(picture above from Grand Jury report)

Please see here for the recently released 2022-23 Grand Jury Report on Sacramento County Homelessness. 

In a nutshell- it says there’s lots of blame to go around and recommends a JPA (joint powers authority) of all cities in Sac County, plus the County. *Which means, once again— ignoring our unincorporated voices*

Please see article regarding the Grand Jury Report where Advocates for Arden Arcade  explain how this will be problematic for the 606,000 residents of unincorporated Sacramento County- who will not have the same representation as residents of cities if said JPA happens. 

News article from Capradio on the Grand Jury recommendations reads:

”In a written statement, Sacramento County spokesperson Janna Haynes said the recent city-county partnership agreement is evidence of regional cooperation. She noted that forming a JPA “is not under consideration.” 

“The county is currently and has been working closely with all the cities to address the needs of their specific homeless populations,” Haynes said. “The county already provides behavioral health services, benefits such as CalFresh countywide and encampment service teams to cities as needed.” 

However, same article also shares how Mayor Steinberg sees this:

“Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg, meanwhile, described the grand jury’s call for greater regional cooperation “both timely and right” and signaled his is open to creating a more unified regional governing body to confront homelessness. 

“Our existing partnership is a good start,” Steinberg said in a written statement. “Let’s create the momentum for something even stronger. Ultimately, one governing body with all the cities and county gives us the best chance to make the difference that the public rightfully expects." 

Steinberg announced [2 weeks ago] he will not seek a third mayoral term, meaning voters will choose a new official head of the city in 2024. “

Hmmm. So he’s not running for reelection for Mayor of Sacramento - but he’s open to creating and heading a regional governing body to confront homelessness? 

Seeing how things have gone down since the Mayor’s choice to dump the city’s problems in our community thus far, with no recourse or consequences- because the 606,000 residents who live in the unincorporated area  are lacking representation …maybe it’s time the unincorporated community gets a Mayor and council of our own- so we can have an actual seat at the table along with the rest of the city voices that will be guaranteed to have a say there. 

Or- we could wait and see where all this goes- and just “hope for the best”. 

What do you think?