State lawmakers are considering a pair of bills that would outlaw camping on public lands. Republicans in the House and the Senate are putting forth bills that would also penalize any local government that allows it to happen. The bills are in response to Austin's growing problem with homeless people and their tent cities. Austin voters are casting early ballots on Proposition B, which would restore the city's criminal penalties for public camping that the City Council canceled in 2019. If passed, the proposed state bill would make Prop B moot.