In this article:
Going to one or more residences within the city in person
or by agent for the purpose of soliciting, selling, or taking orders
for merchandise or services.
Any printed or written matter, any sample or device, dodger,
circular, leaflet, pamphlet, paper, booklet, or any other printed
or otherwise reproduced original, or copies of any manner.
Engaging in a temporary business in the city in person or
by agent for the purpose of soliciting, selling, or taking orders
for merchandise or services.
Is used in its broadest sense and shall include property
of every kind.
Is used in its broadest sense and shall include any work
done for the benefit of another person.
Any such business for which definite arrangements have not
been made for the hire, rental, or lease of premises for at least
one month, in or upon which such business is to be operated or conducted.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.01; Ordinance 2022-30 adopted 10/20/2022)
This entire article is and shall be deemed to be an exercise
of the police power of the state and of the city for the public safety,
comfort, convenience, and protection of the city and health, life
and property of its citizens, and each provision contained herein
shall be construed for the accomplishment of that purpose.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.18)
The provisions of this article shall not be applicable to salespersons
calling upon or dealing with manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors,
brokers, or retailers at their places of business, and in the usual
course of their business, nor shall they be applicable to sales made
under authority and by order of law.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.17)
(a)
Compliance with sections 4.03.041 through 4.03.050, both inclusive, of this article shall not be required of persons engaged in interstate commerce; provided, however, that it shall be unlawful for persons engaged in interstate commerce to engage in any way [in any] of the activities named in section 4.03.041 hereof without having first registered with the city secretary, giving the following information:
(1)
Name, home address, and local address, if any, of the registrant.
(2)
Name and address of the person, firm, or corporation, if any, that
the registrant represents, or for whom or through whom orders are
to be solicited or cleared.
(3)
Nature of the articles or things which are to be sold or for which
orders are to be solicited.
(4)
If the registrant is an individual, a recent color photograph of
the registrant.
(5)
Proof of his identity, which may be in the form of an automobile
operator’s license, identification letter, or card issued to
the registrant by the person, firm, or corporation for whom or through
whom orders are to be solicited or cleared.
(b)
Registration
is effective for one year and must be presented upon request.
(c)
A
currently valid permit issued by another city will be accepted in
lieu of the registration permit provided for in this section.
(Ordinance 08-10, sec. 1, adopted 8/21/08)
It shall be unlawful for any person to enter a private residence under false pretenses for the purpose of engaging in any of the activities named in section 4.03.041 hereof.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.12)
It shall be unlawful for any person while engaged in any of the activities named in section 4.03.041 hereof to remain in a private residence or on the premises thereof after the owner or occupant has requested such person to leave.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.13)
It shall be unlawful for any person while engaged in any of the activities named in section 4.03.041 hereof to make or cause to be made any loud or unusual noise of such a nature as to cause the peace and quiet of the neighborhood to be disturbed.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.14)
It shall be unlawful for any person while engaged in any of the activities named in section 4.03.041 hereof to go to a private residence in this city for such purpose after 8:00 p.m. without a prior invitation from the occupants of said private residence.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.15)
(a)
A
person commits an offense if the person engages in solicitation activities,
canvassing activities, or handbill distribution, and distributes,
deposits, places, throws, scatters, or casts a handbill at a residence
except by:
(1)
Handing or transmitting the handbill directly to the owner or occupant
then present in or upon the premises; or
(2)
Without using adhesive or tape, placing or depositing the handbill
in a manner that secures the handbill and prevents it from being blown
away, except that mailboxes may not be used when the use is prohibited
by federal postal laws or regulations.
(Ordinance 2022-30 adopted 10/20/2022)
It shall be unlawful for any person, personally, by agent or
as the agent of another, to engage in door-to-door selling or itinerant
vending in the city without a license therefor as provided in this
article.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.02)
Any person desiring to engage in any of the activities named in section 4.03.041 hereof shall file a written application with the city secretary, verified by affidavit as to the truthfulness of its contents, and containing the following information:
(1)
Names,
residence and post office addresses, and telephone number of the applicant,
and, if the applicant is not a permanent resident of the city, the
applicant’s permanent residence and post office addresses, and
telephone number.
(2)
A
specific description of the occupation in which the applicant desires
to engage and for which the license is desired.
(3)
A
full and complete description of the merchandise or services which
the applicant desires to sell.
(4)
Whether
the applicant, upon any sale or order, shall demand, accept, or receive
payment or deposit of money in advance of final delivery or rendition
of the merchandise or services sold.
(5)
Names,
residence and post office addresses, and telephone numbers of three
individuals as character and business references with whom the city
shall be requested to communicate [with] reference to any information
it may desire regarding the applicant.
(6)
Whether or not the applicant has engaged in any of the activities named in section 4.03.041 in other cities and, if so, the names of the last three such cities and the dates of the applicant’s activities in such cities.
