Fort Worth City Code Chapter 23 prohibits aggressive solicitation that involves intimidation, blocking pathways, or harassing pedestrians and motorists, while passive panhandling remains protected speech under the First Amendment, with Texas Penal Code Section 22.06 covering related assault-by-threat conduct.
Chapter 23 of the Fort Worth City Code makes it unlawful to solicit money or things of value through aggressive conduct, defined to include touching the target without consent, persisting after refusal, blocking the pedestrian or vehicle path, using profane or threatening language, or soliciting near ATMs, banks, transit stops, or sidewalk cafe seating. Solicitation in roadways and on highway medians is restricted for traffic safety. Texas Penal Code Section 22.06 governs assault-by-threat where solicitation crosses into intimidation. Fort Worth pairs enforcement with outreach to homeless service providers, including referrals to True Worth Place and the Tarrant County Homeless Coalition Coordinated Entry system, instead of jail-only responses.
Touching a person while soliciting, continuing after a refusal, blocking sidewalks or vehicles, soliciting near ATMs or transit stops, using threatening language, or panhandling on a highway median triggers Class C misdemeanor citations and possible state-level assault charges.
See how Fort Worth's aggressive panhandling rules stack up against other locations.
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