The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is responsible for maintaining State-Owned properties like freeways and overpasses, but for too long, cities like ours have faced delays and jurisdictional red tape when trying to address encampments near state highways.
 

Quite honestly, the prevalence of encampments on state property adjacent to freeways has gotten out of control.  
 

That’s why I sponsored SB 569 this year, a bill by Sen. Catherine Blakespear that requires Caltrans to work more closely with cities, including allowing for the use of local encampment abatement policies that will result in resolving encampments quicker.

This legislation passed its first committee recently with strong support and will now go to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Here in San Diego, we’ve already demonstrated what’s possible when cities are empowered to act—by opening shelters and options that help people off the street, like Safe Sleeping, Safe Parking and expanded outreach; and moving people off sidewalks and into services. With these new tools from the state, we’ll be able to move even faster to ensure no one has to live in dangerous, inhumane conditions on the side of the highway.

What question should I answer next? 
 

1. Does the City prioritize fixing roads that directly surround public schools since they are used by so many San Diegans?  
    

2. Is San Diego the only city facing a major budget shortfall, or are other cities dealing with similar deficits? 
    

3. What is the City doing to address the pollution in the Tijuana River Valley?
    

Vote by picking one of the questions above and emailing it to askthemayor@sandiego.gov.