[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of
Brentwood 3-2-1982 as Ch. XIII, Part 6, of the 1982 Code of Ordinances; amended in
its entirety 1-22-2013 by Ord. No. 1212. Subsequent amendments
noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be known as the "Borough of Brentwood Transient
Retail Business, Panhandling, and Solicitation Ordinance."
It is the purpose of this chapter and the policy of the Borough
of Brentwood, in order to protect and promote the public health, safety
and welfare of its citizens, to establish the rights and obligations
of those who wish to engage in legal temporary business or[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: So in original.
A.
BOROUGH
CANVASSING
CHARITABLE ORGANIZATION
LEGAL HOLIDAY
PANHANDLING
(1)
(2)
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
PERSON
PUBLIC PLACE
SOLICITING
(1)
(2)
TRANSIENT RETAIL BUSINESS
(1)
(a)
(b)
(c)
(2)
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
The Borough of Brentwood, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.
Includes any person who goes from private house to house
questioning persons for the purposes of obtaining information, data
or opinions from such persons contacted for any issue of public interest,
including political, religious, charitable or educational purposes,
whether or not a donation from the resident(s) is sought from the
canvasser.
An organization which has been granted an exemption by the
United States Internal Revenue Service under § 501(c) or
§ 509(a) of the United States Internal Revenue Code and/or
any person or organization who has complied with the provisions of
the Pennsylvania Solicitation of Funds for Charitable Purposes Act,
10 P.S. § 162.1 et seq., as amended.
Any holiday characterized by the suspension of business of
the state or federal government, including, but not limited to, New
Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving
Day, and Christmas Day.
Shall include, but not be limited to, using the spoken, written
or printed word, bodily gestures, signs, music, singing or other street
performance with the purpose of obtaining an immediate donation of
money or other thing of value. "Panhandling" shall also include exchanges
in which the person being approached receives an item or thing of
little or no monetary value in exchange for a donation, under circumstances
where a reasonable person would understand that the transaction is
in substance a donation.
Panhandling in an aggressive manner means:
Following behind, ahead or alongside a person for more than
50 feet either before, during or after soliciting if that conduct
is intended or is likely to cause a reasonable person to fear bodily
harm to oneself or to another or damage to or loss of property or
otherwise be intimidated into giving money or other thing of value;
Continuing to solicit from a person after that person has given
a negative response to such soliciting or walked away from the solicitor;
Intentionally touching or causing physical contact with the
solicited person without such person's consent;
Intentionally blocking or interfering with the safe or free
passage of a person or vehicle being solicited by any means, including
unreasonably causing a person or vehicle operator to take evasive
action to avoid physical contact;
Using profane or abusive language, or speaking in an unreasonably
loud volume, either during the solicitation or following a refusal
to make a donation, or making any statement or gestures toward a solicited
person which would cause a reasonable person to be fearful or feel
compelled; or
Soliciting from a person while that person is waiting in line
for entry to a building or for another purpose.
Any natural person, partnership, association, corporation
or other legal entity.
Any place to which the public or a substantial group of persons
has access, including but not limited to any street, highway, sidewalk,
parking facility, plaza, transportation facility, school, place of
amusement, park or playground, and any doorway, entrance, hallway,
lobby, or other portion of any business establishment, apartment house
or hotel not constituting a room or apartment designed for actual
residences.
Includes, but is not limited to, a person going:
From private house to house, conveying or transporting goods,
wares or merchandise, or offering or exposing the same for sale or
making sales or delivering articles, goods, wares or merchandise to
purchasers.
From private house to house, soliciting or attempting to take
orders from individuals for sale of goods, wares or merchandise, including
magazines, books, periodicals or other personal property of any nature
whatsoever, for future delivery or for services to be performed at
that time or in the future, whether or not such individual has, carries
or exposes for sale a sample of the subject of such order or whether
or not he is collecting advance payments on such orders.
The term "transient retail business" includes the following:
Engaging in begging, panhandling, peddling, soliciting or taking
orders, either by sample or otherwise, for any goods, wares or merchandise
upon any street, alley, sidewalk or public ground or from house to
house within the Borough of Brentwood.
Selling, soliciting or taking orders for any goods, wares or
merchandise from a fixed location within the Borough on a temporary
basis, which shall include but shall not be limited to such activities
conducted at the time of special occasions or celebrations, for seasonal
purposes or for or in advance of specific yearly or legal holidays.
