[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town of Medfield as Art. IV, Sec.
21, of the 1926 Bylaws. Amendments noted where applicable.]
It shall be unlawful for any solicitor or canvasser as defined
in this Bylaw to engage in such business within the Town without first
obtaining a license therefor in compliance with the provisions of
this Bylaw. This Bylaw shall not apply to any person exempted under
MGL c. 101, or to any person exempted by another General Law, nor
shall this Bylaw be construed to prevent route salesmen or other persons
having established customers to whom they make periodic deliveries
from calling upon such customers or from making calls upon prospective
customers to solicit an order for future periodic route deliveries.
As used in this Bylaw, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
Any person who, for himself or herself, or for another person,
firm or corporation, travels by foot, automobile or any other type
of conveyance from place to place, from house to house, or from street
to street, taking or attempting to lease or take orders for retail
sale of goods, wares, merchandise or services, including, without
limitation, the selling, distributing, exposing for sale or soliciting
of orders for magazines, books, periodicals or other articles of a
commercial nature, the contracting of all home improvements, or for
services to be performed in the future, whether or not such individual
has, carries or exposes for retail sale a sample of the subject of
such sale or whether he is collecting advance payment on such retail
sales.
A.
Applicants
for a license shall file with the Board of Selectmen or its designee,
on a form issued by the Board of Selectmen or its designee, a written
application signed under the penalties of perjury containing the following
information:
(1)
Name
of applicant and local and permanent home address of applicant;
(2)
Height,
weight, eye and hair color;
(3)
Social
security number;
(4)
The
length of time for which the right to do business is desired;
(5)
A brief
description of the nature of the business and the goods to be sold;
(6)
The
name and home office address of the applicant's employer, or
if self-employed, it shall so state; and
(7)
If
operating a motor vehicle, the year, make, model, motor number, registration
number, state of registration, vehicle's owner and address.
B.
At the
time of filing the application, each applicant shall pay a fee of
$10.
Upon receipt of the application, the Chief of Police shall investigate
the applicant's reputation as to morals and integrity. After
an investigation of the applicant's morals and integrity, the
Board of Selectmen shall hold a public hearing on said application
within 14 days or at its next meeting and shall reach a decision and
shall endorse on such application its approval or disapproval. If
denied, an applicant may petition for reconsideration within seven
days. Such license, when issued, shall contain the signature of the
Board of Selectmen or its designee and shall show the name, address,
and photograph of said licensee, the date of issuance and the length
of time the same shall be operative, as well as the license number.
The Police Department shall keep a record of all licenses issued for
a period of six years. Solicitors and canvassers, when engaged in
the business of soliciting or canvassing, are required to display
an identifying badge issued by the Police Department, by wearing said
badge on an outer garment. Each licensee is required to possess an
individual license.
The police officers of the Town shall enforce this Bylaw. No
license shall be transferred.
The Chief of Police is hereby vested with the jurisdiction over
the revoking of licenses. Any person aggrieved by such revocation
may appeal to the Board of Selectmen within seven business days, and
a hearing will be scheduled for one of the next two regularly scheduled
meetings of the Board of Selectmen.
Each license issued under the provisions of this Bylaw shall
continue in force from the date of its issue to the expiration date
noted on the license.
A license issued under the provisions of this Bylaw may be renewed
by the Chief of Police. An applicant requesting a renewal of a license
must apply in person for such license renewal, and provide such information
as is required to obtain an initial license.
No solicitor or canvasser, licensed or exempted from license,
may misrepresent, in any manner, the buyer's right to cancel
as stipulated by MGL c. 93, c. 93A and c. 255D. No solicitor or canvasser,
licensed or exempted from license, may use any plan, scheme or ruse
which misrepresents the true status or mission of the person making
the call in order to gain admission to a prospective buyer's
home, office, or other establishment with the purpose of making a
sale of consumer goods or services.
It shall be unlawful for any canvasser or solicitor to enter
the premises of a resident or business who has displayed a "no trespassing"
or "no soliciting" sign or poster. Further, it shall be unlawful for
canvassers or solicitors to ignore a resident's or business person's
"no solicitation" directive or remain on private property after its
owner has indicated that the canvasser or solicitor is not welcome.
[ATM 4-26-1994]
Any person violating any provisions of this Bylaw shall, upon
conviction thereof, be punished by a fine of $50 for each and every
offense. (Medfield police officers)
