Senator Pérez Statement on Governor Newsom’s Model Ordinance to Address Encampments with Urgency and Dignity
SACRAMENTO – Senator Sasha Renée Pérez (D-Pasadena) issued the following statement on Governor Newsom’s announcement addressing encampments with urgency and dignity:
“As the former Mayor of Alhambra, I was proud to implement programs that delivered clean, safe communities for our constituents, while providing humane treatment for unhoused Californians. We provided temporary housing, along with mental health and substance abuse treatment. As a result, Alhambra is now on the path to achieving functional zero homelessness. This is what works.
“What does not work is criminalizing people who have nowhere else to go.
“The outline of Governor Newsom’s proposed local ordinance clearly states that no one ‘should face criminal punishment for sleeping outside when they have nowhere else to go.’
“This is the same compassionate goal as SB 634, which originally aimed to allow encampment clearances, while banning criminal punishment against someone for simply being unhoused, while also protecting charity organizations who volunteer to serve those who are unhoused. Now, we have a model ordinance from the Governor affirming that we can both clear encampments without criminalizing people in the process.
“During his press conference, the Governor criticized the City of Fremont in his comments today for going too far when it passed an ordinance penalizing charitable organizations for providing humanitarian assistance to the homeless. This is why SB 634 has been narrowed to focus on protecting service providers and charities from being punished for carrying out their critically-important work.”
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Senator Sasha Renée Pérez is Chair of the Senate Education Committee and represents the 25th Senate District that includes the communities of Glendale, Pasadena, Alhambra, Altadena, Arcadia, Claremont, Glendora, La Cañada Flintridge, La Crescenta-Montrose, Monrovia, Monterey Park, Rosemead, San Gabriel, San Marino, Sierra Madre, South Pasadena, Temple City, Fontana, Rancho Cucamonga, Upland, and San Antonio Heights.