HANDLING PANHANDLING: Citizens group presents alternatives to CoMo City Council

Steinmetz, City Council videoCOLUMBIA, Mo 10/12/24 (Beat Byte) -- A new, 50-person strong Columbia citizens' group concerned with crime, homelessness, and City Hall accountability addressed the City Council Monday about the dangers of panhandling, from treacherous traffic medians to the real cost of giving cash.

"Cash can kill," CoMo Renewal Project member Bonnie Steinmetz told Council members during the meeting's public comment period. "Understandably, we feel compassion for those asking for money, so we hand them our spare cash and drive away, feeling that we have helped in some small way. But we may have contributed to an early death from alcoholism or an overdose."

The few bucks we give will never be enough to buy clothes, pay rent, or get a person off the streets, Steinmetz explained.

As homelessness has spiraled in Columbia, so has panhandling, though the two issues are only partly related. "Most panhandlers in Columbia are not homeless," she said. "But some do not have permanent employment and are living at poverty level."

The best panhandling locations are the most visible -- and the most dangerous, as Steinmetz illustrated with Columbia-area photos.

"People are reaching out to cars and stepping off curbs," she said. "Some are significantly impaired or passed out and overhanging the traffic median. These individuals are exposed to extreme heat and sun in summer and freezing temperatures in winter."

Median panhandlers, CoMoPanhandlers are not the only ones at risk. "What happens to a driver that accidentally injures or kills a panhandler with their vehicle?" Steinmetz said. "We live in a litigious society and this has already happened in our town.A driver could face a lawsuit through no fault of their own, not to mention the emotional trauma of harming someone."

Longtime panhandler James Lee Allen, 78, was killed in a median near Keene Street last December.

A city-sponsored effort to redirect panhandling donations to local charities would save lives and dignity, Steinmetz said. "Our town has many social services for immediate needs of food, clothing and shelter. These agencies are skilled in addressing the core issues that can keep someone down and dependent. But if we keep giving handouts, these individuals may not be motivated to seek meaningful help and do the hard work of getting on a better path."

Several US cities and counties have tried a "handouts don't help" approach some say is working: roadway signs that encourage donating to one of these agencies and public education about the negative impact of handouts to panhandlers.

"Let's do this in Columbia," Steinmetz said, with illustrations from other cities.

The final proposal -- a ban on loitering at intersections and medians for safety reasons -- could run into free speech issues. But panhandling regulations are doable in forms the Courts will accept.

A misread of US Supreme Court rulings tying panhandling to free speech has prompted criticism of any attempts to curtail it. But rather than ban restrictions altogether, the Court's Reed v. Town of Gilbert (2015) ruling created a four-part test: "City ordinances restricting solicitation in a public place must:

(1) be neutral in content
(2) be narrowly tailored
(3) leave open ample alternative channels of communication
(4) serve a significant government interest that is pressing and legitimate"

Neutral content means banning ALL sign holding in a traffic median, from costumed ad hawkers to political campaigners to panhandlers. Merely prohibiting panhandling will not pass Constitutional muster. Narrowly tailored laws are just that: focused on a specific practice. Banning all signs in a median would be broadly tailored, and could be construed as restricting speech. Banning people holding signs and approaching car windows for cash is more narrow.

Ample alternative channels include sidewalks and public building frontage, so don't ban panhandling in those places. And finally, public safety, for both drivers and pedestrians, is a Court-sanctioned "significant government interest". As Steinmetz showed, panhandlers often fall asleep in the median, with limbs dangling into the road, a good illustration of why safety is at issue.

City attorneys may have to work hard to meet these criteria, and even team up with Constitutional law experts from Mizzou.But Court-approved panhandling regulations are possible.

Regardless the solutions that ultimately emerge, CoMo Renewal Project members acknowledge that it's just a start.

"We must focus on the root causes of panhandling and chronic homelessness in our town," Steinmetz concluded. "How can we improve assistance for mental health and substance abuse and reintegrate those who have a criminal record? The people of Columbia want change and want action to make our city safe and thriving again. Enabling is not an option."