Village of West Haverstraw, NY Chapter 164 Hawking, Vending, Peddling and Soliciting

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of West Haverstraw 2-15-2017 by L.L. No 2-2017[1]. Amendments noted where applicable.]

[1] Editor’s Note: This local law also provided for the repeal of former Ch.164, Peddling and Soliciting, adopted 3-3-1971, as Ch. 16 of the 1971 Code, as amended.

§ 164-1 Purpose.

This chapter is enacted for the purpose of regulating itinerant merchandising in order that the peace, health, safety, welfare and good order of the Village and its inhabitants shall not be endangered or unduly disturbed.

§ 164-2 Definitions.

As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:

ESTABLISHED PLACE OF BUSINESS

A permanent building, store or depository in which or where the person transacts business and deals in the goods, wares, food and/or beverage products, property (real or personal), services or commodities he hawks or peddles in the ordinary and regular course of business.

HAWK, VEND, SOLICIT AND PEDDLE

Shall include any activity involving any person traveling by foot, wagon, automotive vehicle or any other type of conveyance, from place to place, from house to house or from street to street, or by temporarily occupying a room, building or other premises, selling, bartering or trading, or offering to purchase, barter or trade, any goods, wares, commodities, food and/or beverage products, property (real or personal) or services.

PERSON

Shall be deemed to include any individual, firm, partnership, corporation, unincorporated association and principal or agent thereof.

TEMPORARY OCCUPANCY

A store, room, building, tent, enclosure or structure of any kind intended to be occupied for the period of time necessary to hawk, vend, peddle or solicit the goods, wares, commodities, food and/or beverage products therein housed initially without the intent to replenish or restock such goods, wares, commodities, food and/or beverage products sold therein. In all prosecutions for a violation of this chapter, the intent of the defendant to conduct an established place of business shall be material fact and the burden of proving such intent shall be upon the defendant in such prosecution.

§ 164-3 Unlawful to hawk, vend, peddle or solicit without license.

It shall be unlawful for any person to hawk, vend, peddle or solicit any goods, wares, commodities, food and/or beverage products, property (real or personal) or services within the Village of West Haverstraw without first having obtained a license therefor from the Village Clerk, unless the solicitation is at the personal request of the person solicited.

§ 164-4 Exemptions from license.

The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to the following:

A. An honorably discharged soldier, sailor or marine, who is disabled as a result of injuries received while in the naval or military service of the United States.

B. The holder of a license granted pursuant to Article 4 of the General Business Law of the State of New York.

C. A wholesaler selling articles to dealers or merchants who have an established place of business within the Village.

D. A truck gardener or farmer who himself or through his employees vends, sells or disposes of products of his own farm or garden.

E. A child regularly attending any public or parochial or private school located within the Village of West Haverstraw or a representative of any established church maintaining a place of worship within the Village or a member of a veteran's organization, provided that such organization has and maintains a chapter, post, lodge, camp or other group within the Village of West Haverstraw, or a member of a fraternal organization or a civic group, provided that such fraternal organization or civic group maintains a chapter or local organization and further provided that any person coming within the provisions of this exemption shall only hawk or peddle in connection with an authorized activity of the organization of which they are a member or the school which they attend.

F. Auction sales held pursuant to law by a sheriff or other officer authorized by law to conduct such sale.

G. This chapter shall not apply to sale of daily newspapers, nor shall it be interpreted as intending to nor shall it be construed to unlawfully interfere with the conduct of interstate commerce or the impairment of the rights of free speech, press or publication. It shall be construed as implementing and not as limiting the purposes and provisions of the New York State Home Solicitation Sales Act.[1]

[1] Editor's Note: See Personal Property Law § 425 et seq.

H. Any person soliciting at the express invitation of the person solicited or serving an established customer.

I. Any person who is operating a food and/or beverage concession on Village-owned lands, or within a Village-owned park, playground or parklands, under a subsisting license agreement or contract with the Village.

§ 164-5 Application for license.

A. Any person desiring to procure a license as provided in this chapter shall file with the Village Clerk an application, in duplicate, in writing, on a form to be furnished by the Village Clerk:

(1) Name of applicant.

(2) Permanent home residence.

(3) Name and address of firm represented, if any.

(4) The length of time for which the license is required.

