WA bill would restrict when cities can clear homeless encampments

A bill that would significantly limit when cities and counties in Washington can clear homeless encampments received its first hearing Tuesday in Olympia, setting up a sharp debate over local control and the state’s response to homelessness.

House Bill 2489 would prevent local governments from enforcing anti-camping laws, removing encampments, or citing people for sleeping outdoors unless officials can prove that shelter that met strict requirements was available to a specific person at the time and location of the enforcement.

Under the bill, shelter would have to allow pets, partners, and personal belongings. Programs that require sobriety, participation in treatment, or compliance with certain behavioral rules could be deemed inadequate, effectively barring cities from relying on those options to justify enforcement.

The legislation would also explicitly protect a range of activities on public property, including sleeping, sitting, resting, eating and drinking, moving around, and protecting oneself or personal belongings from the weather. Any enforcement action tied to those activities, including encampment removals, would be blocked unless a qualifying shelter is shown to be available.

Democrats broadly support the bill, framing it as a safeguard against criminalizing homelessness. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Washington backed the measure, saying it would ensure people are not treated as criminals simply for being unhoused.

“This bill restores fairness and dignity by preventing local governments from using punishment as a substitute for housing policy,” ACLU said in a statement. “By prohibiting punishment, it encourages local governments to focus their resources on social services, shelters, and other housing alternatives.”

Republicans oppose the bill, arguing it would further limit cities’ ability to address encampments and respond to community concerns. The Washington Policy Center criticized the proposal as an overreach by state lawmakers, saying it strips power from local governments and leaves communities to cope with what it calls unchecked homelessness.

“At its core, HB 2489 removes autonomy from municipalities,” Mark Harmsworth, the Small Business Director with the Washington Policy Center, explained. “Cities like Seattle, Tacoma, and Spokane have long grappled with homelessness through a mix of compassion and accountability, enforcing no-camping rules in parks, sidewalks, and business districts while expanding shelters. HB 2489 removes the ability for local government and law enforcement to help the homeless get back on their feet and into housing.”

Last week, what to do about the homeless crisis in Seattle came to a head when newly elected Mayor, Katie Wilson, pushed pause on the scheduled sweep of an encampment in the city’s Ballard Neighborhood in order to explore other options to improve the situation for both neighbors and the people living there.

The day after visiting the camp, which is located near the Burke Gilam Trail and Northwest 41st Street, Wilson signed one of her first executive orders to speed up the expansion of emergency shelter and affordable housing for the homeless by launching an interdepartmental team to identify financial incentives, permitting changes, and other policy adjustments to move projects forward more quickly.

“People, understandably, might not want an encampment near their business or their residence, but if we’re moving people along without actually getting them inside then they’re just going to another place and they’ll be back,” explained Wilson.

Homeless advocacy groups and community members reacted sharply to the decision, underscoring the political tension surrounding the issue.

“This, from my perspective, will be a tragedy if these camps continue to stay,” We Heart Seattle Director Andrea Suarez explained. “They are open-air drug scenes, I can hear the foil now, I can hear the clicking of torches, there’s squalid living conditions, there’s rodents, it’s right here on the bike trail.”

House Bill 2489 is a direct response to a 2024 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that expanded cities’ authority to clear encampments, a decision that prompted renewed debate nationwide over the balance between public order and the rights of the homeless population.

It remains in committee and faces additional hearings before it can advance in the legislature.

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