As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
PEDDLER
A person who goes from place to place by traveling on foot
or by any type of conveyance on the streets or from house to house,
carrying, transporting or conveying goods, wares, merchandise, foods,
farm products or provisions, offering and exposing the same for sale
or making sales and deliveries to purchasers, or who solicits orders
and, as a separate transaction, makes deliveries to purchasers. The
word "peddler" shall include the words "hawker" and "huckster."
PERSON
Includes the singular and the plural and shall also include
and mean any individual, firm, partnership, corporation, voluntary
association, incorporated association, club, society or other organization
and any officer, employee or agent thereof.
SOLICITOR and/or CANVASSER
Includes persons who shall go on foot or by any type of conveyance
from door to door or house to house selling, causing to be sold, offering
for sale or causing to be offered for sale or taking orders for present
or future delivery of goods, wares, merchandise, foods, farm products
or provisions; and shall further include persons going, as aforesaid,
from door to door or from house to house for the purpose of obtaining
alms, orders, subscriptions or making canvasses or surveys or other
solicitations; also, any person who uses or occupies any building,
part thereof or any other place within the Borough of North Haledon
for the sole purpose of exhibiting samples and taking orders for future
delivery.
[Amended 8-16-1995 by Ord. No. 13-1995]
A. The purpose of this article is to prevent dishonest
business practices by providing for the registration and regulation
of the conduct of peddlers, solicitors and canvassers and of soliciting
and canvassing so that they are properly identifiable for recourse
in the event that anything untoward occurs related to the soliciting
and canvassing. A further purpose is to provide a means of identifying
and investigating persons who intend to participate in such canvassing
and soliciting activities. Such identification and investigation is
intended to be a deterrent to illegal activities and as a method of
detecting persons with unlawful motivations who might use the guise
of canvassing and soliciting as an ostensible reason for going upon
private property. A further purpose is to protect against a sense
of uneasiness and dangers reasonably to be apprehended on account
of strangers filtering through the Borough and to discourage resort
to the subterfuge of canvassing and soliciting as a means of further
criminal purposes. Still another purpose is to afford a ready means
of identification to both the residents and the police and to allay
concern over the presence of unfamiliar faces in the neighborhood.
Still another purpose is to protect the citizens and residents of
North Haledon from fraudulent soliciting by requiring solicitors and
canvassers to establish their identity and their authority to act
for the cause or company which they purport to represent. A further
response is to achieve the objectives of the within article without
an undue interference with both intrastate and interstate commerce.
B. Any fees provided in this article shall not be for
revenue or taxation purposes but shall be for the sole purposes of
reimbursing the Borough for administrative and police expenses incurred.
It shall be unlawful for any peddler or solicitor
to sell or dispose of or to offer to sell or dispose of any goods,
wares or merchandise within the Borough of North Haledon or to solicit
or act as a solicitor from door to door within the Borough of North
Haledon without first registering with the Borough Clerk of the Borough
of North Haledon as provided in this article and obtaining the license
prescribed.
[Amended 8-16-1995 by Ord. No. 13-1995]
Any person desiring a license under this article
shall first register with the Borough Clerk of the Borough of North
Haledon and shall file with said Borough Clerk an application in writing
containing the following information related to the applicant and
each intended canvasser or solicitor:
A. The name of the applicant.
B. Permanent home residence.
C. The name, address and telephone number of the person
from whom goods making up the stock, if any, were or are to be purchased.
D. The place or places of residence of the applicant
for the next preceding three years, but only if the Chief of Police,
upon investigation, determines that such additional information is
reasonably required.
E. Two recent photographs of the applicant, approximately
2 1/2 inches by 2 1/2 inches in size.
[Amended 9-18-2019 by Ord. No. 20-2019]
F. A description of the goods, wares or merchandise to
be sold and offered for sale and/or the purpose of his/her proposed
canvassing or solicitation.
G. The length of time for which the license is required
and registration is to be effective. The application shall state the
date and times of all proposed solicitation and canvasses. If any
changes are intended to be made, it shall be permitted only after
prior written notice 24 hours in advance to the Chief of Police. No
solicitation or canvassing shall occur at any time not listed in the
application nor in the subsequent written submission to the Chief.
H. Details of any arrests or convictions for misdemeanors
and crimes, including the nature of the offense for which arrested
or convicted, the date of conviction and the place where said conviction
was had.
I. To said application, and as a part thereof, there
shall be attached a letter from the firm or corporation for which
the applicant works, authorizing the applicant to act as its representative.
J. A statement by a reputable physician, dated not more
than 10 days prior to the submission of the application, certifying
the applicant to be free of contagious infections or contagious diseases.
[Amended 8-16-1995 by Ord. No. 13-1995]
Each application shall be referred to the Police
Department, who shall, without delay, institute such investigation
of the applicant's business and moral character as it deems necessary
for the protection of the public good and complete the same within
a reasonable time. No license shall be issued until the application
shall have been approved by the Police Department. The approval or
rejection shall be endorsed on the application by the Chief of Police
or officer in charge. In the event the application is rejected by
the Chief, the supporting reasons shall be stated thereupon. Any person
aggrieved by the action of the Chief in approving or rejecting shall
have a right of appeal and hearing by the Mayor and Council by submitting
a written letter of appeal to the Mayor and Council within 10 days
of the action of the Chief.
