In 2024 Los Angeles voters will have the chance to decide on a ballot proposal that would force hotel owners to house the homeless right beside their high-powered executive guests.
This is a remarkably stupid idea even for California.
Labor union UNITE HERE Local 11 is behind the effort and a spokesman told NBC, "This will help with the homeless problem. It is part of the effort to get people off the street."
The union supposedly represents hotel and restaurant workers, but we’re guessing no one in the executive offices checked with rank-and-file housekeepers before starting the petition drive.
The chance of a homeless person leaving a tip for the maid is less than nil and we won’t begin to explore what the homeless hotel guest may leave in the room to be cleaned up after they’re gone.
If this imbecilic proposal passes it will be a gift to the owners of bed and breakfast operations and Airbnb proprietors. They'll be able to advertise: "Guaranteed — No Homeless in the Room Next Door!"
That’s an unbeatable sales point for females traveling solo and families of all kinds.
The new edict would work this way, "hotels would need to notify the city of what rooms are still available by 2 p.m. each afternoon. The establishments would then be required to take in a homeless individual in exchange for a fair-market voucher from the city."
Another reason we don’t think the union bigwigs checked with the membership is that most hotels let people check in hours after 2:00pm.
Hotels are either going to have to assume everyone with a reservation will eventually check in or be prepared to deal with discord when a Diamond member finds out his room is occupied by one man and seven personalities.
The state tried a version of this plan in 2020 with California Department of Social Services' Project Roomkey.
This bright idea provided hotel rooms for the "medically vulnerable" homeless during the pandemic. This was another treat for housekeeping.
During the program, five of the homeless were found dead in their rooms and three of them had been ripening in their rooms for a number of days.
This goofy proposal is useful in one respect. It gives us an excellent reason to help our readership brush up on their constitutional knowledge.
You are probably tempted to declare the ballot proposal unconstitutional because it violates the "due process" clause of the 14th Amendment, which prohibits states from depriving "any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law."
Yes, but that’s too easy.
For the first time in decades we have a government proposal that violates the often overlooked Third Amendment. This one, in case you’ve forgotten, states "No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law."
This amendment was a direct response to the British commandeering private homes to house Redcoats before and during the Revolutionary War. The redcoats are long gone, but we guarantee quartering the homeless is equally objectionable "without the consent of the owner."
Surprisingly enough, we are in complete agreement with City Councilman Paul Krekorian who said, "Any ridiculous policy proposal that can get enough Trader Joe's shoppers to sign a petition should not be the law of the city of Los Angeles just because a petition qualifies."
Let’s see what the voters decide.
Michael Reagan, the eldest son of President Reagan, is a Newsmax TV analyst. A syndicated columnist and author, he chairs The Reagan Legacy Foundation. Michael is an in-demand speaker with Premiere speaker's bureau. Read Michael Reagan's Reports — More Here.
Michael R. Shannon is a commentator, researcher for the League of American Voters, and an award-winning political and advertising consultant with nationwide and international experience. He is author of "Conservative Christian's Guidebook for Living in Secular Times (Now with added humor!)" Read Michael Shannon's Reports — More Here.
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