Newark, New Jersey, says you need a permit to feed the homeless

Nearly 3,000 people in Newark, New Jersey, are homeless at any given time, and many local charities, religious organizations, and individuals provide the food they need to get along. But under city code, feeding the homeless is technically illegal unless you get a permit from local government in advance.

The permit requirement has been on the books for decades but was never consistently enforced. Soon, it will be. East Ward Councilman Augusto Amador, who is pushing for strict permit enforcement, argues it is unfair to the homeless to give them unregulated food — even an attack on their human dignity.

The homeless themselves seem to disagree. "Any time you have enough heart to just give it out, you have enough heart to make it right,'' said Kevin Scott, a homeless Newark man. "I think the food is just as warm as the hands that reach out to give it to us.''

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Regardless of such input from the man literally on the street, Newark's Department of Health and Community Wellness is updating its permitting procedure so it can begin cracking down on do-gooders who don't have their paperwork in order.