[Added 4-13-1982 by L.L. No. 12-1982]
[Amended 12-27-1983 by L.L. No. 3-1984; 12-17-2002 by L.L. No.
4-2003; 6-10-2003 by L.L. No. 21-2003]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Any unloaded muzzle-loading pistol or revolver with a matchlock,
flintlock, percussion cap or similar type of ignition system, or a
pistol or revolver which uses fixed cartridges which are no longer
available in the ordinary channels of commercial trade.
Any calendar day except Sunday or any County holiday.
Any person corporation, partnership, collateral loan broker,
as defined in Article 5 of the New York General Business Law, or other
entity and its employees that, as a business, transacts more than
five deals in the purchase of, sale of, or transaction for a collateral
loan against any of the following articles within a twelve-month period:
[Amended 9-15-2011 by L.L. No. 49-2011; 12-6-2011 by L.L. No.
2-2012]
Antique firearms.
Rifles.
Shotguns.
Cameras and other photography equipment.
Business machines, including but not limited to typewriters,
copying machines, sorting machines, calculators, word processing equipment
and data processing equipment.
Electronic equipment or component parts thereof, including but
not limited to televisions, stereos, videocassette recorders, video
games, computers, citizen band radios and cable television converters
and descramblers.
Electrical appliances other than refrigerators, washers, dryers,
stoves, ovens and home freezers.
Marine equipment, including but not limited to in-board and
outboard motors, anchors, fenders and radio and navigation equipment.
This equipment shall not include boats.
Telescopes.
Binoculars.
Musical instruments.
Cellular telephones and pagers.
Electric- and gas-powered yard or garden equipment and tools.
Electric-, pneumatic-, or hydraulic-powered construction or
mechanic's equipment or tools.
Gift cards, gift certificates, or any other instrument or document
evidencing credit or value that can be used to purchase merchandise
or services.
[Added 4-28-2015 by L.L.
No. 19-2015]
Exempted operations:
"Dealer in secondhand articles" shall not include any organizations
formed for charitable purposes which accept donations of secondhand
articles and resell them to raise funds for purposes consistent with
the formation of the organization, nor any persons, corporations,
partnerships or other entities and their employees that, as a business,
are principally engaged in the service and/or repair of electronic
equipment or component parts thereof and who, from time to time, sell
electronic equipment or component parts thereof, which have been left
for repair and later abandoned.
The sale of secondhand goods at events commonly known as "garage
sales," "yard sales," or "estate sales," provided:
The sale is held on noncommercial property;
None of the items offered for sale have been purchased for resale;
The owner of the property receives all proceeds; and
The sale period is no longer than 72 hours. At no time shall
the property owner be permitted to conduct more than two events within
a twelve-month period.
Secondhand books, comic books, magazines, post cards, and postage
stamps.
The Office of Consumer Affairs.
Identification documents that contain the person's name,
address, and a photograph of said person or a current and valid government-issued
passport. Social Security cards, draft registration cards, voter registration
cards and comparable documents shall not be considered sufficient
identification for the purpose of this article.
[Amended 4-28-2015 by L.L. No. 19-2015; 4-12-2016 by L.L. No. 14-2016]
An article or object which:
[Amended 6-21-1994 by L.L. No. 13-1994]
A.
No person shall engage in any business as a dealer in secondhand articles without obtaining a license therefor from the Office in accordance with and subject to the provisions of this article and Article I.
B.
A licensee shall display the license obtained pursuant to this article in the establishment. If a licensee shall maintain more than one establishment within the County of Suffolk, he shall obtain duplicate licenses. The fee for duplicate licenses are set forth in § 563-51B.
C.
No applicant for a license or license renewal shall have any outstanding
judgment for child support against him or her, or be in arrears in
child-support payments as determined by official court records or
official government records, at the time an application is filed for
such license or license renewal. If an applicant has such a judgment
against him or her, or is in such arrears, but is current in payments
on a judicially approved, or Child Support Enforcement Bureau sanctioned,
payment schedule to pay off or reduce such judgment or arrears, then
such individual shall not be deemed ineligible for a license or license
renewal on the grounds of such judgment or arrears. At least 30 days
prior to the expiration of a license, the Office shall send a written
notice to a licensee informing said licensee of his or her obligation
to comply with the provisions of this section pertaining to compliance
with child-support obligations. If necessary, a second written notice
shall be sent by the Office to a licensee 60 days after the license
has lapsed informing said licensee of his or her obligation to comply
with the provisions of this section pertaining to compliance with
the child-support obligations. In addition, the County Department
of Social Services, through its Child Support Enforcement Bureau,
shall notify all current noncustodial parents of the obligations contained
herein.
