Fresno Municipal Code Art. 8 Auctions

No person shall advertise or conduct a public auction sale, or cause or permit to be advertised or conducted a public auction sale of any goods, wares or merchandise, whether the same is his own property or the property of someone else, without first obtaining a public auction permit. Without limiting the generality of the term "public auction sale," such sale shall include a sale in which, instead of the bidders making increasingly higher bids for an article or articles of merchandise, the seller or auctioneer announces a price at which he will sell one or more articles of merchandise and then, if no sale occurs, increasingly adds additional articles of merchandise to those originally offered, with or without varying the previously announced price, until a buyer is finally induced to buy the accumulated articles at the price fixed. (Orig. Ord. 3938; Am. Ord. 5875, 1961; Am. Ord. 80-171, § 16, eff. 12-26-80).

Any person desiring to conduct a public auction sale shall file an application with the Controller stating his full name, home address, local business address, and telephone numbers, and whether he has previously conducted auction sales. If so, the places where he has previously conducted such auction sales shall be designated, as well as such other information as the Controller shall deem reasonable and necessary to establish the truth of each and all of such statements. An affidavit shall be attached to the application stating that all of the statements therein contained are true and correct. If the applicant is a corporation, the affidavit may be made by the president, general manager, secretary or treasurer. If the Controller finds the statements in the application are true, he shall issue an auction permit for a length of time not to exceed one year. (Orig. Ord. 1191; Am. Ord. 5308, 1958; Am. Ord. 80-171, § 17, eff. 12-26-80).

(a) No person acting as auctioneer shall make any statements which are false in any particular or which have tendency to mislead any person present, or to make any misrepresentation whatsoever or at all, as to the quality, quantity, character, present condition, value, cost, general selling price, or as to whether property is new or secondhand, or partly so, of any property offered for disposal by auction sale.

(b) No person shall sell or attempt to sell by auction, or advertise for sale by auction, any goods, wares or merchandise, falsely representing or pretending that such goods, wares and merchandise are in whole or in part a bankrupt or insolvent stock, or damaged goods, or goods saved from a fire, or make any false statement as to the previous history, ownership, quality or character of such goods, wares and merchandise.

(c) No person shall offer for sale at auction any article and induce its purchase by any bidder, and afterwards substitute any article in lieu of that offered to and purchased by the bidder, except with the bidder's knowledge and consent. (Orig. Ords. 1191 and 1282).

No person shall act, or cause or induce anyone else to act, as by-bidder or what is commonly known as a "capper" or "booster" or "shiller" at any such auction or place where any such auction shall take place, or to offer to make any false bid or to offer any false bid to buy or pretend to buy, any such article sold or offered for sale at any such auction. (Orig. Ord. 1191).

It shall be the duty of the auctioneer to make some description of the person making a bid every time a bid is announced and also to point to or designate the position on the premises of the bidder. (Orig. Ord. 1191).

It shall be the duty of the person whose merchandise is thus being sold at public auction to give each and every purchaser of an article, the selling price of which amounts to or exceeds the sum of two dollars and fifty cents ($2.50) an invoice containing a full description of the article, the selling price thereof together with a statement giving each and every warranty under which the article was sold. Duplicate copies of each invoice shall be kept. (Orig. Ord. 1911).

The Controller shall revoke the applicant's auction permit upon violation of this article, and it shall thereafter be unlawful for any such person to conduct any auction sale unless he applies for and procures a new auction permit. (Orig. Ord. 1191; Am. Ord. 5308, 1958; Am. Ord. 80-171, § 19, eff. 12-26-80; Am. Ord. 2003-67, § 15, eff. 8-31-03).

The provisions of this article shall not apply to any auction:

(a) Held or conducted by any public officer under the provisions of any law of the United States or State of California or any provisions of this Code, or

(b) Held for charitable or benevolent purposes, or for any church, fair, festival or bazaar. (Orig. Ord. 1191; Am. Ord. 80-171, § 20, eff. 12-26-80).

(a) No person shall sell, dispose of, or offer for sale at public auction, or cause or permit to be sold, disposed of, or offered for sale at public auction, any platinum, gold, silver, or plated ware, precious stones or semiprecious stones, watches or other jewelry, whether the same is his own property or whether he shall sell the same as agent or employee of another, unless a permit for such sale is first obtained as provided in this section.

