Representatives Jayapal and Frost Introduce Legislation to Prohibit Federal Agencies from Criminalizing Homelessness

By Alayna Calabro, NLIHC Senior Policy Analyst 

Representatives Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) and Maxwell Frost (D-FL) introduced on June 26 the “Housing Not Handcuffs Act,” legislation to prohibit federal agencies from arresting, ticketing, or otherwise criminalizing people experiencing homelessness on public lands with nowhere else to go. The NLIHC-endorsed legislation would end the federal criminalization of homelessness while encouraging policymakers to focus on proven solutions to homelessness: affordable housing and supportive services.  

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the case of City of Grants Pass, Oregon v. Gloria Johnson on June 28, 2024 that jurisdictions can arrest and ticket unhoused people for sleeping outside, even when adequate shelter or housing is not available. NLIHC strongly condemned the Supreme Court’s decision. In the year since the cruel, misguided ruling in Grants Pass v. Johnson, more than 320 bills have been introduced in communities across the country to arrest and fine people experiencing homelessness for sleeping outside, and 230 of these bills have passed. 

Arrests and fines are not solutions to homelessness because they do not address the underlying causes of the crisis: the inability to afford housing and the severe shortage of affordable homes. Laws that make it illegal for people to sleep outside exacerbate homelessness and waste taxpayer dollars.  

The “Housing Not Handcuffs Act” would ensure that people experiencing homelessness cannot be arrested or ticketed by federal agencies while living on federal lands without blocking traffic when there are no alternative options, asking for help or donations in public places, practicing religion in public spaces, or living in a vehicle without blocking traffic. By shifting federal attention away from the criminalization of homelessness, this bill is a necessary first step to stopping these ineffective and inhumane policies. To truly address America’s affordable housing and homelessness crisis, policymakers must instead work with urgency to scale up proven solutions, starting with greater investments in affordable housing and supportive services. 

“Every single person in the richest country in the world should be able to have a roof over their head and a safe place to sleep, it’s that simple,” stated Representative Jayapal in a press release. “There is nowhere in this country where you can pay rent on a minimum wage salary. By criminalizing aspects of homelessness, cities and states across this country are only creating greater barriers for people to access housing—something that is already far too scarce. Fining people who already can’t afford to live makes no sense and will only result in longer-term homelessness.” 

“The reality we live in right now is that millions of Americans are just one missed paycheck away, one rent hike away, one surprise medical bill away from being homeless,” said Representative Frost during a press conference announcing the bill’s introduction. “We are here to take cruelty out of this housing crisis that is impacting so many people and are working to build a system that is rooted in care, dignity, and a deep love for our communities and everyone who lives in them. We know that the solution to our housing crisis is not fines or handcuffs. We know that homelessness is a housing issue.”  

Read a press release about the bill: https://tinyurl.com/2xn9w5hh  

Watch a recording of the press conference announcing the bill at: https://tinyurl.com/2ba3jcu5 

Learn more about the bill: https://housingnothandcuffs.org/hnhact/  

The ACLU’s map tracking the criminalization of homelessness since Grants Pass is available at: https://tinyurl.com/5cbhr23u  

The Housing Not Handcuffs campaign’s criminalization legislation tracker is available at: https://tinyurl.com/a69h9fyk