A state audit found that California invested a staggering $24 billion over the past five fiscal years to address homelessness, a figure that underscores the state’s urgent effort to curb this intractable crisis.
Yet, as this spending has increased, so has California’s homeless population.
According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, an estimated 181,000 people experienced homelessness in California in 2023 — an increase of 63,000 over the past ten years.
