Mayor Bass lifts state of emergency on homelessness. But 'the crisis remains'

""We have begun a real shift in our city's decades-long trend of rising homelessness,""

""The crisis remains, and so does our urgency.""

""Emergency powers are designed to allow the government to suspend rules and respond rapidly when the situation demands it, but at some point those powers must conclude,""

Mayor Karen Bass declared a state of emergency on homelessness on her first day in office, enabling no-bid contracts and launching Inside Safe to move people into interim housing. The city will lift the state of emergency on Nov. 18 after homelessness fell in two consecutive years for the first recent time. The emergency declaration allowed the mayor's office to cut through red tape and award contracts and leases without standard council votes and public testimony. Some City Council members pushed back against the lengthy emergency status, arguing it permitted operations outside regular public oversight. Councilmember Tim McOsker maintained that emergency powers should end when no longer necessary and that ending the declaration will let the council formalize programs begun under emergency authority.

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