West

Newsom's homelessness council blames local governments for failing to track billions spent on crisis

Published

2 years ago

April 11, 2024

Newsom's homelessness council blames local governments for failing to track billions spent on crisis

California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s hub for tackling the homelessness crisis shifted the blame to local municipalities after a state audit report found the council failed to track how billions of dollars have been spent trying to tackle the crisis in the last five years.

A senior spokesperson for the California Interagency Council on Homelessness (CICH), which coordinates homeless programs across the state, told Fox News Digital on Wednesday the audit’s findings “highlight the significant progress made in recent years to address homelessness at the state level, including the completion of a statewide assessment of homelessness programs.”

The spokesperson added local governments “are primarily responsible for implementing these programs and collecting data on outcomes that the state can use to evaluate program effectiveness.”

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Homeless encampments line the streets in Oakland, California, on March 15. (DWS for Fox News Digital)

“The Council continues to improve its ability to ensure that taxpayer dollars are spent judiciously and effectively, including by providing technical support to local jurisdictions to help align data standards and reporting,” the spokesperson said.

But the state auditor found that nine state agencies have collectively spent $24 billion in state funding over the past five years administering at least 30 programs dedicated to tackling the homelessness crisis, and said Newsom’s homeless council “is responsible for coordinating, developing, and evaluating the efforts of these nine agencies.”

The state’s independent audit, released Tuesday, noted CICH is required by law to report its finances related to all state‑funded homelessness programs, but stopped doing so in 2021.

Over the past five years, the CICH didn’t consistently track whether the money actually improved the situation, the audit concluded. It also failed to collect and evaluate outcome data for these programs due to the lack of a consistent method.

In a letter to the governor, the state auditor wrote that “the state must do more to assess the cost-effectiveness of its homelessness programs.”

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Oakland, California, remains plagued by homelessness as nearby businesses close their doors due to safety concerns. (DWS for Fox News Digital)

Despite billions spent on homelessness and housing programs during the 2018-2023 fiscal years, the problem didn’t improve in many cities, according to the state auditor’s report. Since 2013, homelessness has jumped more than 53%. In 2023, the state estimated about 180,000 people in the state are homeless, which is more than anywhere else in the U.S.

“Further, it has not aligned its action plan for addressing homelessness with its statutory goals, nor has it ensured that it collects accurate, complete, and comparable financial and outcome information from homelessness programs,” according to the state audit.

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Homelessness in California under Gov. Gavin Newsom has increased from 151,000 in 2019 to 181,000 in 2024. (Fox)

Some data regarding the number of program participants and bed inventory in the state system might not be accurate or reliable, the audit found.

The CICH was created in 2017 to help track the state’s homelessness data, but it has produced only one report on homeless spending since its inception.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Jamie Joseph is a writer who covers politics. She leads Fox News Digital coverage of the Senate.

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New Mexico

Federal court orders New Mexico prison officials to allow magazine’s delivery

Published

14 minutes ago

March 11, 2026

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Federal court orders New Mexico prison officials to allow magazine’s delivery

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Oregon

Maryland rides big first half to 70-60 win over Oregon to open Big Ten Tournament

Published

44 minutes ago

March 11, 2026

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Maryland rides big first half to 70-60 win over Oregon to open Big Ten Tournament

The Associated Press

March 10, 2026 / 10:42 PM EDT
/ AP

David Coit scored 17 points, Elijah Saunders added 15, and Maryland defeated Oregon 70-60 in a first-round game of the Big Ten Tournament on Tuesday.

Maryland held Oregon to 3-for-22 shooting (14%) with 0 for 10 from 3-point distance in the first half and the Terrapins led 33-12 at the break. Maryland scored the first nine points and the Ducks made their first field goal at the 8:46 mark, making the score 17-8. Maryland later ran off 10 consecutive points for a 31-10 lead. Coit scored 12 points in the first half.

An 11-2 run helped the Ducks cut their deficit to 12 points early in the second half, but Maryland allowed only three points over the next 5 1/2 minutes and the lead was 58-34 near the 8-minute mark. A dunk and a three-point play from Nate Bittle started a 15-2 run for Oregon and it was 60-49 with 4 1/2 minutes remaining.

The Ducks got within single digits a few times, the last at 67-58 with 53 seconds remaining but Maryland’s Darius Adams made 3 of 4 free throws to preserve a double-digit margin.

Bittle scored 16 points, Kwame Evans Jr. 14 and Takai Simpkins 10 for 16th-seeded Oregon (12-20).

Maryland, seeded 17th, got 12 points, six rebounds and five assists from Andre Mills. Solomon Washington also scored 12 points and Adams finished with 10 points for the Terrapins (12-20).

Maryland defeated Oregon for the first time. The Ducks had won the only two prior matchups — both since joining the Big Ten last season. Most recently, Oregon won 64-54 at Maryland in January.

