[Ord. No. 1-2018, 6/20/2018]
1. 
The legislative intent and purpose of this article is to:
A. 
Protect Township residents from solicitations for the sale and purchase of commercial products and services or solicitations for monetary or property donations at their homes.
B. 
Protect the privacy of Township residents and in addition protect Township residents from fraud, burglary, injury or other criminal activity which may occur in connection with or under the guise of the solicitation for the sale and purchase of commercial products and services or solicitations for monetary or property donations at their homes.
C. 
Remain cognizant of and protect legitimate First Amendment rights to disseminate information on a door-to-door basis.
D. 
Protect those persons engaged in peddling and solicitation activities within the Township.
[Ord. No. 1-2018, 6/20/2018]
1. 
Unless otherwise expressly stated, the following words and phrases shall be construed throughout this article to have the meaning indicated below:
PEDDLING or SOLICITATION
Engaging in any form of sale, solicitation or order-taking for any good or service or the solicitation of any payment or donation of money or property or any commitment for the payment or donation of money or property from any resident of Thornbury Township at the home or property of such resident.
PEDDLER
Includes any person or entity which engages in or intends to engage in peddling or solicitation within Thornbury Township.
TOWNSHIP
Thornbury Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania.
[Ord. No. 1-2018, 6/20/2018]
Except as otherwise provided in § 6-805, peddling or solicitation within the Township is prohibited unless the peddler has first applied for and obtained a peddling permit from the Township in accordance with the provisions of this article.
[Ord. No. 1-2018, 6/20/2018]
1. 
Unless specifically exempted under § 6-805, peddlers shall, prior to the commencement of any peddling or solicitation activity, submit an application to the Township, on a form provided by the Township, for a peddling permit and in connection with said application provide the following information:
A. 
Full names, addresses and telephone numbers of those persons to be engaged in the peddling or solicitation activity within the Township.
B. 
The name of any company, organization or similar entity for which or on whose behalf the peddling or solicitation activity is to be conducted.
C. 
The nature or description of the good or service to be offered, or the recipient of the donation of money or property sought.
D. 
The make, model and year of each vehicle used or intended to be used in connection with the peddling or soliciting activity. A copy of the registration for all such vehicles shall be provided at the time of application.
E. 
A copy of a valid driver's license or other official photo identification for each person to be included as a peddler on the permit.
F. 
Whether the applicant or any persons proposed to be engaged in the peddling or soliciting activity have ever been convicted of a crime other than a violation of the Motor Vehicle Code,[1] and if so, the date and nature of the offense. A copy of any criminal background check required by the entity identified in Subsection 1B, above, shall be provided with the application.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 101 et seq.
G. 
Names of other municipalities in Delaware County in which the applicant and/or the persons to be engaged in the peddling or soliciting activity have worked as peddlers in the past two years.
H. 
The dates and times and areas of the Township in which the applicant intends to conduct the peddling or soliciting activity.
[Ord. No. 1-2018, 6/20/2018]
1. 
The terms of §§ 6-804, 6-806 and 6-807 shall not apply to the following when a peddler is seeking donations of money or property when conducted as part of an officially sponsored fund-raising program, provided that a peddler shall still notify the Township of the date, times and number of persons who will be conducting the peddling or soliciting activity in the Township:
A. 
Volunteer fire and emergency medical services.
B. 
Members of little league and petticoat leagues and Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts when: 1) accompanied by a coach or leader and 2) in uniform.
C. 
Political or religious organizations.
D. 
Any other person or entity been determined by law not to be subject to peddling or solicitation permit regulations.
[Ord. No. 1-2018, 6/20/2018]
1. 
Upon satisfactory compliance with the requirements of § 6-804, the Township shall issue a peddling permit to the applicant in accordance with the application.
2. 
A copy of the issued peddling permit, together with photo identification of each person included as a peddler under the permit, may be posted by the Township on the Township's official website, and/or sent to Township residents via the Township's social media page or e-alert system.
[Ord. No. 1-2018, 6/20/2018]
1. 
All applicants shall pay to the Township, at the time of application, a permit fee as established by resolution of the Board of Supervisors, from time to time.
2. 
All permits issued pursuant to this article shall expire on the last day of the peddling or soliciting activity as stated by the applicant in its application for the permit. In no event shall the permit expire later than December 31 of the year in which the permit was issued. Upon the expiration of the permit, no peddling or solicitation activity shall be conducted without first filing a new application with the Township and obtaining a permit, in accordance with the provisions of this article.
[Ord. No. 1-2018, 6/20/2018]
1. 
No peddler shall attempt to peddle to or solicit from any resident who has registered on the Township's No Peddling Registry. The Township shall maintain a copy of said registry at its offices and also shall provide a copy to the applicant at the time of issuance of the peddling or solicitation permit.
2. 
No peddler shall attempt to peddle to or solicit from any resident who has posted upon the resident's property signs such as "No Solicitation," "No Peddling," "No Trespassing" or such similar sign(s) indicating a prohibition of entry upon the resident's property.
3. 
No peddler shall attempt to peddle to or solicit from any neighborhood, development or subdivision where signs such as "No Solicitation," "No Peddling," "No Trespassing" or such similar sign(s) indicating a prohibition of entry in and to the neighborhood, development or subdivision.
4. 
Any peddler entering upon a resident's property or in a neighborhood, development or subdivision shall immediately leave said property when asked or instructed to do so by anyone present on the property, or by a resident of the neighborhood, development or subdivision.
[Ord. No. 1-2018, 6/20/2018]
No peddling or soliciting activity shall occur between sunset or 6:30 p.m. (whichever is earliest) and 9:30 a.m.
[Ord. No. 1-2018, 6/20/2018]
1. 
Notwithstanding the issuance of a permit, no person shall engage in any form of peddling or solicitation or other activity which threatens the health, safety or welfare of the Township, its residents and/or the peddler.
2. 
Peddling or solicitation conducted following the issuance of a permit shall be strictly limited to the terms of the permit.
3. 
Any permit issued pursuant to this article shall be prominently displayed, together with a form of photo identification, by all peddlers at all times when peddling or solicitation activity is being conducted within the Township. If the peddling or solicitation activity is being conducted by an organization whose members wear uniforms, then, in addition to the permit, the uniforms shall be worn during the conduct of any peddling or solicitation activity.
4. 
Permits shall not be transferable to any other person or entity.
[Ord. No. 1-2018, 6/20/2018]
Violation of this article shall result in the revocation of any permit issued and the denial of any pending application. In addition, any person, firm, or corporation who shall violate the provisions of this article, shall, upon being found liable therefor in a summary enforcement proceeding commenced by the Township before the Magisterial District Justice, pay a fine of up to $1,000 for each violation. A separate offense shall arise for each day or portion thereof in which the violation of this article is found to exist and for each section of the article which is found to be violated. Violators shall also be found responsible for court costs and reasonable attorney's fees of the Township, as permitted by law.
[Ord. No. 1-2018, 6/20/2018]
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or word of this article is for any reason held invalid, unlawful or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be deemed a separate, distinct and independent provision, and such holding shall not render this article invalid.