---
[ STATE WATCH ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/state-watch)
# California Counted Its Homeless Population, But Can It Track The Money?
March 03 2022
Written by MANUELA TOBIAS.
[](https://www.addtoany.com/share)
CALIFORNIA HOMELESS - As she headed to her car after two hours of counting and surveying Sacramento’s homeless population, the state’s top housing official acknowledged there is a long road ahead.
“We’re building the system, building the capacity, building the data, and communities are rising to the occasion. I know people are really frustrated because they feel like they don’t see that change,” said Lourdes Castro Ramírez, [secretary of the Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency](https://www.bcsh.ca.gov/about/secretary.html). “But I don’t think you can see change that is going to be long-lasting overnight.”
As she spoke, just a few blocks away, a homeless encampment was going up in flames.
No one was injured, unlike a fire earlier the same day at a San Francisco encampment [that killed a woman](https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/San-Francisco-homeless-camp-fire-leaves-1-dead-3-16942568.php) and that [Gov. Gavin Newsom called “unconscionable.”](https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/San-Francisco-homeless-camp-fire-leaves-1-dead-3-16942568.php) But dozens of people — who had been camping beneath the on-ramp to Highway 50 on one of the coldest nights of the year — watched as firefighters sprayed hundreds of gallons of water at the inferno they had once called home.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen,” said John Vasquez, who said he had been living there for nearly two years. “We don’t have anything. Everything got burned. Clothes, tents, IDs.”
The [911 call came from another volunteer](https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/crime/article258721273.html) for Sacramento’s point-in-time count, a Census-like tally of people experiencing homelessness that took place across California last week. As those numbers trickle in over the summer, experts believe the data will help illustrate the reality Californians can no longer ignore: Homelessness has reached a tipping point.
[Read More. ](https://calmatters.org/housing/homeless/2022/03/california-homeless-count/)
*(Manuela Tobias is the housing reporter for CalMatters. Her stories focus on the political dynamics and economic and racial inequities that have contributed to the housing crisis in California and its potential solutions.)*
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/component/banners/click/115 "Brian Goldsmith Vertical R. Col")
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/component/banners/click/107 "LA DWP | Save $4K, Green | Priority Ad")
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/component/banners/click/114 "McKinney Campaign")
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/component/banners/click/82 "LA DWP #2 (Power Savers)")
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/component/banners/click/98 "Donna Tryfman - HS1-1")
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/component/banners/click/97 "Home - LA DWP #2 (Pay Water Bill Help)")
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/component/banners/click/111 "David DeJute Campaign")
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/component/banners/click/112 "Anna Reitano Vertical R. Col")
## Get The News In Your Email Inbox Mondays & Thursdays
Last Name
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/component/banners/click/113 "Rhonda Haymon campaign")
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/component/banners/click/110 "Something You Should Know")
---
## Featured CityWatch Stories
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/election-2024/33624-prosecutor-democrat-city-attorney-mckinney-makes-his-case-to-los-angeles-voters)
### [Prosecutor, Democrat, City Attorney? McKinney Makes His Case to Los Angeles Voters](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/election-2024/33624-prosecutor-democrat-city-attorney-mckinney-makes-his-case-to-los-angeles-voters)
ELECTION 2026 - The race for LA City Attorney has been laced with political accusations and allegations that when close…
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/la-watchdog/33544-the-la-watchdogs-2026-voters-guide-2)
### [The LA Watchdog’s 2026 Voter Guide](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/la-watchdog/33544-the-la-watchdogs-2026-voters-guide-2)
LA WATCHDOG - My recommendations are influenced by the need for truly balanced budgets, fiscal responsibility, long ter…
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/los-angeles/33626-the-fools-blame-game)
### [The Fools’ Blame Game](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/los-angeles/33626-the-fools-blame-game)
THE VIEW FROM HERE - Angelenos do not use elections to plot a wiser course of conduct for Los Angeles, but rather they…
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/los-angeles/33619-california-film-tax-credits-arent-enough-the-guilds-need-to-change-too)
### [California Film Tax Credits Aren’t Enough. The Guilds Need to Change Too.](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/los-angeles/33619-california-film-tax-credits-arent-enough-the-guilds-need-to-change-too)
LONNIE’S VIEW - California used to be the center of the movie and television universe. If you wanted to make movies, yo…
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/voices/33648-heres-what-zionisms-got-to-do-with-it)
### [Here’s What Zionism’s Got To Do With It](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/voices/33648-heres-what-zionisms-got-to-do-with-it)
ICAN - The anonymous website “BHUSD Watch” recently published a long, detailed article about the current BHUSD board an…
---
## [ STATE WATCH ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/state-watch)
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/state-watch/33554-the-real-cost-of-moving-to-san-diego-in-2026-a-neighborhood-by-neighborhood-breakdown)### [The Real Cost of Moving to San Diego in 2026: A Neighborhood-by-Neighborhood Breakdown](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/state-watch/33554-the-real-cost-of-moving-to-san-diego-in-2026-a-neighborhood-by-neighborhood-breakdown)
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/state-watch/33288-60-minutes-governance-breakdown-threatens-californias-ghost-trains-future)### [“60 Minutes": Governance Breakdown Threatens California’s Ghost Train’s Future](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/state-watch/33288-60-minutes-governance-breakdown-threatens-californias-ghost-trains-future)
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/state-watch/33230-california-hates-your-car)### [California Hates Your Car](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/state-watch/33230-california-hates-your-car)
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/state-watch/33134-they-once-taught-about-a-hero-now-faculty-rethink-cesar-chavez-lessons-after-allegations)### [They Once Taught About A Hero. Now Faculty Rethink César Chávez Lessons After Allegations](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/state-watch/33134-they-once-taught-about-a-hero-now-faculty-rethink-cesar-chavez-lessons-after-allegations)
[  ](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/state-watch/33125-in-california-880-pedestrians-a-year-are-killed-walking-after-dark-making-it-the-seventh-deadliest-state-in-america-for-nighttime-pedestrian-fatalities)### [In California, 880 Pedestrians a Year Are Killed Walking After Dark, Making It the Seventh Deadliest State in America for Nighttime Pedestrian Fatalities](https://ded2209.inmotionhosting.com/~citywa9/state-watch/33125-in-california-880-pedestrians-a-year-are-killed-walking-after-dark-making-it-the-seventh-deadliest-state-in-america-for-nighttime-pedestrian-fatalities)