Study: ‘Sweeps’ Don’t Impact Homelessness

A new study from the Rand Corporation highlights the futility of ‘cleanups’ at homeless encampments, revealing that the sweeps have no impact on the number of unhoused people on the streets.

As Doug Smith explains in Governing, the study sent teams of researchers to three locations in Los Angeles where the city conducted cleanups. Within two months, the number of people living in those areas had returned to previous levels. “One unintended consequence of multiple camp removals in Venice was that the number of people living without any shelter, not even tents, doubled to nearly half the street population.”

Other in-depth studies of the homeless population reveal that many residents face physical and mental health and addiction issues, underscoring a need for targeted outreach. “Overall, 45 percent of the people interviewed in the three neighborhoods said they had chronic physical health conditions and 56 percent said they had chronic mental health conditions.”