[Amended 9-20-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-11]
It is hereby determined, declared and recited
that the legitimate business or practice of peddling, soliciting and
canvassing from door to door or place to place, regardless of purpose,
affords a means for the criminal-minded to obtain admittance to private
homes or to survey private homes in furtherance of some present or
future unlawful objective and an opportunity for the practice of fraud,
deceit and dishonest dealing by the unscrupulous minority with redress
difficult because of lack of means of identifying the peddler or solicitor,
and, consequently, public safety and welfare require that those going
from door to door, house to house or place to place for any purpose
be required first to give such information as will identify themselves
and prevent possible abuse of the right by the criminally inclined.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
EXPRESS INVITATION
The making of calls as part of a service to which the occupant
of the house subscribes.
PEDDLE or SOLICIT
The act of going from door to door or house to house within
this township without prior express invitation or request from the
occupant of the premises at which the call is made, or going from
place to place within the Township of Maple Shade, for any purpose
or in any fashion, including but not limited to the vending, selling,
offering for sale, distribution, dissemination or delivery of goods,
wares, merchandise or services, or of written, oral or recorded intelligence
or communication or invitation of any kind, including the ringing
of a bell, buzzer or alarm, or requesting, inviting or taking orders
or subscriptions for present or future delivery or furnishing of any
such things or matters; or for the purpose of making canvasses, surveys
or the like or doing any other act which is commonly comprehended
within the terms "soliciting," "canvassing" or "peddling." The foregoing
definition shall not include the discharge of any governmental duty,
the giving of an alarm of fire or other emergency warning, campaigning
by any political party or by the candidates of any political party,
or soliciting duly authorized by a charitable or nonprofit organization,
provided that prior written notice of such solicitation is given to
the Chief of Police.
[Amended 9-20-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-11]
[Amended 12-2-1987 by Ord. No. 1987-27; 9-20-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-11]
No person shall peddle or solicit from door
to door or place to place within this township without first registering
and obtaining a registration card from the Chief of Police or designee
of the Township of Maple Shade as provided in this chapter.
[Amended 12-2-1987 by Ord. No. 1987-27]
A. Upon compliance by the applicant with the terms of
this chapter and upon approval of his or her application by the Chief
of Police or the governing body of the Township of Maple Shade, there
shall be issued to the applicant a registration card indicating that
the person named thereon is registered in accordance with the terms
of this chapter. Such card shall have securely fixed thereto one of
the photographs submitted, and it shall be signed by the Chief of
Police or designee in such fashion that part of his or her signature
extends over a portion of such photograph.
B. Such registration card shall remain the property of
the Township of Maple Shade and may be immediately suspended by the
Chief of Police or designee for any violation of this chapter and,
within five days of such suspension, upon written notice and the reasons
therefor and an opportunity to be heard, revoked by the governing
body of the Township of Maple Shade for such cause.
C. Each registrant shall forthwith advise the Chief of
Police or designee in writing of any change in registration data required
above, and, upon request, the registrant shall furnish new photographs
when the ones provided become unrepresentative of his or her likeness.
[Amended 9-20-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-11]
A. The registrant shall:
(1) Carry the registration card with him or her at all
times while peddling or soliciting and exhibit it to any person upon
request.
(2) Promptly notify the Chief of Police or designee of any
change of address or any change in any of the data he or she has given
on his or her application form.
[Amended 12-2-1987 by Ord. No. 1987-27]
B. No registrant shall peddle or solicit before 8:00
a.m. or after 4:00 p.m. each day, except that during the period from
Memorial Day to Labor Day the peddling or soliciting may be done until
7:00 p.m. each day. No peddling or soliciting shall be done at any
time on Sunday.
C. Soliciting prohibited; signs and stickers.
[Amended 6-27-2019 by Ord. No.
2019-14]
(1) No registrant or unregistered canvasser, solicitor, itinerant merchant,
transient vendor, peddler, or hawker shall peddle or solicit at any
residence or other building when barred by the resident by a sign
with words to the effect that solicitors or peddlers are not invited
or are prohibited.
(2) In an attempt to allow residents to be free from door-to-door solicitations,
residents may elect to display prominently on their outermost front
doors an official "No Knock" sticker issued by the Township of Maple
Shade Police Department that signifies that the residents do not wish
to be disturbed. No registrant or unregistered canvasser, solicitor,
itinerant merchant, transient vendor, peddler, or hawker shall knock
on the door or ring the doorbell of any residence upon which a "No
Knock" sticker is so affixed. At the time that the registration card
is issued as set forth above, registrants shall be provided a sample
of the Township of Maple Shade "No Knock" sticker and a copy of this
chapter.
The provisions of this chapter shall not be
construed so as to interfere with any constitutional right of freedom
of speech or religion, nor so as to place undue burden upon interstate
commerce.
[Amended 9-5-1984 by Ord. No. 1984-11; 9-20-2000 by Ord. No.
2000-11; 4-16-2008 by Ord. No. 2008-07]
Any person who shall violate any provisions of this chapter, upon conviction, shall be subject to the penalty as provided in Chapter
1, Article
II, herein.