[Amended 9-16-1992 by L.L. No. 18-1992]
A. This chapter shall be known as the "Peddling, Soliciting
and Canvassing Law of the Town of Yorktown." It is a chapter regulating
peddling, soliciting and canvassing to preserve the safety, health,
welfare and peace and general good order of the town and its inhabitants.
B. It is the intent of the Town of Yorktown to assure
peddling, soliciting and canvassing in the town is conducted in a
safe, peaceful manner without inconvenience to town residents. The
Town of Yorktown is particularly committed to ensuring that peddling
and soliciting within the town is conducted in a safe manner. It is
hereby found that to adequately protect motorist and pedestrian safety,
it is necessary to regulate peddling and soliciting along the state
highways within the Town of Yorktown. These sections of state highways
are all heavily trafficked at high speeds. Police records indicate
a relatively high number of accidents along these areas. Ingress and
egress from the rights-of-way and sides of these areas, particularly
across traffic, presents an unsafe condition for motorist(s). In fact,
due to potential safety hazards, Subdivision (c) of § 1157
of the Vehicle and Traffic Law prohibits any person from peddling
or soliciting from any section of a state highway. However, § 32
of the General Business Law provides in relevant part that every honorably
discharged member of the Armed Forces of the United States who is
a New York State resident and a veteran of any war shall have the
right to peddle or sell goods upon the streets and highways within
the county of his or her residence by procuring a license for that
purpose. Thus, for certain war veterans, § 32 of the General
Business Law carves out an exception to the rule that no person shall
peddle or solicit from a state highway. However, this privilege is
purely personal to such veterans and has no application to any associate,
partner or employee of the licensee. Moreover, this privilege is further
limited by the fact that under Subdivision 8 of § 32 of
the General Business Law, any veteran holding a veteran's license
is made subject to any local law or ordinance requiring a further
application to the city, village or town for the issuance of a local
license. While the right to peddle the veteran's ware may be prohibited
altogether by such ordinance, the Town Board has decided to reasonably
regulate veteran peddling on state highways to assure public safety
and welfare.
C. It is hereby found that to adequately protect motorist
and pedestrian safety, it is necessary to prohibit peddling and soliciting
by war veterans along the following sections of state highways, including
any area which requires ingress and egress along these areas:
(1) Along Route 6 between Hill Boulevard and the point
750 feet past the westerly side of Sunnyside Street.
(2) Along Route 6 between the point 1,250 feet east of
Mountain Brook Road and the point 1,250 feet east of Mountain Brook
Road.
For the purposes of this chapter, certain words
used herein are defined as follows:
CANVASSER
Any person who, by going from house to house or place of
business to place of business or any combination thereof, predominantly
seeks contributions, fundraisers, petitions, solicits membership,
disseminates information or conducts activities which would not be
characteristic of a peddler or solicitor.
ESTABLISHED PLACE OF BUSINESS
A building, store or depository in which or where the person
transacts business and deals in goods, wares, merchandise or services
in the ordinary and regular course of business.
PEDDLER
Any person who, in any street or public place or by going
from house to house or from place to place, or any combination thereof,
on foot or from any vehicle, sells or barters or offers for sale or
barter or carries or displays for sale or barter any goods, wares,
merchandise or services. For the purposes of this chapter, the entity
which engages a person as their agent for the purposes of peddling
is also considered a "peddler," within the meaning of this section,
and is subject to all provisions herein.
PERSON
Any individual, including veterans of the armed forces of
the United States, firm, copartnership, corporation, company, association
or joint-stock association, church, religious sect, religious denomination,
society, organizations or league, and includes any trustee, receiver,
assignee, agent or other representative thereof.
SOLICITOR
Any person, either principal or agent, traveling either by
foot or by any conveyance from place to place, from house to house,
from street to street or from place to place, or any combination thereof,
who takes or offers to take orders for the sale of any goods, wares
or merchandise, for present or future delivery, or for the performance
of future services, whether or not he collects advance payments for
such sale or service. For the purposes of this chapter, the entity
which engages a person or their agent for the purpose of soliciting,
is also considered a solicitor within the meaning of this section
and is subject to all provisions herein.
STATE HIGHWAY
Highways within the Town of Yorktown classified as state
highways pursuant to Highway Law § 3, Subdivision 1, and/or
designated as such on the Official Highway Map of the New York State
Department of Transportation showing the location of state highways.
It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in the business of peddler or solicitor as defined in §
219-2 of this Chapter without having first obtained and having in force and effect a license therefor as herein provided.
Nothing contained in this chapter shall be deemed
to apply to any of the following:
A. A sale conducted pursuant to an order of any court.
B. A wholesaler selling articles to dealers or merchants
who have an established place of business in town.
C. Any person selling goods, wares, merchandise or services
regularly to those who are his established customers, patrons or purchasers.
D. Any candidate running for a governmental office or
his representatives.
E. A child 18 years of age or under who resides within
the Town of Yorktown and who solicits or peddles on behalf of a charitable,
religious, athletic, social, educational or civic organization, including
but not limited to the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Cub Scouts, Brownie
Scouts, clubs, classes or organizations sponsored by the Lakeland
or Yorktown High School of which such child is a member.
F. The peddling of meats, fish, fruit and farm produce
by farmers and persons who produce such commodities on their own land,
provided that they have otherwise complied with all applicable licensing
and health and safety requirements of any other competent governmental
body or agency, as well as the Zoning Code of the town, and the sale
takes place from a stationery location upon property owned or leased
by the seller of such goods.
G. A not-for-profit organization's sale of food ancillary
to a fundraising event, such as a picnic or carnival, that lasts no
longer than five consecutive days. This exemption shall not apply
to any door-to-door peddling or soliciting.
[Added 9-16-1992 by L.L. No. 18-1992]
[Amended 6-6-2017 by L.L.
No. 9-2017]
A. The fees for licenses for the following shall be in an amount as
set forth in the Master Fee Schedule:
(1) Principal peddling or soliciting from a vehicle.
(2) Each additional agent peddling or soliciting from a particular vehicle.
(3) Any person, either principal or agent, peddling or soliciting by
foot.
B. Provided that such person has completed the application for a license
and has met all other requirements as set forth in this chapter for
issuance of a license, there shall be no fee for such license for
an honorably discharged member of the Armed Forces of the United States
who is the holder of a license issued pursuant to § 32 of
the General Business Law of the State of New York.
All licenses issued hereunder shall automatically
expire on December 31 of the year of its issuance.
Licenses are nonrenewable. Each person shall file with the Town Clerk a complete application as set forth in §
219-5 on a yearly basis, except that the requirements of §
219-5C pertaining to fingerprints need only be submitted once by each individual.
Licenses issued under the provisions of this chapter may be revoked by the Town Clerk for cause after written notice, including but not limited to the same reasons for denying an application listed above in §
219-6C.
Any person aggrieved by the action of the Town
Clerk in the denial or revocation of a license as provided herein
may appeal to the Town Board. Such appeal shall be taken by filing
with the Board, within 14 days after the notice of the action complained
of has been mailed, a written statement which sets forth the grounds
for appeal. The Town Board shall set a time and place for a hearing
on such appeal, and notice of such hearing shall be published in the
local newspaper no more than 20 days nor less than 10 days prior to
such hearing. Such notice shall also be served personally or by certified
mail to the applicant, licensee or registrant at the address provided
on his application at least five days prior to the date set for the
hearing. The decision of the Town Board on such appeal shall be final
and conclusive.
The Town Clerk shall keep a record of all applications,
licenses, registrations and revocations hereunder.