United States: California Governor Gavin Newsom on Thursday said the state would begin removing homeless encampments after a recent Supreme Court decision upheld anti-camping laws used to ticket and fine people living on the streets.
Supreme Court Ruling Spurs Action
“It is now time for action, for our local partners to begin the daunting task of cleaning up these sites, for us to focus on public health and to focus on public safety,” Newsom said in a released video on X announcing the new order, as reported by Reuters.
In 2023, California had the highest number of homeless people, with 180,000, and the majority of these persons slept outdoors, according to the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Newsom’s action came a day after the Supreme Court overturned a decision made by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals that stated that it is constitutional to punish individuals for sleeping outdoors where shelter beds are not available.
Some agencies and local governments hesitated to clear the encampments based on the Ninth Circuit decision, while others received litigation after they cleared the camps.
New Directive Details
The governor directed state agencies to focus on clearing camps that are a threat to health or safety, give at least 48 hours notice to occupants, ask social services to check on them and ensure their properties are stored for at least 60 days.
California’s transportation department has dismantled over 11 thousand camps since July 2021 using similar policies.
Opposition and Support
Housing California’s Divya Shiv, who believes affordable housing is the answer, opposed Newsom’s move and pointed to a Rand study that revealed such cleanups in Los Angeles failed to lower homelessness in the long term, as reported by Reuters.
“After a month or two, people would come back, and that’s because the question is, where do they go if there isn’t enough affordable and supportive housing?” Shiv said.
According to Newsom’s report, 165,000 homeless individuals in California transitioned to temporary or permanent housing in the Year 2022-2023.
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