LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Michigan House Bill 4919, introduced by Democratic Rep. Emily E. Dievendorf (D-Lansing) in July, would create the Bill of Rights for the Homeless Act, which would provide that homeless individuals must be granted the same rights and privileges as any other citizen in Michigan and would prohibit the denial or abridgment of an individual’s rights, privileges, or access to public services solely because the individual is, or is perceived to be, homeless.

The legislation states that there is a “long-standing policy of this state that an individual should not suffer unnecessarily from cold or hunger, be deprived of shelter or the basic rights incident to shelter, or be subject to unfair discrimination based on the individual’s homeless status.” The bill says its intent is to “lessen the adverse effects and conditions caused by the lack of a residence or a home.”

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The rights outlined in the bill include the right to move freely in public spaces, the right to equal treatment by government agencies, the right to freedom from employment discrimination, the right to vote, the right to privacy, the right to emergency medical care, the right for their children to be enrolled in school and more rights to protect the discrimination of the homeless. Similar bills in Rhode Island, Connecticut, Illinois and Puerto Rico have been enacted.

What’s not in the bill is whether or not the person has to be a resident of Michigan or a citizen of the United States to receive the protections in the legislation. It appears that they do not.

The Michigan legislation says that the homeless covered by the bill are those who don’t have a fixed address or regular residence, live on the streets, or who live in a shelter or a temporary residence.

In the wording of the bill, describing the rights of the homeless, the word “citizen” only appears twice. It’s used in the paragraph that protects the homeless’ right to vote by saying, “If the individual is a United States citizen, the right to vote, register to vote and receive documentation necessary to prove identity for voting without discrimination due to housing status.”

The word “if” would imply that a non-citizen is covered under the rest of the Bill of Rights for the Homeless Act. And, in fact, it says as much in another part of the bill where it states, “An individual who is homeless shall be granted the same rights and privileges as any other citizen of this state.”

In the language, the bill establishes rights for “individuals” and “homeless” and not necessary Michiganders or citizens of the country and no definition of terms is included in the legislation.

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With the record influx of illegal immigrants coming into the country and the recent problems of housing them, the state of Michigan could soon face the same challenges as places like New York City where they have illegal immigrants living on the streets with nowhere to go.

NYC has tried to deal with their homeless crisis that has been exacerbated by the increasing number of illegal immigrants in their city by passing their own Homeless Bill of Rights. Their bill of rights allows the homeless, among other things, to sleep outdoors in public places. They also have the right to apply for rental assistance and receive free diapers for their babies. Additionally, they can also complain about shelter accommodations and can sleep in spaces that correspond with their gender identity.

So how would the homeless in Michigan secure these rights? Those who feel discriminated against wouldn’t be calling 911 to get their rights enforced. They would be calling attorneys.

If the rights of the homeless are violated, the violators would not face criminal charges but instead be targets of civil liability lawsuits. If a homeless plaintiff won a civil action, they would, according to the analysis of the bill, “be eligible to receive appropriate injunctive and declaratory relief, actual damages, and reasonable attorney fees and costs.”

Michigan News Source reached out to Rep. Dievendorf about the bill and to get more clarification if the homeless from outside of the state and the country, are in fact, protected in this bill, and if that was her intention, but she did not return our request for comment.
HB 4919 has been referred to the committee on economic development and small business and would go into effect 90 days after it’s enacted if it passed through the Michigan House and Senate and was signed by Gov. Whitmer.

In Michigan, in 2021, there were approximately 30,000 people who were homeless in the state according to an annual report from Michigan’s Campaign to End Homelessness that is a coalition of government and community partners. And according the National Alliance to End Homelessness’ 2023 State of Homelessness report, there were 8,206 people in Michigan on any given night in 2022 who were homeless, with Lansing, Detroit, Kalamazoo, Saginaw, Battle Creek and Lenawee County seeing the highest homeless numbers.