Committee advances bill shielding volunteers and nonprofits who provide survival services to unhoused people

Summary

SB 634 would bar state and local governments from enforcing ordinances that prohibit people or organizations from providing basic survival services to unhoused people. Supporters cited cases of volunteers criminalized for giving food or clothing; opposition said the bill may limit local authority to manage public space.

SB 634, the Unhoused Service Providers Protection Act, was presented to the Assembly Housing and Community Development Committee by Senator Perez. The bill would prohibit local and state government entities from adopting or enforcing ordinances that prohibit a person or organization from providing basic survival services or resources—such as food, water, blankets and hygiene supplies—to an unhoused person.

Perez said the bill responds to a rising trend in some jurisdictions to criminalize volunteers and nonprofits that provide humanitarian aid. She cited recent examples raised in the hearing record: a Fremont ordinance that included language risking criminal liability for aid providers (later retroactively altered after public outcry), arrests in El Cajon of volunteers distributing food and clothing, and prosecution of a Santa Ana church‑based nonprofit, Micah's Way. "The adoption of ordinances applying punitive fines and jail time towards unhoused service providers will not help the unhoused crisis, but exacerbate it," Perez said.

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Committee advances bill shielding volunteers and nonprofits who provide survival services to unhoused people

Summary

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