Pinellas’ smart approach to Florida’s homeless camping ban

A new state law that takes effect in October could make it even harder for the homeless to get by in Florida. Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri is rightly getting a jump on what could be the best possible response.

The new law bars cities and counties from allowing anyone “to regularly engage in public camping or sleeping” overnight on any public property, including public buildings or grounds, such as parks and the right-of-way. Local governments may designate a piece of public property as a camping ground, under some conditions, but they must provide these sites with basic amenities, such as security and sanitation. The law also authorizes local residents and businesses, and the state attorney general, to take civil court action against cities and counties that fail to enforce the statute.

The legislation, which Gov. Ron DeSantis signed in March, could make Florida’s growing problem of homelessness even worse, by prodding communities to sweep the homeless from public view while offering little in the way of meaningful resources to help get them on their feet.

In response, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office has led a multi-agency effort to track where people are sleeping outside and the number of people at each location, according to an agency document obtained by the Tampa Bay Times. The list identifies several locations where people sleep, including parks and bus stops. Officials said they wanted to ensure that law enforcement throughout the county was prepared, but some homeless advocates in Pinellas expressed concerns the list could lead to a crackdown.

As a practical matter, police already know where the homeless are sleeping. It’s hardly a secret; a roundup would be easy. The Pinellas sheriff’s approach is intended to do the opposite: To contact homeless people where they are and inform them of better and safer housing options.

This outreach program is smart, proactive and humane. The sheriff’s office is using community policing deputies and social workers to contact homeless people on the street and inform them of the law and their housing options. The new law, for example, doesn’t prohibit daytime sleeping in public. And the sheriff isn’t coming empty-handed; Gualtieri has a long history of addressing homeless issues. The emergency shelter and jail-diversion program his agency operates — Pinellas Safe Harbor — has the capacity to serve at least an additional 125 homeless people every day, he told the Times Editorial Board.

“Homelessness should never be criminalized,” Gualtieri told the Times. “Our goal is to start early so there isn’t need for enforcement.” These individual contacts, he said, especially with the chronic homeless, could keep more people housed and out of the criminal justice system. The effort could also spare the county from civil litigation under the new law. “I don’t want court cases here. I don’t want the attorney general coming in here,” he said.

What this effort produces will be apparent soon enough, but Gualtieri has credibility on this issue. It’s also an opportunity to get law enforcement agencies across Pinellas on the same page. And if the law reignites discussion about homelessness and Florida’s strategy for dealing with it, so much the better.

Editorials are the institutional voice of the Tampa Bay Times. The members of the Editorial Board are Editor of Editorials Graham Brink, Sherri Day, Sebastian Dortch, John Hill, Jim Verhulst and Chairman and CEO Conan Gallaty. Follow @TBTimes_Opinion on Twitter for more opinion news.