[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Council of the Borough of Bellevue
as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Taxation — See Ch. 240.
[Adopted 6-5-2001 by Ord. No. 01-07]
For the purposes of this article, the following terms, phrases,
words and their derivations shall have the meanings given herein unless
a different meaning clearly appears from the context:
The conducting of retail sales of goods, wares or merchandise
on the streets or in the homes of the Borough, including solicitation
and taking of orders, whether verbal or written. This phrase includes
work commonly done by peddlers, hawkers, auctioneers, hucksters or
other door-to-door salesmen. It does not include the sales of milk
or milk products or bakery products.
Any person, corporation, partnership, association or any
agent, employee or servant thereof who dispenses, disseminates or
disperses various types of material, written, printed or other, which
calls attention of the public to a product, business or service.
Any person, corporation, partnership, association or any
agent, employee or servant thereof who conducts a business in the
Borough of Bellevue, either by going door to door or in any other
manner, where the vendor does not have either a residence or a business
office within the geographic limits of the Borough.
Transient vendors shall be governed and regulated within the
Borough in the following manner:
A.
Hereafter, no transient vendor may conduct business within the geographic
limits of the Borough in any residential area.
B.
Hereafter, no transient vendor may conduct business within the geographic
limits of the Borough in any commercial or business area without first
obtaining a permit in accordance with the requirements of this article.
(1)
Permit fee; issuance, cost, exemptions, etc. Exemptions from the
payment of fees are granted:
(a)
To farmers selling their own produce.
(b)
For the sale of goods, wares and merchandise donated by the
owners thereof, the proceeds whereof are to be applied to any charitable
or philanthropic purpose.
(c)
To any manufacturer or producer in the sale of bread and bakery
products, meat and meat products or milk and milk products.
(d)
To children under the age of 18 years who take orders for and
deliver newspapers, greeting cards, candy, bakery products, and the
like, or who represent the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, athletic organizations
located in Bellevue, the Northgate School District or similar locally
based organizations.
(e)
To the seeking or taking orders by insurance agents or brokers
licensed under the insurance laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
(f)
To any person who has complied with the provisions of the Solicitation
of Funds for Charitable Purposes Act, 10 Pa.C.S.A. § 162.1
et seq., as hereafter amended, supplemented, modified or reenacted
by the General Assembly of Pennsylvania.
(g)
For taking orders for merchandise by sample from dealers or
merchants for individuals or companies who pay a license fee or business
privilege tax at their chief place of business.
(2)
All other transient vendors shall be required to pay a license fee
in an amount as established from time to time by resolution of the
Borough of Bellevue.
(3)
Transient vendors shall be required to pay a license fee for each
individual being utilized by the transient vendor, in such amount
as established from time to time by resolution of the Borough Council.
(4)
No permits shall be issued unless and until the necessary fee is paid and the information as set forth in § 195-5A hereof is given by the applicant and for each individual engaged by the applicant.
(5)
Every transient vendor shall carry a permit at all times while conducting
business within the Borough.
(6)
Permits are not transferable, and a separate permit is required for
each person utilized or employed by the vendor.
C.
Any person engaged in interstate commerce shall register in a docket
provided therefor, stating his name, address, employer and the product
he is selling. The registration shall also show the date and time
he will commence work in the Borough and the length of time he intends
to work therein. The Borough may require that the transient vendor
engaged in interstate commerce take an oath or affirm to the truth
of the allegations made in such registration. The Borough shall issue
to the vendor a registration certificate showing the has registered.
D.
Manner and hours of conducting business.
(1)
No transient vendor shall deposit any refuse or waste on the streets,
avenues or alleys or any private or public property in the Borough,
nor may be park or stop for a longer time than is reasonably necessary
for the conduct of his business.
(2)
The hours during which a transient vendor may conduct business in
the Borough of Bellevue shall be limited to Monday through Saturday,
8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., prevailing time.
[Amended 2-5-2002 by Ord. No. 02-03]
Religious, charitable and nonprofit solicitors shall be governed
and regulated within the Borough in the following manner:
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person to go upon residential property
within the Borough to solicit funds from the Borough residents for
any religious, charitable or nonprofit cause by knocking upon residential
doors or by ringing doorbells or by any other method so as to cause
or attempt to cause residents to open their doors unless the organization
sponsoring the solicitation is located within the confines of the
Borough or the individual person doing the solicitation is a resident
of the Borough and has first registered at the office of the Director
of Administrative Services and has received identification cards from
the Director of Administrative Services of the Borough for each individual
soliciting.
B.
It shall be unlawful for any person to go upon residential property
within the Borough to distribute literature to the Borough residents
for any religious, charitable or nonprofit cause by knocking upon
residential doors or by ringing doorbells or by any other method so
as to cause or attempt to cause residents to open their doors unless
the organization sponsoring the distribution of material and the individual
person doing the distribution has first registered at the office of
the Director of Administrative Services and has received identification
cards from the Director of Administrative Services of the Borough
for each individual distributing material.
D.
No identification card shall be issued to any solicitor or distributor of material until such time as the information required by § 195-5A hereof is provided to the Director of Administrative Services.
E.
Solicitors and distributors of material regulated by this section
shall carry their identification card issued by the Director of Administrative
Services at all times while soliciting or distributing material within
the Borough and shall show their identification cards to residents
in order to identify themselves prior to any actual solicitation of
funds or distribution of material.
F.
