-A U.S. Supreme Court decision has granted cities more power to arrest, cite, and fine people who sleep outside in public places, overturning six years of legal protections for homeless residents in California and other western states.

In a 6-3 decision, the court ruled that an Oregon city ordinance that essentially made it illegal for homeless residents to camp on all public property was not unconstitutional.

The Supreme Court ruling will have major ramifications for how California leaders and law enforcement handle homeless encampments.

California is home to nearly a third of the country's homeless population, more than 123,000 people who sleep in encampments or other places not meant for habitation.

Last year, California cities and counties reported having roughly 71,000 emergency shelter or transitional housing beds.

Advocates for the rights of unhoused people said they worried the ruling would lead to criminalizing homelessness.

-If cities and states continue to pursue a policing and punishment approach to people forced to live outside, it will drastically increase homelessness and cause unnecessary and potentially unfathomable human suffering.

-Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, who has prioritized clearing encampments in her city by moving unhoused people into hotels, called the decision disappointing.

She said, "This ruling must not be used as an excuse for cities across the country to attempt to arrest their way out of this problem or hide the homelessness crisis in neighboring cities or in jail."

Meanwhile, groups such as the business-backed Bay Area Council cheered the decision, saying that the ruling removes the barriers on efforts to get unhoused residents shelter and help.

San Diego recently passed an ordinance banning camping on all streets and sidewalks, but only if there are shelter beds available.

Meanwhile, advocates said they vowed to continue pursuing additional lawsuits on behalf of homeless individuals.

For CalMatters, I'm Marisa Kendall.