San Francisco, CA — Mayor London N. Breed today issued the following statement following Governor Gavin Newsom’s State of the State address:

“Governor Newsom’s remarks today touched on many of the issues that are at the forefront of what we’re working on in San Francisco—from housing and homelessness, to behavioral health and conservatorship. I’m grateful for the Governor’s leadership on these critical issues, and for his willingness to respond to our housing shortage and homelessness crisis with the urgency they demand.

I agree with Governor Newsom that we need more housing—for people of all income levels, in San Francisco and throughout California. We especially need to build multi-family housing in urban areas and close to transit, and we need to eliminate the red tape that so often gets in the way of creating new homes. We know that the ultimate answer to homelessness is more housing, and I was glad to hear the Governor’s support of ongoing resources for everything from Navigation Centers to affordable housing, which will help San Francisco continue the progress we’re making in helping our unhoused residents off the street and into shelter and services.

I also want to thank the Governor for his support of expanding conservatorship laws throughout the state so that we can help people suffering from severe mental illness and addiction into treatment. San Francisco is implementing our conservatorship program with the limited tools available to us, but we need to remove some of the most onerous restrictions that allow people to continue to suffer without getting care and housing.

I look forward to working with the Governor’s office and our state delegation in Sacramento to continue to advance policies that will help us build more housing and take care of our most vulnerable residents.”

###