Study Links California’s Proposition 47 to Rise in Homelessness and Drug Use
A new PPIC study finds that California’s 2014 Proposition 47, which reduced drug and property felonies, coincided with a roughly 10% increase in unsheltered homelessness and higher drug consumption.
The Public Policy Institute of California released the most rigorous causal analysis yet of California’s Proposition 47, a 2014 criminal-justice reform that downgraded many drug and property felonies. The study attributes a roughly 10% rise in unsheltered homelessness—about 7,000 additional people—to the reduced enforcement of drug laws, which also coincided with an 8% increase in serious drug use. Treatment admissions dropped about 20%, largely because court, jail, probation and parole referrals collapsed, eliminating the main conduit to care.
Researchers found no significant link between the homelessness surge and changes in rents, vacancy rates, poverty or unemployment across counties. While acknowledging methodological caveats, the authors argue that the findings undermine the Housing First premise that less enforcement improves outcomes, and they cite the study in support of federal policies that prioritize enforcement and treatment courts. The report warns that disengaging the justice system from addiction services can deepen homelessness and drug dependence.
Why it matters
The findings suggest that weakening drug-law enforcement may worsen homelessness and addiction, informing policy decisions nationwide.
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