Place on Your Letterhead Or Include Your Address Block

[Place on your letterhead or include your address block]

[INSERT date]

Governor Jerry Brown

State Capitol, Suite 1173

Sacramento, CA 95814

Re: Request for Signature SB 1380 (Mitchell) Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council

Dear Governor Brown,

[INSERT name of your organization] is pleased to inform you of our support for Senate Bill 1380 and urges you to sign this bill into law. [INSERT a short paragraph about your organization].

SB 1380 incorporates Housing First policies into California programs that provide housing or housing-related services to people experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness. The bill also establishes a Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council to oversee the implementation of homeless policy in California and coordinate responses between state agencies and departments.

With more than 115,000 people experiencing homelessness on any given night in California, it is time to adopt policies and frameworks that are proven to reduce and end homelessness. Housing First is an evidence-based practice for ending homelessness that perceives housing as a tool, rather than a reward, toward recovery. Under Housing First, the homeless crisis response system is organized to help people obtain permanent housing and services as quickly as possible with as few intermediate steps as possible. California is one of eight states in the U.S. without a state-level, coordinated response to homelessness despite having 21 percent of the nation’s homeless population within its borders.

Throughout California we are seeing disparate responses to homelessness that, if better coordinated, would result in streamlining of policies, more effective use of resources, and a reduction in the number of people experiencing homelessness. Homelessness impacts California’s transportation systems, waterways, healthcare providers, and the criminal justice system. Efforts to end homelessness are being discussed and sought by the Department of Housing and Community Development, California Housing Finance Agency, CalVet, CalTrans, Department of Healthcare Services, Department of Public Health, Department of Social Services, Corrections and Rehabilitation, the State Water Board, Department of Fish and Wildlife, Department of Education and more. The problem is that discussions are happening in agency-specific silos and we need a mechanism to facilitate cross-agency troubleshooting and response efforts. Each of these agencies likely has identified staff working on homeless issues who are ready and willing to work with a coordinating council to ensure their response is in line with statewide policies.

A Council would bring additional resources to the state by ensuring that California is leveraging the maximum available federal funding for programs targeted at individuals and families experiencing homelessness. It will also ensure that these resources are being used effectively by aligning spending, reducing administrative burdens, and fostering common applications for funding.

For these reasons, I urge you to sign SB 1380.

Sincerely,

[INSERT Your Full Name]

[INSERT Your Title (if applicable)]