Gov. Newsom signs 'CARE Court' legislation in San Jose
SAN JOSE – Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday signed new legislation aimed at helping people across the state dealing with mental health and substance-abuse issues.
Newsom spoke about signing the law establishing "CARE Court" at a press conference in San Jose Wednesday morning, the same location where he first announced the proposal in March.
The new law creates a CARE Court system that will evaluate the capacity of people who can't survive on their own or could be a threat to themselves or others. CARE stands for Community Assistance, Recovery and Empowerment. The legislation saw broad support from both parties with only two state legislators voting against the bill on its way to becoming law.
The governor's plan would create a new system within county courts where treatment or housing could be mandated for some 8,000 to 12,000 of what could be called the state's toughest cases; people who have been placed on psychiatric holds, those who are being repeatedly arrested, or those referred by family members or mental health providers. The treatment is part of the larger $14 billion homelessness push.
If an individual qualifies for CARE Court services, they will get access to legal assistance as well as a "CARE plan" which could include everything from housing to medication for the next year.
San Francisco is one of the seven counties that will be putting pilot programs into place by October 2023, with the state's other 51 counties following suit in 2024. The other counties participating through pilot programs are San Diego, Orange, Riverside, Stanislaus, Tuolumne and Glenn counties.
"It took us decades and decades to get here. It took us five months to change the paradigm," Newsom said Wednesday.
The law is aimed at getting help for homeless people rather than placing them in custody, especially those with severe mental health or substance abuse problems.