Gov. Gavin Newsom is calling on the California National Guard and the California Highway Patrol to help San Francisco police and prosecutors fight back against the ongoing fentanyl crisis facing the city.

The new partnership aims to crack down on traffickers, dismantle the city’s supply of fentanyl and tackle drug-related crime, the governor’s office announced Friday.

“We are providing increased legal resources and personnel to address crime related to the fentanyl crisis, hold poison peddlers accountable, and increase law enforcement presence to improve public safety and public confidence in San Francisco Newsom said in a statement.

Some local officials criticized the announcement, saying there were no details on exactly how government agencies would help deal with the crisis.

“This latest publicity stunt won’t significantly improve conditions in the neighborhood,” said San Francisco supervisor Dean Preston, whose district includes the Tenderloin, one of the city’s most overdose-ridden areas. “It’s a transparent attempt to appeal to national conservative media by declaring war on a diverse, low-income city neighborhood, exploiting the tenderloin’s struggles rather than investing in the community.”

According to Newsom, the law enforcement partnership will target traffickers and suppliers of the drugs, not those struggling with substance abuse.

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Newsom directed the CHP to provide personnel and resources to assist the San Francisco Police Department, especially in areas such as the tenderloin that have been hit particularly hard by the presence of fentanyl.

The California National Guard was asked to support the analysis of drug trafficking operations. The Guard’s Counterdrug Task Force deployed local law enforcement agencies to crack down on drug trafficking gangs.

The announcement from the governor’s office comes after Newsom visited the Tenderloin with Atty last week. General Rob Bonta and San Francisco Mayor London Breed.

“Our police and district attorney are working together to address this issue and strengthen enforcement, but our local agencies could use more support,” Breed said in a statement. “With the governor’s leadership and clear direction, our state enforcement agencies can work with us to make a difference to our residents, businesses and employees who live with the consequences every day.”

San Francisco recorded 200 accidental overdose deaths from January to March, according to data from the medical examiner’s office. That is an increase of 40% compared to the same period last year.

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An analysis by the San Francisco Chronicle found that 52 of those deaths involved fentanyl. The Tenderloin has been one of the hardest hit neighborhoods, accounting for about 23% of overdose deaths in San Francisco in 2020 and 2021, according to the Chronicle.

As the toll of the overdose crisis mounted, some local officials welcomed Newsom’s announcement.

“THE CAVALRY IS COMING,” San Francisco Supervisor Matt Dorsey tweeted.

But others derided the plan as a paper-thin publicity stunt down to the smallest detail, criticizing the governor for vetoing a bill in 2022 that would have allowed supervised injection site programs in California’s major cities.

“I hope that once the governor gets what he wants from this news cycle, he will work with us on real solutions to improve health and safety in the Tenderloin,” Preston said.