President Donald Trump signed a new executive order Thursday directing federal agencies to support state and local efforts to remove homeless individuals from public streets, crack down on illicit drug use, and expand civil commitment options for people experiencing severe mental illness or addiction.
The order authorizes a wide range of actions focused on reducing visible homelessness and related public safety concerns in urban areas. It directs Attorney General Pam Bondi to take steps to reverse existing legal precedents that have limited the authority of local governments to involuntarily commit individuals on the street who are considered a danger to themselves or others.
In addition, the executive order requires interagency coordination on grants aimed at helping states enforce laws against open drug use, urban camping, loitering, and squatting. It also includes measures to improve tracking of sex offenders within the homeless population.
The order mandates that federal funding be redirected toward treatment centers and other facilities capable of housing and supporting individuals with serious mental illness or substance use disorders. According to a White House fact sheet, the goal is to ensure that individuals causing public disorder or sleeping on the streets are moved into care settings rather than left in public spaces.
Another provision in the order prohibits discretionary federal grants for substance use treatment and prevention from being used to fund supervised drug injection sites or other programs that permit illicit drug use. It also allows federally funded homelessness programs to exclude sex offenders from housing situations that include children, and permits programs to operate housing designated exclusively for women and children.
The order is described by the administration as part of President Trump’s broader effort to “restore order to American cities and remove vagrant individuals from our streets.” It follows an earlier March directive that ordered the National Park Service to remove homeless encampments and graffiti from federal lands.
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