[Amended 8-16-1995 by Ord. No. 13-1995]
Following the filing of the application, the
Borough Clerk shall make or cause to be made such investigation as
deemed necessary to verify the information set forth therein; the
Borough Clerk shall thereupon signify approval or rejection on the
reverse side of the application and, if approved, shall issue the
license to such applicant. To such license shall be affixed one photograph
of the applicant, identified by applicant's signature, which shall,
in part, cover said photograph. If for any reason the application
is rejected by the Clerk, the written supporting reasons shall be
stated upon the application or attached to the application. Any persons
aggrieved by an approval or rejection shall have a right of appeal
to the Mayor and Council by submitting a written letter of appeal
to the Mayor and Council within 10 days of the action taken.
[Amended 8-16-1995 by Ord. No. 13-1995; 10-15-2014 by Ord. No. 22-2014]
Every solicitor or canvasser holding a license
under this article shall be required to have in his/her possession
an identification button or badge, which button or badge shall be
issued with the license and shall bear such words as will show that
the person in possession of the same is duly licensed under the terms
of this article. Peddlers or solicitors shall have said button or
badge affixed to the lapel of his/her coat or garment while engaged
in the business of peddling or soliciting in the Borough of North
Haledon. Such button or badge shall be supplied by the Borough Clerk.
The following regulations shall apply to all
persons licensed under the provisions of this article:
A. No license or badge or button issued under the provisions
of this article shall be used or worn by any person other than the
one to whom it was issued, nor shall it be transferred in any way
or manner.
B. No peddler, canvasser or solicitor, nor any person
in his/her behalf, shall shout, make an outcry, blow a horn, ring
a bell or use any sound device, including any loudspeaking radio or
sound-amplifying system, upon any of the streets, parks or other places
of said Borough or upon any private premises in said Borough where
sound of sufficient volume is emitted or produced therefrom to be
capable of being plainly heard upon the streets, parks or other public
places for the purpose of attracting attention to any goods, wares
or merchandise which such licensee proposes to sell.
[Amended 8-16-1995 by Ord. No. 13-1995]
C. No peddler shall have any exclusive right to any location
in the public streets, nor shall any be permitted a stationary location,
nor shall any be permitted to operate in any congested area where
his/her operations might impede or inconvenience the public or local
business.
D. Peddlers are required to exhibit their licenses at
the request of any citizen.
E. No person shall be permitted to peddle, solicit or
canvass before 9:00 a.m. or after dusk, Monday through Saturday. Any
exception to the above time limitation requires permission by the
governing body of the Borough of North Haledon. In reviewing any request
for an exception, the Mayor and Council shall balance the public purposes
of the ordinance with the supporting reasons of the applicant.
[Amended 8-16-1995 by Ord. No. 13-1995; 7-16-2003 by Ord. No. 11-2003; 3-16-2016 by Ord. No. 4-2016; 10-17-2018 by Ord. No. 19-2018]
F. It shall be the duty of any police officer of the
Borough of North Haledon to require any person peddling, soliciting
or canvassing to produce his/her license and to enforce the provisions
of this article against any person found to be violating the same.
G. "Do not solicit" list.
[Added 12-7-2016 by Ord.
No. 21-2016]
(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of any other section of this chapter,
any person or entity owning property within the Borough may register
such property on a "do not solicit" list.
(2) Registration for the "do not solicit" list shall be made as follows:
(a)
The "do not solicit" list shall be maintained by the Municipal
Clerk.
(b)
The "do not solicit" list shall consist solely of property addresses,
and shall include no further identifying information concerning the
ownership of each property.
(c)
The Construction Official shall notify the Municipal Clerk of
any change of ownership of property within the Borough. The Municipal
Clerk shall remove from the "do not solicit" list any property which
has changed ownership.
(3) The Municipal Clerk shall provide a copy of the "do not solicit"
list to each and every solicitor to whom a permit is issued. Upon
request, the Municipal Clerk shall also make available a copy of the
"do not solicit" list to any individual or entity otherwise exempt
from the provisions of this chapter which intends to engage in door
to door canvassing, soliciting, campaigning, advocacy, education,
proselytizing, or handbill distribution.
(4) Solicitation of any address identified on the "do not solicit" list
shall contribute a violation of this chapter. Each and every solicitation
at an address identified on the "do not solicit" list shall constitute
a separate violation of this chapter.
[Amended 8-16-1995 by Ord. No. 13-1995]
A license may be revoked or suspended by the
Borough Clerk or the Chief of Police by reason of violation or the
terms of the license, the violation of any Borough ordinance or state
or federal statute or falsification or fraud in applying for the license.
The licensed person may, upon making application to the Borough Clerk
in writing, request a hearing by the Borough Council upon the revocation
or suspension of the aforesaid license. The appeal must be taken within
five days of the notice of suspension or revocation. The governing
body shall conduct a hearing and make findings of fact and apply the
standards and purposes of this article.
[Amended 10-15-2014 by Ord. No. 22-2014]
Any person required by this article to procure a license who violates its terms or who violates any of the provisions of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be punishable as provided in Chapter
1, General Provisions, Article
II, General Penalty.