Tracy Municipal Code Art. 7 Sale of Personal Property at Auction

It shall be unlawful for any person to sell or exhibit for sale by way of auction, except under and by virtue of legal process, any personal property without first obtaining the proper license therefor as provided in this Article. Any such auctioneer's license granted shall not be assignable or transferable. It is hereby declared the legislative intent that auction sales shall be held only to liquidate estates and businesses and to avoid bankruptcy or the like and shall not be permitted as established merchandising practices.

(Prior code § 4-3.801)

Every person who, for two (2) years immediately preceding an application for a license to conduct an auction, has operated, managed, or maintained a place of business in the City where goods, wares, merchandise, or other personal property has been regularly sold shall pay an auctioneer's license fee of Twenty-Two and no/100ths ($22.00) Dollars per day, payable in advance, and shall furnish the bond as required in this Article. Each separate location shall have a separate license.

(Prior code § 4-3.802)

All other auctioneers' license fees shall be of two (2) classes, as follows:

(a) The first class shall be a daily license only, for which the licensee shall pay the sum of One Hundred Sixty-Five and no/100ths ($165.00) Dollars per day in advance and furnish the bond and official observer as required in this Article. Such license shall authorize the holder thereof, subject to the provisions of this and other laws of the City and State, to sell or offer for sale personal property at auction.

(b) The second class shall be a yearly license for which the licensee shall pay the sum of One Thousand One Hundred and no/100ths ($1,100.00) Dollars in advance and furnish the bond and official observer as required in this Article. Such license shall authorize the holder thereof, subject to the provisions of this and other laws of the City and State, to sell personal property at auction.

(Prior code § 4-3.803)

Each applicant for a license to conduct an auction shall post with the City Clerk, prior to the issuance of such license, a cash or surety company or other bond, satisfactory to the City Clerk, in the sum of Five Thousand and no/100ths ($5,000.00) Dollars, conditioned upon observance by the applicant of all the provisions of this Article, and upon the truth of all of the representations made in connection with the application for a license and in the course of any auction sale, and as a guarantee that the purchase price of any article purchased will be returned to any purchaser upon 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 or in such auction place of business.

(Prior code § 4-3.804)

Each applicant for a license to conduct an auction sale shall permit and provide for an official observer representing the City to attend at all times during such auction sale for observation and investigation for the purpose of ascertaining that no personal property is sold except that included in the inventory filed with the City Clerk. Such applicant shall pay to the Director of Finance the sum of Fifty and no/100ths ($50.00) Dollars per day, in advance, for each and every day such auction is held. For the purposes of this section, a day shall be defined as ten (10) consecutive hours as set forth in Section 4.12.480 of this Article. The sum required for the official observer shall be prorated on an hourly basis for the actual number of hours during which the auction sale was conducted. The official observer shall keep an accurate record of the number of hours during which the auction sale was actually conducted. The Director of Finance shall refund to the applicant the difference, if any, between the fee required by this section and the amount of the proration.

(Prior code § 4-3.805)

Nothing contained in this Article shall apply to auctions conducted by non-profit organizations, as defined in subsection (f) of Section 6.04.010 and proceeds are used for the purposes set forth in subsection (a) of Section 6.04.070; to any public officer or officer of a court who, in pursuance of his duty as such officer, shall conduct, within the City, an auction sale pursuant to any law of the State or of the United States or order of court; nor to licensed pawnbrokers or loan companies selling of offering for sale unredeemed pledges or chattels in the manner provided by law; nor to the sale of livestock by auction.

(Prior code § 4-3.806)

Every auctioneer and every person selling personal property at auction shall be deemed to warrant that all representations made in the course of such sale are true and correct and that the purchase price of any articles purchased will be returned to the purchaser upon proof that any false or misleading statement or representation has been made concerning such personal property, or concerning such auction sale by the auctioneer, or by any person conducting, managing, or carrying on such auction sale.

(Prior code § 4-3.807)

It shall be unlawful for any auctioneer or any person conducting, managing or carrying on any auction sale to make any false or misleading statement or representation, either verbally or in writing, concerning any article of personal property sold or proposed to be sold at such auction sale, or concerning said sale.

(Prior code § 4-3.808)

It shall be unlawful for any auctioneer or any person conducting, managing or carrying on an auction sale to use any person as a false bidder for the purpose of increasing the price of any article offered for sale at said auction.

(Prior code § 4-3.809)

It shall be unlawful for any person to make a false bid or any bid other than a bona fide bid at any auction sale, or to act as a by-bidder or what is commonly known as a "capper", "booster", or "shiller", at any auction or place where personal property is sold, held, or offered for sale at auction; or to offer or make false bids on any personal property held or offered for sale at such auction, or pretend to buy any personal property at any auction sale in order to in any manner stimulate such sales by any deceit or misrepresentation in the making of bids or offers for the purchase of any personal property held or offered therein for sale.

