For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms, phrases,
words and their derivations shall have the meanings ascribed herein.
Words used in the present tense shall include the future, words in
the plural number shall include the singular number and words in the
singular number shall include the plural number. The word "shall"
is always mandatory and not merely directory.
ACCEPTABLE IDENTIFICATION
Acceptable forms of identification include a current valid
New Jersey driver's license or identification card, a current
valid photo driver's license issued by another United States
state, a valid United States passport, or other verifiable United
States government-issued identification.
ARTICLE
Any article of merchandise, including any portion of such
article, whether a distinct part thereof or not, including every part
thereof whether separable or not, and also including material for
manufacture. And as so defined in N.J.S.A. 51:6-1.
CHIEF OF POLICE
The Chief of Police of the Borough of Palmyra or his designee/representative.
DATABASE
A computerized Internet-capable database with hardware and
software compliant to that set by the Chief of Police.
DEALER
Any person, partnership, corporation, or other entity, whether
permanent or itinerant, who on one or more occasions (through any
means) buys or sells or otherwise exchanges or trades secondhand gold,
silver, precious metals, gems, or jewelry, and includes anyone advertising
the purchase or sale of any of the aforementioned items.
DESIGNATED VENDOR
A person or entity who is appointed or designated by the
Chief of Police who is authorized to collect and maintain precious
metal transaction information, or other purchase information as defined
herein, for the Borough of Palmyra.
GIFT CARD
A restricted monetary equivalent or scrip that is issued
by retailers or banks to be used as an alternative to a nonmonetary
gift.
ITINERANT BUSINESS
Any business conducted intermittently within the Borough
of Palmyra or at varying locations.
PERSON
Any individual natural person, partnership, joint venture,
business, society, associate, club, trustee, trust, corporation, or
unincorporated group, or an officer, agent, employee, servant, factor
or any form of personal representative of any thereof, in any capacity,
acting for self or on behalf of another.
PRECIOUS METALS
Comprised of gold, silver, sterling, platinum and/or their
alloys as defined in N.J.S.A. 51:5-1 et seq., N.J.S.A. 51:6-1 et seq.
and/or N.J.S.A. 51:6A-1 et seq.; gems, gemstones, coins and all forms
of jewelry herein contained.
PUBLIC
Individuals and retail sellers, not to include wholesale
transactions or transactions between other merchants.
PURCHASE
The exchange of money and the exchange, deposit, pledge,
sale, conveyance or trade of any tangible or intangible article.
REPORTABLE TRANSACTION
Every transaction conducted by a dealer in which precious
metals, or other tangible property, are purchased or exchanged from
or with the public.
SECONDHAND GOODS
Any article previously sold, acquired, exchanged, conveyed,
traded or otherwise formerly owned, including but not limited to scrap
gold, old gold, silver, jewelry, home electronics/audio and visual
equipment, musical instruments, telephones and telephonic equipment,
scales, computers, computer hardware and software, typewriters, word
processors, scanners, sporting goods of all kinds, antiques, platinum,
all other precious metals, tools of all kinds, televisions, DVRs,
GPS, camcorders, car stereos, gift cards, furniture, clothing or other
valuable articles.
TRANSIENT BUYER
A dealer who has not been in any retail business continuously
for at least six months at that address in the municipality where
the dealer is required to register or who intends to close out or
discontinue all retail business in the Borough of Palmyra within six
months. Or as so defined in N.J.S.A. 51:6A-5 and N.J.A.C. 13:47C-1.1.
No person shall engage in a regulated activity, as defined above,
without having first obtained a license therefor from the Borough
Clerk, after the application for said license has been approved by
the Borough Council, which license shall bear a number issued by the
Borough Clerk and shall be prominently displayed within the licensed
premises.
A. Dealer of precious metals, gems or gemstones or secondhand goods
shall, prior to buying, attempting to buy or offering to buy, register
with the Chief of Police, providing the following information on an
application prescribed by the Police Department:
(1) Name and address of dealer;
(2) Address from which dealer shall conduct business; and
(3) Copy of valid permit from the Borough of Palmyra.
