California’s conservatorship laws are being updated for the first time in 50 years.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 43 this week. The change updates terms of eligibility for conservatorship and the definition of “gravely disabled” to include people unable to provide for their own personal safety or necessary medical care — as well as food, clothing or shelter — due to severe substance abuse or serious mental health illnesses, according to the Office of Gov. Newsom.
Under the existing law of the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act, “gravely disabled” is defined as a condition in which a person is unable to provide basic personal needs or is mentally incompetent.
SB-43 was established in hopes of pulling unhoused people off the streets, even if they refuse to accept help because of mental illness or addiction.
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Union Rescue Mission CEO Andy Bales and his staff deal with these issues daily.
“You go out on the streets, and you invite people in, and people decided they’re gonna stay in misery,” Bales said.
The Union Rescue Mission on Skid Row provides beds and shelter, similar to other non-profit organizations. However, many of the unhoused refuse to participate. Bales said that mental illness or drug and alcohol addiction are often to blame, leaving the unhoused incapable of advocating for themselves.
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“I’ve seen elderly women go back out on the streets, move in with an abusive man, then get beaten up,” Bales said.
Bales said SB-43 “could be a game changer, if we have the care lined up.”
On Thursday, Newsom said that care includes bond and ballot measures to build more than 11,000 treatment beds and housing units worth $6.4 billion, slated for voter approval in March 2024.
Bales is in full support and said LA community members will know SB-43 is working when “we won’t have six people die per day on the streets of LA.”
Not everyone agrees with the new approach to conservatorship. A group by the name of Disability Rights California says it will “erode the civil rights of people with mental health disabilities in a misguided attempt to address homelessness.”
Read more about SB-43 here.
