From [HERE] Mayor London Breed said Thursday that San Francisco will launch a “very aggressive” crackdown on homeless encampments in the city next month. 

The mayor’s comments — made during an election debate hosted by the firefighter’s union — come about three weeks after the Supreme Court granted cities broad power to evict unhoused people from encampments. 

“We are going to be very aggressive and assertive in moving encampments which may even include criminal penalties,” Breed said at Thursday’s debate.

“The problem is not going to be solved by building more housing,” Breed added. “Thank goodness for the Supreme Court decision.”

Breed said the city has had to move from a compassionate approach to one focused on accountability. Long-term issues will not be solved by “just building housing and shelter,” she added. She said the city would start the sweeps in August because it needed time to retrain workers to follow the new legal guidance.

Since December 2022, a federal magistrate judge has prohibited San Francisco from enforcing certain laws to clear homeless tents. Although it did not ban the city from sweeping encampments, it prevented officials from citing or arresting people who refused to move in violation of six city laws. The city still increased sweeps during that time by enforcing other rules.  [MORE]