On Monday, Governor Gavin Newsom announced a series of appointments, including Caroline Thomas Jacobs, of El Cerrito, has been appointed to the California Interagency Executive Council on Homelessness.
Thomas Jacobs has been Director at California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services since 2026. She was Director of California’s Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety from 2021 to 2026. Thomas Jacobs was Director of the Wildlife Safety Division at the California Public Utilities Commission from 2019 to 2021.
Thomas Jacobs held multiple positions in the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services from 2014 to 2019, including Chief of Response Headquarters Operations, and Statewide Data Sharing Coordinator within the State Threat Assessment Center. She was Regional Project Manager for the Bay Area Urban Area Security Initiative from 2013 to 2014. Thomas Jacobs was East Bay Hub Planner within the Emergency Services Division at the Contra Costa County Office of the Sheriff in 2013. She was an Emergency Preparedness Independent Consultant from 2010 to 2013.
Thomas Jacobs was Senior Manager for Worldwide Apple Retail Service at Apple, Inc from 1999 to 2007.
Thomas Jacobs earned a Master of Arts degree in Women’s Studies from San Francisco State University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Women’s Studies from Hamilton College. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation.
Thomas Jacobs is a Democrat.
The California Interagency Council on Homelessness (Cal ICH) was created by SB 1380 in 2017 as the Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council to oversee the implementation of Housing First policies, guidelines, and regulations to reduce the prevalence and duration of homelessness in California.
In 2021, Governor Newsom signed AB 1220 into law, which renamed and restructured the Council to continue California’s forward momentum towards the state’s broader vision for greater statewide leadership and coordination around its response to the homelessness crisis. The Council’s mission is to develop policies and identify resources, benefits, and services to prevent and work toward ending homelessness in California.
Action Plan for Preventing and Ending Homelessness in California
Through the Action Plan, Cal ICH pursues a vision for the Council and the state’s work to prevent and end homelessness focused on purposeful, action-oriented coordination and alignment among state departments. The Plan was developed through input and collaboration with over 60 community entities, public agencies, nonprofits, and other experts. It is through this input that the 5 action areas and the goals were developed. The council’s Action Plan orients the state’s efforts to drive purposeful, meaningful, and measurable progress toward preventing and ending homelessness in California, motivated by a vision of a future in which homelessness in California is: rare, because it is prevented whenever possible; brief, ended quickly whenever it does occur, through a focus on Housing First approaches and housing outcomes; and a one-time experience, ended successfully the first time, so that no Californians experience homelessness repeatedly.
In March 2021, the Council adopted the Action Plan for Preventing and Ending Homelessness, with the expectation that the plan would be updated every year to reflect current priorities. In September 2022, the council adopted an updated Action Plan for Preventing and Ending Homelessness. Council Staff develops a progress report each year. The report is a comprehensive collection of the state’s efforts toward preventing and ending homelessness in the fiscal year.