Bill
of Rights for Citizens Experiencing Homelessness
The criminalization of homelessness--
the punitive social reaction to life-sustaining behaviors and activities
engaged in by persons experiencing homelessness-- has been dramatically on the
rise across the nation for more than two decades. This regressive approach in response to burgeoning homelessness, implemented primarily via the
agency of municipal government, has been documented in seminal reports from the
National Coalition for the Homeless, National Law Center on Homelessness and
Poverty, and other regional homeless advocacy organizations. Citizens in nearly
every state in the nation have suffered an increase in the number of laws
prohibiting life-sustaining activities like camping, sleeping in vehicles,
begging/panhandling, performing bodily functions (even in the absence of public
restrooms), storing personal property outdoors and, perhaps most egregiously,
the sharing of food by both secular and faith-based institutions.
These oppressive
measures serve no documented function whatsoever in terms of moving society in
the direction of ending homelessness. Thus, in response, homeless persons and
advocates have united to bring ‘Right-to-Rest’ or Homeless Bill of Rights
legislation to their respective states. Three states now include HBoR’s among
their statutes – Rhode Island, Connecticut and Illinois – while a host of
others-- California, Washington, Colorado, Oregon, and Delaware--
have proposed similar legislation in recent years but have yet to see them
passed. Deleware’s legislature is considering a Homeless Bill of Rights at the
time of this writing.
A
variety of reports suggest Florida may be the #1 state in the nation in terms
of its criminalization of homelessness. Florida therefore
needs to adopt such a measure for the protection of the basic human rights and
dignity of homeless persons more than any other state.
Proposed Bill of Rights for Florida Citizens
Experiencing Homelessness
Short title. – This chapter shall be known and
may be cited as the "Homeless Bill of Rights."
Legislative intent. – Currently,
many persons are enduring homelessness--, they lack a permanent, nighttime residence as a
result of economic hardship, a severe shortage of safe and affordable housing,
and a shrinking social safety net. It is the long-standing policy of this State
that no person should suffer unnecessarily from the elements (cold, heat, rain,
etc.), be deprived of food or shelter (or the basic rights incident to both),
or be subject to discrimination based on his or her housing status. It is the
intent of this chapter to ameliorate the adverse effects visited upon families, individuals and our
communities when the State’s residents lack permanent housing; to create a
society where all people, regardless of their housing status, are valued and treated
with dignity and respect and where their human, legal, and civil rights are protected; and to be guided by the principle that basic shelter is a human right.
SECTION 1. Definition of Homeless – For the
purposes of this resolution, “homeless” means lacking a fixed, regular, and
adequate residence; or having a primary residence in a shelter, on the street,
in a vehicle, in an enclosure or structure that is not authorized or fit for
human habitation, or substandard apartments or dwellings; or staying doubled up
temporarily with friends or families; or staying in transitional housing
programs; or staying anywhere without tenancy rights; or staying with one or
more children of whom they are the parent or legal guardian in a residential
hotel or motel whether or not they have tenancy rights.
SECTION 2. Definition of Harassment – “Harassment”
means a knowing and willful course of conduct by law enforcement, public or
private security personnel, or a private citizen directed at a specific person
or group of persons, especially because of their lack of housing, that a
reasonable person would consider as seriously alarming, seriously annoying,
seriously intimidating, seriously threatening, seriously tormenting, or
seriously terrorizing a person so as to disrupt, change, or alter their
behavior or location.
SECTION 3. Bill of Rights – All
natural persons are equal before the law and have inalienable rights, among
which are the rights to acquire, possess and protect property. No person's other
rights, privileges or access to public services may be denied or abridged
solely because he or she is unable to enjoy those property rights. Every person, regardless of housing
status, has the following rights:
a) The
Right to Housing. The right to housing, which is a basic human
right, as stated in Article 25 of
the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights, which states: “Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being
of himself and of his family, including food,
clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right
to security in the event
of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his
control;” thus, the State, counties, and local municipalities will take measurable
steps to intervene in the housing crisis in order to provide safe
and affordable emergency and/or transitional shelter and permanent housing for
people experiencing homelessness,
including for those who are extremely-low-income (ELI), and forbid discrimination against persons seeking housing based on their housing status, their source of income (including Federal Housing Choice Vouchers), or lack of a fixed or permanent mailing address.
