Township of Upper Southampton, PA Pawnbrokers and Dealers in Precious Metals

An individual, partnership, association, corporation, or other business entity, including an itinerant merchant doing business in Upper Southampton Township, that purchases or makes appraisals of precious metals and their alloys for resale to refiners, brokers, or the public.

GOVERNMENT IDENTIFICATION

A valid identification document issued by a state or federal government, bearing a photograph that gives identifying data, such as name, date of birth, gender, physical description, and current address of the person bearing the card.

ITEM

All personal property, including precious metal as defined hereafter.

MINOR

Any person under the age of 18.

PAWNBROKER

An individual, partnership, association, corporation, or other business entity, including an itinerant merchant, doing business in Upper Southampton Township that lends money in exchange for personal property deposited by a pledger or seller.

PLEDGE

An article and/or articles deposited with a pawnbroker as security for a loan or currency in the course of his/her business as defined in the definition of "pawnbroker."

PLEDGER

The person who obtains the loan from a pawnbroker and delivers a pledge into the possession of a pawnbroker, unless such person discloses that he/she is or was acting for another, in which case a "pledger" means the disclosed principal.

PRECIOUS METAL

An item containing or being of ten-karat gold or greater fineness, silver or platinum, including, but not limited to, jewelry and silver services.

SELLER

The person who obtains payment from a dealer in return for any merchandise or goods.

STATE LICENSE

A pawnbroker's license issued by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

TOWNSHIP LICENSE

A license issued by the Township of Upper Southampton pursuant to the terms of this chapter.

TRANSACTION

A purchase, sale or loan by any dealer.

WORKING DAYS

Weekdays of Monday through Friday, exclusive of holidays.

§ 124-2 Township licenses and registration.

Pawnbrokers.

(1)

Township license. No person shall act as a pawnbroker unless he or she has obtained a Township license from Upper Southampton Township for each location from which that person seeks to act as a pawnbroker in Upper Southampton Township.

(2)

Registration. No person shall act as a pawnbroker unless he or she pays an annual registration license fee of $350 for each location from which the applicant intends to operate in Upper Southampton Township. The amount of the registration fee may be changed by resolution from time to time by the Upper Southampton Township Board of Supervisors.

(3)

Pawnbroker's license. A Township license to act as a pawnbroker shall not be issued by the Upper Southampton Township unless the person has obtained a state license first from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as required by the Act of April 6, 1937, P.L. 200, 63 P.S. § 281-1 et seq., as amended.

Dealers in precious metals.

(1)

Township license. No person shall act as a dealer in precious metals unless he or she has obtained a Township license from Upper Southampton Township for each location from which that person seeks to act as a dealer in precious metals in Upper Southampton Township.

(2)

Registration. No person shall act as a dealer in precious metals unless he or she pays an annual registration license fee of $350 for each location from which the applicant intends to operate in Upper Southampton Township. The amount of the registration fee may be changed by resolution from time to time by the Upper Southampton Township Board of Supervisors.

One fee per location. If a person is a pawnbroker and a dealer in precious metals, the Township shall impose only one annual registration fee of $350 for each location.

§ 124-3 Records required.

All pawnbrokers and dealers in precious metals are required to maintain records of all transactions, including but not limited to pledges, loans, purchases and sales. Records shall be kept in the English language.

All records of transactions shall include all of the following information, if such information is available:

Date of sale.

Time of sale.

Location of sale.

Make.

Model.

Serial number.

Model number.

Description.

Color.

Special markings of the pledge or sale item.

(11)

Currency amount paid to pledger and/or seller.

(12)

Photocopy of the pledger's/seller's government identification.

A color photograph shall be produced for items without proper identifiable marks and/or numbers. A color photograph shall be produced for all precious metals received.

A copy of all pledge and/or sale transactions containing this information shall be retained at the location of business for a period of two years after the date of transaction, payment, loan, or sale of the pledge, whichever is later.

§ 124-4 Weighing devices.