(b) Every public auction sale of the stock on hand of such merchant or merchants shall be held on successive days, Sundays and legal holidays excepted, shall not continue for more than thirty days in all from the commencement of such sale, and shall be permitted only where such merchant is bona fide disposing of his stock for the purpose of retiring from business.

(c) Not less than thirty days nor more than sixty days prior to the commencement of any jewelry stock auction sale, such merchant or merchants shall file an application for a permit with the Controller. Such application shall contain the following information:

(1) The place of the proposed jewelry auction;

(2) The date or dates on which the applicant desires to hold a jewelry auction;

(3) The name of the auctioneer who will conduct the auction;

(4) A detailed inventory, in duplicate, of the goods, wares and merchandise to be sold, the wholesale value, or cost to the applicant, of each item, and the quality and grade thereof. Each item of merchandise shall be numbered separately in the inventory, and the number in the inventory shall correspond to the number physically attached to such item. Such inventory shall be accompanied by a statement, sworn to by the applicant, that all of the merchandise described in the inventory is a bona fide part of the applicant's stock in trade and is not secured, purchased or brought into his place of business for, or in anticipation of the sale, that no other merchandise will be brought into the place of business after the date of filing of the application, that no merchandise will be sold or offered for sale that is not set forth in the inventory, and that each of the statements in the inventory is true and correct to his own personal knowledge.

(d) The application shall be accompanied by a cash deposit with the Controller in the amount designated in the Master Fee Resolution, which amount shall be retained as a penalty in the event of a violation by the applicant of any of the provisions of this article. Any such penalty shall be in addition to the penalty otherwise provided herein for a violation of any of the provisions of this Code.

(e) Upon receipt of an application for a jewelry auction permit, the Controller shall refer the application to the Police Chief, who shall investigate and report to the Controller his findings as to any criminal history information concerning the applicant and his auctioneer. The Controller shall check each item of the inventory submitted with the actual item in the applicant's place of business, shall make an investigation to ascertain the truthfulness of the application, shall determine whether the merchandise described in the inventory is a bona fide part of the applicant's stock in trade and not secured, purchased or brought into such place of business for or in anticipation of such sale, and shall determine whether the applicant is bona fide disposing of his stock for the purpose of retiring from business. The applicant shall pay the city the amount designated in the Master Fee Resolution for each day or fraction thereof that the representative of the Controller is engaged in the foregoing investigation. Said sum shall be deducted from the deposit made by the applicant, and the amount of said deposit, after deduction of aforesaid fees, shall be repaid to the applicant upon the written order of the Controller after the conclusion of the auction.

(f) All permits granted under the provisions of this section shall expire within sixty days from the date of issuance, except that if the applicant has not been able to dispose of his stock, as shown on the inventory filed with his application, within the thirty days allowed by the original permit, and if he files a request with the Controller for an extension of said permit for a period of not more than thirty additional calendar days, the Controller, with the approval of the Police Chief, may grant such request. No sale at public auction shall be held during the month of December of any year, and any extension described above shall not include any portion of the month of December of any year. (Orig. Ords. 1191, 3743, 3923, 3930 and 4650; Am. Ord. 5308, 1958; Am. Ord. 5311, 1958; Am. Ord. 80-115, §§ 71, 72, eff. 8-8-80; Am. Ord. 80-171, § 21, eff. 12-26-80).

Every person who shall offer for sale in the city at public auction, either as principal or agent, to the highest bidder on the spot, any article of merchandise or property shall be deemed an auctioneer. (Orig. Ord. 3937).

(a) No person shall engage in the calling of auctioneer unless an auctioneer's permit is first obtained from the Controller. The application for an auctioneer's permit shall be in a form approved by the Controller, shall be signed by the applicant, and shall include the following:

(1) The applicant's name, home address, local business address, and telephone numbers, including information as to persons doing business under fictitious names, members of partnerships, and officers of corporations or associations;

(2) The fingerprints of the applicant;

(3) A statement as to whether or not the applicant has ever been convicted of any crime and if so, the details of such conviction(s), specifying the particular crime involved and the dates and places of such conviction(s), excluding parking violations; and

(4) Such other and further information as the Controller may require.

