Note: This story has been updated to include comments from Multnomah County District Attorney Nathan Vazquez.

This weekend, the city of Portland is resuming enforcement of its local laws governing when, where, and how homeless Portlanders can live in public spaces. Mayor Keith Wilson announced that enforcement would begin November 1, saying he wants people found in violation to be referred to resources like shelters or substance use programs.

That’s the same day the federal food assistance program SNAP expires for millions of low-income Americans, and homeless Portlanders will now also be at risk of fines and jail time if they decline a “reasonable alternate shelter” when offered. It’s part of Wilson’s efforts to deliver on his lofty campaign promise to end unsheltered homelessness in the city by December 1.

While Wilson continues working toward his goal to add 1,500 beds by the end of the year, the city and county are still well short of the number of shelter beds necessary to offer every homeless person a place to stay. The city and county together maintain roughly 3,700 shelter beds.

Local service providers say the renewed camping ban coupled with the loss of SNAP benefits adds to their concerns that the city’s approach may exploit those losses in order to meet Wilson’s campaign quotas, rather than offering leniency amid the federal government’s reduced support.

Lauren Armony is the voices for housing justice training manager at Welcome Home Coalition. Armony said rather than addressing the high costs of housing and subsequent homelessness crisis, local leaders have created an endless revolving door through the criminal justice system, which keeps people from secure housing—and coercing people into temporary shelters won’t help.

“It’s cruel,” Armony said. “It’s undignified.”

Homelessness data shows over 16,000 people were homeless in Multnomah County in August, and nearly half are unsheltered. With the exception of two months since January 2024, the number of people becoming chronically homeless in the county—meaning they have at least one disability and are at risk of or are already facing long-term homelessness—has outpaced the number of people gaining housing.

The local law prohibiting what the city calls “public camping” was unanimously approved by the previous City Council in May 2024. The city paused enforcement of the rules in February just after Wilson took office, as it established more temporary overnight shelters. Shelter opening times vary, but the earliest people can arrive is 8 pm and the latest they can stay is 6:30 am.

The city’s enforcement comes on the same day that 757,000 Oregonians will go without their SNAP benefits due to the federal government shutdown, meaning more people will be left to choose between paying rent and buying groceries. That includes nearly 95,000 Multnomah County households, according to the most recent Oregon Department of Human Services data from July. The average two-person household received $309 that month, and the state sent nearly $30 million to SNAP recipients in Multnomah County in July alone. That includes some 15,420 homeless individuals in the county who will lose their benefits over the weekend.

Now, Portland’s outreach teams are focusing on educating homeless residents about the ban, using outreach workers to distribute brochures outlining where overnight shelters are located and what conduct could land them a citation.

According to the city code, people cannot set up tents, blankets or other survival materials on public property when “reasonable shelter” is available. Homeless residents cannot obstruct the public right-of-way, use a gas heater or set a fire, or set up an encampment on property that the city marked “no trespassing.” The ordinance also prohibits people from assembling or selling multiple bikes or cars, and restricts them from storing belongings more than two feet outside of a tent. Those found in violation can receive a fine of up to $100 or up to seven days in jail.

Wilson’s spokesperson Cody Bowman said Portland Police Bureau officers have access to real-time data about shelter availability, and if no shelter beds are available, they won’t issue public camping citations. That’s unless a person is simultaneously found in violation of other city camping regulations, which could lead to citation or arrest.

Misha Litvak is a local case manager and Vice President of AFSCME Local 1790, which represents employees for Do Good Multnomah, Sunstone Way, Cascadia Health and other local direct service providers. He said unionized employees remain concerned that the city expects those accessing services to quickly move into housing, while essential resources necessary for that work—peer services, financial support, transportation, and adequate program staffing—have never been more scarce.

“(Wilson) sees this display of cruelty from the federal administration, right as we enter the coldest and darkest time of year, as an advantage to serve this purpose, rather than for the tragedy it is,” Litvak said in a statement provided to the Mercury.

Litvak said as SNAP benefits expire and the city begins enforcing its camping rules, unionized service providers see local and federal governments as choosing business profit over human lives.

“These are attacks on the working class, be they from the White House or our own City Hall,” Litvak said.

For homeless Portlanders, affordability is the central barrier to housing. From 2023 to 2025, local organizations Sisters of the Road, Welcome Home Coalition, and Portland State University conducted a survey of 429 homeless Portlanders to learn what they wanted and needed to stay housed. The organizations published the results in a Finding Home Report last week, which showed that 91 percent of respondents said rent assistance was their highest need. The same number of people said they were ready to move indoors if they could afford it.

Local advocates say Wilson’s focus on overnight shelters is a misguided policy choice, as congregate shelters—where groups of people stay in one room—are not conducive to everyone’s wants and needs, particularly for people with disabilities. Others, like the public safety and criminal justice reform organization Partnership for Safety and Justice, say eligibility requirements for deflection programs are too narrow. They’re urging the city to expand who can access programs that help those in extreme poverty.

The Finding Home Report showed that, given the choice, 87 percent of respondents wanted to live in an apartment, and 65 percent wanted to live in a house. Just 42 percent ranked a tiny home in their top three preferences for a place to live.

Armony, of Welcome Home Coalition, said homelessness continues to rise as years of federal and local investments prioritize temporary programs that fail to create the systems people need to stay housed.

“What is disheartening is that we’re seeing our mayor and our governor mimic the same playbook that we’re seeing in federal priorities,” Armony said. “They’re prioritizing short-term emergency shelter and development, but they’re not prioritizing housing people right now.”

Armony added that living near a grocery store was listed as the most important thing for 55 percent of survey respondents to live near, followed by family and friends.

As enforcement begins this weekend, the city says it will utilize citations rather than arrest. Citations could be up to $100 according to city code, but Bowman said penalties will ultimately be determined by a judge.

“The Mayor is encouraging the courts to consider diversion and other alternatives to fines and jail to help connect people to resources,” Bowman said.

Still, even a zero-dollar citation could contribute to challenges for homeless Portlanders who receive them, and interactions with the court system can create further barriers. If a person misses a court date, for instance, a “failure to appear” charge can exacerbate legal challenges and make it more difficult for them to get into housing.

Whether a person is arrested or cited is left to officer discretion. Still, custodial bookings and citations are forms of arrest. An officer investigating an alleged crime can choose to either book a person into jail or issue a citation in lieu of booking, but either way, the Multnomah County District Attorney’s office will have to review the case and decide whether or not to file it in court.

DA Nathan Vazquez said his office is eager to support Wilson's plan, and will devote necessary resources and time to back up his efforts. He said his office will prosecute people accused of violating the ordinance, but said his office has a range of prosecutorial discretion.

“We will seek to be as creative as possible in finding community resources and connecting them with individuals who come before us,” Vazquez said. “We will do everything we can to keep people out of jail—it is a last resource.”

Asked if he expects an uptick in failure to appear charges as enforcement ramps up, Vazquez said it is certainly possible, at least in the near future.

“However, we are working with the Court to create a one stop community court that will limit failures to appear and encourage connection to community resources,” Vazquez said. “We expect that specific community court will be up and running early next year.”

PPB did not respond to questions asking how officers have been trained on their role.

The city’s enforcement also burdens Multnomah County jails. Multnomah County Sheriff Nicole Morrisey O’Donnell said she supports Wilson and PPB’s ongoing work to address “one of our region’s most urgent and visible challenges,” but she sees daily the consequences of a system stretched beyond its limits.

“Our jails were never designed to absorb the weight of inadequate housing, medical, and behavioral health systems,” O’Donnell said. “They should not be seen as the default response to illegal camping or unmanaged crises.”