Homelessness

Steven Greenhut | 10.31.2025 9:15 AM

The upset is palpable. News reports that the Trump administration is planning to cut state grants to build permanent housing for homeless people has led state officials and homeless activists to claim that the likely decision will send thousands of people back on the streets just as California is turning the corner on this massive problem.

The usually levelheaded CalMatters reported that the expected deep cuts are the "latest blow in a seemingly endless barrage of bad news for the California agencies tasked with fighting homelessness." The "news has sent counties throughout California into a panic" and they are "bracing to lose hundreds of millions of dollars," the publication added.

It's time to take the proverbial chill pill. Yes, I believe the homelessness situation is a travesty and addressing it is a legitimate government function—for the sake of people living on the streets and the rest of us who want to reclaim public parks and sidewalks. But dig a little deeper, and the cuts might not be as troubling as expected. As Politico

© Reason.com