Folsom, California

Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed Senate Bill 802, requiring Sacramento city and county, along with Elk Grove, Rancho Cordova, Citrus Heights and Folsom, to form a joint powers authority to coordinate the region's homelessness response by January 2028. It marks the first time California's Legislature has mandated such an arrangement, which is typically voluntary, and supporters say it could set a template for other regions where cities and counties often clash over responsibility for shelter beds and services.

The law follows decades of dysfunction in Sacramento, where nearly 90 officials across eight boards worked without coordination. The city supports the measure, but Sacramento County and Folsom oppose being forced into cooperation and are threatening legal action. Critics point to the troubled Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, now under federal scrutiny and defunded by the county, as a cautionary example, while supporters cite Solano County's joint authority, formed in 2022, as a working model. The outcome could influence how other California counties structure future homelessness governance.