[Amended 6-6-2000 by L.L. No. 11-2000]
[Amended 2-8-1983 by L.L. No. 5-1983; 6-6-1989 by L.L. No.
19-1989; 11-30-2001 by L.L. No. 23-2001; 12-17-2002 by L.L. No.
4-2003]
A.
An application fee of $200 shall accompany each application for a
dealer in secondhand articles license.
[Amended 8-5-2008 by L.L. No. 32-2008]
B.
The fee for a duplicate license for an additional dealer in a secondhand
articles establishment shall be $50 per annum. It may be renewed biennially
for a fee of $100.
C.
The fee for a dealer in secondhand articles license or renewal thereof
shall be $200 per annum.
[Amended 6-10-2003 by L.L. No. 21-2003; 4-28-2015 by L.L. No. 18-2015; 4-12-2016 by L.L. No. 14-2016; 6-6-2023 by L.L. No. 24-2023]
A.
Each licensee shall keep records, legibly written in English, in
a bound book. All entries shall be made in ink at the time of each
transaction and shall include the correlating computer transaction
number. Each transaction shall also include:
(1)
An accurate account and description of the article or thing bought,
including but not limited to the make, model, color and serial number
when present.
(2)
The amount paid for the article.
(3)
The date and location of transaction.
(4)
The name, home residence, date of birth, sex and race of the person
selling the items.
(5)
The type of identification produced by the person selling the article.
(a)
For the purposes of this section, proper identification shall
be government-issued identification documents that depict the person's
name, address, and photograph or a current and valid government-issued
passport.
(b)
In the event the seller utilizes a current and valid government-issued
passport as identification, the seller shall then also be required
to provide documentation of the seller's current address. Such
documentation shall be in the form of at least two utility bills in
the seller's name and reflect the seller's current address
or any other such documentation as may be required by the Department.
(c)
Social Security cards, draft registration cards, voter registration
cards and other similar documents shall not be considered sufficient
identification for the purposes of this section.
(6)
The signature of the person identified in the transaction.
C.
Each licensee shall take digital photographs of the following:
D.
Any change in location of the article from the time the transaction
occurs until the article is disposed of by sale or other means shall
be recorded and kept as a record pursuant to this section.
E.
No alterations or erasures are to be made to required entries. An
erroneous entry shall have a single line drawn through it and the
corrected entry made on the next line.
F.
The records shall be retained in the possession of the licensee at
the business location for at least seven years from the time the record
is made.
[Amended 12-17-2002 by L.L. No. 4-2003; 6-10-2003 by L.L. No.
21-2003; 6-6-2023 by L.L. No. 24-2023]
A.
Online, electronic records, reported daily, pursuant to § 563-57, may be reviewed at any time by the Office of Consumer Affairs and the Police Department.
B.
The Office of Consumer Affairs and/or the Police Department shall no more often than every three months conduct regular and routine inspections of the physical records of the licensee to ensure compliance with the recordkeeping and reporting requirements set forth in the Suffolk County Code, Chapter 563, and the New York State General Business Law.
C.
Such regular and routine inspections shall be made upon three business
days' notice to the licensee and shall occur at reasonable times
during business hours.
D.
In conducting these inspections, an inspector from the Office of
Consumer Affairs or member of the Police Department shall:
(1)
Request to see the last 20 articles purchased or received in pledge
by the secondhand dealer that are still in inventory, which articles
must be produced by the secondhand dealer.
(2)
Compare the articles to the description of such articles listed in
the secondhand articles' transaction records and/or the electronic
records.
(3)
Review the entry for each of these 20 items in the secondhand dealer's
record book for completeness, accuracy and legibility.
E.
In the event documented probable cause exists that a licensee has failed to properly record any information required by Chapter 563 regarding an item purchased or acquired by the licensee, the Office of Consumer Affairs and/or the Police Department may, without giving prior written notice, conduct a physical inspection of the licensee's records at the licensee's place of business. In such cases, the records inspection shall be limited to an inspection of the record relating to the particular item of property for which the information contained in the designated reporting program was either incorrect or incomplete.
F.
Nothing herein shall be construed so as to restrict, inhibit, exclude
or otherwise invalidate any court-issued warrant or other judicial
decision or order.
[Amended 12-17-2002 by L.L. No. 4-2003; 6-10-2003 by L.L. No.
21-2003]
A.
No article purchased by a dealer in secondhand articles shall be
sold or otherwise disposed of until the expiration of at least 21
business days from the date of purchase.
B.
