Opinion ID: 787235
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Facial Challenge to the Licensing Fees

Text: 43 The main focus of Joelner's facial challenge to the licensing fees is his argument that Ordinance 01-22 is content-based and therefore unconstitutional. But a statute imposing licensing fees is not content-based simply because it is directed at a certain category of activities, such as regulations of parades, rallies, assemblies, and other demonstrations held on city streets or city property. MacDonald, 132 F.3d at 361; Alameda Books, 535 U.S. at 446, 122 S.Ct. 1728. See, e.g., Church of Am. Knights of Ku Klux Klan v. City of Gary, 334 F.3d 676, 680-81 (7th Cir.2003) ( KKK ) (treating regulation affecting only parade and demonstration activities as content-neutral); Forsyth County v. Nationalist Movement, 505 U.S. 123, 130-132, 112 S.Ct. 2395, 120 L.Ed.2d 101 (1992) (same). Rather, an inquiry into the constitutionality of a fee ordinance is two-fold: (1) does the regulation in question vest the public officials in charge of enforcing or applying the ordinance with a constitutionally impermissible amount of discretion, see, e.g., Forsyth, 505 U.S. at 130-32, 112 S.Ct. 2395; and (2) is the fee amount based upon the costs of administering the ordinance, maintaining public order, and relieving the other burdens on public services stemming from the matter licensed, see Cox v. New Hampshire, 312 U.S. 569, 576-77, 61 S.Ct. 762, 85 L.Ed. 1049 (1941); Murdock v. Pennsylvania, 319 U.S. 105, 116, 63 S.Ct. 870, 87 L.Ed. 1292 (1943); KKK, 334 F.3d at 682 (citations omitted); Thomas, 227 F.3d at 925; MacDonald, 132 F.3d at 362-63. 44 Turning to the first issue, Washington Park vests its public officials with no discretion at all regarding the application of the licensing fee. Every adult entertainment venue or proposed venue is subject to Ordinance 01-22, and the license applicant himself, rather than public officials, determines which fee will apply, either by applying for a bookstore or a cabaret license. MacDonald, 132 F.3d at 362. This ordinance does not create the unbridled discretion the Supreme Court condemned in Forsyth, 505 U.S. at 135-36, 112 S.Ct. 2395. 45 And as to the second issue, we cannot now make any determination regarding the underlying basis for the amount of the fee. Permit or license fees which restrict constitutionally protected speech must bear a rational relationship to the public services involved with the matter licensed. S.-Suburban Housing Ctr. v. Greater S. Suburban Bd. of Realtors, 935 F.2d 868, 898 (7th Cir.1991). The Village generally indicated the basis for the fees in section 1 of Ordinance 01-22: 46 [I]t is in the best interests of the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens to increase the license fees for adult entertainment establishments operating within the corporate limits of the Village. After careful consideration of the size of the Village and the number of businesses, the expenses involved in maintaining law and order, the vehicular and pedestrian traffic in the Village, the income and number of problems and difficulties that arise from the aforesaid businesses, and the desire to provide a safer, cleaner, and more aesthetically pleasing Village for its residents, the Board has determined that license fee rates should be increased. 47 Standing alone these are valid reasons for the imposition of a fee. But the $10,000 and $30,000 fees imposed by Washington Park are certainly not nominal. See Forsyth, 505 U.S. at 138-40, 112 S.Ct. 2395 (dissenting opinion) (discussing whether the Constitution limits a license fee to a nominal amount). Furthermore, the Village chose to differentiate between cabarets and bookstores. Without more, the statement of purpose included in the statute is insufficient to support the fees, particularly considering the differentiation between establishments and the large cabaret fee. However, the record has not been sufficiently developed for a reliable assessment to be made as to this issue, and thus, the Village will have the opportunity on remand to more adequately demonstrate its justification for these fees. S.-Suburban Housing Ctr., 935 F.2d at 898 (stating the burden is on the municipality to make this rational relationship showing). 48