SB1024

THE CONTEXT: A person commits loitering by: 1) soliciting another person to engage in any sexual offense in public; 2) soliciting or engaging in any business involving sale of merchandise or services in a transportation facility after a reasonable request to cease; 3) gambling in a public place unless authorized by law; 4) being present in or about a school, college or university after a reasonable request to leave, and if the person is without a legitimate reason, responsibility or written permission to be there; or 5) soliciting bail bond business inside a court building or immediately around or near the entrance of a co...

WHAT THE BILL DID: Prohibits a person from erecting or maintaining any full or partial enclosure for habitation in a public street, highway, sidewalk or other right-of-way.

WHY IT MATTERED: The practical reason for this bill was to set a clear legal boundary for public rights-of-way instead of leaving the conduct unaddressed. It would prohibit a person from erecting or maintaining any full or partial enclosure for habitation, including a tent, tarp, box or similar object, in a public street, highway, alley, lane, parkway, sidewalk or other right-of-way, whether dedicated to the public in fee or by easement, and would also classifies a violation as a civil traffic violation, rather than leave the current rule unchanged.