Miramar, FL Homelessness & Encampment Rules: Encampment Sanitation (2026)
Key Facts
- Adopting ordinance
- Ord. No. 25-03, effective 11-20-24
- City parks
- Excluded from 'public property' definition
- Pre-enforcement steps
- Oral warning, then services offer required
- Property hold period
- 30 days via Broward Sheriff's Office
- Perishable items
- May be discarded immediately
Summary
Miramar bans camping or sleeping on public property outside city parks, but officers must first order the person to stop, offer a ride to a hospital or shelter, and only cite or arrest if that assistance is refused or unneeded. Unclaimed belongings are inventoried by the Broward Sheriff's Office for 30 days.
It shall be unlawful in the City to engage in camping or sleeping on public property, except as may be specifically authorized by the appropriate governmental authority. ... For purposes of this Section 13-16, public property does not include any City Park. ... No officer shall issue a citation to make an arrest of or otherwise enforce this Section against any person unless: (1) The officer orally requests or orders the person to refrain from the alleged violation of this Section ... and (2) The officer attempts to ascertain whether the person is in need of medical or human services assistance.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 104 | Land Development Code: Supplement 46).
Full Breakdown
City Code section 13-17(a), adopted by Ord. No. " Before any enforcement, subsection (c) requires the officer to first "orally request or order the person to refrain," then to "attempt to ascertain whether the person is in need of medical or human services assistance," and if so, to offer transport to a hospital or public shelter; only if that assistance is refused, unavailable, or unneeded may the officer cite or arrest. S. Chapter 705.
Violations & Fines
Subsection (e) directs that violations "shall be punishable as provided in Section 13-1 of this Code," but only after the mandatory oral-warning and social-services-referral sequence in subsection (c) has been followed; an officer who skips that sequence cannot lawfully cite or arrest under this section. This is a genuinely local Miramar measure, distinct from the Florida Statutes framework addressing unauthorized public camping statewide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can police in Miramar immediately arrest someone camping on a public sidewalk?
Does Miramar's public camping ban apply inside city parks?
What happens to a homeless person's belongings when police clear a Miramar encampment?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Miramar
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Miramar to another location·View the Florida homelessness & encampment rules overview
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Encampment Sanitation in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Broward County handle encampment sanitation.