California cities could create safe drug injection site programs — if Newsom signs new bill
California cities may soon be able to establish safe drug consumption sites under a bill that is headed to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk after clearing the state Senate Monday.
Senate Bill 57 lets local jurisdictions vote to create injection sites as pilot programs. Proponents say the sites provide a realistic way of reducing overdoses and lowering crime, while opponents hold that the legislation would cause drug activity to spike.
Twenty-one senators voted in favor — just enough to send it to the governor for final approval. The measure was introduced by Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco.
“These programs have been in operation for about 30 years around the world in Europe, Canada and Australia,” Wiener told senators Monday afternoon. “And although there is no silver bullet to the overdose epidemic, they are a proven strategy to reduce overdose deaths.”
The legislation has faced significant pushback, largely from law enforcement agencies that say safe consumption sites do not provide adequate paths to treatment, according to a legislative bill analysis.
These objections have shut down similar proposals. Three attempts by Sen. Susan Eggman, D-Stockton, to pass supervised injection sites failed in recent years. One of the bills was vetoed by then-Gov. Jerry Brown.
Newsom ‘open’ to safe injection pilot
Newsom said he was “very open” to the law when he ran for governor in 2018, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
“I’m very open to that,” he said at a San Francisco campaign stop. “I’d like to learn more about why the governor vetoed it in terms of making what I believe is a legal argument — so I’d like to research that. I’m not wedded to the language of the existing bill, but I am certainly very, very open to a pilot.”
Wiener announced several amendments to the bill since it was last on the Senate floor. Participating jurisdictions will be required to participate in studies of their pilot programs, which will examine the impacts of their sites. The bill was also amended to include the city of Los Angeles as an initial pilot site.
New York and Rhode Island already have legislation like SB 57 in place. Several safe injection sites in New York City opened in the last year. the Associated Press reported that the sites welcomed 9,500 visits in their first three months, helping to stop over 150 overdoses.
The U.S. Department of Justice could also legalize safe injection sites on the federal level. While the DOJ under the Trump Administration vehemently opposed the idea, Attorney General Merrick Garland’s Department has expressed openness.
“This legislation isn’t about whether we want people to use drugs,” Wiener wrote in a press release after the vote. “Rather, it’s an acknowledgment that people are using drugs, and our choice is whether we want to make every effort to help them survive and get healthy. The time has come for California to adopt this proven overdose death prevention strategy.
Republicans urge Newsom to veto
Republicans immediately urged Newsom to veto SB 57, with the Senate Republican Caucus saying it “would authorize several California cities to operate drug dens.”
“Instead of focusing on a strategy to help people get their lives back, get off drugs and into treatment, California Democrats focus on giving people free needles and a safe place to shoot up,” said Senate Republican Leader Scott Wilk, R-Santa Clarita, in a statement. “This is one of the most dangerous pieces of legislation that I’ve seen sent to the governor. Leaving people on the streets in squalor, rather than getting them help, shows zero compassion.”
The Republican National Committee said SB 57 is an example of California Democrats’ efforts to “dismantle the safety and well-being of Californians,” said Hallie Balch, RNC spokeswoman.
“Instead of shoring up our borders, getting tough on crime or working to clean up our streets by addressing the mental health crisis ravaging the state, they are offering up illicit drugs to addicts on a silver platter,” Balch said in a statement.