(5) A description of the goods, wares, food and/or beverage products, services or commodities to be offered for sale.

(6) If a vehicle is to be used, a description of the same, together with the license number or other means of identification.

(7) A statement as to whether or not the applicant has been convicted of any crime, misdemeanor or violation of any law, the nature of the offense and the penalty assessed therefor.

(8) To the application must be appended a letter of authorization from the firm which the applicant purports to represent.

(9) All locations within the Village where the applicant intends to conduct his hawking, vending, peddling and/or soliciting, with enough particularity so as to enable the Village Clerk to render his or her determination as to the issuance of a license.

(10) Such other information as may reasonably be requested by the Village.

B. The Village Clerk shall not issue a license after the effective date of this chapter unless and until the applicant shall furnish satisfactory proof of compliance with the provisions hereof.

§ 164-6 Granting of license.

A. Upon receipt of the application and of the license fee, and if reasonably satisfied with the applicant's qualifications, the Village Clerk shall issue a license to the applicant, specifying the particular business authorized and the location wherein it may be conducted. This license shall be nontransferable and shall be in the continuous possession of the licensee while engaged in the business licensed. The license shall be produced upon the demand of any Village official or prospective buyer.

B. Nothing contained in this chapter, as same may be amended from time to time, shall permit hawking and peddling where otherwise prohibited by any federal, state, county or Village law, ordinance, regulation or statute; and the Village Clerk's issuance of a license under this hawking, vending, peddling and soliciting chapter shall be subject to all other applicable federal, state, county and Village laws, ordinances, regulations and statutes that govern the hawking, vending, peddling and/or soliciting activities, operations or conduct, and the compliance with such other laws, ordinances, regulations and statutes shall be the responsibility, duty and obligation of the hawker, vender, peddler and solicitor.

§ 164-7 Recording of license.

A. The Village Clerk shall keep a record of all applications, the determinations thereon, and of all licenses issued in accordance with this chapter. The record shall contain the name and residence of the person licensed, the location of the business, the amount of the license fee paid, and the date of revocation of all licenses revoked.

B. All licenses issued hereunder shall expire on the 31st day of December of each year immediately following their issuance, except that a license issued for a shorter period than one year shall expire at the expiration of the period for which it is issued.

§ 164-8 Schedule of fees.

A. At the time of filing of an application for a license pursuant to this chapter, a fee as set forth in Chapter A255, Fees, shall be paid to defray the cost of the investigation required by § 164-5.

B. The license fees for all licenses hereunder shall be set by resolution of the Village Board.

§ 164-9 Restrictions.

A licensed hawker, vendor, peddler or solicitor shall comply with the following restrictions, or be subject to the revocation of his or her license, pursuant to the provisions of § 164-10:

A. Not willfully misstate the quantity or quality of any article offered for sale.

B. Not willfully offer for sale any article of an unwholesome or defective nature.

C. Not call attention to his goods, wares, commodities, food and/or beverage products or services by blowing a horn, by ringing a bell other than a house doorbell, by shouting or crying or by any loud or unusual noise.

D. Not frequent any street, road or highway in an exclusive nature so as to cause a private or public nuisance.

E. Keep the vehicle and/or receptacles used by him in the furtherance of his licensed business in a sound, clean and sanitary condition.

F. Keep his edible articles offered for sale well protected from dirt, dust and insects.

G. Not remain, stand nor permit any vehicle used by him to remain or stand in one place in any public road, highway, public place or street for more than 10 minutes, nor in front of any premises for any time if the owner or any lessee of the premises objects, nor resume operations during the same business day from a new location within 1/4 mile of said former place or site. This subsection shall not apply to the sale of prepared foods and/or the sale of beverages by vendors licensed by the County of Rockland pursuant to Article 4 of the General Business Law of the State of New York and otherwise licensed, as may be required, by the Rockland County Department of Health.

H. Not create or maintain any booth or stand or place any barrels, boxes or other obstructions upon any road, public place or street for the purpose of selling or exposing for sale any goods, wares, commodities, food and/or beverage products.

I. Not sell silly string, or similar-type goods, or snap caps and stink-bomb devices, or similar projectile devices during a parade or public event in the Village of West Haverstraw.

