Homeless encampments line Church Street near Interstate 5 in south Stockton on Nov. 7, 2024.
Sacramento, California – Just months after a controversial Supreme Court ruling gave cities the green light to arrest or prosecute people for camping on public streets — even when no shelter beds are available — a new California bill could upend that authority statewide.
Senate Bill 634, introduced by Los Angeles-area state Senator Sasha Renée Pérez, aims to prohibit cities and counties from penalizing unhoused individuals for sleeping outdoors. The bill, currently in its early stages, would still allow encampment sweeps, but it would bar law enforcement from issuing fines or making arrests solely for camping on public property.
“What we’re trying to get at here is [to] prevent people from getting fined or being put in jail for being homeless,” Pérez told Southern California News Group. “If you cannot afford to live anywhere — if you can’t afford housing, a hotel — you still need to sleep.”
Pérez argues that criminalizing homelessness worsens the cycle of poverty, making it harder for people to secure permanent housing due to legal and financial burdens.
The proposal comes in response to last summer’s Grants Pass v. Johnson Supreme Court decision, which drew cheers from several California mayors, including then-San Francisco Mayor London Breed. Breed, joined by other city leaders and bolstered by pressure from Governor Gavin Newsom, launched an aggressive campaign of encampment sweeps across San Francisco in the months following the ruling.
Those enforcement efforts quickly became a political flashpoint in the city’s 2024 mayoral race. Challenger Daniel Lurie endorsed the crackdowns but accused Breed of waiting too long. “She should have built the shelter beds and cleared the sidewalks years ago,” Lurie said at the time. “Every day that the encampments remain on our sidewalks is another reminder of her failed leadership.”
It remains to be seen how Lurie and other municipal leaders will respond to SB 634. As for Oakland, the city is currently without a permanent mayor, with a special election set for next week that could reshape its approach to homelessness.
While SB 634 doesn’t outlaw encampment sweeps or nullify anti-camping ordinances, it could mark a significant shift in how California cities approach enforcement. Its first committee hearing is scheduled for April 23.
