Two California Counties Battle Trump Administration Over Homelessness Funding

Here are the morning’s top stories on Wednesday, May 21, 2025…

• Lawyers for San Francisco and Santa Clara counties are back in court Wednesday. They’re fighting with the Trump administration over new rules around homelessness funding.
• Teachers in Temecula can teach about race without fear of running afoul of the school board, at least for now. This comes after a California Appeals Court ruled the district’s ban on Critical Race Theory is unconstitutionally vague. 
• A group of state lawmakers is calling for the legislature to reject Governor Newsom’s proposal to fast-track a controversial project that would send more Northern California water south.

New Trump Administration Rules Could Cut Off Crucial Federal Homelessness Funding

Lawyers representing San Francisco and Santa Clara counties are back in court on Wednesday, after suing the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development over new conditions it put on grants that were part of the department’s Continuum of Care program.

That program is designed to help local governments and nonprofits to provide housing and related services to those who are experiencing homelessness or at risk of becoming homeless.

Santa Clara County receives around $34 million a year. San Francisco gets about $50 million annually. However, that funding is now at risk as the Trump administration moves to impose new conditions on the federal money. It’s part of a broader pattern of the Trump administration seeking to withhold money to pressure democratically led cities and counties to change policies the administration doesn’t like.

Earlier this year, when HUD sent out grant applications, local officials balked. Under the new rules, local governments must certify that they do not have diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, don’t promote “gender ideology,” and don’t have sanctuary immigration policies.

San Francisco and Santa Clara joined six other counties in suing the Trump administration over these new conditions. Earlier this month, they won a temporary restraining order halting the new grant conditions. On Wednesday, the counties return to court where the same judge will consider a permanent injunction as the case moves forward.

Court Halts Temecula School Board’s CRT Ban

A California Appeals Court has ruled that Temecula Valley Unified School District’s ban on Critical Race Theory is unconstitutionally vague.

The school board banned the teaching of critical race theory, or CRT, in 2022. A group of parents and teachers sued, and the Fourth Appellate Court said the district has to put its ban on hold while the lawsuit continues.

Justice Kathleen O’Leary wrote the board’s definition of CRT seemed subjective and there are no guidelines for how a teacher should modify their curriculum. “The court’s decision makes very clear that California courts also do not stand for ideological censorship, especially censorship that restricts students’ right to learn key moments in the history of racial inequity in this country,” said Amanda Mangaser Savage, who represents the parents and teachers. The Temecula school board’s lawyer did not respond to a request for comment.

California Delta Leaders Blast Newsom’s Push To Fast-Track $20 Billion Water Tunnel

Less than a week after Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed fast-tracking a controversial tunnel project to send more Northern California water south, a group of lawmakers, tribal leaders and environmentalists is calling on the Legislature to reject the idea, calling it “a broken process that silences local voices.”

Members of the Legislature’s Delta Caucus on Tuesday said that the project will cost more than $20 billion and that Californians will ultimately foot a mounting bill because of inflation and tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump. They also accused Newsom of favoring agricultural interests and Southern California over the needs of Northern California communities, and said the project will harm fish species, the environment and local economies.

“This project will devastate the delta’s ecosystem and place an enormous financial burden on ratepayers at a time when Californians are already struggling with the cost of living,” said Assemblymember Lori Wilson, D-Suisun City, who represents communities throughout the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.

In an email Tuesday afternoon, the Newsom administration disputed the caucus members’ comments, saying they demonstrate “why this fast track is necessary, as it is clear that misinformation will continue to delay and obfuscate this critical project.”