Across California, homeless encampments on city streets, in public parks and beneath highways have become among the most visible symbols of the state's overwhelming challenges with affordable housing. Government officials are now using their newfound power to take on the problem. In late June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3, with the conservative majority voting together, that cities are allowed to enforce fines and make arrests for public camping and sleeping outdoors, and to threaten jail time for those who repeatedly refuse to move indoors and accept assistance. The decision overturned a 2022 ruling by an appeals court, which favored a group of homeless