In 1988, after a door-to-door cleaning supply salesman from Chicago raped a 19-year-old American Fork woman in her home, the city enacted tough new laws to protect residents from solicitors.

In recent weeks, after a lawsuit by cleaning company Kirby of Utah and Idaho and some of its independent distributors, the city enacted a new, less stringent ordinance that requires only a statewide, not a nationwide, criminal background check.

In total, 23 Utah cities were named in the Kirby suit, and many of those, including Pleasant Grove and American Fork, have reached an out-of-court settlement. Both cities have agreed to pay at least $20,000 in damages.

According to the settlement, to get a temporary permit for door-to-door sales solicitors would be required to bring the city a copy of a statewide criminal background check conducted by the Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification, officials in Pleasant Grove and American Fork said.

Problem is, Orem would then be required to give the solicitor a temporary license, said Rick VanWagoner, the attorney representing Orem. Orem is still considering the settlement and VanWagoner said he is recommending his clients decline to settle because the ordinance does not go far enough to protect residents.

Orem could choose to conduct its own nationwide criminal background check, but in the meantime the solicitor would be going door to door with a city-issued permit, and could potentially commit a crime and be gone long before a national background check could be completed, he said.

"I personally don't like it and I think it has some problems," VanWagoner said. "These people are trying to gain access to city residents. We have concerns of potential consumer fraud, aggressive sales techniques and taking advantage of people and children."

Before the temporary permit is issued, the solicitor would be required to disclose any criminal convictions or pending cases on an application, but if the solicitor gave false information, they would have a city-issued permit while the city tried to verify their statements.

"We ought to have a chance to take the information they have provided and find out if they have a criminal history," he said. "Whoever is doing door-to-door solicitation will have come and gone before you can determine if they have falsified the application."

The settlement agreement also would limit the city to charging only $15 for the permit "and I don't see how a city can process an application for $15," VanWagoner said.

American Fork Mayor Heber Thompson said he was not aware that the city had agreed to issue permits based on a statewide rather than nationwide background check.

"That appears to be an area of possible concern," he said.

Pleasant Grove Mayor Mike Daniels said the statewide background check is enough.

"In my opinion it is just fine," he said, noting the company that hires the solicitor would have "their own reputation on the line" and would make sure the people they hire do not present a danger to the community.

Officials and attorneys from both American Fork and Pleasant Grove said the Utah League of Cities and Towns has agreed to promote the ordinance requiring only a statewide background check among its members as part of settlement negotiations. Officials of the Utah League of Cities and Towns could not be reached for comment.

Lt. Doug Anderson of the Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification said that while anyone can request a criminal background check of himself or herself for a $10 fee, the check covers only Utah criminal convictions. The results are issued to the person requesting the check.

Craig Taylor, who represented plaintiffs in the suit, said the suit had been brought because solicitors faced myriad requirements when applying for door-to-door sales permits in cities across Utah, including some requiring solicitors to pay fees in excess of $100 and submit to individual background checks and fingerprinting and provide cash bonds in city after city. Some of those requirements violated the plaintiff's constitutional rights to freedom of commercial speech, he said.

"It was very expensive and very, very prohibitive," Taylor said of the ordinances subject to the suit.

Taylor said the majority of the 23 cities have settled the case out of court and the remaining cities are now considering settlement options. All settlements require the cities to pass the same ordinance now in use in Pleasant Grove and American Fork.

In addition to American Fork, Pleasant Grove and Orem in Utah County, defendants in the suit included St. George, Bountiful, Kaysville, West Point, Sunset, Riverton, Fruit Heights, Hyrum, Logan, Centerville, Farmington, Draper, Sandy, Cedar City, Murray, Price, South Jordan, Taylorsville, Midvale and Salt Lake County.

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page B1.