Homeless advocates are demanding answers after a planned transition of city-funded shelters and transitional housing left vulnerable residents stranded on Sacramento streets last week.
The breakdown occurred as the City of Sacramento attempted to transition its motel program to what’s now known as the Emergency Shelter Vouchers for Families program operated through the Step Up on Second system.
“This was not a natural disaster. It was not an unforeseen emergency. It was a planned transition involving City of Sacramento oversight and contracted providers with months of lead time,” The Sacramento Homeless Union, a community-funded, humanitarian group, said in a statement. “Instead, it resulted in confusion, displacement, and trauma.”
The group called it a "system-wide failure" which led to displaced families, young children, disabled residents, and seniors.
Amber Criswell speaks at a press conference given by the Sacramento Homeless Union on Friday, June 5 2026.Ruth Finch/CapRadioAmber Criswell is a resident who was displaced by the transition. She said she’s raising three of her grandchildren. Criswell said that this transition has been hard on her grandchildren who have special needs.
“They’re already acting out in behaviors that they don’t usually have,” Criswell said. “I have a granddaughter graduating this morning and it’s kind of hard to enjoy it when you have to be out and you have nowhere else to go.”
Criswell said she wanted to be placed somewhere safe and stable.
“I know they can’t put me in permanent housing. I have to get me to permanent housing,” Criswell said. “But they can give us a little help to get stable to where we can be permanently housed and help us, guide us to permanent housing. Like they said they would.”
Despite repeated assurances from the city about the transition since February through meetings and handing out flyers that the handoff would be seamless , unhoused residents of city-funded motels, trailer parks, and shelters rooms reported widespread chaos.
Cassandra Durante, a former occupant at Step Up, said she was a survivor of abuse, and has two children. She said that programs like Step Up were designed to help people recover from tragedies in their lives.
“But they promised hope and they cause chaos, and they put a lot of hurt in our hearts,” Durante said. “There was no ‘up’ motion. It was going back more than a hundred steps.”
Many residents reported being told by staff as late as Sunday evening that their placements were secure, according to the Sacramento Homeless Union.
However, by 8:00 a.m. June 1, residents at several shelter sites were instructed to pack all their belongings and vacate their rooms temporarily so rooms could be cleaned, under the impression they would be allowed back in later that afternoon.
"They complied. They left believing they would return. Many did not," the Sacramento Homeless Union stated.
Some residents were issued city vouchers valued at $55 for participating hotels. However, advocates reported that local hotel rates vastly exceeded the voucher amount, or that residents were flatly denied entry due to standard "do not rent" exclusion lists.
Tana Saito was a resident housed through the Step Up program, alongside her three children.
“They offered me to pay for a hotel from the difference that they were going to pay,” she said, referring to the vouchers. “We would be paying like $34, because the rooms are $89. I can’t afford that.”
By Tuesday, the Sacramento Homeless Union had directly verified at least 80 displaced individuals, ranging in age from a 4-month-old infant to seniors in their late 70s.
Christy Smith, an organizer and case manager with the homeless union, said that this displacement can be incredibly damaging, even for just a day or two.
“People are living with autoimmune diseases, compromised immune systems, mobility limitations,” Smith said. “For some, being forced to remain outside in extreme heat is not just a hardship, it is a life-threatening risk.”
California State Senator Angelique Ashby and Sacramento City Councilmember Caity Maple joined late-night emergency coordination meetings to help assist, according to Sacramento Homeless Union.
Brian Pedro, Sacramento’s Department of Community Response Director, said 125 families in the program transitioned smoothly with only 25 having their vouchers rejected by motel owners.
“It was not an oversight. It was the motels that decided to not accept vouchers, and we reacted as quickly as we could to get the families back inside,” Pedro said.
Pedro said his department worked overtime to offer displaced families shelter at the city’s Outreach and Engagement Center (OEC), but many elected not to take that option.
"That's why they were out on the street,” Pedro said. “I'm not saying that it's anybody's fault. I'm saying, it's an unfortunate situation.”
As of Friday, all but two of the families had been given shelter, according to Pedro.
Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty, and City Manager Marakeshia Smith released a joint statement Wednesday night calling the implementation of its Motel Program reforms "disappointing."
“We have learned important lessons from this experience and are committed to applying them as we move forward,” the statement said. “City staff and our community partners will continue working directly with families to address their individual circumstances, connect them with available shelter and housing resources, and ensure the program better serves those who need it most. We are focused on helping every family access safe shelter, supportive services, and a pathway to stable housing.”
Sacramento Homeless Union responded in a Facebook post that the incident demonstrates a “pattern of cruelty” towards homeless people and making public apologies while doing nothing to get people off the streets.
The group is now calling for a full public accounting from the City of Sacramento regarding the collapsed transition, saying the lack of clear communication and coordinated safeguards is a severe violation of public trust.
“It is not about ‘doing better’ when people with chronic medical conditions, infants, children, survivors of domestic violence, trafficking victims in hiding, and individuals dependent on medical devices are still sitting outside in dangerous heat with nowhere to go,” the Sacramento Homeless Union said.
