Chapter 3 — PEDDLERS AND CANVASSERS OR SOLICITORS

It shall be unlawful for any peddler, canvasser, or solicitor, as defined in Section 6-3.02 of this chapter, to engage in any such business within the City without first obtaining a license therefor in compliance with the provisions of this chapter, except as exempted by this chapter. (Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971)

For the purposes of this chapter, unless otherwise apparent from the context, certain words and phrases used in this chapter are defined as follows:

"Canvasser or solicitor" shall mean any person who goes from place to place, from house to house, or from street to street soliciting or taking, or attempting to take, orders for the sale of goods, wares, merchandise, or personal property of any nature whatsoever for future delivery, or for service to be performed in the future, whether or not such individual has, carries, or exposes for sale a sample of the subject of such order, or whether or not he is collecting advance payments on such orders.

"Peddler" shall mean any person who goes from place to place, from house to house, or from street to street seeking to make concurrent sales and deliveries of the goods, wares, and merchandise in which he deals. "Peddler" shall not include vendors of milk, dairy products, bakery products, groceries, or ice who distribute their products to regular customers on established routes.

(Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971)

The provisions of this chapter shall not be held to include the acts of persons selling personal property at wholesale to dealers in such articles, nor to newsboys, nor to the acts of resident merchants or their employees in delivering goods and performing services in the regular course of business; nor shall the provisions of this chapter be held to include or apply to any producer or his employee selling agricultural or farm products produced from the soil of the State by such producer or his employee; nor shall the provisions of this chapter apply to the selling of nursery products by the producer thereof from the soil of the State. Nothing contained in this chapter shall be held to prohibit any sale required by statute or by order of any court or to prevent any person conducting a bona fide auction sale pursuant to law. (Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971)

Applicants for a license pursuant to this chapter shall file with the City Manager or his or her designate a sworn application in writing, on a form furnished by the City Manager or his or her designate, which form shall give the following information:

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City of Ojai, CA § 6-3.04

OJAI CODE

§ 6-3.05

• (a) The name and physical description of the applicant;

• (b) The complete permanent home and local address of the applicant and, in the case of transient merchants, the local address from which proposed sales will be made;

• (c) A brief description of the nature of the business and the goods and services to be sold;

• (d) If employed, the name and address of the employer, together with credentials therefrom establishing the exact relationship;

• (e) The length of time for which the right to do business is desired;

• (f) The source of supply of the goods or property proposed to be sold, or orders taken for the sale thereof, where such goods or products are located at the time such applications are filed, and the proposed method of delivery;

• (g) Two recent photographs of the applicant, which photographs shall be approximately two inches by two inches, showing the head and shoulders of the applicant in a clear and distinguishing manner;

• (h) The fingerprints of the applicant and the names of at least two property owners of the County who will certify as to the applicant's good character and business respectability or, in lieu of the names of references, such other available evidence as to the good character and business responsibility of the applicant as will enable an investigator to properly evaluate such character and business responsibility;

• (i) A statement as to whether or not the applicant has been convicted of any crime, misdemeanor, or violation of any municipal law, other than traffic violations, the nature of the offense, and the punishment or penalty assessed therefor;

• (j) The last cities or towns, not to exceed three, where the applicant carried on business immediately preceding the date of the application and the addresses, if any, from which such business was conducted in those municipalities; and

• (k) At the time of filing the application, a fee of $25 for each applicant shall be paid to the City Clerk to cover the costs of the investigation of the facts stated therein.

• (Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971)

• (a) Any organization, society, association, or corporation desiring to solicit or have solicited in its name money, donations of money, property, or financial assistance of any kind or desiring to sell or distribute any item of literature or merchandise for which a fee is charged or solicited from persons other than members of such organizations upon the streets, in office or business buildings, by house canvass, or in public places for a charitable, religious, or philanthropic purpose shall be exempt from the provisions of Sections 6-3.04 and 6-3.07 of this chapter provided there is filed a sworn application in writing, on a form furnished by the City Manager or his or her designate, which form shall give the following information:

  • (1) The name and purpose of the cause for which a permit is sought;

  • (2) The names and addresses of the officers and directors of the organization;

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City of Ojai, CA

BUSINESSES, PROFESSIONS, AND TRADES

§ 6-3.05

§ 6-3.06

• (3) The period during which the solicitation is to be carried on; and

• (4) Whether or not any commission, fees, wages, or emoluments are to be expended in connection with such solicitations and the amount thereof.

Upon being satisfied that such organization, society, association, or corporation is a religious, charitable, patriotic, or philanthropic organization, the City Manager or his or her designate shall issue a permit without charge to such organization, association, society, or corporation to solicit in the City. Such organization, association, society, or corporation shall furnish all of its members, agents, or representatives conduction solicitation credentials in writing stating the name of the organization, name of the agent, and purpose of the solicitation.

