[Adopted 11-26-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-27]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
The act of traveling from house to house, business to business
and/or street to street for one or more of the following purposes:
selling, taking orders for, contracting or negotiating for goods,
wares, merchandise and/or services; taking a poll or survey; seeking
monetary donations or contributions; distributing literature or gifts;
and/or delivering messages, proselytizing or recruiting.
Any person and/or entity engaging in the act of "soliciting"
or "canvassing."
It shall be unlawful to solicit or canvass in the Town of Newton without first obtaining a license from the Town of Newton. In order to apply for said license, an application must be submitted containing the information required below. No license shall be valid for more than 90 consecutive days. The fee for said license shall be as set forth in § 100-2B.
Upon issuance of a license and payment of the required fee,
the Clerk shall issue to each licensed solicitor or canvasser, together
with the license: a badge issued by the Clerk on which shall be written
"Licensed Solicitor," the name of the solicitor or canvasser, the
license number, the period for which the license is valid, the name
of the entity, business or cause for which the individual is soliciting
or canvassing. It shall be unlawful for a person to solicit or canvass
in the Town of Newton without clearly and conspicuously displaying
said badge on the front of the outer garment during soliciting or
canvassing.
It shall be unlawful to solicit or canvass at any time other
than between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m.
It shall be unlawful to solicit or canvass at a house or business
clearly displaying a sign prohibiting solicitations.
It shall be unlawful to solicit or canvass in any manner that
is not polite, professional and courteous.
The Clerk shall provide each person or entity seeking to solicit
or canvass with an application form. The application shall require
the following information: name and address of entity; name, address
and date and place of birth of each person who will be soliciting
or canvassing. For every solicitor or canvasser that seeks to conduct
business during soliciting or canvassing or who seeks to sell, take
orders for, contract or negotiate for goods, wares, merchandise and/or
services, the application shall also require that the solicitor or
canvasser provide a New Jersey business registration certificate and
New Jersey sales tax certificate. Upon the Clerk's satisfaction with
and verification of the information set forth on the application,
and upon the payment of the fees set forth below, a license shall
be issued.
The regulations set forth in this article shall not apply to:
A.
Soliciting
or canvassing conducted by an established charitable, philanthropic
or religious organization among its own members or during the regular
assembly or meeting of such organization at such regular assembly
place;
B.
Distribution
of campaign literature or handbills on behalf of a candidate for public
office;
C.
Newton
Board of Education;
D.
Newton
volunteer firefighters or other municipal affiliations;
E.
Newton
First-Aid Squad; or
F.
Newton-based
service organizations such as Rotary, etc.
This article is designed to allow ample opportunity for solicitors
and canvassers to access the homes and businesses and streets of the
Town of Newton without regard to the content of such solicitation
or canvass. The narrowly tailored restrictions as to time and manner
are intended to protect the important government interests of protecting
homes and businesses from disturbance at inconvenient hours and to
ensure civil behavior by solicitors and canvassers, all in the effort
to safeguard privacy and protect public health and welfare. The additional
application requirements for solicitors or canvassers doing business
are designed to protect the public from illegal sales activity. The
exemptions are intended to ensure that this article does not trespass
upon religious practices or upon the daily, bureaucratic work of charities
and philanthropies or upon the exercise of political speech in campaigning.
