Reedley Municipal Code Ch. 6 Auctions

Any person desiring a license to sell at auction new goods, wares or merchandise or any part thereof, shall immediately prior to the filing of the application for an auction license, pay a license fee as set out in section 3-2-9 of this code. (Ord. 601, 8-15-1978)

A. Bond Provided: Any person desiring a license under the provisions of this chapter, before receiving the license, shall furnish a surety bond in the principal sum of five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) conditioned:

1. Upon the observance by the applicant of all the provisions of this chapter relating to auction sales;

2. Upon the truth of all representations made in connection with the application for the license;

3. Upon the truth of all of the representations made in the course of any auction sale;

4. As a guarantee that the purchase price of any article purchased at such sale will be returned to any purchaser upon the proof that any false or misleading statement or representation has been made concerning any personal property sold or offered for sale at any auction sale in the auction place of business.

B. Conditions Of Bond: The bond by its terms shall be made to inure to the benefit of any person injured or aggrieved as a result of the sale or any purchase made thereat, and shall provide that the aggrieved person shall have the right of independent action thereon for a period of sixty (60) days from and after the day upon which the purchase, act or representation was made which constitutes the basis of such action. (Ord. 601, 8-15-1978)

No person shall advertise for sale, sell, dispose of or offer for sale, at public auction, or cause or permit to be advertised, offered for sale, sold or disposed of at public auction, any new goods, wares or merchandise, whether the same shall be their own property or the property of someone else, without first complying with the provisions of this section and obtaining the licenses and bond provided for in sections 3-6-1 and 3-6-2 of this chapter. Without limiting the generality of the term "sale by public auction", 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. (Ord. 601, 8-15-1978)

Any person desiring to conduct or hold an auction sale shall make application to the finance department stating the time during each day, and the number of days, weeks or months he desires to hold or conduct such auction. Such applicant shall give his full name and the name of all persons interested in the conduct or holding of said auction, the name of the auctioneer, the residence of the applicant, place where said auction shall be held, the length of time for which said permit is desired, whether the applicant has been previously engaged in a like or similar business; if so, designating the places where he has previously conducted such auction sales, with such other information as the finance department shall deem reasonable and necessary to establish the truth of each and all of such statements. There shall be attached to said application a complete inventory of all new goods to be sold at said auction, and said inventory shall show whether or not said goods are owned by the applicant or are being sold by him on consignment, designating particularly the consigned goods. Such inventory shall give the grade, quality and kind, together with cost price of each article. Attached to said application shall be an affidavit stating that all of the statements therein contained and in said inventory contained, are true and correct. If the applicant be a corporation, said affidavit may be made by the president, general manager, secretary or treasurer. On said application being filed, if the statements therein contained be found to be true and upon payment of the required license fees, the finance department shall issue to said applicant a permit for the length of time designated, not to exceed the period of three (3) months. (Ord. 601, 8-15-1978)

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. (Ord. 601, 8-15-1978)

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. (Ord. 601, 8-15-1978)

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 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. (Ord. 601, 8-15-1978)

Each and every day that a violation of this chapter continues or occurs shall be deemed a separate offense, and in the addition to the penalty herein provided, the police chief, upon proof of conviction of the applicant, must revoke the license and permit under which said auction is being held, and it shall thereafter be unlawful for any such person whose license and permit is so revoked to hold or conduct any such auction sale unless he shall make application and procure a new license and permit for such purpose. The police chief shall have authority to suspend any license and permit for violation of this chapter, the suspension to last only during the pendency of the trial of the action for the violation alleged. (Ord. 601, 8-15-1978)

For every violation of this chapter, or of his duty as auctioneer, in addition to any other penalty provided by this code, such auctioneer shall forfeit to the penalty as provided in the general penalty in section 1-4-1 of this code, which shall be recoverable upon said bond. (Ord. 601, 8-15-1978; amd. 2007 Code)

A. Public Entities: The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to any auction 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.

B. Charitable Auctions: The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to any auction held for charitable or benevolent purposes, or for any church fair, festival or bazaar. (Ord. 601, 8-15-1978)

A. Manner Of Solicitation: It shall be unlawful for any auctioneer, or any corporation conducting an auction sale, to solicit by music, singing, or loud or unusual noises to be made or done for the purpose of attracting the public to the auction sale.

B. Hours Limited: It shall be unlawful for any person to conduct any auction sale between the hours of six o'clock (6:00) P.M. of any day and eight o'clock (8:00) A.M. of the following day.

C. Additions To Stock Prohibited: No additions of any item shall be made to the stock set forth in the inventory before or during any auction sale licensed hereunder.

D. Existing Provisions: All existing provisions in said code relating to auctions shall remain in full force and effect. (Ord. 601, 8-15-1978)