Eugene City Council rejects ordinance banning handing items from vehicles to panhandlers

The Eugene City Council rejected a proposed ordinance that would have prohibited drivers and passengers from handing money, food or other items from vehicles to people soliciting on public streets, defeating the measure at its Feb. 18, 2026 meeting. The proposal appeared on the agenda under the title "Unlawful Transfer on Vehicular Portion of the Right-of-Way" and was framed by proponents as a public-safety step to keep pedestrians out of roadways and medians.

Local outlets reported conflicting tallies on the final vote. Register‑Guard and Yahoo said the council rejected the measure 2-5, reporting Councilors Matt Keating and Randy Groves voted in favor and Councilor Greg Evans was absent; Register‑Guard also noted the proposal had earlier advanced on a 5-4 procedural vote. NBC16 reported a different count, saying the council voted 6-2 against the ordinance and identifying Councilor Betty Taylor as one of two supporters. KATU and KVAL described the action as a denial but did not include a roll-call tally in excerpts.

Councilor Mike Clark requested the council take up the question, saying he "bring it up as a safety issue amongst other reasons" and urging the council to consider Springfield's experience. Clark told colleagues he was "hopeful that we can support the process of - since it's been so successful in Springfield to keep people safe in the roadways and in the medians - that we can at least bring for a public hearing and have a discussion about it and hear from the public about it."

Opponents objected chiefly on enforcement and effectiveness grounds. Councilor Alan Zelenka argued "I think there's much better uses of EPD's time" and pointed to Eugene fatal crash data that he and other councilors said "identifies drugs and alcohol, dark conditions and speeding, not panhandling, as the main causes of fatal car crashes." NBC16 paraphrased Councilor Jennifer Yeh saying many members saw flaws in the ordinance because enforcement and ticketing would fall to the Eugene Police Department, and recorded Yeh advising, "I would encourage those who want to give to do it in a safe way."

Supporters emphasized safety and cited nearby municipal precedents. KATU and KVAL reported the proposal mirrored measures adopted in Springfield and Astoria and said Springfield police "have applauded the results" of their law; Register‑Guard described Springfield's comparable ordinance as in place since 2019 while KATU and KVAL cited 2016, a discrepancy that remains to be clarified. All outlets noted the measure would not criminalize panhandling itself and that drivers could legally pull over to a parking space to hand items to someone outside a vehicle.

Register‑Guard reported the council first began discussing a panhandling ban in April 2025, and noted local activism history including Stop the Sweep volunteers who gathered in July 2021 to oppose a campsite clearing at Sixth Avenue and High Street. NBC16 said several councilors interviewed after the vote were confident no new panhandling ordinance would come before the Eugene council in the near future.

City records will contain the authoritative roll-call, the full ordinance text and any penalty structure or enforcement language. The City Recorder's meeting minutes and the Eugene City Council agenda packet from the Feb. 18, 2026 session will provide the official vote and the proposed ordinance draft for public review.