Las Vegas homelessness surges 20% as Trump signs executive order targeting encampments
Las Vegas faces a growing homelessness crisis with a 20% increase in Clark County’s unhoused population in 2024, prompting President Trump to sign an executive order aimed at removing encampments and expanding civil commitment options for treatment.
Crisis hits Las Vegas neighborhoods
The surge in homelessness has left Las Vegas residents increasingly frustrated as encampments expand beyond downtown areas into residential neighborhoods. According to the Southern Nevada Homeless Continuum of Care, Clark County experienced a 20% jump in its homeless population in 2024.
Robert Marbut, former federal homelessness czar under Trump’s first administration, described the deteriorating situation to Fox News Digital: “It’s progressively gotten worse and worse and worse. And there was sort of an idea that they tried a lot of gimmicks in the beginning.”
Despite having resources available, local officials acknowledge lacking a comprehensive plan. “I mean, we have the resources but we do not have a specific plan,” Clark County Commissioner Tick Segerblom told News 3 Las Vegas. “We have lots of resources. But we are not proactive, we really respond.”
Encampments spark safety concerns
The Casa Bonita Apartments complex has become a flashpoint for tensions between residents and nearby encampments. Property manager Briana Talbot reported a dumpster fire at 3 a.m. when someone walking through the parking lot set trash ablaze, engulfing the entire dumpster.
“Welcome to fabulous Las Vegas,” one frustrated resident told KLAS. “We are filled with trash, garbage and homeless people sleeping in the streets. We’re so fabulous. Honestly, it wouldn’t hurt the state to fix this problem.”
The encampments have led to repeated complaints about fires, trash accumulation, and confrontations between homeless individuals and residents. Even after city crews clear an area, encampments often return within days.
Trump’s executive order response
President Trump signed the “Ending Crime and Disorder on America’s Streets” executive order on July 24, 2025, authorizing states and cities to remove outdoor encampments and facilitate involuntary civil commitment for those “who are a risk to themselves or others.”
The order states: “Endemic vagrancy, disorderly behavior, sudden confrontations, and violent attacks have made our cities unsafe.” It notes that 274,224 individuals were living on U.S. streets during the last year of the previous administration—the highest number ever recorded.
The executive order prioritizes federal funding for jurisdictions that enforce prohibitions on urban camping, loitering, squatting, and open drug use. It also calls for ending support for “housing first” policies that the administration claims fail to promote treatment, recovery, and self-sufficiency.
Challenges in addressing root causes
According to Marbut, the homeless population includes individuals cycling between the street, jail, emergency rooms, and rescue missions. “This is a group that, even with affordable housing, can’t keep their house,” he explained.
Clark County has recorded over 26,000 evictions since the start of 2025, according to Eviction Lab data. The county currently has approximately 371,000 rental households.
Marbut criticized previous approaches that focused solely on providing free housing without addressing underlying issues: “Clark County and Las Vegas kept doubling down on a program that wouldn’t work. They kept putting more money in… and it didn’t make a dent. In fact, homelessness went up.”
Mixed reactions to federal intervention
While some view the executive order as a necessary step toward addressing public safety concerns, critics worry about the emphasis on civil commitment and criminalization. The order also targets harm reduction programs, including those that provide clean needles to prevent overdoses.
Despite the challenges, Nevada casinos continue to see strong gaming revenue, with July figures showing a 4% increase to $1.36 billion statewide. However, the visible homelessness crisis threatens to impact the tourism industry that drives Las Vegas’s economy.
As the city grapples with implementing solutions, the tension between compassionate treatment and public safety concerns remains at the forefront of the debate over how to address Las Vegas’s growing homeless population.
Image Sources: https://www.foxnews.com/us/las-vegas-residents-sound-alarm-crime-ridden-encampments-trump-pushes-zero-tolerance-homelessness-plan
Category: Local News
Subcategory: Social Issues & Policy
Date: 09/1/2025
