer than allowed, WE get ticketed and have to pay a fine. If WE have garbage and junk littering our front yard (on which WE pay property tax), local code enforcement will require US to remove it, on threat of forcible removal and being charged. This is not “equal justice under law.”
“Why is Homelessness Getting Worse?”
For the record, for readers who haven’t yet read this now-4-year-old piece, this is why.
$$$$$$$:
“The Homeless Industrial Complex” – Edward Ring – May 28, 2019
https://californiaglobe.com/fr/the-homeless-industrial-complex/
What exactly does it mean when people throw out the phrase permanent housing? On top of all the billions of dollars already spent, you want taxpayers to foot the bill for permanent housing too? I’ll admit, I don’t know what the answer is. I do know that when hard core drugs were illegal, there was less homelessness. I know when there were less services, i.e., free iPhones, free food, government debit cards, free tents, free bus passes, etc., there was less homelessness. I just searched for free homeless services in Sacramento and I stopped counting at 30 different organizations.
If free housing is given to the homeless, won’t that just create more people dependent on the government and more free housing? Build it and they will come kind of thing. Or is that the idea.
I’m sure there’s a legitimate homeless population, However, I believe the majority of homeless people, from what I see, are addicted to drugs. Is it an addiction problem or is it because they don’t have a free house/apartment?
As a homeless man told an interviewer: “In San Francisco they pay us to be homeless!” Yep! And in every other city in CA. Repeal Props 47 & 57 and enforce the laws, and you’ll see the problem begin to dry up as the substance abusers dry out while in jail. Quit using taxpayer’s hard earned money to subsidize them! While we’re at it, do the same with the millions of illegals who are being paid MORE than the average Social Security recipient who actually WORKED for that benefit! Oh yes, and were FORCED to pay into it!
Government involvement is your answer. All they do is launder money through the dozens of non profits set up to supposedly help the homeless. Most of that money goes to “administrative services” and salaries. Then a portion of that goes back to the politicians in the form of donations. Pretty insidious.but like most “crisis” governments create the problem, never actually solving the crisis so they can continue to have a crisis to raise money for their party and the next campaign. This will continue as long as California has one party rule.
ONLY THE BEGINING :WATCH WHAT HAPPENS
https://www.zerohedge.com/economics/inside-todays-disastrous-jobs-report-670k-full-time-jobs-gone-last-2-months-offset-1
to be honest he took everything away from families and stuff like that he made them move out into areas that are further on out he took away programs that help families he took away PCG which paid for families to stay in motels all because of drug addicts abusing the system which isn’t fair I’m a mother myself and I’m struggling been out here for a year and a half with my kids and can’t even get anything due to the fact that bill Wells cut everything out of El cajon