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Township of Burlington, NJ
Burlington County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
AUCTIONEER
A person who sells real property or personal property of other persons at auctions which are open to the public.
NON-PROFIT-MAKING VENDOR
A person who sells goods, the proceeds of which are devoted exclusively to the purposes of a philanthropic, charitable or religious society on whose behalf he acts as agent with or without pay, but excluding those individuals or organizations soliciting for funds or other thing or value for which no merchandise, wares or services are given in return.
PEDDLER
A person, commonly referred to either as a "transient merchant," "itinerant vendor," "route salesman," "peddler," "hawker" or other such person who goes from place to place by traveling on the streets or from house to house and carries with him foodstuffs, goods, wares and merchandise for the purpose of selling and delivering them to consumers or who, without carrying merchandise, sells or proposes to sell services of any kind, including but not limited to painting, landscaping, subscriptions and photography.
SOLICITOR
A person selling the above-described articles or services by sample or taking orders for future delivery, with or without accepting an advance payment for the goods and regardless of whether the solicitation is made by telephone or personal contact; the provisions of this chapter shall apply to the person who comes in contact with the buyer through the delivery of the goods or the acceptance of any monies in payment thereof.
This chapter shall not affect any person duly licensed by the Commissioner of Banking and Insurance of the State of New Jersey nor shall it be deemed to apply to any person operating pursuant to an authorized and sanctioned program conducted by the Board of Education of the Township of Burlington, provided that a letter from the Board of Education indicating the program's existence shall have been filed with the Police Department of the Township of Burlington.
The purpose of this chapter is to prevent unfair competition and dishonest business practice by regulation of the parties specified in § 407-1 et seq.
It shall be unlawful for any person to sell or dispose of or offer to sell or dispose of any foodstuffs, goods, wares or merchandise within the Township of Burlington without first obtaining a license and having paid the license and/or other fees hereinafter prescribed. This provision shall not be applicable to the issuance of temporary licenses for the sale of merchandise on off-site property not owned by the applicant for the said license.
The Police Department of the Township of Burlington is hereby appointed as the enforcement official to enforce the provisions of this chapter.
A. 
Application required. Any person desiring a license shall file with the Director of Public Safety an application blank, which shall contain the following information:
[Amended 10-27-2009 by Ord. No. 09-OR-024]
(1) 
Name of applicant.
(2) 
Permanent home residence.
(3) 
Name and address of the firm represented, the names and addresses of the persons from which goods making up the stock were or are to be purchased.
(4) 
Three business references.
(5) 
The place or places of residence of the applicant for the preceding three years.
(6) 
The length of time for which the license if desired.
(7) 
A description of the wares to be offered for sale.
(8) 
The number of arrests or convictions against the said applicant.
(9) 
To the application must be appended a letter from the firm for which he purports to work, authorizing the applicant to act as its representative, and two copies of a photograph of the applicant.
B. 
Review of application. The Public Safety Director shall verify the information on the application.
C. 
Issuance of license. Upon approval of the application and payment of the fee, the license shall be issued by the Public Safety Director of the Township of Burlington, who shall keep all the necessary records pertaining thereto. For all license classes, the license shall not authorize any person except the person named in said license to engage in business thereunder. Said license shall not be transferable from the person to whom issued to any other person. A separate license must be obtained by a licensed peddler or solicitor for every agent or employee working for him.
[Amended 3-27-2012 by Ord. No. 12-OR-005; 5-22-2012 by Ord. No. 12-OR-009]
A. 
Processing charge. A fee of $100 shall be paid for the processing of each license application and shall apply to each individual who makes application for said license. Said processing fee shall include the issuance of the license and the license issued therefor.
B. 
License fee. The license fee under this chapter shall be $25 annually with said license being issued on the first day of each year. No license fee shall be prorated for any portion of the year.
The following license fees only shall not apply to:
A. 
Any person honorably discharged from the military, naval or marine forces of the United States.
B. 
Any person who conducts a sale pursuant to statute or court order.
C. 
Any person who is an exempt member of a volunteer fire district as defined by New Jersey Public Law.
[Amended 10-27-2009 by Ord. No. 09-OR-025]
D. 
Any person who has an established local business. Local business shall be defined to mean that there must be within the Township of Burlington an establishment which displays and offers for sale the same products that the solicitor, peddler or hawker offer for sale.
E. 
Non-profit-making peddlers shall not be required to pay a license fee.
F. 
Non-profit-making vendors shall not be required to pay any license fee.
[Amended 9-23-2008 by Ord. No. 08-OR-025; 10-27-2009 by Ord. No. 09-OR-024]
All persons to whom a license shall be issued hereunder shall observe the following regulations, and for any violation thereof the license shall be immediately revoked by the Director of Public Safety.
A. 
Parking prohibited. No person or vehicle shall stand or be parked for the purpose of displaying or selling wares or merchandise on public or private property within a business district.
B. 
Hours regulated. No person covered by this chapter shall sell or attempt to sell in accordance with the terms of this chapter before 9:00 a.m. or after 7:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, while said time is in effect, or after 9:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Saving Time, when said time is in effect. The aforesaid time limitation shall not apply to persons who are expressly invited into homes by the occupants for the purpose of displaying or selling wares or merchandise.
C. 
Public or commercial buildings. No person shall hawk or sell wares within a distance of 500 feet of the nearest public building or commercial establishment.
D. 
Fixed location. No vehicle shall be parked upon any public street at a fixed location for the purpose of displaying or selling wares or merchandise.
E. 
License in possession. Every person holding a license under this chapter shall be required to carry the license. He must produce the license at the request of any person solicited, a police officer or other official of the Township of Burlington. To every person granted a license, the Police Department shall issue a license certificate bearing the words "Police Department Peddler's and Solicitor's Permit," together with the applicant's photograph, the number of the license and year for which it is issued.
F. 
Inspection. The equipment used or employed by peddlers, hawkers and vendors of ice cream, foods, beverages, confections and other related commodities shall be maintained in a clean and sanitary manner and be subject to inspection by the Burlington County Health Department, and fully comply with the laws of the State of New Jersey, the rules and regulations of the State Department of Health and Senior Services, the ordinances of the Township of Burlington and rules and regulations of the Burlington County Health Department.
A. 
Basis. A license may be revoked by the Council by reason of the violation of the terms of the license, the violation of any municipal ordinance, state or federal statute or falsification in applying for a license.
B. 
Hearing. The licensed person shall be granted a hearing by the Council upon his request.
C. 
Suspension. A license may be suspended for not more than two weeks by the Director of Public Safety without a hearing.
[Amended 10-27-2009 by Ord. No. 09-OR-024]
D. 
Return of fees. No fees shall be returned for any unexpired period of a license, whether revoked or not.