A presidential executive order on homelessness released this summer promotes punitive policies toward people who are unsheltered across the country — loosening involuntary institutionalization laws and prioritizing funding for cities that impose stricter measures on encampments and involuntary holds. In a recent sfpublicpress article, our Director of Government Affairs, Tara Gamboa-Eastman, discusses how this order could reshape California’s behavioral health system. She highlights its emphasis on institutionalization and criminalization, and worries that evidence-based community programs could lose funding as a result. Still, California remains steadfast in its commitment to building a more compassionate, accessible behavioral health system. As Tara says, “We are really trying to come from a place of not giving in to anticipatory compliance and preserving that vision until we’re told otherwise.” #MentalHealth #ExecutiveOrder #California