[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Commissioners
of the Township of Upper Gwynedd 6-28-1971 by Ord. No. 71-5. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
A.
PEDDLER
PEDDLING
PERSON
SOLICITING
SOLICITOR
STREETS and SIDEWALKS
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall
have the meanings indicated:
Any person who shall engage in peddling as herein defined.
The selling or offering for sale of any goods, wares or merchandise
for immediate delivery, which the person selling or offering for sale
carries with him in traveling or has in his possession or control,
upon any of the streets or sidewalks or from house to house within
the Township of Upper Gwynedd.
Any natural person, association, partnership, firm or corporation.
The seeking or taking of contracts or orders for any goods,
wares or merchandise for future delivery, for services or home or
property improvements of any description, for subscriptions or contributions,
or for seeking appointments to accomplish said activities upon any
of the streets or sidewalks or from house to house within the Township
of Upper Gwynedd.
Any person who engages in soliciting as herein defined.
Any public or private street or streets and any public or
private sidewalk or sidewalks or rights-of-way and any public or private
alley or alleys.
[Added 3-26-1973 by Ord. No. 73-5]
B.
In this chapter, the singular shall include the plural,
and the masculine shall include the feminine and the neuter.
No person shall engage in soliciting or peddling
in the Township of Upper Gwynedd without first obtaining a permit
from the Township Police Department.
[Amended 10-28-2013 by Ord. No. 2013-05]
Every person desiring to engage in soliciting
or peddling in the Township of Upper Gwynedd shall first obtain an
FBI criminal history summary check (frequently referred to as an "FBI
background check"). The summary check must be submitted at the time
of application. The applicant must then make application, under oath,
with the Chief of Police of said Township. Upon such application,
such person shall give his name, address, local address and phone
number, sex, previous criminal record, if any; the name and address
of the person for whom he works, if any; the type or types of article,
device, subscription, contribution, service or contract which he desires
to sell or for which he wishes to solicit within the Township; and
the type and description of the vehicle he uses, if any, and its registration
number. The applicant shall also attach a recent two-inch-by-two-inch
color photograph. An individual permit shall be required for each
helper or other person soliciting. No permit issued under this chapter
shall be transferable from one person to another.
[Amended 4-22-1985 by Ord. No. 85-6]
No permit shall be issued under this chapter
until the proper fee shall have been paid. The permit fee shall be
set by resolution of the Board of Commissioners.
[Amended 10-28-2013 by Ord. No. 2013-05
Within 14 days after registering and successfully
meeting all application requirements with the Township Police Department,
as aforesaid, each solicitor or peddler shall be issued a permit.
Unless he shall have been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude,
theft or other crime betraying public trust, he shall be permitted
to solicit or peddle within the Township for the permitted period
beginning on the date such permit is issued. Said permit period shall
end on the expiration date thereof, not more than 30 days after issuance.
A one-time thirty-day extension may be granted by the Chief of Police
to solicitors deemed to have complied with all aspects of this chapter.
Such permit shall not be transferable and shall be worn upon his person
in plain view.
No solicitor or peddler shall engage in selling
or offering for sale or in seeking or taking of orders or contracts
for any goods, wares, merchandise, article, device, subscription,
contribution, service or contract not mentioned upon such permit,
nor shall any person use any vehicle for soliciting or peddling other
than the vehicle registered upon his permit.
[Amended 8-27-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-010]
No person shall engage in soliciting or peddling
on Sunday before noon or after 5:00 p.m. or upon any other day of
the week before 9:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m., except upon invitation
from or an appointment with the resident.
No person engaged in soliciting or peddling
shall hawk or cry his goods, wares, merchandise, offers, contracts
or service upon any of the streets or sidewalks of the Township, nor
shall he use any loudspeaker or horn or any other device for announcing
his presence.
No person engaged in soliciting or peddling
shall park any vehicle upon any of the streets or alleys of the Township
in order to sort, rearrange or clean any of his goods, wares or merchandise
or samples, order books, contracts, circulars, literature or advertising
matter pertaining thereto; nor may any person place or deposit any
refuse upon any such streets or alleys; nor may any such person maintain
or keep a street or curbstone market or soliciting or peddling office
by parking any vehicle upon any street or alley in the Township for
longer than necessary in order to solicit from or peddle to persons
residing in the immediate vicinity.
