A Catalan law for the rights of homeless people

On January 25, 2022, the proposed law on urgent and transitional measures to address and eradicate homelessness was officially submitted to the Parliament of Catalonia with the support of most parties represented in Parliament (the Socialist and Units per Avançar parliamentary groups, Esquerra Republicana, Junts per Catalunya, Candidatura d'Unitat Popular - Un Nou Cicle per Guanyar, En Comú Podem, Ciutadans, and the Mixed Group). This proposed law can be consulted online , pages 27 to 80.

This proposed law is the result of over three years of work by the social organizations Assís Centre d'Acollida , Arrels Fundació , Càritas Catalunya , the Community of Sant'Egidio, and Sant Joan de Déu Social Services, in partnership with academia. The drafting of the legal text, submitted to parliament and adopted by the parties on January 25, was spearheaded and led by Antoni Milian i Massana, Professor of Administrative Law at the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), with the collaboration of Vicenç Aguado i Cudolà, Professor of Administrative Law at the University of Barcelona (UB), Lídia Pitarch, Professor and PhD in Human Security and Global Law (UAB), and Raquel Prado and Almudena González, Professors of Administrative Law (UB). Furthermore, the text has the support of 35 first-, second-, and third-tier social organizations and five professional associations.

A new framework for addressing homelessness in Catalonia

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This is undoubtedly a pioneering initiative in the European legislative context that aims to eradicate the most chronic manifestations of homelessness classified in categories 1, 2 and 3 of the European ETHOS classification .

The Law turns the approach to homelessness in Catalonia around by recognizing a series of basic rights for people experiencing homelessness, thus guiding public policies for the coming years.

We are convinced that its approval will mark a historic turning point, with a clear intention to influence the legislation of other autonomous and regional European communities.

In summary, the Law:

• It establishes the concept of dignified housing and defines it as a subjective right, meaning that anyone can request it from their local council and can claim it in court if it is not respected. It is important to note that this is not a housing law, although it certainly connects with state and Catalan housing legislation by providing for the legal concept of dignified housing specifically for people experiencing homelessness.
• It recognizes other fundamental rights that bring dignity to homeless people, such as the right to a locker, the right to personal hygiene services, the right to a low-threshold center, the right to use public space without risk of being penalized while a dignified residential space is not guaranteed for all, the right to a dignified farewell at the transfer which includes access to a wake room and oratory, among others.
• It provides for cooperation instruments between administrations and with social entities and orders the Government of the Generalitat to promote action plans.
• It contains a specific provision to address complex homelessness situations . Of particular note is Article 21, which obliges public administrations to coordinate their social and healthcare protocols in the care of homeless people. The Law aims to eliminate current duplication and gaps in jurisdiction, thereby combating the all-too-familiar and common situation where a hospital discharge becomes bad news.
• It provides territorial equity , offering guarantees that every homeless person should be able to be cared for in the same way, regardless of where they live.

Protecting homeless people is a moral duty that cannot be postponed any longer. To paraphrase Martin Luther King, homelessness "not only corrodes the people [...] who suffer it [...], but it also morally corrodes the entire society that tolerates it." The Parliament of Catalonia and Catalan society as a whole therefore have the opportunity to take a very significant step forward in terms of democratic quality and social justice.

The promoting entities will be ready to ensure that the law is approved in this legislature, at the latest in 2023.