Renton to Crack Down on Panhandling

The City of Renton is out to combat panhandling.

A number of "regular" beggars are known to the Renton Police Department. Officers issue tickets to those who violate the city's current ordinance, but many of the offenders ignore their warnings and tickets.

However, the tickets amount to a slap on the wrist, said Renton Police Chief Kevin Milosevich at a recent public safety committee meeting at City Hall.

"It's a growing issue, and how we deal with it is problematic," he said.

Over the last couple of years, Renton officers have seen a noticeable increase in the number of panhandlers. The growth has lead to competition for prime street corner locations and a sense of "ownership" or entitlement to certain intersections, he said.

Zanetta Fontes, a City attorney, is currently re-working the ordinance that regulates panhandling.

Renton's current ordinance is similar to other surrounding cities, she said. Panhandling laws in nearby Covington, however, are a little stronger.

Fontes is currently trying to incorporate pieces of the Covington ordinance, but she's doing so with caution.

"We want to make (the ordinance) not violate first amendment rights," she said. "We're not there yet."

The wording is tricky, she said, because she doesn't want to make legitimate activities against the law, such as selling Rotary or other raffle or prize tickets during public events. 

When asked by council member Greg Taylor what is needed to reduce the number and aggressiveness of street-side beggars, Chief Milosevich said," We need to figure out a way to make it a criminal infraction, to give it some teeth."

Council member Don Persson agreed.

"If it's a civil infraction, they kiss it off," he said. "People have been begging for years and we're not going to be able to stop it."

Instead, Persson suggested, the city should find a way to regulate it.

"It's not good for our citizens, it's not good for our businesses and it's not good for our image," Persson said of the current panhandling situation in Renton.

The issue will go before the Committee of the Whole on May 2.