The business conducted by any transient merchant, which term
shall include any person who, temporarily and for a short time, hires,
rents or obtains a definite place of business, whether a storeroom
or a market stand or a private residence, for the sale of goods, wares,
merchandise or to offer or expose the same for sale or for future
delivery and sale. The terms "temporarily" and "short time" shall
be construed as three months or less.
The term "transient retail business" shall not include:
The solicitation of funds for nonprofit charitable, religious
or political organizations or any other activity with a predominantly
charitable, religious or political purpose.
The solicitation of funds by school children through and including
12th grade for any school-approved activity or organization.
Sales made to dealers by commercial sales agents in the usual
course of business, calling upon or dealing with manufacturers, wholesalers,
distributors or retailers at their places of business.
Yard and/or garage sales as conducted by a Brentwood Borough
resident from his place of residence.
B.
The singular shall include the plural, the plural shall include the
singular and the masculine shall include the feminine and the neuter.
A.
No person shall engage as a solicitor in any transient retail business
within the Borough of Brentwood without first registering with the
Borough and having obtained from the Borough a license, for which
a fee shall be charged. The amount of the fee shall be fixed from
time to time by resolution of Council.[1]
B.
No license fee shall be charged for the following transient retail
businesses:
(1)
To farmers selling their own produce.
(2)
For the sale of goods, wares and merchandise donated by the owners
thereof or the proceeds of which sale are to be applied to any charitable
or philanthropic purpose.
(3)
To any manufacturer or producer in the sale of bread and bakery products,
meat and meat products or milk and milk products.
(4)
To the seeking or taking of orders by insurance agents or brokers
licensed under the insurance laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
C.
All persons exempted hereby from the payment of the license fee shall
be required to register with the Borough Manager and obtain a license
from the Borough without fee; provided, further, that any person dealing
in one or more of the above-mentioned exempted categories and dealing
with other goods, wares or merchandise not so exempted shall be subject
to the payment of the license fee fixed by this section for his activities
in connection with the sale of goods, wares and merchandise not in
such exempted categories.
D.
Every license issued under the provisions of this chapter shall be
issued on an individual basis to persons engaging in such business;
every individual shall obtain a separate license, issued to him in
his name, and the license fee hereby imposed shall be applicable to
every such individual license.
E.
No person under the age of 18 shall be permitted to engage as a solicitor
or in any transient retail business, except as provided below:
(1)
A license shall be obtained by a sponsoring person, company or organization
for employment or engagement of any person under the age of 18 in
soliciting or a transient retail business. Said sponsor must be at
least 21 years of age.
(2)
A separate license must be acquired for each sponsored person under
the age of 18.
(3)
The sponsor shall be responsible for supervising and controlling
the conduct of the sponsored person or persons.
A.
Every person desiring a license under this chapter shall first make
application to the Borough for such license. If such person shall
also be required to obtain a license from any state or county officer,
he shall, when making such application, exhibit a valid license from
such state or county officer. The applicant shall state thereof and
present:
(1)
A photo identification document in the form of a state-issued driver's
license, state-issued non-driver identification card, U.S. passport
or passport card, U.S. military identification, U.S. permanent residency
card, or photo identification from an accredited institution of higher
learning. Photo identification must be valid for the dates during
which the licensee will be engaged in solicitation or transient retail
business;
(2)
The name and physical description of the applicant;
(3)
The complete permanent home and local address of the applicant and,
in the case of transient merchants, the local address from which proposed
sales will be made;
(4)
A brief description of the nature of the business and the goods to
be sold or the organization on behalf of which funds will be solicited;
(5)
If employed, the name and address of the employer;
(6)
If a motor vehicle is to be used, a description of the vehicle, together
with the motor vehicle registration number and the driver's license
number;
(7)
The source of supply of the goods or property proposed to be sold,
or orders taken for the sale thereof, and the proposed method of delivery;
(8)
The names of other communities in which the applicant has worked
as a solicitor in the past 12 months, and if he was employed by a
different transient retail business in those communities, the name
of those companies shall also be stated;
(9)
Two recent photographs of the applicant, said photographs being at
least two inches by three inches in dimension and clearly showing
the applicant's head and shoulders;
(10)
Documentation of whether or not the applicant has been convicted
of any felony, misdemeanor or crime involving moral turpitude, and
a brief description of each such conviction;
(11)
Proof of sales tax permit issued by the State of Pennsylvania,
or proof that the goods sold are not subject to such sales tax; and
(12)
The length of time, with beginning date and ending date, during
which said business or solicitation is to be conducted in the Borough,
said length of time not to exceed six consecutive days.