All solicitation or distribution of material carried on by persons
for charitable, religious and nonprofit causes shall, in the case
of residential door-to-door or house-to-house calling, be restricted
to the following hours:
(1)
From May 1 through September 30, such solicitation and distribution
of materials shall be limited to the period from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00
p.m., prevailing time, including Saturdays and Sundays.
(2)
From October 1 to April 30, such solicitation and distribution of
materials shall be limited to the period from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.,
prevailing time, including Saturdays and Sundays.
G.
Solicitation of funds or distribution of materials for charitable,
religious or nonprofit causes at any business establishments and upon
any business properties shall be limited to the normal business hours
of the business, but those solicitors and distributors of material
shall also register at the office of the Director of Administrative
Services and carry identification cards.
Hereafter no person, firm, corporation or association hereinabove
defined as distributors of advertising material may distribute advertising
material at a residence or a business within the Borough by placing
such material at the residence or business property or on the residential
or business mailbox of the person owning or occupying the residence
or business, unless the person, firm, corporation or association distributing
such advertising material does so based upon the affirmative request
or consent of the person owning or occupying the residence or business;
provided, however, that this provision shall not apply to the following:
A.
Distribution of advertising material through the United States Mail
Service.
B.
Distribution of campaign literature during an election campaign.
C.
Distribution of telephone directories by the publisher of the directory
or its agent.
D.
Distribution of advertising material at the home or residence of
the person, firm, corporation or association distributing the advertising
material.
Any transient vendor, person, corporation, partnership, association
or any agent, employee or servant thereof shall register with the
Borough's Director of Administrative Services, pay a fee as required,
and provide the information as required on the application form.
A.
No permits shall be issued to transient vendors unless and until
the necessary fee is paid (if a fee is required) and the following
information is given by the applicant:
(1)
Full identification, including proof by vehicle operator's plate
number and/or a motor vehicle registration number and including sufficient
physical identification.
(2)
The name of vendor's business or his employer, the address of
that business, the kind of merchandise sold, the tax identification
number of the business and the type of transaction to be conducted.
(3)
The length of time for which the permit shall be issued and the number
and names of vendor's helpers.
(4)
Any criminal record of the vendor and any employee or agent shall
be disclosed at the time of the application.
B.
Permits for solicitation of funds shall be issued to religious, charitable
or nonprofit organizations only if the organization is located within
the confines of the Borough or the individual solicitors are residents
of the Borough.
C.
Permits for the distribution of material shall be issued to religious,
charitable or nonprofit organizations only if the organization provides
proof that it has complied with the provisions of the Solicitation
of Funds for Charitable Purposes Act, 10 Pa.C.S.A. § 162.1
et seq., as hereafter amended, supplemented, modified or reenacted
by the General Assembly of Pennsylvania.
D.
No permits shall be issued to religious, charitable or nonprofit
solicitors or distributors of information unless and until the necessary
fee is paid (if a fee is required) and the following additional information
is given by the applicant:
(1)
Full identification, including proof thereof by voter's registration
card, vehicle operator's license or some other accepted method
of identification, with residence and office address.
(2)
The name of the organization for which the applicant is soliciting
funds or distributing information, the address of the organization,
the type of organization, the tax identification number of the organization
and the type of transaction to be conducted.
(3)
The length of time the soliciting or distributing of information
is to be carried on.
(4)
Any criminal record which the applicant or his employees, volunteers
or agents may have.
E.
The Director of Administrative Services is hereby required to keep
records of all permits assigned under this article and shall supply
the Chief of Police the list of current permits issued as they are
issued.
F.
The Chief of Police shall have the power and is hereby authorized
to suspend or revoke any permit or identification card issued under
this article when he, in his judgment, deems such suspension or revocation
to be in the interest of public health, safety or morals, or for giving
false information upon any application for a permit or identification
card, or the Chief of Police has found out that the applicant has
been convicted of any felony or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude.
(1)
Any person whose permit or identification card has been revoked or
suspended may appeal to the Public Safety Committee for a hearing,
at which time the Committee may or may not sustain the action of the
Chief of Police.
(2)
Any appeal to the Public Safety Committee shall be made within five
days after the applicant has been notified in writing of the Chief's
actions and shall be heard by the Committee at its next regularly
scheduled meeting.
G.
Each transient vendor and each employee of a transient vendor issued
an individual permit and working within the Borough shall be required
to file all appropriate tax forms and make payment of taxes on all
sales, gross receipts, earnings, wages, etc., from sales in the Borough
to the designated tax official or tax collector within the time frame(s)
as noted herein, except for such sales, gross receipts, earnings,
wages, etc., as excluded by law, notwithstanding the time frame for
such filing and payment of said taxes noted in each specific tax ordinance.
Tax forms to be filed and taxes to be paid may include any or all
of the following: business privilege tax, earned income tax, earned
income tax add-on, occupational privilege tax and mercantile tax.[2]
(1)
The business privilege tax shall be paid on all gross revenues within
seven calendar days of the expiration of the permit.
(2)
The earned income tax and earned income tax add-on shall be paid
on or before the 30th day of the month following the last day of each
calendar quarterly period.
(3)
The occupational privilege tax shall be paid before the date that
the permit is issued.
(4)
The mercantile tax shall be paid on before the 30th day of the month
following the last day of each calendar quarterly period.
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate any provision
of this article, including but not limited to soliciting without a
permit or identification card, or who solicits other than during the
hours permitted shall, upon conviction thereof, be sentenced to pay
a fine of not more than $1,000 plus costs and, in default of payment
of said fine and costs, to a term of imprisonment not to exceed 30
days. Each day that a violation of this article continues shall constitute
a separate offense.
