SCOTUS Ruling Criminalizes Outdoor Sleeping; What It Means for Austin Homeless Population

June 17, 2024

Austin’s Homeless and the Supreme Court Ruling

The United States Supreme Court is expected to make a significant ruling – whether cities can legally criminalize individuals sleeping outside, even if they don’t have shelter alternatives. The case, Grants Pass v. Johnson, started in Grants Pass, Oregon in 2018 when the city began penalizing people for sleeping outdoors, majority of whom were homeless. The Nine Circuit Court of Appeals had earlier ruled that criminalizing unhoused people violates the Eighth Amendment, which protects people from cruel and unusual punishment. But now, the Supreme Court is set to rule on upholding Grants Pass’s ban on outdoor sleeping.

Potential Impact on Austin Homeless

Austin, Texas is on tenter hooks awaiting the decision as it could have a substantial impact on the city’s homeless population. District 2 Councilwoman, Vanessa Fuentes noted, “We have unhoused folks who aren’t able to sleep in a public place, or on the sidewalk with a blanket or a pillow, or even lie on a piece of cardboard– they could be arrested for being without a home“. Austin’s homeless population is at an all-time-high, with local body, Austin ECHO reporting about 2,300 people being homeless last year.

Texas is considered to be one of the harshest states with stiff anti-homeless regulations. In Austin, public outdoor sleeping is banned. Fuentes advocates that this SCOTUS ruling could further outlaw the policies in place. She was vehement in her stand that criminalizing homelessness is not the solution, rather it exacerbates the problem.

Need for A Diverse Strategy

Fuentes expressed the need for continued support from the federal government, state bodies, and community partners in making communities affordable, creating job opportunities, and increasing access to living wages. She added, “What we need at this time is more support from our federal government, from our state government, from Community partners, so that we have all the things that make a community available and affordable, and that folks have access to jobs that pay a living wage.”

With the SCOTUS ruling expected to come out by June 30th, Fuentes confirmed the availability of 400 supportive housing units to alleviate the homelessness issue, at least to some extent.