CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – DECEMBER 06: Workers clear a homeless encampment from Humboldt Park on December 06, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. This morning, city workers descended on the park to dismantle the remains of what was the city’s largest homeless encampment. More than 100 homeless people have been removed from the park since the initiative began. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Since the U.S. Supreme Court’s City of Grants Pass v. Johnson ruling last June allowing localities to ban outdoor camping even if there is no homeless shelter space available, roughly 150 cities in 32 states have passed or strengthened such ordinances.
Another 40 or so local bans are pending, according to data sent to Stateline by the National Homelessness Law Center. The measures vary in detail, but they typically include prohibitions on camping, sleeping or storing property on public land. Many also include buffer zones near schools, parks or businesses…