Economics

Mayor Schaaf’s Budget Proposes Only $250,000 for Homelessness

Published

9 years ago

May 19, 2017

Caption: Nancy Nadel speaks at Tuesday night City Council meeting, calling on the council to pass a 2017-2019 budget that prioritizes “housing the unhoused.” Photo by Ken Epstein

Based on a survey conducted by the city on community budget priorities, Oaklanders overwhelming agree that homelessness and displacement are the most critical issues the city faces.

The survey found that the Oakland’s top issue to address in the new 2017-2019 budget was “Housing costs/affordability,” which jumped 29 percent from the previous survey and for the first time displaced “crime/violence/safety” as residents’ major concern.

As a result Mayor Libby Schaaf’s proposed budget came under fire at this week’s City Council meeting, as public speakers and council members criticized her administration’s proposal for allocating meager resources for affordable housing for low-income residents, including only $250,000 to meet housing and service needs for the city’s growing homeless population.

Speaking at the council meeting, Councilmember Dan Kalb said his top budget priority was funding for homeless services and developing housing. “It is lacking and needs to be upped significantly,” said Kalb.

“$250,000 is completely inadequate,” said Councilmember Annie Campbell Washington.

“What we can fund and should fund (should be sufficient) to make a real dent,” she said, pointing out that the budget also lacks any funding for the usual summer job program for Oakland youth.

Stating that “”$250,000 not enough,” Councilmember Desley Brooks proposed expediting funds from the Measure KK infrastructure, bond which voters approved in November, to begin spending money on acquisition and construction of affordable housing units as quickly as possible.

Calling for a “humane and” sensible budget,” Kaplan said $250,000 is not a “serious proposal. ¨We have a homeless crisis.”

She said the first round of KK bond expenditures should fund “affordable housing construction and immediately buy existing (structures), including single-room-occupancy buildings (SROs),” before the market drives up SRO prices.

Many of the dozens of public speakers told the council called for the council to take action on homelessness and affordable housing. A number of speakers said the city could find additional funds if it eliminates what they view excessive spending on the Oakland Police Department, which accounts for the biggest chunk of the city’s budget

Nancy Nadel, a community activist and former West Oakland councilmember, said she was speaking for a group Oaklanders dedicated to “housing our unhoused residents.”

“I have been coming here for at least seven months with no discernable progress,” she said.

“We see a lot of finger pointing,” blaming the county for not doing enough. “We hope to see new units to house our unhoused residents (in the new budget.)”

In a statement published in the SF Chronicle on Sunday, Mayor Schaaf said, “It is disappointing not to have all the resources we want,” and that as a result the city has to make “hard choices.”

Schaaf said that Alameda County has the primary responsibility to provide homeless services.

A new budget must be approved by the end of June. The next city council discussion on the budget is scheduled for May 30.

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Activism

The People’s Coalition to Stop Deed Theft Speaks at National Probate Reform Coalition Meeting

Evangeline Byars and Carmella Carrington lead the STOPDEEDTHEFT.org movement, fighting rising deed and title fraud, which disproportionately affects Black and Brown communities nationwide.

Published

1 day ago

May 15, 2026

Oakland Post

Left to right: Evangeline Byars and Carmella Carrington are gaining nationwide attention with their STOPDEEDTHEFT.org movement.

By Tanya Dennis

The National Probate Reform Coalition (NPRC) has learned that aside from rampant theft of properties occurring through probate court, deed theft extends even further with the support of banks, police, judges, attorneys and “the system” to steal Black and Brown properties.

Deed and title fraud are rising, with FBI data showing over 9,300 complaints and $173.6 million in losses in 2024 alone.

To that end, NPRC invited Evangeline Byars of The People’s Coalition to Stop Deed Theft as their keynote speaker on May 7.

Deed theft victims reach out to Byars because she has a reputation of getting things done. Introduced to community organizing at Medgar Evers College in 2011, Byars was mentored by Harry Belafonte and gained further movement training in 2012-13 through his “Gathering for Justice.” Byars also trained with the Youth Brigade 32BJ, Union in 2012 where she learned to map, target, and execute actions.

With that knowledge as an advocacy worker, Byars ran for president of TWU Local 100 for transit workers. During challenges of the union and political changes in New York when unions no longer had friends in government, they organized.

In 2025, deed theft victims approached Byars and told their stories. Byars investigated, and discovered rampant, unrelenting theft of properties, primarily from Black and brown families, got involved and helped them with their fight, teaching them how to sustain their fight at the grassroots level while remaining politically independent. This independence gave them the ability to move without co promise.

Deed theft is the taking of someone’s deed through fraudulent mortgages or a stranger that accesses property records, prepares paperwork and files for an owner’s property. New York is a’ first notice’ state, which means whoever appears first on record is the designated deed holder.

Deed theft escalated between 2013-23, the outcome of the subprime market, when people faced mass foreclosure and short sales. By 2014 people, primary Black and Brown, were fighting for their property.

In California, title theft (deed fraud) is a fast-growing threat often targeting high-equity homes, vacant land, and rentals. As of 2024, California leads the nation in real estate fraud with over 1,583 cases costing roughly $24.8 million in losses in a single year, reflecting the state’s prime position for scammers due to high property values, the FBI reports.

Byars says, “Deed theft affects Black and Brown people: it is by design, leading to the erasure of people of color homeownership that is happening nationwide. In every big city across the United States, towns and municipalities, we are witnessing a mass exodus of Black and brown people. This theft cannot occur without judges, notaries and law enforcement, it is a syndicate of players working together for the removal of people by illegal ejectment or eviction.

The People’s Coalition to Stop Deed Theft does court watch and constantly highlight the inequities in the court system.

Byars says, “This is a human rights crisis. Because of Wall Street and what New York signifies to the nation, know that no state is safe. Any person can come and create paper terrorism, slap forgery notes on homes; engage in illegal guardian procedures; initiate foreclosures; apply for fraudulent loan modifications; then there’s outright theft and forgery, just taking people’s homes. Believe me, it’s happening nationally and on the daily, These predators also target seniors over the age of 60 and women.”

The People’s Coalition to Stop Deed Theft take direct actions against perpetrators and are working with the New York District Attorney to create an office dedicated to gighting deed theft.

“Two ways to protect your deed is to keep a note, never satisfy your mortgage, because the bank is the biggest gangster, but if you’re making a payment, it keeps them in check. Or put your home in a living trust, once you have a trust, it hides the owner’s name and protects the person from predators.”