City Audit: Unsafe Camping Ordinance Reduced Downtown Encampments but Unsheltered Population Unchanged Citywide

A City Auditor performance audit presented to the City Council's Audit Committee on Tuesday found that the Unsafe Camping Ordinance substantially reduced visible encampments downtown — but the overall unsheltered population across San Diego did not decrease.

The audit, published in April 2026 and reviewed by the committee this week, examined the City's response to homeless encampments since the ordinance took effect in June 2023, according to the Office of the City Auditor.

The auditor found that monthly census counts showed a substantial decrease in the unsheltered population downtown after the ordinance. However, the unsheltered population as defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development did not decline across the city as a whole.

Franklin Coopersmith, deputy director of the Environmental Services Department, told ABC 10News that the City's safe sleeping sites — while providing beds, shelter, and resources — are classified as unsheltered under HUD definitions, complicating the official count.

"Our safe sleeping is not considered an official shelter, so it is still considered unsheltered," Coopersmith said. "Though when the public looks, they don't see as many people on the street is because they're in these places where we designate that they can go in."

Shelter demand outstrips supply

The audit also found that while shelter referrals increased after the ordinance, the City's shelter space — including safe sleeping sites — was limited, and most requests for shelter could not be met.

Reported encampment locations did not significantly change, but the City received an average of 13 percent more encampment reports in the two years after the ordinance compared to the two years before.

Storage and language concerns

The auditor found that the City's abatement storage procedures generally align with best practices, but language accessibility and procedures could be improved.

The Audit Committee was scheduled to hear the report as a discussion item at its 9 a.m. meeting Tuesday. The committee is chaired by Council President Joe LaCava.