Housing Matters bill sparks hours-long debate over whether moving people on criminalizes homelessness

Senator Carrasco, who authored Senate Bill 285, said the bill is intended "not to criminalize homelessness" but to create a structured pathway that connects people camping on public land to outreach, shelter and services. She told the committee the bill requires a 48-hour warning and reporting of encounters so jurisdictions can track outcomes and course-correct.

"This bill reclaims public property and prevents the build-up of encampments by requiring movement every 48 hours," Carrasco said, and emphasized diversion and outreach language in the text. She said the statute authorizes citations as a last step but is drafted to encourage services in lieu of arrest.

Supporters including business and housing representatives told the committee the measure provides a new tool to reach the hardest-to-serve people. Scott Centorino of Cicero Action urged the committee to "bring the hardest cases of unsheltered homelessness into the services the state funds," citing Kentucky as a model where the statute did not flood jails in the author's account. Greg Stowers of the Andy Chamber…