Allentown, PA Public Conduct: Aggressive Panhandling (2026)

Section 244-9, adopted in 1995 by Ordinance No. 13336, defines panhandling as "any solicitation made in person requesting an immediate donation of money," including a purchase made at a price far above its value when a reasonable person would see it as a donation; passively sitting or standing with a sign, without directly addressing a solicitation to anyone, is excluded. Subsection B makes panhandling after sunset or before sunrise a summary offense outright. Subsection C bars panhandling at a bus or train stop, inside any public transportation vehicle or facility, inside a vehicle on the street, or on private property without the owner's or occupant's permission.

Subsection D separately criminalizes aggressive manners of panhandling regardless of time or place: approaching within three feet of the person solicited before they indicate a wish to donate, blocking a sidewalk or street, following someone who walks away, using profane or abusive language during or after a solicitation, panhandling in a group of two or more, or making any statement or gesture a reasonable person would perceive as threatening. Penalties fall under § 244-10, the same violations and penalties clause that governs the rest of Chapter 244's Article I offenses.