By Sara Beth Williams–
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 802 last weekend into law, which will now require Sacramento County and several larger municipalities to coordinate and form a joint powers authority on housing and homelessness by 2028.
The bill has been controversial, with multiple cities including Citrus Heights, initially opposed. After months of conversation between officials from multiple cities including Citrus Heights, and the bill’s author, Rancho Cordova and Citrus Heights City councils voted to take a neutral stance on the bill.
The bill’s final version allows the county and participating cities to keep control of their own funds, which was a major point of contention for Citrus Heights and other jurisdictions.
Under the new law, the city and county of Sacramento, as well as Elk Grove, Rancho Cordova, Citrus Heights and Folsom, now have until January 2028 to finalize their joint powers authority.
Multiple jurisdictions have spoken in favor of, and in opposition to, the new bill since last week. While some Sacramento City Council members have voiced their support for the bill, Sacramento County has said it is considering a legal challenge to stop a joint powers authority from forming. The bill was authored by Sen. Angelique Ashby.
Some Sacramento Supervisors, like Rosario Rodriguez, are cautiously optimistic. Rodriguez, who authored an op-ed and letter to her constituents last March warning lawmakers of the risks of a joint powers authority, told local news outlets that, with new amendments in the bill addressing cities’ concerns, she supports the bill.
Rodriguez said Sacramento County and its jurisdictions now have “so many opportunities” to share best practices, resources, and experiences between each other regarding homelessness. Rodriguez also acknowledged the many challenges facing the county, referencing a documented increase in homelessness.
The Sentinel reached out to the mayor and vice mayor of Citrus Heights on Tuesday for comment regarding the new mandate, but did not hear back by press time.
Ashby, who has promoted finding a solution for homelessness in response to what she called a “scathing” grand jury report on prevailing homelessness in Sacramento, said Sacramento County has more than eight boards, and almost 90 board members making decisions about homelessness and housing “without ever coordinating across the region.”
A Point in Time count of individuals experiencing homelessness over a 24-hour period, which took place in January 2026, found an estimated 7,458 people experiencing homelessness across the county, with 4205 considered unsheltered and 3,253 in shelters or transitional housing.
Sacramento County representatives early in 2026 presented at each City Council and to the County Board of Supervisors and said they have already been working on a solution to consolidate housing and homeless ness services.
In October 2025, shortly after SB 802 was introduced, Citrus Heights officials gathered together with Sacramento County, the City of Sacramento, and other local electeds, along with hundreds of attendees, for a joint county-city session to address homelessness and behavioral health issues in the county.
Since then, the Citrus Heights City Council has appointed two of its own to sit on a regional homelessness and housing task force.
During a May 2026 City Council meeting, the Council approved Mayor MariJane Lopez-Taff as the city’s primary representative and Vice Mayor Porsche Middleton as the alternate representative on the newly proposed Sacramento Homeless and Housing Planning Task Force.
The new Planning Task Force is intended to replace the existing Sacramento Steps Forward Homeless Policy Council, where Lopez-Taff and Middleton already served following their initial appointments for the 2026 calendar year.
At the time, the city emphasized the importance of maintaining continuity as Sacramento County and local jurisdictions work toward forming a broader regional governance structure to address homelessness and housing services.
