Fresno advocates concerned after Trump signs order making it easier to remove homeless from the streets

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – President Donald Trump has signed a new executive order directing cities and states to take a tougher stance on homelessness- making it easier to remove people from public spaces and encampments, even against their will.

The order, signed on July 24, calls for action on vagrancy, disorderly conduct and sudden violent street confrontations.

It directs the U.S. Attorney General to roll back legal precedents that currently limit how state and local governments can enforce removals or mandate treatment for unhoused individuals.

While the goal of reducing crime and restoring public order is clear, critics argue the order lacks the resources needed to carry it out effectively- and may ultimately do more harm than good.

“He’s calling for an end to homelessness,” said Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, who acknowledged that tackling street homelessness is a shared priority for many cities. “One of the problems I have with the executive order is it’s calling for pushing people into treatment, but where are the dollars?”

In Fresno, local homeless advocate Desiree Martinez echoed those concerns. She said the executive order could intensify already strained conditions in cities that are under-resourced when it comes to long-term treatment, housing, or recovery programs.

“It just doesn’t work,” Martinez said. “It’s fast. It looks good for data, but it’s not the end solution.”

Martinez pointed to Fresno’s existing ordinance, which prohibits sitting or standing on public sidewalks. She says the ordinance has led to over 300 arrests in the past year—but without long-term support, most people return to the streets within days.

“We still have people going back to the streets without a place to live… there is not enough there for them,” she said. “My question is, can we say we arrested 330 people—how many actually went into a shelter? If they did, 90 days is up. They went back to the streets.”

Martinez says the executive order risks criminalizing poverty and could invite greater police involvement, resulting in unintended consequences.

“It’s going to allow the police to abuse us more. There’s going to be more force,” she said. “And with more police abuse comes more lawsuits on the city.”

YourCentralValley.com reached out to Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer’s office for comment, and his office said they don’t yet know how the executive order will affect Fresno directly.