Pender County, NC Public Conduct: Aggressive Panhandling (2026)

Pender County Code § 28-40 is the county's only ordinance touching panhandling, and it is written as a blanket ban rather than one aimed only at aggressive conduct: it is unlawful for any person to engage in soliciting, peddling, begging or selling of any kind in any park area operated by unincorporated Pender County's parks and recreation department. The section carves out one exception: fundraising events run by private, non-profit entities or organizations, but only after they secure prior written approval from the director of parks and recreation or a designee, so even a charitable collection needs sign-off before it can happen on park property.

The rule applies only inside the boundaries of a county park; it does not reach begging on county roads, at the Burgaw courthouse square, or elsewhere in the unincorporated area, where no comparable county ordinance exists. The section is enforced under § 28-48 by park personnel, their designee, or any authorized law enforcement officer with jurisdiction over the property. A violation is a misdemeanor under G.S. 14-4, fined not more than $50.00 or punished by up to 30 days' imprisonment, and the county can pursue an additional civil penalty of $100.00 per offense under G.S.

153A-123(c), rising to $500.00 for a repeat violation, recovered through a civil debt action after a certified-mail demand for payment that goes unanswered within 30 days.