DeSantis backs homelessness bills

• The zones would be required to have restrooms, running water, security and access to mental health services. Drugs and alcohol would not be allowed.

What they're saying: DeSantis, speaking in Miami Beach, said the bills were still a "work in progress," but he wants to move unhoused people off the streets and give local governments funding to house individuals and provide treatment, the Tampa Bay Times reported.

Zoom in: Ron Book, chairperson of the board of the Miami-Dade Homeless Trust, told the Times that the legislation was a good start but that Miami-Dade would never have mass encampments.

Catch up fast: The city of Miami faced backlash when it proposed relocating unhoused people to tiny homes on Virginia Key. That plan was scrapped.

• The city of Miami Beach passed a law in 2023 allowing police to arrest unhoused individuals sleeping in public who refuse placement in a shelter. Miami also has a ban on public camping.