U.S. Supreme Court Backs Local Communities in Nation's Homeless Response

SEATTLE, June 28, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Discovery Institute praised the Supreme Court ruling in Grants Pass v. Johnson that city ordinances against public camping do not constitute "cruel and unusual punishment" under the Eighth Amendment.

The Court's decision is a win not only for the small Oregon city of Grants Pass, but also for dozens of Western localities that had been hamstrung by the Ninth Circuit as they grapple with record high rates of homelessness, according to Discovery Institute.

"The Supreme Court's reversal of the Ninth Circuit's opinion in the City of Grants Pass v. Johnson is a great first step in giving authority back to local governments to address the homelessness crisis," said Robert Marbut, former Executive Director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness. "If this opinion is combined with proposed legislation such as Rep. Andy Barr's (KY-6th) Housing PLUS Act, we can start to significantly reduce homelessness."

Discovery Institute contends that cities and states need the freedom to address the root causes of homelessness like addiction and mental illness so that they might support organizations that are successfully and cost-effectively housing people.

For more information on real solutions to our national homelessness crisis, read our report prepared for Congress: How-Congress-Can-Reform-Governments-Misguided-Homelessness-Policies-20221011.pdf (discovery.org)

Discovery Institute's Fix Homelessness initiative focuses on the root causes of homelessness and recommends public policies that address those causes, not just surface needs. Discovery Institute is a non-profit educational and research organization whose mission is to advance a culture of purpose, creativity, and innovation with programs in areas such as economics, education, technology, bioethics, and artificial intelligence.

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SOURCE Discovery Institute