Sacramento has a homelessness crisis worse than most people realize.
Crystal Sanchez has a message for Sacramento: the homelessness crisis is far worse than most people realize — and the way governments are responding is compounding the harm, not solving it.
In a wide-ranging interview, Sanchez, Western Regional Director for the National Union of the Homeless and a frontline case manager, laid bare the scale of the crisis in California’s capital and across the state. She pointed to a massive gap between official homeless counts and actual need, widespread criminalization, and systemic failures in providing services — all while communities and elected leaders scramble for solutions that often miss the mark.
A Hidden Crisis: 50,000+ Homeless in Sacramento
Sanchez began with a startling statistic. “We did a public records request for 2023,” she said, “and it showed that 50,113 people are experiencing homelessness in Sacramento — compared to the official Point-in-Time (PIT) count of 6,100.” That nearly tenfold discrepancy, she said, is emblematic of a broader trend: systems built to manage homelessness are actively obscuring its true scope.
“Even our big camps weren’t counted,” she explained, criticizing the city’s decision to drop Sac State from PIT count oversight after researchers asked participants whether they’d had contact with law enforcement. “The city didn’t like that 70% said yes. So they hired their own team the next year.”
She also described how sweeps ahead of the PIT count scatter encampments and reduce visibility. “They sweep people three weeks before, so you can’t find them,” Sanchez said. “And volunteers — often older folks or church groups — aren’t going into the rivers or deeper camps. It’s just not an accurate reflection.”
“We did a public records request for 2023, and it showed that 50,113 people are experiencing homelessness in Sacramento — compared to the official Point-in-Time (PIT) count of 6,100.” – Crystal Sanchez
A Legal Frontline: Suing to Stop Criminalization
Sanchez’s organization is currently involved in multiple lawsuits across California challenging anti-homeless policies. “We’ve filed in Fremont, Sausalito, Marin County, Vallejo, Oakland, and Sacramento,” she said.
In Fremont, the city’s proposed ordinance would make it illegal to aid and abet homelessness — even handing out tents could be construed as a crime. “They amended the language slightly,” she said, “but it still criminalizes people the moment the help lends a hand.”
In Sacramento, her group is pursuing a lawsuit based on the 14th Amendment, focused on city sweeps during extreme heat. “People are being pushed out from under shade, from under eaves, in 110-degree weather. That’s not just inhumane — it’s unconstitutional.”
Criminalization as Policy
The criminalization of homelessness is one of Sanchez’s greatest concerns. “The city is jailing 700 people a month. Right now, 30% of the jail is unhoused people,” she said.
The tactics are often harsh and sudden. “People are given 15 minutes to get their belongings. If they’re not fast enough, it’s taken or destroyed,” she said. “And they’re arrested — booked and released. Our union lead made the front page of the Sacramento Bee after she was arrested on a site she’d lived at for two years.”
Sanchez also questioned the intent behind certain enforcement tactics. “The Sheltered Enforcement Act was used to target groups of four or more — but how do you spread out an encampment of four people? It’s designed to fail.”
“It’s Not That Services Don’t Exist — It’s That They Don’t Work”
Asked about service availability, Sanchez said it’s not simply a question of resources, but of design and access. “There are only about 1,100 shelter beds in Sacramento — and we have 50,000 unhoused people,” she said.
Even when resources exist, they’re often inaccessible. “People are told to call 2-1-1,” she said. “But as a coordinated access provider, I can tell you: that’s not a real service pipeline. It’s a demographic page. Case managers like me have to do the begging, pleading, and follow-up. Meanwhile, phones die, emails change, and folks fall through the cracks.”
She was particularly critical of how seniors and medically vulnerable residents are treated. “We’ve been told outright that people with chronic conditions can’t be admitted to shelters due to insurance liabilities,” she said. “And 65% of the PIT count were disabled. So they’re intentionally not housing them.”
A Failing Housing System
At the core of the crisis, Sanchez said, is a lack of affordable housing — and a political unwillingness to invest in real solutions. “The median rent for a studio in Sacramento is $2,150. If you’re working minimum wage, it doesn’t work,” she said. “I work two jobs — at a law firm and a shelter — and I can barely cover my bills.”
Meanwhile, public officials make empty promises. “Mayor McCarty ran on a platform to convert state buildings into housing — 700 units. But now he’s trying to hand them over to Sac State,” she said. “There’s no follow-through.”
Building Something Different: A Community Hub
In response, Sanchez and her team are creating a different model. “We’re opening a hub on May 12th in Del Paso Heights,” she said. “It’ll be a space where people can check in, get entered into the HMIS system, receive referrals for mental health, access street medicine, and actually stay in touch while they’re on waitlists.”
The hub is designed to counter the fragmentation of current services. “People call 2-1-1 and are told they might get a call back if a bed opens — but they don’t have phones, chargers, emails. They’re invisible. We’re making them visible.”
Substance Use, Mental Illness, and Misconceptions
Sanchez rejected the stereotype that homelessness is caused by addiction or mental illness. “People don’t go on the streets because they’re using. They start using because they’re on the streets — to numb the pain, to replace stolen prescriptions, to survive rape or trauma,” she said.
“The idea that drugs cause homelessness is a convenient distraction. I’ve got state workers living in their cars — showing up for their jobs, showering at gyms. That’s not addiction — that’s structural failure.”
The Bigger Picture
Ultimately, Sanchez sees the homelessness crisis as inseparable from economic precarity and shrinking social safety nets. “There’s no prevention. One late fee, one medical bill, one job loss — and you’re out. And once you’re unhoused, you’re branded. No matter who you are.”
She urged the public to look beyond stigma. “These are your neighbors,” she said. “You’re one step away. Would you want to go to jail for sleeping outside because that’s all you have left?”
Thanks for this important article. I’d add that everyone reading it should send it to the City Council and Supervisors.
“We did a public records request for 2023,” she said, “and it showed that 50,113 people are experiencing homelessness in Sacramento ”
I’d like to see that breakdown and how they came up with the numbers. What questions were asked and other criteria used?
(For ex.) Have you ever spent the night at someone’s house couch surfing?
She just sent me the full request, I’m planning on doing a follow up story once I analyze it.
The numbers come from the Department of of Human Assistance :)