(b) The Controller shall make an investigation of the facts stated in the application and shall within forty-five days determine the following:

(1) Whether any statement made in the application is false;

(2) Whether the applicant has been fingerprinted; and

(3) Whether the applicant has been convicted within the last five years of a crime involving moral turpitude.

(c) If the Controller makes a finding unfavorable to the applicant pursuant to subsection (b), he shall deny issuance of the permit and shall give the applicant prompt written notice of such finding and decision, including a statement of the specific reasons for denial. Otherwise, the Controller, with the approval of the Police Chief, shall issue the auctioneer's permit.

(d) The auctioneer shall file a bond with the Controller in the sum designated in the Master Fee Resolution, payable to the city, executed by a surety company authorized to transact a surety business in California, and approved by the City Attorney. Such bond shall inure to the benefit of the city and any person or persons aggrieved or damaged by any act of the auctioneer.

(e) For every violation of this article, or of his duty as auctioneer, in addition to any other penalty provided by this Code, such auctioneer shall forfeit to the city an amount designated in the Master Fee Resolution, which shall be recoverable upon said bond.

(f) Any auctioneer may employ a crier at any sale and he shall be responsible for the acts of any person substituting for him, or any employee or crier, upon his bond.

(g) The permit granted to an auctioneer shall not be transferable, and it shall not be loaned or used by any other person except as in this section set forth.

(h) The person to whom the auctioneer's permit is granted shall pay the city the amount designated in the Master Fee Resolution for each day or fraction thereof that the representative of the Controller attends such sale.

(i) Each auctioneer shall keep a record book in which he must enter all sales, the amount paid, and the date of each sale, which book must be open at all times for the inspection of the Police Department of the city, and of any person interested therein.

(j) It shall be the duty of the person whose merchandise is thus being sold at public auction to give each and every purchaser of an article, the selling price of which amounts to or exceeds the sum of two dollars and fifty cents ($2.50), an invoice containing a full description of the article, and the selling price thereof, together with a statement giving each and every warranty under which the article was sold. Duplicate copies of said invoices shall be kept.

(k) No person, other than a licensed auctioneer who shall have complied with the terms of this section, shall hold, conduct, carry on or maintain any auction room or place for holding public auction sales, or advertise or hold himself out to the public as an auctioneer, or conduct, carry on, or maintain any sale of goods by public auction, bona fide or otherwise.

(l) Any person or persons, aggrieved or damaged by any act of an auctioneer in the city in violation of, or contrary to the provisions of this Code, may have an action against such auctioneer and his bondsmen upon his official bond therefor.

(m) Any fines paid by any person under the provisions of this section for any violation thereof shall be paid into the Treasury of the City of Fresno, for the use of the general fund of the city.

(n) In addition to the other penalties in this article provided, for any violation of any of the provisions of this section by any auctioneer or by any other person or persons with an auctioneer's knowledge and consent or connivance, the license of such auctioneer shall be revoked.

(Orig. Ords. 1282 and 3743; Am. Ord. 5320, 1958; Am. Ord. 80-115, §§ 73—75, eff. 8-8-80; Am. Ord. 80-171, §§ 22—26, eff. 12-26-80).

(a) A permit issued pursuant to Section 9-811 shall be effective for the remainder of the calendar year in which it is issued, unless earlier revoked.

(b) A permittee may renew his auctioneer's permit for the next calendar year, according to the same standards under which it was issued, by filing a statement with the Controller while the present permit is in effect, and no later than the fifteenth day of November. The statement shall include any modification of the information contained in the previous application and such other and further information as the Controller may require, and shall be signed under penalty of perjury.

(c) A permittee failing to renew the auctioneer's permit pursuant to subsection (b) of this section shall apply for a new permit. The Controller may waive the requirement of any new investigation which would otherwise be required.

(d) Any person aggrieved by the action of the Controller in denying or revoking an auctioneer's permit may file an appeal under Chapter 1, Article 4. If no appeal is filed within the time prescribed, the action of the Controller shall be final.

(Orig. Ord. 1282; Am. Ord. 80-171, § 27, eff. 12-26-80; Am. Ord. 81-157, § 16, eff. 12-11-81; Am. Ord. 98-65, § 4, eff. 10-1-98; Am. Ord. 2003-67, § 16, eff. 8-31-03; Am. Ord. 2005-14, § 24, eff. 4-9-05).