Plan to Limit Distribution of Leaflets Is Rejected
The City Council has declined to ban the delivery of fliers and other publications to homeowners who do not want them.
Instead, council members decided late Wednesday to explore a law banning leaflets and banners from the public right of way, city officials said.
Councilman Algird Leiga said the council decided against following the example of Pasadena, which outlaws the delivery of leaflets to homeowners who do not want them, because of 1st Amendment concerns.
“It is a very difficult balancing act between the rights of privacy of a homeowner and 1st Amendment rights of those delivering,” Leiga said.
Pasadena is facing a legal challenge from the San Gabriel Valley Newspaper Group and the American Civil Liberties Union over its ban on delivery of written materials to owners of homes and businesses who put their names on a list at City Hall.
All distributors in Pasadena must acquire a copy of the refusal list before delivering written materials and fliers in the city.
Claremont’s proposed ordinance was also opposed by the owners of the Inland Daily Bulletin, who distribute a free weekly in the city.
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