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Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Back issues
Courthouse News Service Courthouse News Service

Nonprofit Fights Jacksonville Bin Ban

(CN) - A Jacksonville, Fla., ordinance which bans all donation collection bins violates the Equal Protection Clause as well as Constitutional Rights, a nonprofit claims in court.

Go Green Charity Recyclers Inc. set up 113 donation bins at private businesses throughout the city beginning in December 2012. In each case, it said, it did so with the permission of the property owner.

But in June 2015, the city enacted ordinance 2015-327-E, banning the collection bins, and began sending Go Green notices of ordinance violations the following month.

According to a complaint filed on July 31, Go Green was told to remove all of its bins by August 1, or it would face a fine of $250 per bin. The Non-profit says it was also told that if it failed to remove the bins, the city or possibly a third-party would remove and possibly destroy them.

The ordinance states "It shall be unlawful to deposit, store, keep or maintain, or to permit to be deposited, stored, kept or maintained, a donation collection bin in or on any lot, parcel or tract of land or body or water in any zoning district," the complaint. says

However, Jacksonville has not interfered with thrift shops who take donations in order to re-sell them, Go Green claims in the complaint, and no explanation has been given for the differential treatment.

Go Green also asserts that Jacksonville did not provide it specific notice in regard to each of its alleged ordinance-violating donation bins, and did not provide it with an opportunity for a hearing, violating its rights to due process under the Fourteenth Amendment.

The ordinance also violates Go Green's First Amendment rights by restricting their solicitation for textile donations as well as the Commerce Clause which bans state laws to discriminate against interstate commerce the complaint says.

Go Green seeks to enjoin Jacksonville from enforcing the ordinance and a judgment the ordinance violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments.

It is represented by Christopher White and Patrick Krechowski of Gray Robinson, P.A. in Jacksonville.

Representatives of the city did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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