A new statewide survey has found that most Californians are concerned about homelessness in their community and that a majority supports the concept of a law that would require local governments to build more shelters.

The poll from the Public Policy Institute of California found that 85 percent of respondents are concerned about the state’s homeless people.

The poll also found that Republicans, Democrats and independents across all regions shared the same concerns. At least half of those surveyed believe that the homeless population has increased in the last 12 months.

In Long Beach, the last point-in-time count of homeless residents showed an increase of 2%, a much slighter increase than the 12% recored in Los Angeles County and 16% in the city of Los Angeles.

The Sacramento Bee reports a majority of those surveyed support a proposed state policy that would require cities to provide enough shelter beds for any homeless person to be able to sleep indoors.

Long Beach is in the process of expanding the number of homeless shelter beds it has. A year-round shelter is scheduled to open in North Long Beach next year.