Every dealer within the Borough of Palmyra shall, upon the purchase
of any precious metals, or secondhand goods from the public, be required
to do as follows:
A. Record on a numbered receipt the name, address and telephone number
of the purchaser; the name, address and telephone number of the seller
or sellers; the time and date of the transaction; the net weight in
terms of pounds Troy, pennyweight (Troy) or kilograms/grams of the
precious metals; fineness in terms of karats for gold, and sterling
or coin for silver, in accordance with N.J.S.A. 51:5-1 et seq. and
N.J.S.A. 51:6-1 et seq. This information is to be documented through
use of an electronic database software system as designated by the
Chief of Police. These records shall be subject to the inspection
of any authorized police officer of the Borough of Palmyra.
B. Through the use of applicably required computer equipment, and using the electronic format approved by the Chief of Police, enter all transactions into the electronic database within 48 hours from the date of purchase. The information entered will contain the information in §
202-6A above, plus the following:
(1) A physical description of the seller.
(3) A full description of the item or items purchased, including but
not limited to, marks, numbers, dates, sizes, shapes, initials, monograms
and serial numbers.
(4) The price paid for the item.
(5) The form must be signed by the seller.
(6) The form must be legibly initialed by the clerk or the dealer who
made the transaction so as to readily identify that individual.
(7) A color photograph or color image of the seller's presented
identification.
(8) A color photograph or color image of all items sold. When photographing
or imaging, all items must be positioned in a manner that makes them
readily and easily identifiable.
C. The precious metals are to be made available for inspection by the
Chief of Police of the Borough of Palmyra for a period of 14 days
from the date the information required above is received by the Chief
of Police on the approved form. The precious metals shall remain in
the same condition as when purchased and shall not be changed, modified,
melted or disposed of by the purchaser until a sixteen-day period
has expired. If the property is such that it would create a hardship
on the dealer by holding the precious metals for such period, the
dealer may present the property to the Chief of Police in order that
it may be photographed and, if deemed necessary by the Chief of Police,
an investigation be implemented. The Chief of Police has the authority
to grant the dealer a waiver of the requirement under this section.
D. In the event of a database failure, or dealer's computer equipment
malfunction, all transaction information is required to be submitted
on paper forms approved by the Chief of Police. In the event that
paper forms are used, the dealer is responsible to enter all transaction
information into the database as soon as possible upon the dealer's
equipment being repaired or replaced, or the database coming back
into service. Failure by the dealer to properly maintain computer
equipment in a reasonable fashion, or failure by the dealer to replace
faulty computer equipment, may result in the dealer being cited for
a violation of this chapter and subsequently being subject to the
penalties for doing so.
E. Dealer payment to sellers in cash shall be limited to two transactions
during a seven-day period for the same seller. The seven-day period
will commence on the day of the first transaction and end seven days
after the transaction, i.e., if Transaction No. 1 occurs on Monday
the seven-day period ends on Sunday. Furthermore, no cash payments
shall be made to the same sellers who make more than five transactions
in any given thirty-day period. Sellers making transactions over the
number of prescribed weekly and monthly periods will be paid by the
dealer by means of a bank check drawn from the dealer's business
account.
F. It shall be the requisite duty of every dealer, and of every person
in the dealer's employ, to admit to the premises during business
hours any member of the Palmyra Department to examine any database,
book, ledger, or any other record on the premises relating to the
purchase of precious metals from the public, as well as the articles
purchased or received, and to take possession of any article known
by the police officer or official to be missing or to have been stolen,
or where the officer or official has probable cause to believe the
article is missing or stolen.
This chapter shall not apply to purchases made by jewelers or
other dealers from wholesalers or other suppliers, but shall only
apply to those purchases made from the public or other retail purchases.
The dealer shall keep records of all wholesale purchases for a period
of six months from the date of such purchase, which records shall
be opened to investigation by the Palmyra Police Department.
No dealer within the Borough of Palmyra shall purchase any precious
metals from any person under the age of 18 years.
Violation of any provision of this chapter shall, upon conviction
thereof, be punished by a minimum fine of $100 or a maximum of $2,000
or by imprisonment for a term not exceeding 90 days or by a period
of community service not exceeding 90 days. Each and every violation
shall be considered a separate violation. Every day that a violation
continues shall be a separate violation. Each violation shall result
in an additional ten-day suspension. Any person who is convicted of
violating the provisions of this chapter within one year of the date
of a previous violation and who was fined for the previous violation
may be sentenced by the court to an additional fine as a repeat offender.
The additional fine imposed as a repeat offender shall not be less
than the minimum or exceed the maximum fine provided herein, and same
shall be calculated separately from the fine imposed for the violation
of this chapter.