Officials call PIT Count an inaccurate undercount
Editor’s note: this story is part of a collaborative initiative of independent local news outlets working towards a more informed and engaged Central Florida.
Friday, the Homeless Services Network of Central Florida released its figure of the number of people sleeping outdoors in wooded encampments— or wherever they can find these days.
Its Point In Time (PIT) Count showed figures close to the same figure when counted in 2024. But officials who work with the homeless say the number is higher— just like it was in 2024.
Why? Those individuals may not be found by counters on the days they visit areas. Or, in some cases, thanks to a new state law and tougher immigration enforcement, they simply don’t want to be counted.
Per the new state law, House Bill 1365, unhoused individuals are prohibited from camping on city streets, sidewalks, and parks. While the state does not fund enforcement of the mandate, the intent is to place them in temporary shelters, monitored by law enforcement.
But … Osceola County doesn’t have a shelter.
“We have no resources there other than the cold night shelters for the weather. The need is growing exponentially in Osceola County,” said Salvation Army Orange and Osceola County Area Commander Maj. Ken Chapman.
According to HSN’s numbers, 2,781 people were found to be living in shelters, their cars or outside during the January count across Osceola, Orange and Seminole counties, a small increase over the 2024 count.
“We are grateful that this is the smallest percent increase in several years,” said Martha Are, the homeless network’s CEO. “We found that when we sent volunteers to the place we’ve known they’d be, and they had been ‘moved along’ (by police), or were intentionally hiding, avoiding interactions with people they’re not sure of.”
HB 1365 became law on Jan. 1, requiring police to enforce it, with arrest as a final option. It put in provisions for residents or business owners to complain to, and potentially sue, local governments if the homeless remain in public space. Court records show 39 arrests thus far across Orange County, and Chapman said three complaints have been made to the City of Orlando, which were “immediately responded to.”
Neither the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office or Kissimmee and St. Cloud Police departments show record of any HB 1365-related arrests. In mid-February a member of the County Attorney’s office said no complaints had been logged to that point.
“Affordable housing isn’t expanding to prevent this,” Are said. “We’re in an extremely challenging housing market right now.”
The count found 373 people experiencing homelessness in Osceola County, an 8.7% increase over 2024. Of them, 188 were found to be living on the streets, in the woods or in their cars in January. Osceola had 73 unsheltered or inadequately housed school students as of Feb. 7, the most recent data available.
Will Cooper is the Chief Operating Officer at Hope Partnership, a non-profit working to end Osceola’s homelessness. He’s also headed up the PIT count effort in the county the last few years. He noted Friday that the 2025 count is an undercount— but not as much as in 2024. Chapman said the count is “never accurate.”
“To be counted, we have to find the encampments,” Chapman said. “They are moving, and we have to find them.”
An accurate count hinges on, essentially, catching up with that moving target. Cooper said many of Osceola’s homeless have made camps farther out of sight this year, likely attributed to the state law, and in some cases to heightened immigration and deportation concerns surrounding ICE enforcement.
“I can verify that we saw people deeper in the woods this year, to feel safe,” he said. “It makes it harder to identify them. If a camp used to be on the edge of the woods, and it’s now not there, do we keep going deeper into the woods (to find them). Part of it is development, but part of it is the camping bill.”
Cooper said it’s common to visit a camp where one person is there keeping watch while the rest of its residents are off seeking work or food. He also said more of the unhoused encountered did not want to take part, meaning they would not be part of the PIT count.
“It was heartbreaking to get stories from our team, talking to someone face-to-face, who maybe you encountered that Monday at our services, who doesn’t feel comfortable saying they slept outside last night,” he said. “Those who are Hispanic, or not Whitepresenting, showed a higher level of concern of giving their information. It’s a consent survey; if you said ‘I don’t want to take it,’ you’re not counted, but our counters know they’re out there.”
The PIT count also does not include those living in longterm stay hotels, like those found on West U.S. Highway 192, but Cooper said the School District does count them, or those “couch surfing” with friends or relatives, in its tally of homeless students, which was 1,547 as of Feb. 7.
“Our counts will be different, because we have different parameters,” Cooper said.
A piece that came out of HSN's report Friday was a way for the public to register to support new shelters and affordable housing. Register at www.yes2shelterandhousing.com.
