[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Greenville 2-13-2017 by Ord. No. 2-17. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
No transient merchant shall solicit sales within the Town of
Greenville without a license as set forth herein. No person shall
solicit contributions or request anything of value for a purported
charitable organization except as set forth herein.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
- CHARITABLE ORGANIZATION
- Any organization that is described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and exempt from taxation, or a person or organization that purports to be established for a charitable purpose, whether religious, patriotic, philanthropic, benevolent, educational, civic or fraternal.
- SOLICITING CONTRIBUTIONS
- Requesting, directly or indirectly, a contribution and stating or implying that the contribution will be used for a charitable purpose or benefit a charitable organization.
- SOLICITING SALES
- Selling or offering for sale goods and services where the sale or offer is either personally solicited or consummated by the seller at the residence of the buyer or at the seller's transient quarters. Persons involved in soliciting such sales shall be considered transient merchants, except for persons involved in soliciting contributions for charitable organizations.
- TRANSIENT MERCHANT
- Any peddler or solicitor, whether principal, agent or employee, engaged in soliciting sales.
Soliciting sales and soliciting contributions shall not include:
A.
Any person delivering newspapers, fuel, dairy products, bakery products
or other goods to regular customers on established routes.
B.
Any person selling merchandise at wholesale to dealers in such merchandise.
C.
Local merchants delivering goods in the regular course of business.
D.
Any person selling agricultural goods which the person has grown.
E.
Local service, charitable or educational groups or organizations
exempt by resolution of the Town Board.
F.
Any person who has an established place of business where the goods
and services being sold are offered for sale on a regular basis and
in where the buyer has initiated contact with and specifically requested
a home visit.
G.
Any sale required by statute or order of any court or conducted by
a bona fide auction.
Any person desiring to solicit sales or solicit contributions
shall apply to the Town Clerk and complete an application/license
form provided by the Town Clerk. The form shall include information
pertaining to:
A.
The name, address, and identity of the person(s) who will be soliciting;
B.
The name, address and identity of the person or organization on whose
behalf such solicitations will be made;
C.
The nature of things intended to be sold or the purpose of the contributions
solicited;
D.
The identification and registration of any vehicles to be used; and
E.
The length of time of the solicitation.
The Town Clerk shall approve or deny the application within
seven business days of submittal. The Town Clerk may refer any application
to any appropriate law enforcement agency for further investigation
and recommendation. The Town Clerk may exercise the discretion to
deny a license if the application contains a material omission or
materially incorrect statement or complaints of a material nature
have been received against the applicant by authorities in other jurisdictions
relating to the applicant's fitness to engage in commercial or
charitable solicitations.
In the event of license denial, the Town Clerk shall notify
the applicant by certified mail, stating the reasons for denial. The
notice shall indicate a time and date for review by the Town Board
and the right of the applicant to appear. The Town Board shall hear
any person for or against granting the license and shall render a
decision to grant or deny a license.
A license may be revoked by the Town Board if the application
contains any material omission or intentionally inaccurate statement;
if the licensee has violated the terms of this chapter; or if the
licensee was convicted of any crime or violated any other ordinance,
statute or rule which is related to the licensee's fitness to
solicit sales or contributions. The Town Board shall notify the licensee
by personal service or certified mail, stating the reasons for revocation,
at least 72 hours prior to the date and time set for a hearing on
the revocation by the Town Board.
A.
No person shall solicit sales or solicit contributions between the
hours of 7:00 p.m. and 9:00 a.m.
B.
No person shall misrepresent the purpose of the solicitation, the
principal employer or organization on whose behalf the solicitations
are made or the disposition of the proceeds of any sale or contribution.
C.
No transient merchant soliciting sales shall enter upon any premises
for the purpose of soliciting sales on any residential property posted
with an appropriate sign in a conspicuous place stating "No Peddlers"
or "No Soliciting" or words to that effect.
D.
No transient merchant shall falsely or fraudulently misrepresent
the quantity, character or quality of any article offered for sale;
offer for sale any unwholesome or tainted food; misrepresent the purpose
of his or her principal or employer; the source of supply; or the
disposition of the profits of his or her sales.
A.
After the initial greeting, any person soliciting sales or soliciting
contributions shall disclose his or her name, the name of the business
or organization he or she is affiliated with and the identity of the
goods and services offered.
B.
Any person soliciting sales or soliciting contributions who takes
an order for later delivery or accepts or receives payment or deposit
of money in advance of delivery shall provide the buyer with a written
statement containing the terms of the agreement, the amount paid in
advance, the person's name, address and telephone number and
the delivery or performance date.
After approval of an application as described above by the Town
Clerk and/or Town Board, a permit shall be issued at a cost of $200
for the first and $50 for each additional individual identified on
the applicable license form.
Any person who fails to obtain a permit as required by this
chapter prior to soliciting sales or contributions, or otherwise violates
any provision contained herein, shall be subject to a forfeiture of
not less than $50 nor more than $500, together with costs of prosecution,
including reasonable attorneys' fees. Each day that such violation
continues shall be considered a separate offense.
