Yuba County Municipal Code Ch. 6.38 Peddlers, Hawkers, Itinerant Merchants and Solicitors

The purposes of this Chapter are to prevent the practice of consumer fraud, the selling of stolen property, the annoyance of householders, and unfair business practices and competition by dishonest or irresponsible persons.

(Prior Code, § 6.38.010; Ord. No. 672)

The following terms used herein are defined as follows:

(1) Itinerant merchant means one who proposes to sell and solicits or advertises the sale of commodities or services from an established place or structure for a temporary or limited period of time.

(2) Peddler means one who sells tangible commodities from house-to-house, store-to-store, on the streets or in any public place.

(3) Solicitor means one who solicits or takes orders from householders at their place of residence in person or by telephone call for future delivery of services or commodities, including subscriptions to periodicals.

(4) Temporary or limited period of time means a period of six weeks or less.

(5) To act as or to engage in the business of peddler, solicitor or itinerant merchant means to sell, solicit sales for, or attempt to sell.

(6) To sell or selling includes any request or suggestion of a gift or donation in exchange for an item of merchandise or thing of value.

(Prior Code, § 6.38.020; Ord. No. 672)

(a) It shall be unlawful, a violation of this Chapter, and a misdemeanor for any person, firm, partnership or corporation to act as or engage in the business of peddler, solicitor or itinerant merchant without first having applied for and received a written license therefore from this County.

(b) It shall be unlawful, a violation of this Chapter, and a misdemeanor for any person, firm, partnership or corporation, in acting as a peddler, itinerant merchant or solicitor to misrepresent his or her occupation or the price, value, nature, kind or quality of the services or commodities he or she sells, solicits sales for, or attempts to sell.

(Prior Code, § 6.38.030; Ord. No. 672)

State Law reference— Authority to license peddlers and hawkers, Business and Professions Code § 16101 et seq.

Nothing in this Chapter shall apply to, restrict, or regulate solicitation or sale of commodities or services for or on behalf of any charitable, non-profit, educational or social services agency or organization.

(Prior Code, § 6.38.040; Ord. No. 672)

An application for such a license may be made to the Treasurer on forms to be supplied by the Treasurer, accompanied by a fee in the sum established in Section 13.00.060. Said fee is deemed to be sufficient to defray the costs to the County for administration of this Chapter, and is nonrefundable.

(Prior Code, § 6.38.050; Ord. No. 672)

The Treasurer shall deposit the fee in the Treasury, and shall issue the license upon approval of the Sheriff. The license shall be valid for 12 months thereafter unless sooner revoked by the Sheriff, for good cause.

(Prior Code, § 6.38.060; Ord. No. 672)

A license may be renewed upon its expiration in the same manner as issued, as herein set forth; there shall be a fee for the renewal thereof in the same amount as for an original license; the renewed license shall be valid for 12 months thereafter.

(Prior Code, § 6.38.070; Ord. No. 672)

The Sheriff may deny an application for issuance of a license, or may revoke a license issued hereunder, for good cause related to the public safety and welfare, and to the purpose of this Chapter.

(Prior Code, § 6.38.080; Ord. No. 672)

If the Sheriff tentatively determines to deny an application for a license, or to revoke a license issued hereunder, the Sheriff shall first notify the applicant of said intention no less than five days in advance of such a proposed order, and give the applicant or the licensee an opportunity to appear before the Sheriff or the Sheriff's designee and present the applicant's contentions in an informal hearing. After said hearing the Sheriff shall make his or her decision and inform the applicant of same in writing.

(Prior Code, § 6.38.090; Ord. No. 672)

Within ten days of receipt of the decision of the Sheriff, the aggrieved party may appeal said order by filing a written notice of appeal with the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors. Upon receipt of such a notice of appeal, the Clerk shall present the same to the Board of Supervisors at its next regular meeting and shall send a copy of said notice of appeal to the Sheriff and to the County Counsel. Upon such presentation, the Board shall fix a date of hearing of said appeal; said date shall be within 30 days thereafter. The Clerk shall then notify the appellant of said date of hearing by certified mail, at least five days before such hearing. The deposit of the written notice in the United States Post Office, properly addressed, shall constitute notice to the appellant.

(Prior Code, § 6.38.100; Ord. No. 672)

At said hearing, the Board of Supervisor shall hear the matter in full, and then may sustain the decision of the Sheriff, reverse, or vacate the decision of the Sheriff or modify the decision of the Sheriff, and if appropriate to said decision, may order the Treasurer to issue the applied for license.

(Prior Code, § 6.38.110; Ord. No. 672)

Any person who violates any of the provisions of this Chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof is punishable by imprisonment in the County Jail for a term not exceeding six months or a fine not exceeding $1,000.00 or both. Each separate day during which any violation occurs is a separate offense.

(Prior Code, § 6.38.120; Ord. No. 672)

State Law reference— Penalty for ordinance violations, Government Code § 25132, Penal Code § 19.

If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, provision or portion of this Chapter, or the application thereof to any person or circumstances, is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by the decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions or provisions of this Chapter or their applicability to distinguishable situations or circumstances. In enacting this Chapter, it is the desire of the Board of Supervisors to validly regulate to the full measure of its legal authority in the public interest, and to that end, the Board of Supervisors declares that it would have adopted this Chapter and each section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, provision, or portion thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses, phrases or portions thereof might be declared invalid or unconstitutional in whole or in part, as applied to any particular situation or circumstances, and to this end the provisions of this Chapter are intended to be severable.

State Law reference— Similar provisions, Government Code § 23.