J. Not knock on, ring the doorbell of, enter the yard or driveway of, or otherwise contact any home, homeowner or the occupant or occupants of any home listed on the Village of West Haverstraw "Do Not Knock Registry" maintained by the Village Clerk's office, and/or which displays the Village "Do Not Knock" decal, for the purpose of hawking, vending, peddling or soliciting.

K. Not hawk, vend, peddle or otherwise solicit between the hours of 8:00 p.m. and 9:00 a.m.

L. Not conduct himself or herself in such a manner likely to unreasonably annoy, alarm or harass an occupant of any house.

M. Not show or display his or her hawk, vend, peddle or solicit license when requested by any person solicited or any police officer.

N. Not make any material misrepresentation regarding himself or herself, or the entity he or she represents, or the product or service involved on the license application, or while doing business in the Village, including, but not limited to, whether he or she has been convicted of a crime of dishonesty or moral turpitude.

O. Not otherwise conduct himself or herself in a manner likely to endanger the health, safety or general welfare of the public.

§ 164-10 Revocation of license.

A license may be summarily revoked by the Village Clerk by reason of a violation of the terms of the license; the violation of any municipal ordinance, state or federal statute; or for falsification in applying for a license. Written notice of such revocation, stating the terms therefor, shall be personally served upon the licensee or mailed to the address given in the application. Upon the filing of such notice of revocation in the Village Clerk's office, with affidavit of service by mailing, such license shall be revoked. A hearing upon the revocation of the license shall be granted the licensee if said licensee shall request such a hearing as hereinafter provided.

§ 164-11 Review.

In the event of the revocation of a license pursuant to the provisions of § 164-10 hereof or in the event of the denial of a license to any applicant by the Village Clerk to countersign a license, the applicant may request a hearing within a period of 30 days after such revocation, refusal and denial. Such request shall be in writing and shall be made to the Village Board of the Village of West Haverstraw and filed with the Village Clerk within the period provided herein. The Village Board shall hear such applicant's request for a review of the determination of the Village Clerk at the next regularly scheduled meeting of said Village Board following the filing of the application for review with the Village Clerk. The Village Board may grant a license to the applicant if it should determine that the refusal on the part of the Village Clerk was arbitrary or otherwise in error. If the Village Board, after such hearing, shall determine that the decision of the Village Clerk was not arbitrary and was justified under the circumstances, the Board shall refuse such license. The decision on any hearing shall be rendered by the Village Board, in writing, within 45 days after the hearing thereof and shall be entered in the minutes of the Village Board.

§ 164-12 "Do Not Knock Registry."

A. The Village Clerk shall prepare and maintain a list of addresses where the owner and/or occupant has notified the Village Clerk that hawking, vending, peddling and soliciting is not desired (hereinafter referred to as the "Do Not Knock Registry"). Notification shall be by completion of a form available at the Village Clerk's office during normal business hours. The list shall be updated as needed by the Village Clerk.

B. Any owner and/or occupant requesting to be enrolled on the "Do Not Knock Registry," pursuant to Subsection A hereof, may also obtain from the Village Clerk a decal for display at his/her/its premises, reflecting the premises' enrollment on the "Do Not Knock Registry."

C. The Village Clerk shall make available the then-current "Do Not Knock Registry" to all licensees at the time the license to hawk, vend, peddle and solicit is issued or renewed pursuant to the provisions of this chapter. It shall be a violation of this chapter for any licensee to hawk, vend, peddle or solicit at any premises identified on the then-current "Do Not Knock Registry."

§ 164-13 Violations and penalties.

Any person who shall act as a hawker, vendor, peddler or solicitor, as herein defined, without a license or who shall violate any of the provisions of this chapter or who shall continue to act as a hawker, vendor, peddler or solicitor subsequent to the revocation of his or her license shall be subject to a penalty as follows:

A. For a first offense, a fine of not less than $500 and not more than $1,500;

B. For a second offense within 24 months, as measured from occurrence to occurrence, a fine of not less than $1,500 and not more than $3,500; and

C. For a third, or more, offense within 24 months, a fine of not less than $3,500 and not more than $10,000, or imprisonment not to exceed 15 days, or both.

§ 164-14 Invalidity.

If any portion of this chapter shall be declared invalid for any reason, the remainder thereof shall not by that reason be deemed invalid and shall continue in full force and effect.