No person engaged in soliciting or peddling
shall occupy any fixed location upon any of the streets or alleys
or sidewalks of the Township for the purpose of soliciting or peddling
with or without any stand or counter.
[Amended 1-28-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-01]
B.
The Chief
of Police shall keep a record of all registrations made under this
chapter and the Chief of Police shall supervise activities of all
holders of such permits. The Chief of Police shall maintain and annually
update a list of Township residents who do not wish to have any person,
firm, corporation, or association sell or offer for sale any goods,
commodity or services at their place of residence at any time.
C.
The Chief
of Police shall promulgate regulations for the management of the do-not-knock
list, the distribution of the do-not-knock list to permittees; notice
and access of the do-not-knock regulations on the Township website;
and enforcement procedures for violations of the do-not-knock regulations.
D.
Permittees who are notified of the do-not-knock list and who violate the list by selling or offering for sale, any goods, commodity or services at an address on the do-not-knock list shall, in addition to the violations and penalties set forth in this chapter, have the permit immediately revoked. Permittees who believe that the permit has been improperly revoked under this section may appeal said revocation pursuant to § 137-15.
The following persons are exempted from the
permit requirements of this chapter:
A.
Farmers engaged in selling only the produce of their
own farms from a truck or other vehicle.
B.
Persons engaged in the sale of goods, wares and merchandise
donated by the owner thereof, the proceeds whereof are to be applied
to any charitable or philanthropic purpose.
C.
Any honorably discharged soldier, sailor or marine
of the military or naval service of the United States who is a resident
of this commonwealth and who is unable to earn a livelihood by manual
labor.
D.
Persons soliciting contributions in behalf of organizations
or nonprofit corporations exempted from the provisions of or duly
registered pursuant to 10 P.S. § 162.1 et seq., the Solicitation
of Funds for Charitable Purposes Act, as amended, who, while soliciting,
are possessed of a card or other written evidence of their appointment
or authority to solicit for said organization or corporation.[1]
Persons 16 years of age or under shall not be
required to register as hereinbefore provided.
Any permit hereinafter issued may be revoked by the Chief of Police of Upper Gwynedd Township upon the failure of the permittee to comply with the standards of conduct established in §§ 137-5, 137-6, 137-7, 137-8 and 137-9 of this chapter, or upon ascertainment that the permittee has made any false statements in the application for permit hereunder, or upon such permittee being arrested and convicted of any crime involving moral turpitude.
Any person whose permit has been revoked shall
be entitled to appear, with counsel if desired, before the Board of
Commissioners of Upper Gwynedd Township at a regular or special meeting
and be heard in behalf of a request for reinstatement of said permit.
Each permit shall be issued in card form, shall
be carried by the person for whose benefit it is issued, and shall
contain the following: number of permit, fee paid, date of issue,
expiration date, name, age, height, weight, name of employer, address
and signature of holder. The reverse side of such permit shall contain
any regulations then in effect and controlling the holder, as well
as any conditions and/or limitations to which such permit is subject.
[Amended 4-22-1985 by Ord. No. 85-6]
A.
Any person or persons, firm or corporation who shall
violate any of the provisions of this chapter, upon conviction thereof,
shall be liable to pay a fine or penalty not to exceed $1,000 plus
costs of prosecution for each and every offense. All fines and penalties
imposed by this chapter are recoverable by summary proceedings before
the Magisterial District Judge, and all suits or actions at law instituted
for the recovery thereof are to be in the name and for the use of
Upper Gwynedd Township, against which the offenses are committed.
In default of payment of any fine or penalty imposed by any Magisterial
District Judge under the provisions of this chapter, the person or
persons so offending may be committed to the Montgomery County Prison
for a period not exceeding 30 days.
[Amended 11-23-1992 by Ord. No. 92-15[1]]
B.
Each day a violation is committed shall constitute
a separate offense and shall be punishable as such hereunder.
C.
This section shall not preclude the Township from
any other remedy it may have at law or equity.
