In a move that has drawn sharp criticism, Democrat California Assembly Member Corey Jackson has introduced a bill to allow some colleges to allow students to sleep overnight in campus parking lots in their cars. This legislation comes in response to the state's escalating housing crisis, which has left many students without stable housing. While the bill aims to provide immediate relief, critics argue that it reflects a failure to address the root causes of the housing shortage and may inadvertently normalize substandard living conditions for students.
The bill would apply to five California State University (CSU) campuses and 20 California Community Colleges (CCC). Jackson argued that without a sanctioned on-campus parking program, many students are forced to sleep in their cars off-campus and often in areas that he claims are unsafe. The bill narrowly passed its first committee on a party-line vote, highlighting deep divisions within California’s Democrat-controlled legislature. This is because rental prices in California have increased more than 30 percent higher than the national average.
However, Nune Garipian, policy and advocacy manager with the Community College League of California, said the bill would require “significant financial and administrative resources to ensure that students have a safe, clean and secure place to sleep at night.”
Many critics argue that California’s housing crisis is not a natural consequence of market forces but a man-made disaster fueled by progressive policies, bloated bureaucracy, and years of Democrat mismanagement. Despite repeated promises of “affordable housing,” lawmakers have delivered little more than a maze of red tape, burdensome regulations, and skyrocketing public spending.
Meanwhile, liberal leaders continue to double down on failed approaches—pushing rent control, “housing first” programs, and taxpayer-funded hotel rooms for the homeless and undocumented immigrants. None of these policies address the underlying issues driving the crisis. California’s sanctuary state stance and refusal to enforce immigration laws have only further strained limited housing resources, especially in working-class communities. Now, in the name of “equity,” legislators are floating extreme proposals like turning hotels into homeless shelters and allowing students to sleep in their cars on campus.
