By Mike Hazlip—
Following a repeal of the city’s ban on panhandling in October out of concern for First Amendment lawsuits, the City Council last month voted to approve an ordinance aimed at preventing individuals from standing, sitting, or lying down in driveways or center medians of intersections.
From October: Citrus Heights voted 4-0 to drop its panhandling ordinance. Here’s why
City Attorney Ryan Jones presented the ordinance during a Dec. 14 council meeting and statistical data was presented to council members in the agenda packet. The goal of the amendment to the city’s code is to improve safety by reducing collisions between vehicles and pedestrians, the document says.
Mayor Bret Daniels called the amendment a safety issue, and did not reference the city’s prior repeal of the panhandling ordinance.
“This is what’s going to prevent people from basically standing on corners with signs and stuff like that, or in medians as you’re trying to come out of Walmart,” said Daniels. “It’s a safety issue and we’re going to approach it as a safety issue.”
Documentation provided in the agenda packet cited National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data showing that California has the highest number of pedestrian fatalities in the nation with over 1,000 for 2021. The city has also taken prior action to prevent crossing outside of marked crosswalks by putting up center median fencing along portions of Greenback Lane.
The amended ordinance will make it unlawful for individuals to “stop, sit, stand, or lay down” in some Citrus Heights streets where the speed limit is 30 miles per hour or more, the amendment says. Areas of the street targeted by the ordinance are driveways or driveway aprons and medians.
The amended ordinance has exceptions for people needing to stop in the median while crossing the street, and does not apply to police officers and construction workers on the job. Special events such as the annual “Boot for Burns” fundraising drive for the burn institute are also exempt.
Anyone who violates the amended ordinance is subject to criminal prosecution of a misdemeanor or infraction, civil action, or administrative enforcement actions, the document says.
The council voted unanimously to approve the amendment. Pending a routine second reading slated for Jan. 11, the ordinance will go into effect after 30 days.
As previously reported, an October city staff report referred to a 2015 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court which found, “if any sign or message or communication must be read or heard to determine whether it is lawful or unlawful, it is considered speech.” Following that ruling, the report said courts have been invalidating panhandling ordinances across the country, including a 2018 case where a judge ruled that the City of Sacramento could not enforce its panhandling ordinance.
During the Oct. 26 City Council meeting, the city’s attorney raised concerns that the legal language in Citrus Heights’ existing ordinance could infringe on an individual’s First Amendment right to free speech. He recommended at that time that the council repeal the existing ordinance and approve a re-written ordinance in December.
