Can the government ban the public burning of objects under fire-safety laws?

Yes, the government may generally enforce fire-safety laws that ban the public burning of objects, provided these restrictions are unrelated to the message being expressed.1

Under the First Amendment, the government is permitted to impose reasonable "time, place, or manner" restrictions on speech, as long as those rules are content-neutral and leave individuals with sufficient alternative ways to express their views. Because fire-control laws are designed to protect public safety rather than to suppress a specific viewpoint, they are generally considered constitutional.2341

However, the government cannot use such laws as a pretext to punish symbolic expression specifically because of its message. For example, in Texas v. Johnson (1989), the Supreme Court ruled that burning the U.S. flag is a protected form of symbolic speech. The Court held that the government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds that idea offensive or disagreeable. Therefore, while a neutral fire-safety ordinance may be valid, a law targeting the burning of a flag specifically to suppress political protest would be unconstitutional.15