This story, which originally appeared at ClickOrlando, is part of a collaborative initiative of independent local news outlets working towards a more informed and engaged Central Florida.
In late January 2025, volunteers across Florida conducted the annual Point-in-Time (PIT) count, a multi-night snapshot of homelessness in communities across the country.
This year’s tally carries heightened significance for Florida: it’s the first count since a new, controversial state law banning public camping took full effect.
The 2025 PIT count took place during the last week of January. Now, some three months later, we’re seeing more results and getting a better idea of not only the number of people in our ten-county region experiencing homelessness, but also how the camping ban is potentially affecting the count.
On March 20, 2024, Governor Ron DeSantis signed HB 1365, the Unauthorized Public Camping and Public Sleeping Bill, which banned camping and sleeping in Florida public spaces. Because of the new law, homeless people are no longer be able to sleep in a public area, despite local communities not yet having the proper infrastructure, resources, and funding to get them off the streets.
HB 1365 went into effect last October. Initially, there were no penalties for non-compliance, but that changed in 2025 when the second phase of the legislation took effect. Starting Jan. 1, any resident or business owner is now empowered to bring a suit against a local government if they believe no action has been taken to remove a homeless individual from a public space within five days of filing a written complaint.
People who are homeless now face the real possibility of being arrested for noncompliance with orders from law enforcement to vacate a public space.
In April, PIT count numbers were released for Orlando, Orange County, Osceola County, and Seminole County. Those count numbers showed 2,781 people were counted as homeless in the three county/ one major city region, compared to 2,776 in 2024 (an increase of only 5 people, or 0.18%). Between 2023 and 2024 the PIT count for this region rose from 2,258 to 2,776 (up 518 people, or almost 23%).
Over in Marion County, according to our Central Florida News Collaborative partner the Ocala Gazette, this year’s PIT count was 391 people experiencing homelessness, up 3.44% from last year’s count of 378.
Andy Fillmore of the Ocala Gazette asked Karla Greenway, CEO of Interfaith Emergency Services, about the 2025 PIT count. Greenway said that although the PIT count is the “best method” for counting those experiencing homelessness, it can be “misleading.”
One factor Greenway pointed out that can have an effect on accuracy: homeless camps are becoming “more mobile” because of the fear of trespass and the recent state ban on camping on public property.
Fillmore wrote in his article, “Neither the Ocala Police Department nor the Marion County Sheriff’s Office report any arrests to date related to the Florida ‘no camping’ on public property (statute FS 125.0231).”
(Editor’s Note: through the end of April, Osceola County had recorded neither any arrests or official complaints related directly to HB 1365.)