Cite as: 533 U. S. 525 (2001)
Opinion of Thomas, J.
lower than five feet from the floor.1 These restrictions are superficially limited in their geographic scope: They apply only within 1,000 feet of "any public playground, playground area in a public park, elementary school or secondary school." § 21.04(5)(a). But the Court of Appeals acknowledged that the zone of prohibition covers as much as 90 percent of the three largest cities in Massachusetts, Consolidated Cigar Corp. v. Reilly, 218 F. 3d 30, 50 (CA1 2000), so the practical effect is little different from that of a total ban. Cf. United States v. Playboy Entertainment Group, Inc., 529 U. S. 803, 812 (2000) ("The Government's content-based burdens must satisfy the same rigorous scrutiny as its content-based bans").
Respondents suggest in passing that the regulations are "zoning-type restrictions" that should receive "the intermediate level of scrutiny traditionally associated with various forms of 'time, place, and manner' regulations." Brief for Respondents 31. We have indeed upheld time, place, and manner regulations that prohibited certain kinds of outdoor signs, see, e. g., Members of City Council of Los Angeles v. Taxpayers for Vincent, 466 U. S. 789 (1984), and we have similarly upheld zoning laws that had the effect of restricting certain kinds of sexually explicit expression, see, e. g., Renton v. Playtime Theatres, Inc., 475 U. S. 41 (1986). But the abiding characteristic of valid time, place, and manner regulations is their content neutrality. See Ward v. Rock Against Racism, 491 U. S. 781, 791-796 (1989). In Vincent the city prohibited all signs on public property, not to sup-1 Other regulations prohibit the sale of tobacco products "in any manner other than in a direct, face-to-face exchange," forbid self-service displays, and require that tobacco products be accessible only to store personnel. See §§ 21.04(2)(a), (c)-(d), §§ 22.06(2)(a), (c)-(d). In addition, they prohibit sampling and promotional giveaways. See §§ 21.04(1), 22.06(1). I agree with the Court, see ante, at 567-570, that these regulations, which govern conduct rather than expression, should be upheld under the test of United States v. O'Brien, 391 U. S. 367 (1968).
573
Page: Index Previous 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 NextLast modified: October 4, 2007