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CITY OF GRANTS PASS v. JOHNSON 

Opinion of the Court 

drugs  like  heroin  and  fentanyl,  which  have  claimed  the 
lives of so many Americans in recent years.  Brief for Office 
of the San Diego County District Attorney as Amicus Curiae 
17–19.  Without running water or proper sanitation facili-
ties,  too,  diseases  can  sometimes  spread  in  encampments 
and beyond them.  Various States say that they have seen 
typhus, shigella, trench fever, and other diseases reemerge 
on their city streets.  California Governor Brief 12; Brief for 
Idaho et al. as Amici Curiae 7 (States Brief ).

Nor do problems like these affect everyone equally.  Of-
ten, encampments are found in a city’s “poorest and most
vulnerable  neighborhoods.”    Brief  for  City  and  County  of 
San Francisco et al. as Amici Curiae on Pet. for Cert. 5 (San
Francisco Cert. Brief ); see also 2020 HUD Report 9.  With 
encampments dotting neighborhood sidewalks, adults and 
children in these communities are sometimes forced to nav-
igate  around  used  needles,  human  waste,  and  other  haz-
ards to make their way to school, the grocery store, or work. 
San Francisco Cert. Brief 5; States Brief 8; California Gov-
ernor Brief 11–12.  Those with physical disabilities report 
this can pose a special challenge for them, as they may lack 
the mobility to maneuver safely around the encampments.
San Francisco Cert. Brief 5; see also Brief for Tiana Tozer 
et al. as Amici Curiae 1–6 (Tozer Brief ).

Communities of all sizes are grappling with how best to
address challenges like these.  As they have throughout the 
Nation’s  history,  charitable  organizations  “serve  as  the 
backbone of the emergency shelter system in this country,” 
accounting  for  roughly  40  percent  of  the  country’s  shelter 
beds for single adults on a given night.  See National Alli-
ance  To  End  Homelessness,  Faith-Based  Organizations: 
Fundamental  Partners  in  Ending  Homelessness  1  (2017).
Many private organizations, city officials, and States have 
worked,  as  well,  to  increase  the  availability  of  affordable
housing  in  order  to  provide  more  permanent  shelter  for 
those in need.  See Brief for Local Government Legal Center