[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of the Branch 7-14-2020 by L.L. No. 4-2020. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
Except as may otherwise be provided herein, no person or entity
may hawk, vend, peddle or solicit orders for any services, goods,
wares, merchandise or other commodities in the highways and public
places of the Village, or by going from house to house, or distribute
or peddle any handbills, pamphlets, advertisements or other like matter
on the highways of the Village or by going from house to house, unless
a permit therefor has first been obtained pursuant to this chapter.
Application for a permit as provided in this chapter must be
in writing on a form prescribed by the Village and delivered to the
Village Clerk and must contain the following information:
A.
Name and address of individual or names and addresses of the officers
and directors of the entity;
B.
A brief description of the nature of the business and the goods to
be sold or services to be performed;
C.
Time for which permission is sought to solicit, giving the date of
the commencement and the date of termination of the solicitation;
D.
Legal status of the entity;
E.
The name, address and copy of government-issued identification for
the person or persons who will be conducting the solicitation or otherwise
peddling, soliciting or canvassing;
F.
If a vehicle is to be used in the solicitation, a description of
same, including year, make and model, together with a license plate
number, registration certification information and liability insurance
information or other satisfactory means of identification (this information
will be presented for inspection, upon demand, by any Village official);
G.
The names of any other municipalities in Suffolk County in which
the person registering has solicited or otherwise peddled, solicited
or canvassed within the previous 12 months; and
H.
Such other information as the Village Board of Trustees may require.
All applications must be accompanied by a $25 fee payable to
the Village. Upon approval of the permit, a fee of $200 must be paid
to the Village.
Upon receiving such application, the Village Clerk will present
the same to the Board of Trustees at its next regular meeting, but
not later than 60 calendar days from the date the application is filed.
The Board of Trustees will approve the application of all bona fide
applicants who have complied with the above provisions. Notwithstanding
the foregoing, the Board of Trustees may deny the application for
any of the following reasons:
A.
An investigation reveals that the applicant falsified information
on the application.
B.
The applicant, or officer or director of the applicant, or the person
conducting the soliciting, has been convicted of a felony, misdemeanor
or ordinance violation involving a sex offense, trafficking in controlled
substances or any violent act against persons or property.
C.
The applicant, or officer or director of the applicant, or the person
conducting the soliciting, is a person against whom a judgment or
administrative agency determination has been entered or a conviction
obtained within the five years immediately preceding the date of the
application based upon fraud, deceit or misrepresentation.
D.
The solicitation involves the sale of illegal substances or services.
E.
The applicant does not possess any applicable licenses, permits or
other approvals required by the United States, the State of New York,
the County of Suffolk or the Town of Smithtown.
Any permit granted by the Board of Trustees is subject to the
following restrictions and conditions:
A.
Payment by the applicant to the Village of the license fee of $200;
B.
All activity must be conducted on weekdays and Saturdays only between
the hours of 9:00 a.m. and dusk (30 minutes after sunset);
C.
Any entity or person licensed under this chapter will not have more
than five individuals engaged in the activity on their behalf at any
one time; and
D.
The permit will be effective for no more than six months from the
date of issuance. There will be no proration of fees.
A.
Any person not desiring hawking, peddling, vending, or solicitation
or distributing or peddling of any handbills, pamphlets, advertisements
or other like matter (collectively, "soliciting") on the person's
private property may advise the Board of Trustees by written notice
objecting to any or all solicitation or distributions. Such notice
shall include the name of the person filing; the address of the property
affected; the date of the filing; a statement specifically identifying
the organizations or institutions which the person filing objects
to permitting entrance onto his or her private residential property
for the purpose of soliciting or that all soliciting is objected to.
B.
Soliciting will not be permitted on the properties of those persons
who have advised the Board of Trustees, in writing, that they do not
desire soliciting.
All persons soliciting donations or contributions or proselytizing,
on behalf of an entity pursuant to this chapter, must, at all times
during such solicitation, carry an identification card issued by the
entity licensed to conduct the solicitation. Each identification card
shall be displayed on the outer garment and must plainly show the
name of the person who is soliciting, his or her photograph and the
entity on whose behalf such solicitation is being made.
Any and all permits which may be granted by the Board of Trustees
pursuant to any part of this chapter may, for cause, be suspended
by the Mayor and may be revoked by the Board of Trustees after notice
and hearing for any of the following causes:
If any portion of this chapter is prohibited by federal or state
law, this chapter will not apply to the activities protected thereby
and will not apply to constitutionally protected religious or political
or other constitutionally protected speech.
Any person or entity committing an offense against any provision
of this chapter will, upon conviction thereof, be guilty of a violation
pursuant to the Penal Law of the State of New York, punishable by
a fine not exceeding $750 or by imprisonment for a term not exceeding
15 days, or by both such fine and imprisonment. The continuation of
an offense against the provisions of this chapter shall constitute,
for each day the offense is continued, a separate and distinct offense
hereunder.
If a court determines that any clause, sentence, paragraph,
subdivision, or part of this chapter or the application thereof to
any person, firm or corporation, or circumstance is invalid or unconstitutional,
the court's order or judgment will not affect, impair, or invalidate
the remainder of this chapter, but will be confined in its operation
to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, or part of this chapter
or in its application to the person, individual, firm or corporation
or circumstance, directly involved in the controversy in which such
judgment or order will be rendered.
This chapter will take effect immediately upon filing with the
Secretary of State.