Up next

Maryland plays ninth-seeded Iowa in the second round on Wednesday.

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Utah

‘It’s really cool’: Utah selected to lead federal pilot program testing electric aircraft

Published

1 hour ago

March 11, 2026

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‘It’s really cool’: Utah selected to lead federal pilot program testing electric aircraft

SALT LAKE CITY — The 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City were, in a way, Utah’s entrance onto the world stage.

While the Beehive State is no longer a secret, the return of the Winter Olympics in 2034 will give the state a chance to showcase what could very well be the future of flight after the Utah Department of Transportation and state partners on Monday were selected to lead a federal pilot program to test advanced electric aircraft and other emerging aviation technologies.

More specifically, the Federal Aviation Administration selected Utah as one of eight projects nationwide for the Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing Integration Pilot Program, a three-year initiative designed to help safely integrate advanced aircraft into the national airspace.

“What this means for Utah and for advanced air mobility is that this enables us to work very closely with the FAA in testing the technology that makes up advanced air mobility,” said Matt Maass, director of UDOT’s Aeronautics Division. “So the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft will be used for moving passengers, these aircraft will be used for moving cargo, medical transport, and it’s all going to be done electrically.”

Specifically, through an initiative called “uFly,” Utah will lead a collaboration between Oregon, Idaho, Arizona and Oklahoma — along with industry partners and research institutions — to test new aviation technology and gather data that will inform the future of electric flight.

Partners in the initiative include BETA Technologies, Ampaire, Joby Aviation, Lockheed Martin, Future Flight Global, Alpine Air, Jump Aero and Utah aerospace and defense company 47G.

Utah has been selected by @SecDuffy and the FAA as one of eight national pilot sites for next-generation electric aircraft. We’re proud to help shape the future of aviation right here in Utah, creating jobs, strengthening mobility, and keeping America at the forefront of… pic.twitter.com/pV2envlxUt
— Governor Cox (@GovCox) March 9, 2026

BETA Technologies might sound familiar to a lot of Utahns, for good reason.

In May 2024, the company launched Project ALTA in conjunction with 47G. Technically known as the Air Logistics Transportation Alliance, the project’s goal is to establish an “advanced air mobility system” for the state.

According to 47G, advanced air mobility is a novel mode of transportation that uses electric aircraft to move people and packages throughout the state. BETA Technologies in March 2025 returned to the state to conduct six days of demonstration flights, showcasing its electric ALIA aircraft.

The federal project, although it doesn’t have any funding attached, brings together over 30 public and private partners to conduct real-world flight operations.

UDOT leadership and others gather for a photo behind a drone during a press conference to discuss UDOT’s selection to lead a federal pilot program testing advanced electric aircraft in Salt Lake City on Tuesday. (Photo: Tess Crowley, Deseret News)

“It will focus on parcels and packages, but then eventually people,” said Aaron Starks, president and CEO of 47G. “This designation now allows us to, through a phased approach, begin implementing all of this right away.”

Utah’s diverse landscapes are another reason the FAA chose the state to lead one of eight projects, Maass explained, saying the electric aircraft can be tested at high-altitude, snowy settings, desert environments and more.

Starks added he’s excited by the prospect of Utah leading the way when it comes to building a functional air mobility system.

“I grew up in northern Utah and rural Utah, and I remember as a kid, coming down to Salt Lake was like a big deal. That was the big city, right? You can be in an air taxi in Provo and into Moab in 36 minutes,” Starks said. “(If) I’m a Utah Jazz fan, or I want to go catch an MLB game, I can get in an air taxi and my family and I can be in Salt Lake, and we can be part of what’s happening here in the state, and live further away from the metropolitan areas that exist on the Wasatch Front. It’s awesome. It’s really cool.”

Starks added that in addition to moving people and packages, the project is also looking into how electric aircraft can be used for avalanche detection and mitigation, organ transplant delivery, wildfire monitoring and other exciting applications.

“This is going to happen in a phased approach, and our goal is to democratize this form of transportation so all families can take advantage,” Starks said.

Senate President Stuart Adams speaks during a press conference to discuss UDOT’s selection to lead a federal pilot program testing advanced electric aircraft in Salt Lake City on Tuesday. (Photo: Tess Crowley, Deseret News)

The pilot program, like the inaugural ventures into electric flight from players like 47G, UDOT and BETA Technologies, has strong legislative backing.

Utah Senate President Stuart Adams said that nearly a decade ago, he told the Legislature that someday, electric air taxis would be flying in Utah and that he wanted the state to lead that effort.

“That one day, that one day is here today. We are now leading the effort with other states to bring air mobility to Utah and I couldn’t be more excited,” Adams said. “Our goal, our vision, is, we hope to have this functioning to be able to show off air taxis delivering to our Olympic venues.”

The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.

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