All articles subject to this holding period shall be available for
inspection by the Director of the Office of Consumer Affairs, the
Police Commissioner, the Chief of Police or any officer duly authorized
by them.
C.
Purchases or sales between licensed secondhand dealers shall be exempt from the provisions of this section only if evidence of full compliance with all provisions and conditions set forth in this article is obtained by the purchasing secondhand dealer from the selling secondhand dealer in the form of a receipt. This receipt shall be retained by the purchasing secondhand dealer for the period required by § 563-52C hereof.
D.
During the required holding period, which includes the holding period required under §§ 563-54A and 563-55, it shall be unlawful for dealers in secondhand articles to erase or alter any data or programs maintained on electronic equipment that has been purchased by such dealers.
[Added 4-28-2015 by L.L.
No. 18-2015]
[Added 6-10-2003 by L.L. No. 21-2003]
A.
Investigative hold. Where there is reasonable suspicion that, at
a minimum, property in the possession of a licensee is stolen property
or constitutes evidence of a crime, the investigating law enforcement
or consumer affairs official may notify a licensee not to sell an
item and the item shall not be sold or removed from the premises.
The investigative hold shall be confirmed in writing by the originating
agency within 72 hours and shall remain in effect for 15 days from
the date of initial notification or until the investigative order
is cancelled, or until an order to hold is issued, whichever comes
first.
[Amended 6-6-2023 by L.L. No. 24-2023]
B.
Order to hold. If additional time is needed to secure the voluntary
surrender of the item or for investigative purposes, or to afford
the investigating official sufficient time to secure a search warrant
authorizing the seizure of the item in those instances where the licensee
declines to voluntarily surrender the item, and documented probable
cause exists that the item is stolen or constitutes evidence of a
crime, the Commissioner of Police, a Police Chief, or the Director
of Consumer Affairs may notify a licensee not to sell an item and
the item shall not be sold or removed from the licensed premises until
authorized to be released by the aforementioned individuals or their
designees. The order to hold shall expire 90 days from the date it
is placed or when probable cause no longer exists, whichever occurs
first.
[Amended 6-6-2023 by L.L. No. 24-2023]
C.
When an item is placed on hold, the person doing so shall provide
identification and provide the licensee with the name and phone number
of the holding agency and the case number related to the hold order.
D.
When an order to hold is no longer necessary, the licensee shall
be notified in writing by the requesting agency.
[Added 6-10-2003 by L.L. No. 21-2003]
A.
No article shall be purchased from a person who is unable to produce
proper identification.
C.
No article shall be purchased from a person under the age of 18 without
the written consent of his parent or guardian.
D.
No article shall be purchased that possesses an altered or obliterated
serial number or any item that has had its serial number removed.
E.
No article shall be purchased from a person who appears to be intoxicated
or of unsound mind.
[Amended 12-17-2002 by L.L. No. 4-2003; 6-10-2003 by L.L. No.
21-2003; 6-6-2023 by L.L. No. 24-2023]
Any required reports shall be filed, by the end of each business
day, electronically using a reporting program as designated in writing
by the Police Department. Each licensee shall be required to create
an account with such designated company or another comparable reporting
program designated by the County within 15 days of the County's
mailing of notification to the licensee.
[Amended 12-27-1983 by L.L. No. 3-1984; 6-6-1989 by L.L. No.
19-1989; 11-30-2001 by L.L. No. 23-2001; 12-17-2002 by L.L. No.
4-2003]
A.
The Office shall issue a temporary license to any applicant for a
dealer in secondhand articles license if the Office has not, within
30 days after receipt of the application for such license, approved
or disapproved such application.
B.
The temporary license shall be valid for a period of 90 days. If
within such ninety-day period the Office shall have failed to approve
or disapprove the application, the Office shall then issue a regular
license to the applicant. If the application is approved during the
term of the temporary license, the Office shall then issue a regular
license to the applicant.
C.
The fee for a temporary license shall be $50. The fee for a regular
license issued to replace a temporary license shall be $150.
[Added 6-10-2003 by L.L. No. 21-2003]
Notwithstanding the provisions of § 563-11A(4) herein, every applicant for a dealer in secondhand articles license shall submit a five-thousand-dollar bond, or for renewal of a license, evidence of a bond issued in favor of the licensee. This bond shall be for the purpose of guaranteeing payments up to the face amount of the bond for bank drafts or other negotiable instruments issued by the licensee in exchange for the purchase of secondhand articles. All bonds shall be conditioned that the licensee will observe all laws in relation to precious metal dealers and will conduct business in conformity thereto. Such bond shall remain in full force during the entire period for which the license is valid.
