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California will consider 'right to housing' legislation this year
https://www.politico.com/states/california/story/2020/01/06/california-will-consider-right-to-shelter-legislation-this-year-9420607California legislators will consider creating a legal right to housing for children and families, a potentially monumental shift that echoes a recommendation from the co-chairs of Gov. Gavin Newsom's task force on homelessness.
Newly amended legislation by Assemblywoman Autumn Burke (D-Marina del Rey) would declare that “it is the policy of the state that every child and family has the right to housing.” That would entail providing public assistance to children and families on the brink of homelessness, including help with rent and eviction defense, and, if necessary, finding them emergency and permanent housing.
Carrying out that idea could be logistically difficult given a severe shortfall of housing. It could also be politically tenuous because of the potential cost as California grapples with soaring numbers of homeless residents. But Burke said she was convinced of the idea's effectiveness during a fact-finding trip to New York City, which has a legally enforceable right to shelter.
“It is $81,000 a year to incarcerate a person; for a two-bedroom apartment, it’s $25,000 a year," she said in an interview. "It is not just morally incumbent on us to provide a right to housing but financially it is the responsible thing to do.”
Newly amended legislation by Assemblywoman Autumn Burke (D-Marina del Rey) would declare that “it is the policy of the state that every child and family has the right to housing.” That would entail providing public assistance to children and families on the brink of homelessness, including help with rent and eviction defense, and, if necessary, finding them emergency and permanent housing.
Carrying out that idea could be logistically difficult given a severe shortfall of housing. It could also be politically tenuous because of the potential cost as California grapples with soaring numbers of homeless residents. But Burke said she was convinced of the idea's effectiveness during a fact-finding trip to New York City, which has a legally enforceable right to shelter.
“It is $81,000 a year to incarcerate a person; for a two-bedroom apartment, it’s $25,000 a year," she said in an interview. "It is not just morally incumbent on us to provide a right to housing but financially it is the responsible thing to do.”
This will be interesting. I love the premise, though it's worth remembering that declaring something a right doesn't in itself actually produce that thing.