Brea is the latest in a wave of Orange County cities taking aim at homeless camps by bolstering anti-camping laws. 

This week, Brea City Council members voted unanimously to take the first steps in strengthening anti-camping laws, making it unlawful for homeless people to camp or loiter in public places or leave personal belongings in places like sidewalks. 

At the council meeting, Brea Police Chief Adam Hawley said they’re also going to continue offering services.

“We’re going to continue with that approach to be able to provide proactive engagement and enhance positive street outreaches. These ordinances are an important tool in order to enforce laws for those who may be service resistant and to promote public safety and public health,” Hawley said. 

Hawley, who also serves as the chairman of the North Orange County Public Safety Collaborative, gave credit to the Hope Center and the Brea Resource Center for homeless outreach efforts. 

A couple years ago, the collaborative – in partnership with local churches – launched a low-interest loan program to help families get off Orange County streets and into housing. 

[Read: Coalition of North OC Churches Creates Low-Interest Loans to Curb Homelessness] 

The 2024 Point in Time report showed Brea had 82 unhoused people. 

The ordinance voted on by the city council amended the existing laws around camping like reducing the time police may impound abandoned personal property and prohibiting camping on private property to specifically include retail shopping center parking lots.

If approved in February, sleeping in cars will also be prohibited as well as underground camping. Anti-loitering laws in places like parks and bus benches will also be instituted if passed. 

In June last year, a Supreme Court ruling made it legal for cities to cite and arrest people sleeping on sidewalks and parks despite the availability of no shelter beds.  

Prior to their ruling, a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision deemed it unlawful for a person to be criminally punished for loitering or sleeping on public property unless the city had a certain number of shelter beds.  

Since a majority of Supreme Court Justices overturned that ruling last June, several OC cities tightened anti-camping laws. 

[Read: The Year of Homeless Camp Crackdowns in Orange County]

Anaheim, Newport Beach, Irvine, Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Aliso Viejo and Stanton are among the OC cities that have overhauled their anti-camping laws after the Supreme Court ruling. 

In Anaheim, it is unlawful to smoke tobacco or cannabis in parks, bus stops or near daycares and schools, assemble and sell bikes on public property and block sidewalks. 

Similarly, in Santa Ana, the city council made it illegal to sleep or loiter in public places. 

Officials and city staff in Anaheim and Santa Ana expressed similar sentiment as Brea Police Chief Hawley, in that these new ordinances could help reach people who resist taking help.  

In July last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom called on city officials to “do their part” in addressing the homeless crisis and cleaning up encampments   

[Read: Gov. Newsom Calls on Local Leaders to Clean Up Encampments – Will They?]

According to the 2024 point in time count, there are 7,322 homeless people. 4,173 of those people are unhoused in Orange County.  

Gigi Gradillas is a Voice of OC Tracy Wood Reporting Fellow. Contact her at gigi.gradillas@gmail.com or on Twitter @gigigradillas.