(7)
If
the applicant is an individual, the applicant’s age, sex, height,
weight, complexion, color of hair, color of eyes and fingerprints.
(8)
If
the applicant is an individual, a full and complete statement of the
applicant’s criminal record, if any, including a detailed account
of all arrests (whether convicted or not), offenses committed, convictions,
sentences received, time served, paroles or pardons received, and
the date, place, and jurisdiction relating to each such item.
(9)
If
the applicant is an individual, there shall be attached to the application
a recent photographic likeness of the applicant.
(10)
If the applicant is an agent of another, the name, address, and telephone
number of the applicant’s principal, and credentials which were
issued by the principal to the applicant and which set forth the extent
of the applicant’s authority to act for and bind the principal
shall be attached to the application.
(11)
If the applicant is a partnership, association, or joint venture,
the full names, addresses and telephone numbers of all partners, associates,
or joint ventures.
(12)
If the applicant is a corporation, the state of incorporation, the
principal place of business, the names, addresses and telephone numbers
of its officers, and, if a foreign corporation, whether it has a permit
to do business in the State of Texas.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.03)
At the time the application is filed, the applicant shall also
file with the city secretary a bond in the penal sum of one thousand
and no/100 dollars ($1,000.00), signed by the applicant as principal
and by a corporate surety company authorized to do business in the
state as surety, conditioned upon the final delivery or performance
of the merchandise or prior to delivery or performance [sic], and
also conditioned to indemnify any and all purchasers for any and all
defects in material or workmanship that may exist in the merchandise
sold or the services performed by the principal at the time of delivery
or performance, or that may be discovered within thirty days after
delivery or performance. Such bond shall be for the use and benefit
of all persons that may make any purchase, give any order, or enter
into any contact with the principal on such bond or the principal’s
agent. The surety may terminate its liability under such bond by giving
ten days’ written notice to the city secretary, after which
time the surety will not be liable for any subsequent act of the principal.
There shall be attached to the bond a certified copy of the surety
company’s resolution authorizing the person signing for the
surety company to act as its attorney in fact.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.04)
In the event the applicant is an acknowledged agent of a licensee hereunder who has on file with the city secretary a blanket bond, conditioned as provided in section 4.03.043, and covering the activities of all of such licensee’s agents, no additional bond shall be required so long as the applicant acts solely as the agent of such licensee. Acknowledgement of such agent shall be made in writing by such licensee and mailed direct to the city secretary.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.05)
At the same time the application is filed with the city secretary, the applicant shall pay to the city a fee as prescribed in the fee schedule in appendix A of this code, which fee shall be compensation to the city for the services herein required of it and to enable the city to partially defray the expenses of investigation, surveillance, and the enforcement of the provisions of this article.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.06)
Within ten days after an applicant has fully complied with the provisions of sections 4.03.042 through 4.03.045, both inclusive, the city secretary shall issue to the applicant a license to engage in the activities named in section 4.03.041 for a period of one year from the date of issuance.
Provided, however, no license shall be issued to an applicant
whose application contains one or more statements or answers which
are false in whole or in part, nor shall a license be issued to any
applicant who has been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.07)
Any license issued under the provisions of this article shall be automatically suspended when the surety terminates its liability on the licensee’s bond, or the principal’s bond if the licensee is the agent of another, or upon expiration of the licensee’s bond or the principal’s bond if the licensee is the agent of another, and such license shall be reinstated only upon the filing with the city secretary of a new bond meeting the requirements of section 4.03.043 or 4.03.044 hereof, and the city council may suspend for a period not exceeding six months the license of any holder who is convicted in the municipal court of a violation of any provision of this article. Suspension of any such license, for whatever cause, shall automatically suspend the license of all agents of such licensee. During any such period of suspension it shall be unlawful for the holder to engage in any of the activities named in section 4.03.041 hereof.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.08)
Any license issued under the provisions of this article shall
be automatically revoked and cancelled upon the holder’s conviction
of a crime involving moral turpitude, and the city council may revoke
and cancel the license of any holder who is convicted in the municipal
court of three or more violations of any one or more provisions of
this article within any twelve-month period, or whose agents are convicted
in the municipal court of three or more violations of any one or more
provisions of this article within any twelve-month period, and they
may provide that no license shall thereafter be issued to such holder.
Revocation of any license, for whatever cause, shall automatically
revoke the license of all agents of such licensee.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.09)
When engaged in door-to-door selling, the license required by
this article shall be carried by the salesperson and shall upon request
be submitted to any police officer or citizen for examination. Otherwise,
such license shall be prominently displayed upon the premises or place
where the business authorized thereunder is being carried on or conducted.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.10)
The license provided for in this article shall not be transferable, nor shall it give authority to anyone other than the licensee named thereon the engage in the activities named in section 4.03.041 hereof.
(2005 Code, sec. 5.4.11)
