A new bill in California has made it illegal for homeless residents to live in their encampments, further complicating the already challenging lives of the unhoused population.
Earlier in May, California's governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order to eradicate homeless encampments, while encouraging hundreds of local governments to ban tent camps on sidewalks, bike paths, parklands, and other types of public property.
The move comes after a series of controversial audit reports that revealed failures by state and local governments to collect data on billions of dollars allocated for homeless services. The act, however, has banned unsheltered local people from sleeping outside when they have nowhere else to go.
"Now it's illegal and you could be arrested. The police will come and ask you to pick up your property and immediately leave or you will be arrested, I'm not sure what the law is, but it's a law. That statewide, any encampment is illegal. So there's no more tents, there's no more setting up tents," said John Coy, a veteran selling jewelry on the beach. Referring to himself as a nomad, he used to camp out on the streets of Los Angeles.
Newsom also announced the release of 3.3 billion U.S. dollars in grant funding for communities to expand behavioral health housing and treatment options for seriously ill and homeless people, adding up to the already spent 24 billion U.S. dollars on over 30 programs aimed at addressing homelessness.
The expenditures have brought no benefit visible for him and the even less self-sufficient groups, said John.
"I see four people out here doing outreach work. That's all I see. Why don't they have a building out here where there's social workers, filling out paperwork, talking to people, getting them mental health (support), housing, food, getting them whatever they need. I don't see that here in the district. If there's a billion dollars set out for that, there should be a big, big building out here to serve the community. And there's nothing. There's nothing," said John.
California's latest crackdown has been enabled by a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 2024 that allows stricter anti-camping laws, even in the absence of available shelter beds. While authorities investigate how billions of tax dollars earmarked for the homeless crisis may have been misspent, the most vulnerable will continue to be impacted by the lack of affordable housing and stricter regulations.
California government eradicates homeless encampments
California government eradicates homeless encampments
California government eradicates homeless encampments
