Plan To Expand LA's Homeless Camping Ban Stalls Over Cost, Enforcement Concerns

LOS ANGELES, CA — A City Council committee Tuesday held off on advancing a proposal to broaden Los Angeles' anti-camping law as several questions were raised about the associated costs and personnel needed to enforce the policy.

In a 3-2 vote, the Public Safety Committee agreed to continue its discussion on a motion introduced by Councilwoman Traci Park to expand the city's anti-camping law, known as Municipal Code 41.18. The city law prohibits people from sitting, lying, sleeping or storing personal property in designated areas.

City Council members Curren Price, Hugo Soto-Martinez, and Nithya Raman voted to hold the item on the desk until the committee's next meeting. They requested the City Attorney's Office and Los Angeles Police Department provide answers to various questions that were raised Tuesday.

Park and committee chair John Lee opposed the delay, arguing that 41.18 is necessary to clear encampments and save lives.

Los Angeles has long had anti-loitering laws. In 2021, the City Council expanded Section 41.18 to prohibit encampments within 500 feet of sensitive locations, including public schools and libraries. The council later broadened the list of sensitive locations to include daycare centers, parks, underpasses, areas near the Los Angeles River and other places.

Council members can establish anti-camping zones by resolution, which requires majority approval.

The city has defended the law as a public-safety measure. Housing and homelessness advocates have challenged its implementation, arguing that enforcement forcibly displaces unhoused people, moves them from place to place and disconnects them from medical care, outreach and support.

Park's proposal would allow council members to establish anti-camping zones without a council resolution. It would also add U.S. post offices, fire stations and police stations to the list of locations considered sensitive uses.

The proposal also calls for anti-camping zones within 500 feet of "fire-hazard severity zones," environmentally sensitive areas and critical infrastructure.

Soto-Martinez called for the matter to be held. The committee agreed to amend Park's original motion with changes introduced by Raman.

Raman instructed city staff answer questions before a draft ordinance came before the City Council.

She requested the City Attorney's Office, Chief Legislative Analyst Sharon Tso, Chief Administrative Officer Matt Szabo and any other relevant city officials and departments to provide clear proposed definitions for "critical infrastructure, environmentally sensitive areas, fire hazard severity zones and the expansions of sensitive use."

She also called for an analysis of the geographic scope that would be encompassed by these areas, including a citywide map, fire hazard severity zone classifications and methods of determining these boundaries, as well as the anticipated fiscal, operational and staffing impacts of implementation.

This would involve the costs for installing signage, mapping encampments, providing notice and enforcing these restrictions, and the effect of eliminating site-specific designations on existing requirements.

"It's important for us to just understand what we're voting on," Raman said. "While I think it's incredibly important for us to make sure that critical infrastructure and fire hazards are addressed quickly and effectively, I also do think that there is a lot that's undefined in this motion. I want to make sure that we have that clarity before we vote on it."

Price said he had concerns about expanding 41.18 as proposed by Park because the city still lacks the necessary beds and resources for unhoused people.

"We have not had any analysis done to determine what the expansion would mean citywide," Price said, who represents parts of South and Central Los Angeles. "I'd like to see some analysis completed before we discuss any expansions for 41.18, and to be clear there may be some additional unintended consequences."

Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in City of Grants Pass, Oregon v. Johnson that cities may enforce laws regulating homeless encampments and public spaces.

Park argued that Los Angeles' regulatory framework predates the Grants Pass decision. She also said updating Section 41.18 would align with Gov. Gavin Newsom's July 2025 directive for state agencies to address encampments on state property and his call for local governments to do the same.

Newsom announced a model ordinance May 12, 2025, that cities could use as a template for homeless encampment regulations.

"This motion and the objectives it pursues are in alignment with the flexibility that we have been provided by our Supreme Court — guidance that we have been given by our own governor, and models that we have seen in municipalities all over the western region of the United States," Park said.

Park emphasized that the city has spent millions of dollar to clear encampments, move people indoors, and remediate areas were encampments were located.

The law has become an issue in the mayoral race. Mayor Karen Bass, who is seeking a second term, is being challenged by Raman, who represents the Fourth District.

Bass has said she supports Section 41.18. Her campaign has criticized Raman for voting against other council members' resolutions to establish additional anti-camping zones in their districts.

Raman has said Section 41.18 should not be expanded without parallel spending on housing, shelter and outreach, arguing that the city lacks the capacity to enforce the measure effectively. She has also said that, if elected mayor, she would not interfere with council members' use of the law.

Other council members have argued that Section 41.18 is not the best tool for addressing homeless encampments.

In September, the City Council approved a motion by Soto-Martinez to rescind 12 anti-camping zones in his 13th District, covering parts of Silver Lake, Echo Park and other central Los Angeles neighborhoods.

Soto-Martinez removed discretionary zones established by his predecessor, Mitch O'Farrell, in 2021, arguing that they made it harder for his office to connect unhoused people with services.

City News Service