Homeless community in Downtown Miami – Courtesy: Felix Mizioznikov – Shutterstock
On Tuesday, a new rule in Florida went into effect that forbids homeless individuals from sleeping outside.
House Bill 1365 forbids camping in parks, on sidewalks, or on public roads. It is mandatory for local governments to provide transitional housing that forbids drug use. Treatment for mental health issues and drug misuse will also be made available to them.
The bill is “absolutely the right balance to strike,” Republican governor Ron DeSantis said, adding, “We want to make sure we put public safety above all else.”
Additionally, counties that do not outlaw public sleeping will be subject to lawsuits. However, the rule gives residents three months’ notice before they may file lawsuits against county governments for allowing people to sleep in public.
Still, the ban on sleeping in public places went into force on Tuesday. An estimated 31,000 people are homeless in Florida.
“To be camping out in public as we are because we can’t find a place to live because the money he makes in his job is not enough for us anymore,” Mildred Forti said to CBS News Miami. “Yet another dumb law, this one. We’re going to move again and look for a new location.”
Forti claimed that for a number of months, she and her spouse had been homeless in Miami.
The Miami-Dade Homeless Trust’s chairman, Ron Book, stated to CBS News Miami, “We are working feverishly to create more opportunities for shelter and housing.”
“We are looking at setting up a navigation center, which is a step below, if you will, what a normal shelter is,” he stated. “We hope to have it operational by the end of the year.”
Book also mentioned plans to turn the La Quinta Hotel in Cutler Bay into affordable senior housing, stating that his company hopes to place more than 140 persons in rental units there by December 31, 2024.
“We are building an 8-unit building in Overtown and 190 single-occupancy units for men near Krome,” Book stated. “We’ve also identified 80 additional beds for another shelter in the next 30 days.”
Gregory Tony, the Broward Sheriff, stated on social media that “Homelessness is not a crime.”
According to the new rule, local governments may allow people to camp on county-owned property as long as they maintain it law-abiding and tidy, and as long as those who do so have access to mental health and bathing facilities.
In order to receive approval, the county must demonstrate that there aren’t enough beds in shelters to accommodate the number of homeless people living in the area and that the camp won’t negatively impact the safety and security of nearby homes or businesses or their property value.
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Chris began his writing as a hobby while attending Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida. Today he and his wife live in the Orlando area with their three children and dog.
