BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 718|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 718
Author: Chu (D), et al.
Amended: 7/14/15 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE GOVERNANCE & FIN. COMMITTEE: 4-1, 7/8/15
AYES: Hertzberg, Beall, Hernandez, Lara
NOES: Pavley
NO VOTE RECORDED: Nguyen, Moorlach
SENATE FLOOR: 18-14, 8/31/15 (FAIL)
AYES: Anderson, Beall, Block, Cannella, De León, Hall, Hancock,
Hernandez, Hertzberg, Hill, Hueso, Lara, Leno, Leyva, Liu,
Mitchell, Stone, Wieckowski
NOES: Bates, Fuller, Gaines, Glazer, Huff, Jackson, McGuire,
Moorlach, Morrell, Nguyen, Nielsen, Runner, Vidak, Wolk
NO VOTE RECORDED: Allen, Berryhill, Galgiani, Mendoza, Monning,
Pan, Pavley, Roth
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 56-15, 6/1/15 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Local government: powers
SOURCE: Housing California
DIGEST: This bill prohibits local governments from penalizing,
by impoundment or other method, the act of sleeping in a
lawfully parked motor vehicle.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
AB 718
Page 2
1)Allows a city to "make and enforce within its limits, all
local, police, sanitary and other ordinances and regulations
not in conflict with general laws, known as the police power
of cities."
2)Allows local governments to regulate parking in a variety of
ways, including by establishing where vehicles may park or
stop or requiring permits for parking in some areas.
This bill:
1)Prohibits any city, county, or city and county-including
charter cities and counties-from prohibiting or otherwise
penalizing the act of sleeping or resting in a lawfully parked
vehicle.
2)Prohibits removing and impounding a vehicle for the same
reason.
3)States that nothing in the bill shall be interpreted to:
a) Prohibit a law enforcement officer from arresting,
citing, or otherwise penalizing an occupant of a motor
vehicle for any criminal activity or violation of the
vehicle code.
b) Exempt an occupant of a motor vehicle from any state and
local laws, as specified.
c) Exempt a vehicle owner from compliance with a local
ordinance that restricts the use of public streets for
vehicle storage.
Background
According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development, California had 113,952 homeless people, or 20% of
the nation's overall homeless population, as of January 2014.
Of California's total homeless population, 27% were chronically
homeless, 20% were in households with at least one parent and
one child, 10% were veterans, and 10% were victims of domestic
violence. California also had the largest number of homeless
families, unaccompanied homeless youth, and homeless veterans.
AB 718
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California has one of the nation's highest rates of "poor
renters," or people that spend more than 50% of their income on
rent. While most homeless people in the U.S. lived in emergency
shelters or transitional housing in 2013, most homeless people
in California were unsheltered. For example, in Los Angeles
only 22% of homeless people had a bed in a shelter in 2013. As
a result, many homeless people have no choice but to rest and
sleep in public.
The California Constitution allows a city to "make and enforce
within its limits, all local, police, sanitary and other
ordinances and regulations not in conflict with general laws,
known as the police power of cities." It is from this
fundamental power that local governments derive their authority
to regulate behavior to preserve the health, safety, and welfare
of the public. One way local governments exercise their police
power is by regulating certain aspects of the use of vehicles,
where not in conflict with state laws. State law allows local
governments to regulate parking in a variety of ways, including
by establishing where vehicles may park or stop or requiring
permits for parking in some areas.
Some localities have used their police power to prohibit or
penalize sleeping in cars. The Policy Advocacy Clinic at the
University of California, Berkeley Law School released a report
in February 2015 titled "California's New Vagrancy Laws: The
Growing Enactment and Enforcement of Anti-Homeless Laws in the
Golden State." According to the report, California cities are
substantially more restrictive than the national average in
terms of passing ordinances that penalize sleeping, resting or
lodging in legally parked vehicles. While only 33% of
non-California cities studied restrict sleeping or lodging in
vehicles, 74% of California cities do so. Such a restriction
was struck down by the U.S Court of Appeals for the Ninth
Circuit in June 2014. The ruling struck down a Los Angeles
ordinance that prohibited people from using a vehicle parked or
standing on any city street or parking lot as living quarters
either overnight, day-by-day, or otherwise (Desertrain v. City
of Los Angeles). The court found that the ordinance paved the
way for law enforcement to target the homeless and was therefore
unconstitutionally vague.
Some housing advocates want to restrict the ability of local
governments to prohibit sleeping or resting in cars.
AB 718
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Comments
1)Purpose of the bill. Some local jurisdictions have enacted
ordinances that essentially criminalize the act of being
homeless, by penalizing individuals for activities that they
have no choice but to perform. However, for many individuals
experiencing homelessness, sleeping or living in a vehicle is
often the only option for shelter in the absence of adequate
shelter beds across the state. Citing these individuals
because they sleep in their car can subject them to fines they
may not be able to afford to pay. As a result, they run the
risk of arrest or vehicle seizure, which worsens their
situation and exacerbates mental health problems, ensuring
that more people remain homeless longer. AB 718 protects some
of California's most vulnerable citizens by preventing local
jurisdictions from enacting or enforcing these policies and
sends a clear message that these types of policies must be
prohibited.