• (b) Any war veteran who is physically unable to obtain a livelihood by manual labor and is a voter of the State shall be exempt from the provisions of Sections 6-3.04, 6-3.06, and 6-3.07 of this chapter provided there is filed by him or her or on his or her behalf a sworn application in writing, on a form furnished by the City Manager or his or her designate, which form shall give the following information:

  • (1) His or her full name;

  • (2) His or her home address;

  • (3) The place of his or her voting registration in the State;

  • (4) The branch of service from which discharged and date of discharge; and

  • (5) The period for which he or she desires a license.

Upon being satisfied that an applicant qualifies as such a disabled war veteran under this section, the City Manager or his or her designate shall issue him or her a license for the period requested, but not to exceed one year, without charge.

(Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971)

• (a) Upon the receipt of each application, the City Manager or his or her designate shall immediately institute such investigation of the applicant's business and moral character as he or she deems necessary for the protection of the public good and shall endorse the application in the manner prescribed in this section within 30 days after it has been filed by the applicant with the City Manager or his or her designate.

• (b) If, as a result of such investigation, the applicant's character or business responsibility is found to be unsatisfactory, the City Manager or his or her designate shall endorse on such application his disapproval, and his or her reasons for the same, and shall notify the applicant that his or her application is disapproved and that no license will be issued.

• (c) If, as a result of such investigation, the character and business responsibility of the applicant are found to be satisfactory, the City Manager or his or her designate shall endorse on the application his approval and deliver to the applicant his license. Such license shall contain the signature of the issuing officer and shall show the name, address, and photograph of the licensee, the class of license issued, the kind of goods to be sold

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City of Ojai, CA § 6-3.06

OJAI CODE

§ 6-3.11

thereunder, the amount of fee paid, the date of issuance, the length of time the license shall be operative, and the license number and other identifying description of any vehicle used in such licensed business. Each peddler, canvasser, or solicitor shall secure a personal license. No license shall be used at any time by any person other than the person to whom it is issued.

(Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971)

No licensee shall have any exclusive right to any location in the public streets, nor shall any licensee be permitted a stationary location thereon, nor shall any licensee be permitted to operate in a congested area where such operation might impede or inconvenience the public use of such streets. For the purposes of this chapter, the judgment of a police officer, exercised in good faith, shall be deemed conclusive as to whether the area is congested and the public impeded or inconvenienced.

(Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971)

Licensees shall be required to exhibit their certificates of license at the request of any citizen. (Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971)

It shall be the duty of the police to require any peddler, solicitor, or canvasser, who is not known by such officer to be duly licensed, to produce his license and to enforce the provisions of this chapter against any person found to be violating such provisions. (Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971)

The City Manager or his or her designate shall maintain a record of all convictions for violations of this chapter and for each license issued and record the reports of violations therein. (Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971)

• (a) Licenses issued pursuant to the provisions of this chapter may be revoked by the Council, after notice and a hearing, for any of the following causes:

  • (1) Fraud, misrepresentation, or incorrect statements contained in the application for a license;

  • (2) Fraud, misrepresentation, or incorrect statements made in the course of carrying on a business as a solicitor, canvasser, peddler, transient merchant, itinerant merchant, or itinerant vendor;

  • (3) Any violation of this chapter;

  • (4) The conviction of any crime or misdemeanor; or

  • (5) Conducting the business of a peddler, canvasser, or solicitor, as the case may be, in

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City of Ojai, CA

BUSINESSES, PROFESSIONS, AND TRADES

§ 6-3.11

§ 6-3.14

an unlawful manner or in such a manner as to constitute a breach of the peace or to constitute a menace to the health, safety, or general welfare of the public.

• (b) The City Manager or his or her designate shall report to the City Clerk the specific grounds for complaint. Notice of a hearing for the revocation of a license shall be given by the City Clerk in writing, setting forth specifically the grounds of complaint and the time and place of the hearing. Such notice shall be mailed, postage prepaid, to the licensee at his or her last known address at least five days prior to the date set for the hearing or shall be delivered by a police officer in the same manner as a summons at least three days prior to the date set for the hearing.

• (Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971)

Any person aggrieved by the action of the City Manager or his or her designate in the denial of a permit or license as provided in Section 6-3.06 of this chapter shall have the right to appeal to the Council. Such appeal shall be taken by filing with the Council, within 14 days after notice of the action complained of, a written statement setting forth fully the grounds for the appeal. The Council shall set a time and place for a hearing on such appeal, and notice of such hearing shall be given to the appellant in the same manner as provided in subsection (b) of Section 6-3.11 of this chapter for notice of a hearing on revocation. (Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971)

No licensee whose license has been revoked shall make further application until a period of at least six months shall have elapsed since the last previous revocation. (Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971)

All annual licenses issued pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall expire on December 31 of the calendar year issued, and those other than annual licenses shall expire on the dates specified on the face of the license.

(Part I, Ord. 428, eff. May 27, 1971, as amended by § 2, Ord. 663, eff. August 10, 1989)

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City of Ojai, CA § 6-4.01

BUSINESSES, PROFESSIONS, AND TRADES

§ 6-4.03