Alameda Municipal Code § 5-20 Solicitation Permits

The City Council finds and declares that:

a. Persons and organizations have been and are soliciting funds and property in the City on the representation that such proceeds are to be used for charitable or religious purposes when such funds and property may be used wholly or in part for the private profit of the individuals promoting such solicitations.

b. A variety of misrepresentations and other frauds may be employed in such solicitations.

c. This section is enacted to identify and register groups and individuals soliciting for the charitable or religious purposes in the City so that the public can analyze the nature and worthiness of the solicitation in an informed fashion.

d. This section is necessary to protect the public health, safety and welfare.

(Ord. No. 2689 N.S. 1)

* Editor's Note: Prior ordinance history: Ord. Nos. 535, 1911 and 2063.

As used in this section, the following definitions shall apply:

Central Permits Division shall mean the Central Permits Division of the City Department of Public Works.

Charitable shall mean patriotic, philanthropic, religious, social service, welfare, benevolent, educational, civic or fraternal, either actual or purported.

Contribution shall mean alms, food, clothing, money, subscription, property or donations under the guides of loan, or money or property.

Manager shall mean the City Manager of the City of Alameda, or his or her designee.

Non-profit charitable organization shall mean an organization that is exempt from payment of bank and corporation taxes pursuant to Section 23701(d) of the Revenue and Taxation Code and to which a contribution of gift would be a charitable contribution under Section 170(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Person shall mean an individual, firm, copartnership, corporation, company, association, joint stock associations, church, religious sect, religious denomination, society organization or league, and includes any trustee, receiver, assignee, agent or other similar representatives thereof.

Promoter shall mean a person who promotes, manages, supervises, organizes or attempts to promote, manager, supervise or organize a solicitation campaign.

Public Works Director shall mean the Director of the Public Works Department of the City or his or her designee.

Solicit and Solicitation shall mean the request, directly or indirectly of money, credit, property, financial assistance or other thing of value on the plea or representation that such money credit, property or financial assistance, or other thing of value will be used for charitable purposes as defined in this section.

These words shall also mean the sale of, offer or attempt to sell in advertisement, advertising space, book, card, chance, coupon, device, magazine, membership, merchandise, subscription, ticket or other thing in connection with an appeal made for any charitable purpose, or where the name of a charitable person or organization is used or referred to in any such appeal as the inducement or reason for making the sale, or when or where in connection with any such sale, a statement is made that the whole or any part of the proceeds will go or be donated to a charitable purpose.

A solicitation is deemed completed when made, whether or not the person making the solicitation receives any contribution or makes any sale referred to in this section.

(Ord. No. 2689 N.S. 1)

a. Permit Required. No person shall solicit contributions for a charitable purpose within the City without a solicitation permit.

b. Exceptions. A permit is not required for:

1. A solicitation conducted only by mail or telephone;

2. A church congregation, religious society, sect, group or order which solicits funds solely from its own members or from its own congregation;

3. The placement of closed boxes or other receptacles commonly places in business establishments, with the permission of the business owner; or

4. A fraternal, social, patriotic, cultural or educational organization which solicits funds solely from its own members or from its own assemblies.

(Ord. No. 2689 N.S. 1)

a. General. Any application for a solicitation permit shall be made to the Central Permits Division upon forms provided by the City. The application shall be sworn to and filed at least fifteen (15) days before the time at which the permit applied for is to become effective. The Public Works Director may, for good cause shown, allow the filing of any application less than fifteen (15) days before the effective date of the permit.

b. The application is a public record available for public inspection. The application shall contain the following information, or in lieu thereof, a detailed statement of the reason why the information cannot be furnished:

1. The name, address or headquarters and phone number of the person applying for the permit;

2. If application is not an individual, the names, addresses and phone numbers of the applicant's principal officers and managers and a copy of the resolution, if any, authorizing the solicitation, certified to as a true and correct copy of the original by the officer having charge of the applicant's records;

3. The purpose for the solicitation;

4. The name, address and phone number of the person or persons who will be in direct charge of conducting the solicitation, the names of all the promoters connected with the proposed solicitation, and the names of the persons who will be soliciting;

5. An outline of the method or methods to be used in conducting the solicitation;

6. The time when the solicitations will be made, giving the preferred dates for the beginning and ending of such solicitation;

7. A statement of the character and extent of the charitable work being done by the applicant within the City, if any;

8. A statement that if a permit is granted it will not be used or represented in any way as an endorsement by the City, or by any department or officer thereof;

9. Such other information as may be reasonably required by the Central Permits Division;

10. Certificates of the Franchise Tax Board and the U.S. Internal Revenue Service showing that the organization is currently exempted from the payment of bank and corporation tax by Section 23701 (d) of the Revenue and Taxation Code and that a contribution or gift to the organization would be a charitable contribution under Section 170(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, or other verifiable evidence of charitable and non-profit status;

11. If the applicant is a commercial fundraiser for charitable purposes, a copy of the most recent annual financial report filed with the State Attorney General's Registry of Charitable Trusts under Government Code Section 12599. A "commercial fundraiser for charitable purposes" is defined as an individual, corporation or other entity which, for compensation, solicits contributions for charitable purposes; and

12. The form of the credentials to be provided to solicitors under subsection 5-20.11.

c. The applicant shall notify the Central Permits Division in writing, within forty-eight (48) hours, of any change in the information, either while the application is pending or during the term of the permit.

