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Osceola County |
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Code of Ordinances |
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Chapter 18. ROADS, BRIDGES, STREETS, ALLEYS AND SIDEWALKS |
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Article I. IN GENERAL |
§ 18-4. Solicitation and distribution on public roads.
(a)
Title. This section shall be entitled the "Osceola County solicitation and distribution on public roads ordinance."
(b)
Intent. It is the intent of this section to protect the health, safety and general welfare of the citizens of Osceola County, to assure the free, orderly, undisrupted movement of motorized vehicles on public roads within unincorporated Osceola County and to provide for safety in the interest of pedestrians and occupants of motorized vehicles located on public roads within unincorporated Osceola County. This section is not intended to control traffic, as that term is defined in F.S. ch. 316. This section is intended to apply evenhandedly to all persons who engage in the activities proscribed herein, regardless of their message. This section is intended to be narrowly tailored to serve the significant government interest of public safety, and to leave open ample alternative channels of displaying information, distributing goods and materials, and soliciting business and charitable contributions.
(c)
Definitions.
Road shall include roads, streets, roadbeds, ramps, medians, traffic islands and all other ways open to travel by operators of motorized vehicles within unincorporated Osceola County. This definition excludes private roads and roads that are not open to motor vehicle travel.
(d)
Findings and determinations. The county hereby finds and determines that allowing the interaction of pedestrians and motor vehicles in close proximity is inherently dangerous on state and county roads and persons engaging in displaying information of any kind, distributing materials or goods, or soliciting business or charitable contribution on roads is hazardous to public safety, both for occupants of vehicles located on public roads and for persons engaging in such display of information, distribution of material or goods and solicitation of business or charitable contribution.
The county further hereby finds and determines that the prohibitions set forth in this section are narrowly tailored to serve the significant interest of promoting and protecting the public health, safety and welfare of the citizens of Osceola County, and that said prohibitions leave open ample alternative channels of communication.
(e)
Prohibitions.
(1)
No person shall be upon or go upon any road for the purpose of displaying information of any kind.
(2)
No person shall be upon or go upon any road for the purpose of distributing materials or goods or soliciting business or charitable contributions of any kind.
(3)
The language in this subsection is not intended to apply to traffic control signage or personnel or maintenance and construction personnel engaged to perform authorized activities on roads.
(f)
Applicability. The provisions of this section shall embrace all public roads that are open to motor vehicle traffic within the unincorporated area of Osceola County, including state roads, interstate ramps and county roads and to all municipalities within Osceola County that elect to have the provisions of this section apply within their respective jurisdictions.
(g)
Penalties.
(1)
Pursuant to F.S. § 125.69(1), any person convicted of violating the provisions of this section shall be punished by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00), by imprisonment not to exceed sixty (60) days, or by such fine and imprisonment.
(2)
In addition to the penalties provided by subsection (1) of this subsection (g), any violation of this section shall be subject to appropriate civil action in a court of appropriate jurisdiction or any other remedy as allowed by law.
(Ord. No. 2015-78, §§ 1, 2, 11-16-15)