(Prior code § 4-3.810)

It shall be unlawful for any auctioneer or person to ring a bell or cause or permit the same to be rung in or about the front of the premises where there is conducted an auction sale, before, after, or during such sale.

(Prior code § 4-3.811)

It shall be unlawful for any person to solicit or to permit soliciting by music, singing or loud noises, made or done for the purpose of attracting the public to or at an auction sale.

(Prior code § 4-3.812)

It shall be unlawful for any person to conduct or permit an auction sale during the month of December of any year.

(Prior code § 4-3.813)

It shall be unlawful for any person to conduct or open any place of business for auction sale between the hours of 6:00 p.m. of any day and 8:00 a.m. of the following day, on Sundays or on legal holidays.

(Prior code § 4-3.814)

No license shall be issued for conducting an auction sale to any person who shall not, for the period of two (2) years next preceding such auction sale, have been continuously engaged in the City, in the business of selling such merchandise at wholesale or retail.

(Prior code § 4-3.815)

No license shall be issued to any person who has been convicted of violating any of the provisions relating to auction sales for a period of five (5) years after such conviction.

(Prior code § 4-3.816)

It shall be unlawful for any licensee licensed hereunder to offer for sale by auction any personal property to which there is not attached a card or ticket or label containing a true and correct statement, plainly written or printed in English, specifying the kind and quality of such personal property; such tag or label shall remain securely attached thereto and shall be delivered to the purchaser as a true and correct description and representation of the article sold, and shall be deemed prima facie evidence of intent to defraud in case such written statement is not a true and correct description and representation of such articles sold.

(Prior code § 4-3.817)

When said auction sale relates to jewelry, it shall be unlawful for any person licensed hereunder to offer for sale by auction any article to which there is not attached a card or ticket or label containing a true and correct statement plainly written or printed in English specifying the kind and quality of the metal of which such article is made or composed, or the percentage of karat or purity of such metals. If such articles are plated or overlaid, then such tag or label shall contain a true statement of the kind of plate.

When precious stones are for sale or sold by auction as such or as part of an article of jewelry, such a written statement shall set forth the true name, weight and quality of such stones. When semi-precious stones are offered for sale or sold by auction as such or as part of an article of jewelry, such written statement shall set forth the true name of said stones. When imitations of precious or semi-precious stones are offered for sale or sold by auction as such or as part of an article of jewelry, said imitations shall be described or defined as synthetic or imitations of such stones as they purport to represent.

When watches and clocks are sold, the true names of the manufacturers shall be stated in writing and no parts of the movements or mechanism thereof shall be substituted or contain false and misleading names or trademarks, neither shall secondhand or old movements be offered for sale in new cases without a true statement to that effect. Used and rebuilt watches should be so indicated. Such tag or label shall remain securely attached to any such article or merchandise, shall be delivered to the purchaser as a true and correct description and representation of the article sold, and shall be deemed prima facie evidence of intent to defraud in case such written statement is not a true and correct description and representation of such articles sold.

(Prior code § 4-3.818)

An applicant for a license for an auction sale shall file an application therefor with the City Clerk, not later than thirty (30) days prior to the auction sale to be licensed, upon forms prescribed by said City Clerk which shall include, in addition to the name and address of the applicant and the location and time of the proposed auction sale, a sworn statement of the inventory on hand and the personal property to be offered at auction, the quality, quantity, kind or grade of each item, the wholesale market value thereof and the name of the owner of such personal property proposed to be sold at said auction sale, and such other information as the City Clerk shall prescribe.

(Prior code § 4-3.819)

During such auction sale, no addition whatsoever shall be made to the stock of personal property set forth in the inventory attached to the application for license, and nothing shall be offered for sale or sold at any such sale by auction which is an addition to the stock of merchandise described in said inventory, or which has been added to the applicant's stock within a period of thirty (30) days prior to the date the applicant filed application for license. Under no circumstances shall the inventory offered for sale at auction exceed by fifty (50%) percent the average inventory carried by the applicant over the preceding five (5) year period. If applicant has been in business less than five (5) years, the inventory offered for sale at auction shall not exceed by fifty (50%) percent the average inventory carried for the period of time the applicant has been in business. Any abnormal purchases during the year prior to the application for a license shall be cause for refusal to issue the license, and it shall be unlawful for any person to offer for sale or sell at any auction sale any personal property in addition to the stock listed and described in such inventory.

(Prior code § 4-3.820)

It shall be unlawful for any licensee, his agents, or employees to make any statements which are false in any particular, or which have a tendency to mislead or to make any misrepresentations whatsoever, with reference to any article sold or offered for sale during such an auction.

(Prior code § 4-3.821)

The person to whom the license has been granted shall remain in continuous attendance at all times while such sale by auction is being conducted and shall be responsible for any violation of the provisions of this Article.

(Prior code § 4-3.822)