Pleas from Tallahassee firefighters and representatives of the Muscular Dystrophy Association to city officials are being given credit for the approval of a new ordinance that will still allow organizations to take to the streets to collect money.
The ordinance was approved by city commissioners Wednesday. The vote was 3-2, with Mayor John Marks and Commissioner Andrew Gillum voting against it.
Organizations will have to apply for a special permit and present $1 million in liability insurance before being approved to start collection campaigns. Marks and Gillum were concerned that the requirement for $1 million in liability insurance would be too expensive for local groups
City firefighters' annual "Fill the Boot" drive to help the MDA raise money was postponed earlier in the summer as the city mulled over a request from Police Chief Walt McNeil to ban street solicitation.
"This certainly achieves our goal, which was never to preclude any group from collecting money for their cause. Our goal was to make sure the streets were safe," said McNeil, who will approve the special permit. "I think it serves the needs of some nonprofit organizations, specifically the MDA, and still has the safety component."
Groups will be allowed to collect on the streets only once a year and also have to provide information to the city's traffic engineering and police departments showing the details on what intersections collectors will be located. Groups can collect for no more than three days.
Solicitors are still not allowed to enter the road while traffic is flowing. A group could lose its permit immediately if anyone is caught by police for soliciting in an improper manner. Organizations that solicit without a permit could be cited by the police for impeding traffic.
"We are really trying to be as restrictive as reasonable and we think one time is often enough," City Attorney Jim English said. "The compromise permits some opportunity for solicitation, but it should cut down on the irresponsible groups from out of town that show up at intersections with buckets in the middle of the street."
English said the language in the ordinance was primarily suggested by the MDA, whose representatives in recent months have frequently been pleading their case with city commissioners and other officials at City Hall.
Representatives argued that other cities such as Jacksonville and Tampa allow for permitted solicitations.
They said a ban would hurt charitable organizations such as the MDA, who do most of their fund raising through street solicitations.
City firefighters, who have done the "Fill the Boot" drive for 15 years, usually collect about $10,000 to $12,000, money that is split among the 80 area families who have a member who suffers from muscular dystrophy. Some of the money goes to research.
Firefighters also joined the effort to save solicitation. After being initially blocked from conducting this year's campaign, they eventually were allowed in August to collect money on the streets for the MDA.
"I think after the City Commission saw how much it would affect the community, took a different stance and found a better solution," said Lt. Jarvis Bedford, who helped organize this year's fund-raiser. "We are happy with the decision. It's something that's great for us, but it helps the people that help the kids that are affected by MD and that's most important."
