San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan is urging the city council to pass an initiative that could force unhoused residents to get the services they need or go to jail.
Under the "Responsibility to Shelter" proposal, if an unhoused person refuses shelter services provided by the city and county, police could arrest and book them in jail.
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WATCH HERE"The longer they remain outdoors, the worse we see their quality of life become," Mahan said.
On Wednesday, the police and fire unions all voiced their support for the bill.
"We deal with thousands of fires a year outdoors because people are not living in proper conditions," said Jerry May, president of San Jose Firefighters Local 230.
Steve Slack, president of the San Jose Police Officers' Association, said a small subset of the unhoused population "generates a lot of calls for service."
Homeless advocates have blasted the mayor's plan, saying it criminalizes the unhoused. Advocates have cited that there aren't enough shelter beds for everyone on the streets, currently.
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Tamink Rast, president of the Japantown Business Association, said something has got to give.
"Every member of my family has been assaulted, sometimes viciously, by unhoused individuals suffering from addiction or mental illness," she said.
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SIGN UP Rast added that her father was hit for asking someone not to urinate in front of children.
"We are exhausted and we are afraid for our safety," Rast said. "As someone who is fifth generation Japantown, and whose grandparents returned to San Jose after WWII incarceration camps, I struggle with the decision to stay here."
Although the unhoused could face an arrest after refusing city services three times, Mahan said it's more nuanced.
"There’s a certain amount of discretion that’s needed," Mahan said. "We have to make sure that the individual and their case file, and their situation, that the shelter and services we’re offering are appropriate."
The city council will hold a public hearing on the matter on Tuesday, June 10, at 5 p.m.
