California’s program to shelter the homeless and slow the spread of COVID-19 is being widely underutilized. Only around half of the 15-thousand hotel and motel rooms leased by the state are currently occupied. In Nevada County, Housing and Community Services Director Mike Dent says they have 70 to 100 rooms available. But no more than ten are being used right now. He says the maximum number has been no more than 30, which was the week after the statewide shutdown order was issued. Dent says no positive cases have been housed or even people with symptoms, so far. But those who have been housed are at high risk…

And even though coronavirus cases have flattened in Nevada County, Dent says the program is staying in place for now…

At best, the occupied rooms account for less than five-percent of the 150-plus thousand homeless people throughout California.