2)Unreasonable restriction on police power. The police power is
a fundamental power of local governments. Local ordinances
arise and are adopted by communities to address specific
issues affecting health, safety, and broader public welfare.
At the same time, local governments are sensitive to the
challenges that the homeless face and the measures that are
needed to provide them with assistance. These issues are
debated in the chambers of local governments across the state,
and the policies that result reflect elected officials' best
judgments of how to balance the needs of all of their
constituents. AB 718 will severely constrain local
governments from making and enforcing laws that elected
officials consider necessary to preserve the welfare of their
citizens. Furthermore, this bill may make it harder for local
agencies to enforce other laws that preserve public safety.
For example, would this bill prevent a police officer from
approaching a vehicle to investigate potential criminal
activity? Finally, some people who are not homeless may take
advantage of AB 718 to camp on public streets, with potential
negative impacts on public safety, traffic, and local
businesses.
3)Sure, but will it work? AB 718 does not prevent local
governments from establishing local parking regulations to
AB 718
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address the hours a vehicle can be parked on the street. For
example, this bill does not prevent a city from prohibiting
overnight parking unless a vehicle obtains a residential
permit. As a result, municipalities that wish to regulate
this behavior may simply find other ways to enact and enforce
laws that have the effect of criminalizing actions associated
with homelessness without running afoul of the provisions of
AB 718. Furthermore, AB 718 does not address the underlying
factors that drive homelessness in California, such as a lack
of affordable housing, access to jobs, and mental health
treatment.
Related/Prior Legislation
SB 608 (Liu, 2015) enacts the Right to Rest Act and contains
many of the same provisions as AB 5. SB 608 also includes the
right to occupy a motor vehicle or a recreational vehicle,
provided the vehicle is legally parked on public property or
parked on private property with the permission of the property
owner. SB 608 is currently a two-year bill.
AB 5 (Ammiano, 2013) would have established a number of rights
for homeless people. Among the numerous provisions in AB 5, the
bill would have provided the right to occupy a motor vehicle or
recreational vehicle either to rest, sleep, or use for the
purposes of shelter, provided that the vehicle is legally parked
on public property, without being subject to criminal or civil
sanctions, harassment, or arrest from law enforcement, public or
private security personnel, or Business Improvement District
agents. AB 5 was held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:NoLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified7/14/15)
Housing California (source)
Abode Services
Affordable Homeless Housing Alternatives, Humboldt County
American Civil Liberties Union of California
Caduceus Justice
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California Catholic Conference
California Labor Federation
Coalition of California Welfare Rights Organization
Corporation for Supportive Housing
County Welfare Directors Association of California
East Bay Community Law Center
Ella Baker Center for Human Rights
Homeless Lives Matter - Berkeley
Kings/Tulare Homeless Alliance
LA Human Right to Housing Collective
Law Foundation of Silicon Valley
Los Angeles Anti-Eviction Campaign
Los Angeles Community Action Network
National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and
Youth
River City Food Bank
Sacramento Homeless Organizing Committee
Sacramento Regional Coalition to End Homelessness
San Diego Housing Federation
San Francisco Coalition on Homelessness
Share the Bulb
St. Anthony Foundation
St. Mary's Center
Venice Community Housing Corporation
WellSpace Health
Western Center on Law and Poverty
Western Regional Advocacy Project
OPPOSITION: (Verified7/14/15)
American Planning Association, California Chapter
California Association of Code Enforcement Officers
California Business Properties Association
California College and University Police Chiefs Association
California Law Enforcement Association of Records Supervisors
California Police Chiefs Association
Central City Association
City of Calimesa
City of Colton
City of Encinitas
City of Fortuna
City of Glendale
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City of Hesperia
City of Highland
City of Los Angeles
City of Montclair
City of Ontario
City of Palm Desert
City of Palos Verdes Estates
City of Rocklin
International Council of Shopping Centers
League of California Cities
Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce
Marin County Council of Mayors and Council Members
Venice Stakeholders Association
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 56-15, 6/1/15
AYES: Travis Allen, Bloom, Bonta, Brown, Calderon, Campos,
Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh,
Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Gallagher, Cristina
Garcia, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Hadley, Roger
Hernández, Holden, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Linder, Lopez,
Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez,
Mullin, Nazarian, Olsen, Quirk, Rendon, Rodriguez, Salas,
Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Weber, Wilk,
Williams, Atkins
NOES: Achadjian, Baker, Bonilla, Brough, Beth Gaines, Gatto,
Grove, Harper, Irwin, Lackey, Levine, Obernolte, Patterson,
Ridley-Thomas, Waldron
NO VOTE RECORDED: Alejo, Bigelow, Burke, Eduardo Garcia,
Gipson, O'Donnell, Perea, Santiago, Wood
Prepared by:Anton Favorini-Csorba / GOV. & F. / (916) 651-4119
8/31/15 18:59:59
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