Limits on Solicitors at LAX Stalled
Citing a need for additional study, the city’s Airport Commission on Tuesday postponed a decision on approving a city ordinance that would restrict solicitors at Los Angeles International Airport to booths in the facility’s nine terminals.
Commissioners asked the city attorney’s office to hire a private litigator to review the ordinance, said Frank Mateljan, a spokesman for City Atty. Rocky Delgadillo. The office, which spent nine months drafting the proposal, has already signed off on it, Mateljan said.
It’s unclear how long the review will take. Airport officials had hoped to have the ordinance, which must also be approved by the City Council, in place by August--the airport’s busiest travel month.
The proposed law, patterned after a similar policy at Bay Area airports, would require solicitors to apply for monthly permits that would dictate booth locations, times and days that they can ask for donations at the world’s third-busiest airport.
It’s the latest attempt in a 28-year struggle by the airport agency to control panhandlers, who officials say contribute to congestion and present a safety hazard. Various regulations and laws enacted by the city since 1974 have all been struck down in court.
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