‘This is my home.’ Texas lawmakers consider statewide ban on camping in public places

Home for Jasen Hunt is a gray tent positioned on a sidewalk in the near east side of Fort Worth. His neighbors are those who live with him in “the block” — the area around Cyprus Street to Presidio Street.

“Even though we may not have four walls and a roof over our head, this is still our home,” he said.

But his home and those of his neighbors are at risk.

Texas lawmakers are considering a statewide ban on camping in public places, a proposal that opponents say criminalizes people experiencing homelessness without offering housing solutions. The bill comes as Gov. Greg Abbott has butted heads with Austin officials after its city council repealed an ordinance that prohibited camping in public spaces.

Hunt, 36, stood several feet from his belongings. A man behind him huddled in a blanket amid trash bags stuffed with possessions, an empty green camping chair, and blankets and sleeping bags.

“I know everybody looks at us as a nuisance ... or an eyesore,” he said, adding later: “Nobody sees it from our point of view.”

State Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, a Southlake Republican, is leading the push for House Bill 1925, taking the debate that has bubbled in Austin to all Texas communities. The legislation makes camping in a public place without consent a class C misdemeanor, publishable by a fine of up to $500.

Last week lawmakers debated the proposal in the Texas House of Representatives, but it was sent back to committee. The bill will have to be heard again on the House floor where representatives will vote on advancing it to the Senate.

As lawmakers consider the ban, Fort Worth residents who are experiencing homelessness are left wondering what the change would mean for them. Kelly Rogers, using a bagged tent as a chair as she waited for a place at shelter, broke into tears when she learned of the legislation.

“I don’t know why people think that they have any right to tell anybody where they can live and where they can’t live,” Rogers, 44, said. “That’s not fair.”

Rep. Capriglione: ‘This is a humanitarian issue’

Abbott and Austin city leaders have had a contentious relationship, including when it comes to where homeless individuals are able to camp. Abbott has signaled support for a statewide ban on camping in public places. In Austin the issue has been left up to voters, who supported reinstating the camping ban in Saturday’s municipal election.

“Austin voters sent a clear and stern rebuke to Austin City leaders today by voting in a landslide ... FOR Prop B to require Austin to reinstate the public camping ban,” Abbott said in a tweet, also listing other proposals on the ballot.

The House bill takes the debate statewide and is intended to “spur local governments to do more to help the population of people who are experiencing homelessness,” Capriglione said as he laid out the legislation in the House earlier this month.

“This bill does not make being homeless illegal,” Capriglione said in a written statement to the Star-Telegram.

“There is no one who believes that people living outside without shelter is right,” he said. “This is a humanitarian issue, plain and simple, and leaving people to live under bridges in extreme conditions, whether hot or cold, without a roof over their head is inhumane.”

But opponents say the bill doesn’t offer solutions for finding people homes.

“House Bill 1925 really creates an environment where you’re forcing cities and counties to criminalize homelessness more, and all that does is make it harder for us to get people housed,” said Lauren King, executive director of the Tarrant County Homeless Coalition.

Before COVID-19, Tarrant County had roughly 1,600 shelter beds in the community, King said. There are generally around 2,000 people experiencing homelessness on a nightly basis in the community pre-pandemic, she said.

“One of my questions thinking down the road is, We put this camping ban in place, now, what if all of our shelters are full?” she said. “If we’re out of beds and they don’t have an option of a place to sleep, then what? Where does that leave our community?”

What would a camping ban mean for Fort Worth?

The bill could put Fort Worth at legal risk without public benefit, said Tara Perez, the manager of Directons Homes, a department in the Fort Worth city manager’s office, referring to a Boise case. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that law enforcement couldn’t issue citations to homeless individuals camping in public places if there isn’t a shelter bed available.

The legislation allows local regulations that are equal to or stricter than the camping ban outlined in the bill, but bars local governments from establishing policies that prohibit enforcement or encourage non-enforcement of the state policy.

Fort Worth could lose state grant funds for not enforcing the camping ban. Some of those dollars are used to help house homeless adults and youth, Perez said.

“I understand not wanting to see homelessness,” she said. “I share not wanting to see homelessness. But I think the answer is to continue investing in housing because we know that that’s what works.”

The Fort Worth Police Department has a unit dedicated to building a rapport with the homeless community made up of officers, firefighters and paramedics, Day Resource Center mobile housing assessors and mental health professionals.

The Star-Telegram reached out to the department for an interview, and the department responded with a statement. A follow up question about enforcement of the bill was not immediately returned.

If the bill passed, the Homeless Outreach Program and Enforcement unit would “continue to work with our partner agencies and treat this vulnerable population with dignity and respect,” according to the statement.

“As with any new law, we would begin with education and warnings, while attempting to provide housing options for the homeless community. Enforcement is utilized as a last resort, but in the event that it must be used, the HOPE Unit will follow our guidelines to provide ample warning and time before anyone is forced to relocate.”

Perez said the city generally has three approaches to camping. Camping is not allowed on private property without permission of the property owner and can result in a fine of up to $500. On public land, if there’s an imminent health or safety risk, then camps can be cleaned up, Perez said. If there’s no risk, then they’re not moved in accordance with CDC recommendations during COVID-19, she said. Perez, in an email to the Star-Telegram, added that city ordinances do prohibit camping in park land and the obstruction of streets and sidewalks.

“When it comes to policies on the health and safety issues related to homelessness, we see many different approaches from leaders across the state,” Mayor Betsy Price said in a statement. “In Fort Worth, we continue to work in coordination with our community partners to ensure members of the unsheltered population are connected with the right resources. We have to understand that camping is a symptom of larger problem and continue to work on addressing those root issues with big solutions.”

She pointed to the city’s Case de Esperanza permanent housing effort, funded with the CARES Act, as an example. The converted extended stay hotel is a housing option for those who are homeless and vulnerable to COVID-19.

‘This is not right’

William Love, who is bouncing between between hotels in Fort Worth for shelter, is no stranger to sleeping on the streets. Were a camping ban to pass, people would be left with nowhere to go while being pushed away, Love, 51, said.

Jonathan Hale, standing nearby as Love spoke with the Star-Telegram, agreed. Hale, 36, said he began a housing program on April 26. Days later, with cloudy skies above, he reflected on not having a place to stay and the potential of having to pay a $500 fine for camping in public. Paying the fine isn’t realistic, he said.

“I’ll just do the time and sit it out,” Hale said.

Hale expressed interest in getting a petition going to oppose the bill. He also had a message for Texas lawmakers.

“I’d tell them this is not right,” he said. “Jesus said to treat others the way you want to be treated.”

In conversations with the Star-Telegram, some without permanent housing desired a designated area where camping is permitted. Capriglione said that’s something he’s agreeable to, but that local governments must provide services like health care, mental health care, law enforcement support and affordable transportation when planning a designated camping area.

There’s less than a month until the end of the regular legislative session. House Bill 1925 is on the House’s Wednesday calendar.

Were it to pass out of the House then Senate, the bill would likely have the support from Abbott, given his vocal support for reinstating Austin’s camping ordinance. Hale would like to see lawmakers focusing less on banning camping and concentrating more on shelters and programs to help the homeless.

”These people are just out here trying to survive, just like everybody else, ” said Rogers, the woman waiting for spot in a shelter.