Photo: Moment RF
A new bill has been filed in the Texas Senate that would take state funds away from cities that don't enforce the statewide ban on public camping. This could help reduce the growing homeless camp problem here in the Houston area.
Charles Blain, President of Urban Reform, told KTRH that the homeless problem has gotten worse across Houston recently. He said, "You can see over where Minute Maid (now Daikin Park) is, and just all over the city. We see them popping up, and they just don't get as much attention, but it's a widespread problem in the city, and in the county."
Senate Bill 241 was filed by Senator Pete Flores (R-Pleasanton), and would add a much-needed enforcement mechanism to a long-standing public camping ban that left-leaning cities in Texas have ignored.
Blain explained that, "It's essentially saying that if they're not adhering to it, citizens have a way of seeking recourse and filing a complaint to compel them to enforce it. And if ultimately they're found to be violating it and don't remedy that, then they can have repercussions."
This isn't the first time such a measure has been attempted. A similar bill was filed back in 2023, but that never made it past the House. Blain thinks this time things will be different, partly because of how much worse the problem has gotten in recent years.
He pointed out that, "You have a larger group of people who are frustrated with this problem, and are going to be active about it. And I think it just took a number of years for people to truly understand the issue."
According to Blain, this approach is similar to the one that the state took with regard to the defund the police movement, so we already know that it will both be effective and survive a likely court challenge if it becomes law.