B.
No application for a transient retail business license, including
those exempt from the license fee under the conditions previously
covered in this chapter, will be accepted less than three business
days prior to the beginning date stated in the application.
A.
Upon receipt of such application and the prescribed license fee,
it shall be referred to the Chief of Police, who shall cause an investigation
to be made as to all matters contained in the application to ensure
the protection of the public health, safety and general welfare. The
amount of the fee for said background investigation shall be fixed
from time to lime by resolution of Council.
B.
The Chief of Police shall endorse on such application his approval
or disapproval for the issuance of the license and shall notify the
Mayor of the same within three days, not including weekends or holidays,
of receipt of such application.
C.
The Mayor, if he shall find such application in order, shall issue
the license required under this chapter.
D.
As a condition prerequisite to issuance of said permit, and as continuing
condition for use and maintenance of such permit, the Mayor may impose
such conditions as he deems necessary to protect and preserve the
health, safety, morals, general welfare, cleanliness, beauty and convenience
of the Borough, the Borough residents and visitors to the Borough.
Said conditions may include but are not limited to an obligation assumed,
in writing, by the permittee and other interested persons or entities
to reimburse the Borough for public safety cost incurred as a result
of the use of the permit and to protect, defend, indemnify and hold
the Borough officials, employees and representatives harmless from
all claims, causes of action and loss arising from issuance and/or
use of said permit.
E.
Every license holder shall carry such license upon his person if
engaged in transient retail business from house to house or upon any
of the streets, alleys, sidewalks or public grounds or shall display
such license at the location where he shall engage in such business
if doing so at a fixed location. He shall exhibit such license, upon
request, to all police officers, Borough officials and citizens or
residents of the Borough.
A.
No person shall:
(1)
Sell any product or type of product not mentioned in his license.
(2)
Hawk or cry his wares upon any of the streets, alleys, sidewalks
or public grounds in the Borough of Brentwood.
(3)
When operating from a vehicle, stop or park such vehicle upon any
of the streets or alleys in the Borough for longer than necessary
in order to sell therefrom to persons residing in the immediate vicinity.
(4)
Park any vehicle upon any of the streets or alleys in the Borough
for the purpose of sorting, rearranging or cleaning any of his goods,
wares or merchandise or of disposing of any carton, wrapping material
or of any stock or wares or foodstuffs which have become unsalable
through handling, age or otherwise.
(5)
Engage in a transient retail business in an aggressive manner. As
used in this section, "aggressive manner" means continuing the soliciting
activity after the person has made a negative response, whether before
or after being invited into a residence, by blocking the path of the
person solicited, or by following or walking alongside with the person
solicited, in a manner that is likely to cause a reasonable person
to fear imminent bodily harm or the commission of a criminal act upon
property in a person's possession or in or about the residence,
or is intended to or is likely to intimidate the person into responding
affirmatively to the peddling or soliciting activity.
(6)
Misrepresent the purpose of the solicitation. False or misleading
representations include, but are not limited to, the following: stating
that the solicitor is from out of town and stranded when such is not
true; stating or suggesting falsely that the solicitor is either a
present or former member of the armed services indicated; wearing
or displaying an indication of physical disability, when the solicitor
does not suffer the disability indicated; stating that the solicitor
is homeless, when he or she is not.
(7)
Use at any time a license issued to any other person.
(8)
Permit any other person to use a license that was not issued to said
other person.
(9)
Solicit at any private residence exhibiting a sign reading "no solicitors"
or words having the same connotation.
(10)
Canvass at any private residence exhibiting a sign reading "no
canvassers" or words having the same connotation.
B.
No person may operate a transient retail business, panhandle or solicit
in any of the following locations, unless located within a permanent
storefront or residence:
(1)
On any public space, within 20 feet of any intersection or pedestrian
crosswalk.
(2)
Within 20 feet of the entrance to or exit from any public toilet
facility, which includes any temporary use site (port-a-toilet).
(3)
Within 20 feet of any bus stop or taxi stand.
(4)
Within 20 feet of an automatic teller machine (ATM), provided that
when an automated teller machine is located within an automated teller
machine facility, such distance shall be measured from the entrance
or exit of the automated teller machine facility.
