CAADPE Commends Governor Newsom’s Behavioral Health Projects, Urges Immediate Action to Address NIMBY Opposition

(SACRAMENTO, CA) – Today, Robb Layne, executive director of the California Association of Alcohol and Drug Program Executives (CAADPE), issued the following statement:

“We commend Governor Newsom and his administration for their support of statewide mental health services and efforts to expand substance use disorder resources and infrastructure across the state. Proposition 1 has brought access to treatment, crisis care, and recovery services within reach for the millions of Californians in need of behavioral health services.

“However, several critical treatment centers aren’t able to break ground and/or provide services because of a surge of baseless, NIMBY-driven opposition to treatment facilities, including in San Mateo, Burlingame, San Francisco, and most recently, San Pedro. Last month, Fred Brown’s Recovery Services faced local resistance to its proposed Serenity Recovery Campus and had its conditional $73.4 million Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure Program award rescinded due to political pressure, misinformation, and opposition from NIMBY groups.

“The investment would have provided outpatient services to approximately 1,000 individuals each year. Without Serenity, LA County’s well-documented shortage of substance use disorder treatment capacity will continue to be exacerbated.

“While California has made strides in advancing behavioral health services, we can’t ignore the continued setbacks occurring across the state. These obstacles create another situation where Californians on treatment waitlists are more likely to relapse, become incarcerated, experience homelessness, or die. CAADPE is prepared to work with our members and facilities throughout the state with legal representation, but without greater support from our state leaders to combat NIMBYism, we must ask whether critical projects included in Governor Newsom’s August 11, 2026, press release will ever break ground or continue to be delayed by biased opposition.”