City of Ontario: Panhandling and Solicitation Ordinance

The City of Ontario, Ohio, maintains an ordinance that broadly bans “panhandling” across numerous public spaces while exempting similar solicitation activity by schools and nonprofit organizations. On April 29, 2026, FIRE wrote the city, explaining that the First Amendment protects charitable solicitation by organizations or by individuals seeking assistance for themselves, and calling on the city to repeal or amend the ordinance. 

On September 23, FIRE sent a second letter, recommending that the city repeal its panhandling ordinance and rely on its generally applicable laws to address its legitimate interest in preventing harmful or unsafe conduct that sometimes accompanies panhandling. FIRE also called on the city to repeal or amend its loitering ordinance, which includes unconstitutional bans on “disturbance or unreasonable annoyance” and “remarks of an offensive, disgusting or insulting nature.”