b) The
Right to Equal Treatment. The right to equal treatment under the
law by all State, county, and municipal agencies, without discrimination
on the basis of housing status or source of income,
and equal protection of the laws and due process by law enforcement and
prosecuting agencies and the courts;
c) The Right to Employment Fairness. The right not to
face discrimination in seeking, obtaining, or maintaining
employment due to the lack of a permanent residence or a permanent mailing address, or because the
mailing address is that of a homeless shelter, or a homeless or social services provider;
d) The Right to Personal Safety. The right to personal
safety, which shall include protection from violence
based upon housing status and law enforcement and the Attorney General's recording and reporting of all
such incidents;
e) The Right to Enjoy Public Space. The
right to use and move freely in public spaces, including sitting, lying down, sleeping, or resting
in public spaces, which shall
include but not be limited to public
sidewalks, public parks, public transportation and public buildings, in the
same manner as any other person
and without discrimination on the basis of his or her housing status;
f) The Right to Rest. The right to
rest or sleep in temporary shelter, such as any legally-parked motor or recreational vehicle or a self-erected
shelter (e.g., a tent), on public or, with the owner’s
permission, private property, for the purpose of immediate survival of persons,
and their pets, without
harassment by law
enforcement officers or others;
g) The Right to Medically Necessary
Treatment and Behavior. The right to medical care, free from discrimination
based on housing status. All human beings, regardless of housing status, have the same basic needs to defecate,
urinate, and access clean water and other living necessities. All persons, whether permanently housed or
experiencing homelessness, should have the opportunity
to perform these basic
human functions in public locations and facilities, which includes public parks and buildings, with
dignity and relative privacy under hygienic circumstances
and conditions, in clean, safe, highly accessible facilities, free to all
persons;
h) The Right to Vote. The right to vote, register
to vote, and receive documentation necessary to prove identity for voting, without discrimination due
to housing status;
i) The Right to Personal Property. The
right to protection of personal property, in accordance with Article 1, Section 9 of the State
Constitution, which states no person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without
due process of law, which includes: 1) the preservation of personal identification and records, including documentation of government
benefits, legal proceedings and
familial records, 2) storing unhoused people's belongings for 60 days
without charge, and 3)
the right to a reasonable expectation of privacy in his or her personal
property to the same extent as personal
property in a permanent residence; and,
j) The Right to Social Exchange. The
right to give and accept food, water (or other non-alcoholic beverages) and shelter, in public spaces
or elsewhere, and to connect persons experiencing homelessness with organizations that provide shelter or
transitional housing and social services,
such as mental health or substance abuse counseling, medical care and
employment assistance. The right also to
beg or panhandle in public spaces, and to communicate to others in other reasonable ways for other
similar purposes.
SECTION 4. Posting – A notice entitled
"DECLARATION OF HOMELESS PERSON’S BILL OF RIGHTS" and containing the
text in this resolution will be conspicuously posted in all public parks and on the notice boards of all municipal
buildings.
SECTION 5. Application of Resolution – This
resolution shall apply to state, county, and municipal agencies and employees,
including all law enforcement officers and officials, as well as private actors.
SECTION 6. Documentation of Incidents – To
ensure equitable and cost effective enforcement of the Homeless Person’s Bill
of Rights, every local law enforcement agency shall annually compile, review,
and make available to any inquiring party, the number of citations, arrests,
and other enforcement activities made pursuant to laws prohibiting the
following:
a) Obstructing a sidewalk, whether by a person
or personal property;
b) Loitering;
c) Sitting;
d) Lying down;
e) Camping;
f) Public lodging;
g) Sleeping in a public place;
h) Soliciting donations;
i) Bathing in public places;
j) Sharing or receiving food;
k) Inhabiting or sleeping in a vehicle;
l) Violating public park closure laws;
m) Trespassing;
n) Preparing and/or cooking food.
o) Storage
of personal property in outdoor, public spaces.
SECTION 7. Severable – The provisions of this
act are severable. If any provision of this act or its application is held
invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications that
can be given effect without the invalid provision or application.
SECTION 8. Damages and attorney's fees- In any
civil action alleging a violation of this Act, the court may award appropriate
injunctive and declaratory relief, actual damages, and reasonable attorney's
fees and costs to a prevailing plaintiff.