(Ord. No. 2689 N.S. 1)

The Central Permits Division shall examine each application filed under subsection 5-20.4 and shall make such further investigation of the application and the applicant as deemed necessary.

(Ord. No. 2689 N.S. 1)

Within fifteen (15) days from the filing of the application, the permit shall be granted unless:

a. The application is incomplete;

b. Any statement made in the application is false, misleading, or otherwise inaccurate;

c. The applicant is not a non-profit organization;

d. The applicant has engaged in a fraudulent transaction or enterprise; or

e. A person listed in the application as participating in the charitable solicitation has been convicted of fraud, theft or another similar crime.

Nothing set forth in this section shall be constructed as granting the Central Permits Division the discretion to grant, deny, suspend, revoke or refuse to renew a permit by reason of disapproval or disagreement with the philosophy, opinion or belief of the permit or applicant.

(Ord. No. 2689 N.S. 1)

Within five (5) business days after receiving notification by mail that the solicitation permit has been denied, an applicant may file written request for a public hearing before the City Manager on the application, together with written exceptions to the findings of fact upon which the denial of the permit was based. Upon the filing of the request, the City Manager shall fix a time and place for the hearing and shall notify applicant thereof. The hearing shall be held within five (5) business days after the request is filed.

At the hearing, the applicant may present evidence in support of the application and exceptions. Any interested person may, in the discretion of the City Manager, be allowed to participate in the hearing and present evidence in opposition to the application and exceptions.

Within ten (10) business days after the conclusion of the hearing, the Manager shall render a written report either granting or denying the solicitation permit. In the report, the Manager shall state the facts upon which the decision is based and the ruling upon any exceptions filed to the original findings of fact. The report shall be served either personally or by certified mail upon applicant and all parties to the hearing. If the permit is denied, the applicant may seek judicial review by filing a petition for writ of mandate with the appropriate court.

(Ord. No. 2689 N.S. 1)

Whenever the Central Permits Division has knowledge that a person to whom a permit has been issued under this section has violated a provision under this section, or that a promoter, agent or solicitor of a permit holder has misrepresented the purpose of the solicitation, the permit shall be immediately be suspended, and the permit holder given written notice by personal service or by certified mail of a hearing to be held within two (2) business days of such suspension to determine whether or not the permit should be revoked. The notice shall contain a statement of the facts upon which the Central Permits Division has acted in suspending the permit. At the hearing, the permit holder, and any other interested person, shall have the right to present evidence as to the facts upon which the suspension of the permit was based and any other facts which may aid in determining whether this section has been violated and whether the purpose of the solicitation has been misrepresented.

If, after the hearing, the Central Permits Division finds that this section has been violated, or the purpose of the solicitation has been misrepresented, the Central Permits Division shall, within two (2) business days after the hearing, serve upon the permit holder, either personally or by certified mail, a written statement of the facts and findings upon which the revocation of the permit was based. The statement of the facts and findings shall be available for public inspection for all interested persons participating in the hearings.

If, after the hearing, the Central Permits Division finds that this section has not been violated and the purpose of the solicitation has not been misrepresented, it shall, within two (2) business days, mail the permit holder a written statement canceling the suspension of the permit and notifying the permit holder that no violation or misrepresentation was found to have been committed.

The Central Permits Division shall immediately notify the Chief of Police of the suspension or revocation of any permit.

(Ord. No. 2689 N.S. 1)

a. Form of Permit. A permit issued under this section shall bear the name and address of the permittee, the number of the permit, the date issued, and the dates within the permit holder may solicit. The permit shall also include: (1) a statement that the permit does not constitute an endorsement by the City or by any of its departments, officers or employees of the purpose or of the person conducting the solicitation, and (2) a statement that the permit does not authorize the use of private property without the property owner's consent. All permits must be signed by the Public Works Director.

b. Term. A permit is granted for one year, unless the applicant requests a shorter period of time.

(Ord. No. 2689 N.S. 1)

A permit issued under this section is nontransferable. The permit shall be returned to the Central Permits Division within ten (10) days of the date of expiration, together with all copies thereof.

(Ord. No. 2689 N.S. 1)

Each person to whom a permit has been issued under this section shall furnish proper credentials to agents and solicitors for the solicitation. The credentials shall include the name of the permit holder, the date, a statement describing the holder's charitable activity, a description of the purpose of the solicitation, the signature of the permit holder or of the holder's chief executive officer, and the name, address, age, sex, and signature of the solicitor to whom the credentials are issued, and the specific period of time during which the solicitor is authorized to solicit. A copy of the credentials must be filed with the Central Permits Division along with the application for the permit.

No person shall solicit under any permit granted under this section without the credentials required by this subsection and a facsimile copy of the permit in their possession. The credentials and the facsimile copy of the permit must be shown, upon request, to each person solicited and to any City Police Officer.

(Ord. No. 2689 N.S. 1)

A person receiving money or anything having a value of one ($1.00) dollar or more from a contributor resulting from a solicitation under the permit granted by this section shall, upon request, provide to the contributor a written receipt signed by the solicitor. The receipt shall plainly show the name and the permit number of the person under whose permit the solicitation is conducted, the date, and the amount received. This subsection shall not apply to a contribution collected by means of a closed box or receptacle used in solicitation with the written approval of the Manager, where it is impractical to determine the amount of the contribution.

(Ord. No. 2689 N.S. 1)

The fee for Charitable Solicitation Permits shall be established by Resolution of the City Council.

(Ord. No. 2689 N.S. 1)