Has Austin Eliminated All Restrictions On People Experiencing Homelessness?

Our weekly check-in with the Texas Truth-O-Meter.

By Alexandra HartJanuary 29, 2020 1:37 pm,

Gov. Greg Abbott says the city of Austin has removed all regulations governing where people experiencing homelessness can camp or relieve themselves. Is that a fact? Madlin Mekelburg of the PolitiFact Texas fact-checking team has the answer.

The governor, who has been at odds with Austin over homelessness policy since the city changed public camping rules last year, made his latest statement on the subject after a man stabbed someone to death and injured several others at an Austin shopping center. The man was later identified as a person experiencing homelessness.

“What Austin has done over the past half year is perpetuate a sense of lawlessness in the city by the homeless,” Abbott told reporters at the Capitol. “They have removed seemingly any legal consequences to the actions where the homeless lie, sleep, where they defecate.”

Hear how Abbott’s claim scored in the player above.

 

Written by Shelly Brisbin.