Oklahoma cities, including Tulsa and Oklahoma City, have been warned that they may soon be required to reimburse nearly $900,000 spent on clearing homeless encampments under Gov. Kevin Stitt’s Operation SAFE.

Operation SAFE and Homeless Encampments

The state of Oklahoma is seeking legislation to recover the costs of clearing homeless encampments in Tulsa and Oklahoma City. State Chief Operating Officer David Ostrowe sent letters to the police chiefs of Oklahoma City and Tulsa, criticizing their departments for failing to enforce the law and leaving taxpayers to cover the costs.

On Friday morning, state troopers arrived at a field in Norman, giving dozens of people experiencing homelessness just minutes to vacate the area. The field, located north of Food and Shelter, is state-owned, but both the shelter and the city of Norman said they were not given advance notice of the clearing.

Jess Alvarez, director of operations at Food and Shelter, said, “Encampment clearing is not going to solve homelessness. You’re just moving the problem to the sidewalk, right here.”

Response from Oklahoma City and Tulsa

Oklahoma City responded in a letter, stating that it “is and will always enforce state and local laws within their jurisdiction.” Stitt defended the program, saying, “Oklahoma has shielded the municipality from the costs of providing mental health and social services to those who accepted help. The least the municipality can do is keep the streets clean and safe.”

Original reporting: Oklahoma City News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.