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Bill Would Make Cities More Homeless-Friendly

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Judy Wilson doesn't have a place to stay, and like so many others, she sometimes sleeps in downtown Sacramento.

"I've been run off many places," she said.

Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco) wants to legally allow the homeless to sleep, sit and even ask for money without fear of being criminally cited.

But some say they don't want to be hassled by others begging for dollars.

"The homeless can sometimes get aggressive and a lot of them aren't in the state of mind," says Danielle Norman of Sacramento.

The lawmaker is also proposing hygiene centers—places for the homeless to clean up and use the bathroom. Wilson says it could make all the difference.

"People can clean themselves up. They don't have to walk around dirty," she said.

Scott Alvord, head of the Downtown Roseville Merchants Association and owner of A Dash of Panache, says the proposed bill would hurt businesses.

"I would be concerned it would be more of a draw or anything to help them hang out in front of buildings," Alvord said. "Having homeless in a downtown area doesn't help the economy. Having people sleeping out on the benches is a deterrent for the guests coming down here."

But Judy says she has nowhere to go. And she's begging for change because she doesn't want to keep hearing this:

"Get up and get away from here or else we are going to call the police on you."

There is no dollar amount on the hygiene centers yet. This is only proposed legislation and it still has a long way to go before it would become law.

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