Bellevue, WA Public Conduct: Aggressive Panhandling (2026)

010, Aggressive Begging, is written narrowly around intent rather than simply asking for money. “Beg” is defined broadly to mean asking for money or goods as a charity by words, bodily gestures, signs, or other means, so both verbal panhandling and sign-holding fall within scope. What turns ordinary begging into a crime is the added element of intimidation: the section only reaches begging done “with intent to intimidate another person into giving money or goods,” and “intimidate” is separately defined as coercing or frightening someone into submission or obedience.

Passive panhandling without an intimidation element is not reached by this section. The ordinance applies across a broad definition of “public place” that includes roads, alleys, parking areas, sidewalks, playgrounds, school grounds, parks, parkways, park drives and paths, and station grounds and rights-of-way open to public use, whether the underlying property is public or private, as long as it is in common use by the public with the owner's consent. That sweep means the law reaches privately owned but publicly accessible spaces like shopping center parking areas, not just city streets.

010(M)(2): up to 90 days in jail, a $1,000 fine, or both. The section was adopted by Ord. 5622 in the 2005 Title 10 recodification.