City of Westminster – Solicitation Ordinance

The ACLU of Colorado sent a letter to the City of Westminster regarding its likely unconstitutional ordinance limiting solicitation on public streets and intersections.

The ACLU of Colorado was contacted by an unhoused resident of the City of Westminster after they were approached by city police officers while panhandling. The officers said that solicitation near streets or roadways was banned, and possibly illegal altogether. After receiving this report, we reviewed the ordinance in question and found that it was likely unconstitutional. On November 10, 2025, the ACLU of Colorado sent a letter to the City Attorney for Westminster to convey our findings and urge them to change the ordinance. The letter detailed multiple cases from the District of Colorado and the 10th Circuit that struck down similar and sometimes less restrictive ordinances than the law in Westminster. These cases ruled that ordinances limiting solicitation violates the First Amendment by unnecessarily burdening private speech and limiting speech in an area (the streets) where people often choose to exercise those rights.

After receiving the ACLU of Colorado’s letter, the City Attorney said that city police officers were directed to stop enforcing the ordinance until the city had the chance to review and likely repeal it. The City Attorney and City Manager recommended that the City Council completely remove the problematic portions from the ordinance. On March 23, 2026, the City Council unanimously adopted the new ordinance.