A 2019 Federal appeals court ruled prosecuting people experiencing homelessness for sitting, lying or sleeping on public property violates the Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment for individuals who cannot obtain alternative shelter. The Martin v City of Boise ruling provides added detail on this topic.

In Santa Clara County, there is often not enough housing to meet the demand. Therefore, cities cannot criminalize conduct that is an unavoidable consequence of being homeless. This includes sleeping in a car, trailer or motorhome.

As a result of this ruling, law enforcement has ceased enforcement of panhandling / solicitation violations referred to in City Code Section 5.05.210. Instead, examples of permissible activity now include, but are not limited to, panhandling on a sidewalk or roadway median, selling goods / food in an around a public park, etc.

The City of Santa Clara’s Community Development Department (Housing & Community Services Division) and Santa Clara Police Department (SCPD) comes across individuals experiencing various forms of homelessness on a regular basis including chronic homelessness (e.g. sleeping in parks, undeveloped properties, vacant buildings, transit stations), transitional (e.g. shelter system, boarding house, emergency accommodation), hotel living, couch surfing, car living and homeless encampments (e.g. multiple people living in an unsheltered area).

Identifying the location of the unhoused individual, private or publicly owned property, has a significant impact the approach by law enforcement. Although an area may fall within the City of Santa Clara’s borders, the specific location of the encampment may be under the immediate control of another entity.

On private property, a landowner is required to initiate enforcement action for trespassing. The decision of the landowner and subsequent process in collaboration with law enforcement to address trespassing of unhoused individuals is time consuming and labor intensive.

On public property, and subject to certain limitations such as hours of operation, a person can be asked to leave however they are not required to do so based on the Martin v City of Boise Federal appeals court ruling.

For example, a person sleeping overnight on property owned by the City of Santa Clara may be allowed to do so depending upon various factors, per the Federal appeals court ruling, if there is not ample housing available.  Prior to the Martin v City of Boise ruling, camping was not permitted on sidewalks and/or parks to ensure these areas remain safe, accessible and sanitary.

Regardless of land ownership, criminal activity and/or emergency situations should be reported immediately by calling 9-1-1.

For example, a fire would be an emergency situation. Meanwhile, examples of criminal activity include noise, fighting, drug activity, etc.  

Below is an example of the primary contacts for jurisdictional matters:

In each case, the City of Santa Clara must follow stringent procedures to protect both the rights of individuals impacted by the encampment clear out and the safety of the personnel performing the cleanup services, including:

• Outreach to individuals advising of community resources (e.g. emergency shelter, showers, laundry service, meals, medical services, case management, employment training, etc.) and determine next steps to resolve the reported concern
• Notification advising of intent to conduct the clear out at least 72-hours in advance, encouraging individual(s) to remove their personal property and provide free bags to do
• Document pertinent information to third-party vendor regarding the location, making note of potential jobsite hazards and conducting employee safety training as necessary
• Coordination with an experienced third-party vendor to conduct clear out
• Staff a police officer to be present for the clear out
• Clear and dispose of debris
• Sort and tag personal property that may be claimed up to 90-days following the clear out
• Return of personal property as requested

At the current time, the City of Santa Clara has a four-year Agreement with Tucker Construction, Inc. terminating on June 30, 2023, not to exceed $1,000,000. At the current time, the City has earmarked approximately $110,000 for such services.

Individuals experiencing homelessness generate solid waste during their daily activities of food preparation and consumption, shelter building and maintenance, storing their possessions, eliminating unwanted materials, and gathering recyclable materials of value. The resulting refuse become harborages and food sources for vectors and related pathogens, sources of odors, fuel for fires, unattractive nuisances to the public, an attractive nuisance for salvagers and potential sites that can cause bodily injuries.

Our commitment is to uphold public health and safety to all our residents. We will offer refuse removal on an as needed basis to achieve this. This is referred to as clean up of a encampment site.

Clear out of a homeless encampment involves removing all persons, property and debris completely.

For example, the Police Department coordinated the removal of refuse with Valley Water, referred to as a site clean up.

Meanwhile, the Police Department worked with other city departments to clear out the following encampment on city property. In this case, the unhoused individual was receptive to services and was placed in interim housing. 

The City of Santa Clara does not currently have an overnight parking restriction for recreation vehicles (e.g. car, trailer, motorhome) on public streets. As a result, it is not unusual to see clusters of recreation vehicles around the city, referred to a vehicle encampments.

Vehicle encampments are known to  cause line of sight safety concerns, parking shortages, encroachment issues, noise, litter and sanitation concerns among residents.

