For City Council Meeting [June 27, 2023]
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
APPROVAL: Arron Brown, Acting City Manager
FROM: Tanya Williams, Assistant to the City Manager
Title
Request City Council Approve a Letter of Support for Assembly Bill 349 Patton State Hospital Lease for Housing and Mental Health Services to Homeless Individuals
Body
BACKGROUND
Assembly Bill (AB) 349 was introduced to the California Assembly by Assembly Member James C. Ramos who represents the 45th District in early 2023. The bill as currently written authorizes Patton State Hospital located in San Bernardino County, with the consent of the Department of State Hospitals (DSH), to enter into an agreement with a nonprofit corporation or local government to provide housing and provide mental health services to the Inland Empire’s homeless population.
AB 349 has passed through committee hearings in the assembly and is currently waiting for hearings in the senate appropriations committee. The office of Assembly Member Ramos reached out to the Mayor and City Council requesting that the City Council offer support for this bill in order to help advance it through the senate and Council Member Trujillo subsequently requested that this item be placed on the agenda for Council’s consideration.
A similar bill AB 2385 was proposed in 2020 which would have authorized a similar program for the use of PSH, however it was never heard in the assembly.
ANALYSIS/DISCUSSION
There is an ongoing need for mental health services as well as housing for those who are homeless in the Inland Empire. San Bernardino County’s point in time count showed the urgency for a solution to helping these individuals receive the services they need as well as housing.
According to the author’s office, “creating stable housing placement offering medical care and other services for this large portion of our local unsheltered, demands an urgent, effective, collaborative, all-hands-on-deck approach. No one entity, no one source of funding is adequate to solve our growing behaviorally ill and unsheltered population. City, county, and state and community resources must be leveraged to deal with this issue.”
The approach proposed in this legislation is similar to the use of the Metropolitan State Hospital (MSH) with the City of Norwalk, which leases space to nonprofit organizations that provide temporary housing services to homeless families and long-term housing for persons with mental illness. That program to date has seen successful outcomes for the homeless population in the region.
The City of San Bernardino has committed their support to this bill stating that “this will help the unhoused in our communities in need of mental health services.”
Included in the attachments to this staff report are the fact sheet for AB 349 as well as the proposed letter of support that would be submitted on behalf of the City of Rialto if the Council confirms support.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
The request is not a Project as defined by Section 15378 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
GENERAL PLAN CONSISTENCY
Complies with the following Rialto General Plan Guiding Principle:
Our government will lead by example, and will operate in an open, transparent, and responsive manner that meets the needs of the citizens and is a good place to do business.
LEGAL REVIEW
The City Attorney has reviewed and approves this staff report
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Operating Budget Impact
There is no impact on the operating budget by approving this letter of support.
Capital Improvement Budget Impact
There is no impact on the capital budget by approving this letter of support.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council approve a Letter of Support for AB 349.