Yahoo Autos California spent $276 million on its recall election. Here's how that stacks up against the state's spending on 3 key issues.
The failed attempt to oust Gov. Gavin Newsom from his role cost California taxpayers $276 million.
We took a look at how that sum stacks up against key parts of the state's budget.
We examined how much the state has allocated to helping its homeless population and funding programs that fight climate change and COVID-19.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom will remain in office following a costly recall election that cost taxpayers $276 million, according to the state's Department of Finance.
To put that sum into context, we took a look at how much California is spending on some of its key issues this year, from homelessness and battling wildfires to combating COVID-19. Figures on California's spending have been sourced from the state's 2020-2021 budget.
Funding housing for the homeless
Homelessness was cited as a key issue in this year's recall election, with Newsom's GOP rivals like Larry Elder and Caitlyn Jenner each offering controversial ideas on how they would tackle the issue. An estimated 60,000 people are currently living on the streets of Los Angeles. On the state level, the US Interagency Council on Homelessness reported that in January 2020, California recorded an estimated total of more than 161,548 homeless individuals.
Per California's 2020-2021 budget, $550 million was allocated to the Department of Housing and Community Development for Project Homekey, a sum intended to provide housing for homeless individuals and families. The $276 million spent on the recall election could have funded more than half of this amount.
The average cost of building a single unit of housing for the homeless in Los Angeles rose to $531,000 in 2020, according to an audit from City Controller Ron Galperin. Based on this metric, with $276 million, the state could have financed more than 500 units of housing with the cost of the recall election.