However, current parking regulations limit individuals from parking in any one location for over 72-hours per City Code Section 10.05.470. The Police Department relies on the public to report such violations and activity contacts inhabitants of vehicles related to parking violations on public streets. Violators are subject to a parking citation if they are not in compliance. This regulation starts anew once a subject moves their vehicle from one location to another. As a result, this poses a significant challenge for law enforcement.

To report a 72-hour violation, submit a service request in MySantaClara.

To report illegal dumping, contact the Community Development Department’s Code Enforcement Division at (408)615-2460.

In March, 2020, Santa Clara County Superior Court implemented an Emergency Bail Schedule, commonly referred to as Zero Bail, and Citation and Release Order in an effort to relieve lower-level offenses and keep jail populations low amid the pandemic and protect the health and safety of individuals working within the local jail, court and custodial systems. Zero Bail remains in effect through  July 31, 2022.  Effective August 1, 2022, the 2022 Criminal Bail Schedule will be in full force and effect. This schedule is applied to all accused persons arrested and in pretrial custody and all accused persons held in pretrial custody.

Despite this change, when individuals experiencing homelessness are arrested for minor offenses (e.g. drunk in public, public urination, littering, loitering, trespassing, etc.), it is not uncommon for them to be released by the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Clara immediately. This can be challenging for the community, and law enforcement, who see a subject return hours after an arrest.

This is a regional issue, not exclusive to our city.

The County of Santa Clara assists thousands of homeless individuals and families each year, however the systemic factors driving homelessness in our community (e.g. failed policies at the local, state, and national level to the extreme lack of housing options that are affordable for low-income residents) remain stronger than ever and are pushing more of our neighbors onto the streets every day.

These challenges have been compounded by the coronavirus pandemic that arrived in our community as the Community Plan to End Homelessness was in development, making implementation of many of these strategies even more urgent. This public health crisis has had a significant impact on our local economy, leaving many more households on the brink of homelessness due to job loss, lack of childcare, and economic uncertainty. The pandemic has also required a massive and immediate response by our crisis response system to quickly ramp up shelter capacity, increase access to hygiene services for people living outside, and protect those people experiencing homelessness who are particularly vulnerable.

Solving this crisis is a great moral challenge which requires tremendous effort, new partnerships and bold strategies. Despite these challenges, the City of Santa Clara’s Community Development Department (Housing & Community Services Division) continues its’ work with the County of Santa Clara. Meanwhile, SCPD remains available to address immediate concerns.

On August 24, 2021, the Community Development and Police Department’s facilitated a Study Session among the City Council on the following topics:

This Study Session is intended to begin a policy discussion and inform the City Council of:

• National, state, and local homeless statistics;
• Various forms of homelessness;
• State and Federal laws, court rulings and Municipal Code regulations connected with unhoused individuals;
• Complex issue, with intersecting issues, impacting multiple City Departments in varying ways;
• Impact of coronavirus pandemic, including temporary health and court orders;
• Homeless encampments in our City;
• Vehicle dwelling in Santa Clara; and,
• City’s current response to supporting the needs of all our residents

A copy of the Report to Council (8/24/21, Item #2, Report #21-942) is available online, as is the audio from the meeting. 

Subsequently, the City has created a Homelessness Task Force consisting of community and agency members. All meetings will be open to the public. More information about the Homelessness Task Force is available online.

• Participate in the City of Santa Clara's Homelessness Task Force meetings. Information about the meetings is available online.
• Sign up for Destination: Home’s Housing Ready Communities Action Network for updates and volunteer opportunities
• Write to policy makers regarding your thoughts and concerns. Log-in to learn who your State Senate and Assembly representatives and how to contact them

Homeless Prevention and Assistance

The City's Community Development Department (Housing & Community Services Division) provides contact information for prevention and homeless assistance programs online.

Reporting Illegal Activity

The City understands concerns about maintaining the quality of life in Santa Clara and balancing interests of those experiencing homelessness with those of our neighbors. While most residents living in encampments or vehicles abide by laws, Santa Clara has continued to enforce other code provisions when applicable, such as discharging sewage on the public right out of way or trespassing.

• Residents living in vehicles, homeless and neighbors are encouraged to contact the Santa Clara Police Department when experiencing any emergency or safety threat by dialing 9-1-1
• For non-emergency concerns, call (408)615-5580
• Residents may also report vehicles parked on the street for more than 72 hours by using the online tool

In addition, the Police Department has created a flyer for residents with added resources and contact information.