(5)
Within 20 feet of any fire hydrant.
(6)
Within any metered parking spaces owned by the Borough.
(7)
On the median of any divided roadway.
(8)
Within 200 feet of another vending location assigned to another vendor
on a public sidewalk.
(9)
In any public transportation vehicle, or in any bus, or within 20
feet of any bus stop or taxi.
(10)
From any operator of a motor vehicle that is in traffic on a
public street; provided, however, that this paragraph shall not apply
to services rendered in connection with emergency repairs requested
by the owner for passengers of such vehicle.
(11)
Within 20 feet of an entrance to or exit from any financial
institution or check-cashing business without the consent of the owner
of the property or another person legally in possession of such facilities.
(12)
Within 20 feet of the outside perimeter of any restaurant or
other establishment serving food or alcoholic beverage for immediate
consumption, outdoor cafe, licensed sidewalk food vendor, or store
licensed for package sales of alcoholic beverages by the Pennsylvania
Liquor Control Board, unless expressly authorized by the owner, manager,
or supervisor of the establishment.
The Mayor and the Brentwood police shall supervise the activities
of all persons holding licenses under this chapter. The Borough Secretary
shall keep a record of all licenses issued hereunder and shall make
a report thereof each month to the Borough Council.
Transient retail business, canvassing and solicitation may be
conducted at business properties in the Borough during all regular
business hours and may be conducted in the Borough public streets
and other public places from 9:00 a.m., prevailing time, to 8:00 p.m.,
provided that such business persons and/or solicitors, with canvassers
excepted, obtain a license as required by this chapter and that such
activities are conducted subject to all other provisions of this chapter.
A.
The Mayor is hereby authorized to deny, suspend or revoke any license
issued under this chapter when he deems such denial, suspension or
revocation to be necessary to assist in the prevention of crime and/or
necessary to protect the security of the homes of Borough residents
from annoyance. In addition, the Mayor may deny, suspend or revoke
any license issued under this chapter for violation of any provision
of this chapter and/or for the giving of any false information upon
any application for a license hereunder.
B.
Notice of the denial, revocation or suspension of a license shall
be given, in writing, setting forth specifically the grounds of complaint
and the opportunity for a hearing. Such notice shall be given by the
Mayor or Borough Secretary personally to the applicant or may be transmitted
by certified mail, postage prepaid, to the applicant or licensee at
his address given in said application.
C.
Appeals from any denial, suspension or revocation may be made to
the Borough Council, in writing, at any time within 10 days after
such denial, suspension or revocation. Such notice of appeal shall
state, in detail, the reasons why the applicant or permittee believes
said denial, revocation or suspension is improper. No part of a license
fee shall be refunded to any person whose license shall have been
suspended or revoked.
D.
Hearing on an appeal under this chapter shall be conducted by Borough
Council according to the provisions of the Pennsylvania Local Agency
Law, the Act of April 28, 1978, P.L. 202, No. 53, as amended,[1] and the provisions of the Pennsylvania Open Meetings and
Hearings Act, the Act of July 19, 1974, P.L. 486, No. 175, as amended.[2] Such hearing shall be commended within 45 days after receiving
notice of such appeal. The appellant shall be notified of Council's
decision within 45 days, after the conclusion of said hearing, or
any continuance thereof. Said notice of decision of Council shall
be given to the appellant, in writing, specifying reasons for said
decision, and shall be mailed to the appellant by certified mail,
postage prepaid, at appellant's address set forth in the application
for license. The decision of Council shall be the decision of a majority
of a quorum of the members of Council voting on said appeal, and said
decision shall be final.
Any person who shall violate any provision of this chapter shall,
upon conviction thereof, be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than
$600 and costs of prosecution or, in default of payment of such fine
and costs, to undergo imprisonment for no more than 30 days. Each
separate act of sale or solicitation committed in violation of the
provisions of this chapter shall constitute a separate violation thereof.
A.
Any resident, upon written request to the Borough Manager, may ask
to be placed on a restricted listing which will be given to all applicants
being issued a transient retail business license. Persons to whom
licenses are issued shall not call upon any residents named on the
restricted listing.
B.
All persons wishing to engage in any transient retail business within
the Borough of Brentwood are required to first obtain a list of residents
who have notified the Borough of their desire to be placed on the
restricted residence listing. The list may be obtained in person or
by telephoning the Borough Manager with a request for the list to
be delivered by facsimile or e-mail.
