SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Gov. Gavin Newsom this week unveiled a new round of behavioral health infrastructure projects aimed at expanding mental health treatment capacity, crisis services and recovery programs, underscoring the state’s efforts to address homelessness, untreated mental illness and gaps in accessible care.
In a press release issued during Mental Health Awareness Month, the governor’s office said California is continuing what officials described as a large-scale transformation of the state’s behavioral health care system through investments funded by Proposition 1 and the Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure Program.
As explained in the release, California has continued its transformation of the state’s behavioral health system through investment in mental health infrastructure projects, as well as crisis response and recovery services.
“California is delivering the modern behavioral health system that communities have needed for decades,” Newsom said in the statement. “These projects — large and small, urban and rural — represent real progress in bringing treatment, crisis care, and recovery services closer to home.”
The governor’s office added that these latest rounds of projects will increase access to residential treatment beds, outpatient treatment services, crisis stabilization services and community mental health services throughout the state.
Officials said the projects reflect California’s ongoing effort to create a more responsive behavioral health system after decades of underinvestment in behavioral health care infrastructure.
State officials said these efforts come in response to historic failures in California’s mental health care system, noting that a lack of access to crisis care and residential treatment capacity has increased homelessness and incarceration among people living with untreated psychosis.
The administration also said the projects are intended to address longstanding systemic failures in California’s behavioral health system, including limited access to crisis care and shortages in residential treatment capacity.
The governor’s office directly connected these issues to the historical closure of state psychiatric hospitals during former Gov. Ronald Reagan’s administration, arguing that insufficient replacement systems contributed to increases in homelessness, incarceration and untreated severe mental illness.
According to the press release, Californians with untreated psychosis are “10 times more likely to experience homelessness and 16 times more likely to be incarcerated.”
These projects seek to address the state’s inadequate treatment and recovery system, including expanding access to critical community-based mental health services.
Officials said the projects are also intended to reduce reliance on emergency rooms, correctional institutions and homelessness support systems as the default response to untreated mental illness.
One example highlighted in the announcement is the launch of Home of the Angels, a new substance use disorder campus being developed by Homeboy Industries in collaboration with community partners in Los Angeles County.
The residential facility will feature 40 treatment beds and provide outpatient substance use disorder services, including peer respite services.
Other projects include a new residential mental health rehabilitation center in Mendocino County, developed by Redwood Quality Management and expected to serve more than 170,000 individuals annually.
In San Diego County, construction has begun on the Inner-Tribal Wellness Village for substance use treatment and community mental health services within tribal communities.
State Health and Human Services Secretary Kim Johnson said the new projects would significantly expand access to behavioral health care.
“These investments are transforming the behavioral health landscape in every corner of the state,” Johnson said. “By partnering with counties, tribal communities, and local providers, we are expanding access to high-quality care and strengthening the continuum of services that Californians rely on.”
Department of Health Care Services Director Michelle Baass echoed Johnson, saying Proposition 1 funding helped move the projects into construction more quickly.
“With Proposition 1 and BHCIP, we are expanding capacity, reducing barriers to care, and supporting providers who are delivering life-changing treatment,” Baass said.
The governor’s office said the projects are part of California’s broader “Mental Health for All” strategy, which includes investments in crisis hotlines, supportive housing, youth mental health services, reentry services, suicide prevention programs and CARE Court programs that connect individuals with severe mental illness to treatment.
Combined, these investments have contributed to California’s first reduction in unsheltered homelessness in 15 years, according to the administration.
However, mental health advocates continue to debate whether the investments are sufficient to meet demand.
Advocates say California’s behavioral health system has long been plagued by treatment shortages, inadequate staffing and inaccessible community care, particularly for low-income individuals, unhoused residents and people cycling between hospitals and correctional facilities.
State officials said additional projects are in the planning phase and are expected to reach construction in 2026.
Follow the Vanguard on Social Media – X, Instagram and Facebook. Subscribe the Vanguard News letters. To make a tax-deductible donation, please visit davisvanguard.org/donate or give directly through ActBlue. Your support will ensure that the vital work of the Vanguard continues.
Categories: Breaking News Health Issues State of California Tags: Behavioral Health Infrastructure California mental health Gavin Newsom Homelessness Proposition 1 Public Health Policy