[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council
of the Borough of Oceanport as indicated in article histories. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
It is the purpose of this article to protect the safety of the
residents of the Borough of Oceanport, to prevent fraud from being
perpetrated upon them and to protect their privacy, while balancing
such interests against the opportunity for commercial, political,
religious, charitable, and nonprofit organizations to exercise their
rights of free speech.
Unless specifically defined below, words or phrases used in
this article shall be interpreted so as to give them the meaning they
have in common usage and to give this article its most reasonable
application.
A person or entity seeking to obtain a permit for solicitation
from the Borough of Oceanport.
Borough of Oceanport, Monmouth County, New Jersey.
Any person who travels, either by foot or automobile or any
other type of conveyance, from place to place, from house to house
or from street to street to seek or develop support for, to conduct
market research about, to determine feelings or opinions about, to
conduct a survey about, or explain a position about and on behalf
of any commercial product, commercial cause or commercial organization.
Any individual or entity providing compensation, in any form
whatsoever, to an individual engaged in solicitation within the Borough
of Oceanport.
A permit for solicitation issued by the Borough of Oceanport
pursuant to the provisions of this article.
To go in or upon private property in the Borough of Oceanport
without having been invited to do so by the owner or occupant, for
the purpose of advertising, promoting, or selling any product, goods,
or service; or conducting market research or a market or opinion survey
regarding commercial products or services. By way of illustration
and not of limitation, solicitors shall include canvassers, peddlers,
hawkers, itinerant merchants and transient vendors of goods or services.
Solicitation shall also include the placement upon private property
of handbills or other written material advertising goods or services
for sale. Solicitation shall also include the sale of goods or services
which the solicitor promises to donate or deliver to a charitable
or other nonprofit institution on behalf of the purchaser. Solicitation
shall not include the entry upon private property without prior invitation
of the owner or occupant by any person representing an entity which:
Qualifies for tax-exempt status under the Internal Revenue Code;
Qualifies for exemption from property tax under N.J.S.A. 54:4-3.6;
Qualifies for exemption from sales tax under N.J.S.A. 54:32B-9;
or
Was created under or is otherwise subject to the provisions
of Title 15A of the New Jersey Statutes.
No person or entity shall engage in solicitation within the
Borough without first having obtained a permit pursuant to the provisions
of this article. Failure to obtain a permit prior to solicitation
shall constitute a violation of this article. Each day of solicitation
without a valid permit shall constitute a separate violation of this
article.
Door-to-door canvassing, solicitation, campaigning, advocacy,
education, proselytizing, handbill distribution, or other entry upon
private property by individuals representing any entity which 1) qualifies
for tax-exempt status under the Internal Revenue Code; 2) qualified
for exemption from property tax under N.J.S.A. 54:4-3.6; 3) qualifies
for exemption from sales tax under N.J.S.A. 54:32B-9; or 4) was created
under or is otherwise subject to the provisions of Title 15A of the
New Jersey Statutes shall be exempt from the provisions of this article.
Solicitation of donations by any such organizations shall not constitute
solicitation as defined in this article. Individuals representing
such organizations may request a copy of the Borough's do-not-solicit
list for their information, but no penalties shall be imposed if they
enter in or upon a property identified on the do-not-solicit list.
A.
Any person seeking to engage in solicitation within the Borough shall
apply to the Police Department for a solicitation permit.
B.
An applicant for a solicitation permit shall be required to provide
the following information in writing:
(1)
The name of each individual who will engage in solicitation within
the Borough;
(2)
The present address of each individual who will engage in solicitation
within the Borough;
(3)
As to each such individual, whether the individual has ever been
convicted of a crime, and if so, the nature of the conviction, where
convicted, the date of conviction, and the penalty imposed;
(4)
The employer or organization for which solicitation will be made;
(5)
The address of the employer or organization;
(6)
The telephone number of the employer or organization;
(7)
The name of the contact person at the offices of the employer or
organization;
(8)
The type of goods or services to be sold or the type of survey or
research to be conducted;
(9)
As to any vehicle to be used by the applicant, the make, model, year,
color and license plate information of the vehicle; and
(10)
The expected dates of solicitation within the Borough.
C.
An applicant for a solicitation permit shall also be required to
produce photo identification, which the Police Department will photocopy
and attach to the application form.
D.
The application form shall be signed by the applicant, under penalty
of perjury.
E.
Application forms, including photographic identification, shall be
retained by the Police Department.
G.
Misrepresentation, false statements, or failure to disclose information
on the solicitation permit application form shall constitute a violation
of this article.
A.
The Chief of Police or, in his absence, the officer in charge of
the Police Department shall issue a permit and identification badge
upon completion of the solicitation permit application form. The permit
and badge shall be issued to any and all applicants who complete the
application form and provide photo identification. A separate permit
and badge shall be issued to each individual who engages in solicitation
within the Borough. The permit shall be signed by the Chief of Police
or, in his absence, the officer in charge of the Police Department.
The permit shall state the name of the individual, the business or
organization for which solicitation is made, and the date the permit
was issued.
B.
Noncommercial solicitors do not require the approval of the Chief
of Police or the requirement or granting of a permit, with the sole
exception that any noncommercial solicitors or canvassers must register
with the Police Department to have knowledge of their presence within
the Borough of Oceanport.
Each individual engaging in solicitation within the Borough
shall carry the permit issued to him upon his person and display his
badge at all times while soliciting within the Borough, and shall
produce the permit and badge if requested to do so by the police or
any resident. Failure to carry the permit and/or display the badge
during solicitation shall constitute a violation of this article.
A.
A solicitation permit shall be effective for three months after the
date it is issued. Solicitation without a valid permit in effect shall
constitute a violation of this article. This permit shall be subject
to renewal for an additional three-month period.
B.
Commercial solicitation shall take place within the Borough only
between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.
C.
Noncommercial solicitation or canvassing may take place between the
hours of 9:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. on each and every day of the year.
D.
All solicitors or canvassers are encouraged to wear reflective clothing
and/or to carry flashlights if soliciting after dark.
A.
Notwithstanding the provisions of any other section of this article,
any person or entity owning property within the Borough may register
such property on a do-not-solicit list.
B.
The office of the Borough Clerk shall maintain a list of addresses
of those premises where the owner and/or occupant has notified the
Borough Clerk that soliciting and canvassing are not permitted on
his or her premises. Notification shall be by completion of a form
available at the Borough Clerk's office during normal business
hours, Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., except weekends
and legal holidays.
C.
The Borough Clerk shall submit the do-not-solicit list to the Chief
of Police on a quarterly basis, which do-not-solicit list shall be
distributed to applicants seeking authorization to solicit or canvass
pursuant to this article. The persons seeking to solicit or canvass
shall not solicit or canvass at any address listed on the do-not-solicit
list.
D.
On or about January 1, April 1, July 1 and October 1 of each year,
the Borough Clerk's office shall update the list. The updated
list shall then be forwarded to the Chief of Police for distribution
to solicitors and/or canvassers.
E.
The Tax Assessor shall, upon being advised of a transfer of ownership
of a residential premises, notify the Borough Clerk, not less than
semiannually, of said conveyances, whereupon the Borough Clerk shall
remove the address of the premises from the do-not-solicit list.
For a violation of any provision of this article, the maximum penalty, upon conviction thereof, shall be as provided in § 1-15, General penalty. Each and every day in which a violation of any provision of this article exists shall constitute a separate violation.
