By Liya Cui
(Reuters) – San Francisco will ramp up sweeps of homeless encampments under a directive issued days after California Governor Gavin Newsom told cities to begin enforcing laws against camping, while Los Angeles said it would effectively ignore the state’s order.
Under Mayor London Breed’s directive, San Francisco will continue to offer shelter and services for homeless people, but police and city staff will work to prevent small encampments from growing larger and will prevent homeless people from returning to cleared areas, her office said in a statement.
The directive follows a June U.S. Supreme Court decision, powered by its conservative majority, in a case from Oregon that upheld laws used to ticket and fine people living on the streets. That ruling gave cities more authority to enforce laws when people refuse to leave a homeless encampment.
Under San Francisco’s new policies, authorities would issue warnings and follow them with citations that could lead to escalating penalties, including arrest.