[Adopted 10-15-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-12]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Any person, partnership or corporation who, through any means,
buys or sells gold, silver, precious metals or jewelry, and includes
anyone advertising the purchase or sale of any of the aforementioned
items.
The purchase of any item containing gold or silver or gems
or any other precious metals, except for coins, for subsequent resale
purposes and not for personal use.
Any item containing gold or silver previously sold or transferred
to a consumer for the personal use or enjoyment of such consumer.
A.
No individual, person, partnership or corporation shall engage in
business of purchasing precious metals and gems, and all forms of
previously owned jewelry without first obtaining a zoning permit from
the Borough of Spotswood Zoning Officer and a license from the Borough
of Spotswood Clerk. The license shall bear a number issued by the
Borough Clerk and shall be prominently displayed within the licensed
premises.
B.
An application for such license shall be filed with the Borough Clerk
and shall be accompanied by a license fee of $200 for the initial
application and $50 for each annual renewal for each premises on which
the regulated activity is to be conducted.
C.
Each licensee shall deliver a bond to the Borough Clerk executed
by the applicant as principal, with a surety company authorized to
do business under the laws of the State of New Jersey as to surety.
The bond, to be approved by the Borough Attorney, shall be in the
penal sum of $10,000, conditioned upon the due and proper observance
of and compliance with the provisions and requirements of all ordinances
of the Borough in force or which may be adopted respecting the conduct
of this business and conditioned also that the bond shall be and remain
for the benefit of any person or persons who shall have received judgment
against any person licensed under this chapter by reason of any damage
sustained by any such person as having made a sale to such licensee,
due to dishonesty, fraud or deceit practiced in effecting purchase.
D.
Each license shall expire on December 31 of the year in which it
is issued.
Upon receipt of an application and fee pursuant to, the Borough
Clerk shall refer such application to the Chief of Police, who shall
institute such investigation of the applicant's moral character and
business responsibility as deemed necessary for the protection of
the public welfare. The applicant shall sign a waiver authorizing
a criminal history check to be conducted by the Borough of Spotswood
Police Department. Upon completion of the investigation, the Chief
of Police shall return the application or a copy thereof to the Borough
Clerk, within a reasonable period of time, accompanied by his recommendations
as to whether the license should be issued or denied. If the recommendation
is to deny the license, the grounds for such recommendation shall
be stated. Grounds for recommending denial of a license may include
information indicating that the applicant is not of good moral character
or is of questionable business responsibility, and a recommendation
of denial shall be given if the applicant has been convicted of any
crime or disorderly persons offense involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit
or misrepresentation or for failure to execute a waiver authorizing
a criminal history check to be conducted. Upon receipt of the recommendation
of the Chief of Police, the Borough Clerk shall issue or deny the
license accordingly. If the license is denied, 75% of the fees shall
be returned to the applicant, the balance going to offset the cost
of the investigation. Any person aggrieved by such denial may appeal
to the Borough Council, which may affirm, reverse or modify the decision.
A.
Each dealer shall record in a bound book, non-loose-leaf form, with
all pages numbered in sequence, entries of receipts and disbursements
to be made in pen or ink. There shall be no space between entries
and each entry shall be numbered in sequence. All such ledgers shall
be made available for inspection by any law enforcement official of
the Borough of Spotswood upon request and shall contain the following
information:
B.
The licensee shall, within 24 hours of the transaction, submit to
the Borough Police Department the record of sale or trade of precious
metals by fax or hand delivery.
C.
These records shall be retained by the dealer for a period of one
year and shall be subject to the inspection of any authorized police
officer of the Borough of Spotswood.
A.
Each dealer shall retain within the Borough, all merchandise in the
form in which it was purchased for a period of at least seven days.
B.
No transaction may be made with any person under the age of 19.
C.
Each dealer must require two forms of identification of the person
with whom it is transacting business.
D.
All licensees shall be mandated to obtain from each person offering
items for sale a clear photo identification of that person, along
with the individual's current address, personal information and signature.
All licensees under this section shall be required to maintain a photocopy
machine or digital camera at their place of business and use such
equipment to acquire a clear and viewable photocopy from the identification.
This information shall be submitted to the Borough of Spotswood Police
Department.
E.
No person, firm or corporation shall, under any circumstances, go
from house to house soliciting the purchase of old gold, old silver
or other precious metals.
Any person or persons, as defined above, who violates any provision
of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine
of not more than $2,000 or be imprisoned for not more than 90 days,
or both, at the discretion of the Municipal Judge. A separate offense
shall be deemed committed in each day during or in which a violation
occurred or continues.
