With the pandemic starting back in March of 2020, regulations of homeless encampments were less harsh. The eviction notices were limited or completely avoided. This new change was provoked by officials taking a passive approach to the state of encampments. The newest regulations will be more strict by posting an eviction notice if certain health and safety conditions are not met. These conditions include if any of the following is present: human waste, needles, biohazardous material, and fire hazards. They will also be notified of eviction if there is repeated violence or criminal activity or if the encampment impacts a school.
In the past, there was a 24-hour compliance notice that if the encampments complied, they would not be evicted. City officials will give 48 hours' notice and will eliminate the 24-hour compliance notice. This makes the people living in these encampments to quickly pack up their belongings and move elsewhere before the city removes anything remaining. This is an issue for many because they are forced to move to another spot, as Portland is not required to offer shelter or other services prior to evicting the campers.
Portland is currently looking at alternative sites and shelters so that displacement is no longer an issue. However, Portland does not have any of these in place. Eric Tars, a legal director of the National Homelessness Law Center declares "The underlying principle remains the same: you cannot and should not displace people unless you can provide an adequate alternative." For more information on Portland's new rules regarding encampments click here. https://www.oregonlive.com/portland/2021/05/portland-announces-it-will-aggressively-clean-or-remove-homeless-encampments.html
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