The City of Santa Monica and the County along with Venice Family Clinic have been operating the only open-air, publicly funded needle, condom and synthetic distribution program in the country.  They make their distributions at Reed Park (across from a K-12 Catholic School with over 650 students), Tonvga Park, Palisades Park, the California Incline, 3rd Street Promenade and at the privately owned 7 Eleven parking lot on 7th and Wilshire.  This program is attracting addicts to settle in our parks and public spaces and publicly use drugs causing a major safety concern with more needles being discarded in all areas where they are being distributed.

California Governor Newsom vetoed a bill last year by Senator Scott Weiner (D-San Francisco) that would have set up pilot programs using public funds, citing worries about “unintended consequences”.