All scales or other devices used by pawnbrokers and dealers in precious metals to weigh precious metals must be of a type approved for commercial use in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and must be inspected and sealed by the Pennsylvania Bureau of Ride and Measurement Standards' Weights and Measures Division.

Pawnbrokers and dealers in precious metals must notify the Pennsylvania Bureau of Ride and Measurement Standards' Weights and Measures Division whenever a weighing device referred to in Subsection A above is moved from one location to another.

§ 124-5 Identification of pledger/seller.

Pawnbrokers and dealers in precious metals shall obtain the following information from the pledger and/or seller for the purposes of establishing identification of each pledger and/or seller:

A photocopy of verified government-issued identification; and

An accurate physical description of the pledger and/or seller, including race, gender, eye and hair color and identifying marks, if any.

§ 124-6 Stolen property.

Pawnbrokers and dealers in precious metals may seize any item offered in a sale or pledge which he/she has reason to believe is stolen property. Pawnbrokers and dealers in precious metals shall issue a seizure receipt to the person presenting such property in pledge and/or sale and shall immediately deliver such seized property together with a copy of the seizure receipt to the Upper Southampton Township Police Department.

§ 124-7 Electronic filing.

Responsibility of Township.

(1)

The Upper Southampton Township Police Department shall procure services from a reputable online entity which operates an electronic database for law enforcement agencies for the purpose of identifying stolen merchandise and persons suspected of thefts.

(2)

The entity chosen by the Upper Southampton Police Department to administer the electronic inventory tracking system shall ensure that all data remain secure and confidential by providing to each pawnbroker and dealer in precious metals login security protocols which meet current industry standards and shall employ state-of-the-art technology to protect the data from all forms of unauthorized access and malicious intrusion.

Responsibility of pawnbrokers and dealers in precious metals.

(1)

Electronic inventory tracking system. Each pawnbroker and dealer in precious metals doing business in the Upper Southampton Township shall, within 30 days of the adoption of this chapter, maintain an electronic inventory tracking system which is capable of securely and confidentially uploading all transactions via computer to the entity designated by the Upper Southampton Police Department.

(2)

Daily upload. No later than the conclusion of each and every day the business is open, every pawnbroker and dealer in precious metals must upload, in the manner specified by the Police Department, the required tracking information for all transactions during the course of business on that day.

§ 124-8 Holding period and inspection.

All items shall be kept in unaltered condition, available for inspection by law enforcement officials in the course of their law enforcement duties, for 10 working days following a transaction by pawnbrokers and dealers in precious metals or a data upload as specified in § 124-7 above.

Law enforcement officials shall not require a search warrant to inspect the item, unless the inspection is made during hours other than regular business hours.

During the holding period, any item subject to the holding period shall be segregated from other inventory to ensure that it is not placed in an area or section where personal property and/or precious metals are offered for sale. Where any item is held off the premises, the pawnbrokers and dealers in precious metals shall make the item available for inspection within 24 hours after receiving a request for inspection by law enforcement officials.

Any law enforcement official who has reason to believe any item was not sold or exchanged by the lawful owner may direct the pawnbrokers or dealers in precious metals to hold the item for a reasonable length of time that the law enforcement official considers necessary to identify it.

§ 124-9 Business with minors.

All business transactions between pawnbrokers and minors are prohibited. All business transactions between dealers in precious metals and minors are prohibited.

§ 124-10 Violations and penalties.

Civil enforcement. Any person who violates or permits a violation of this chapter shall, upon being found liable therefor in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by the Township before a District Justice, pay a fine of not more than $600, plus all court costs, including reasonable attorney's fees, incurred by the Township in the enforcement of this chapter. No judgment shall be imposed until the date of the determination of the violation by the District Justice. If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment, the Township may enforce the judgment pursuant to the applicable Rules of Civil Procedure. Each day a violation exists shall constitute a separate offense. Further, the appropriate officers or agents of the Township are hereby authorized to seek equitable relief, including injunction, to enforce compliance herewith.

Revocation of license. If the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania suspends or revokes the state license referred to in § 124-2A(3), then the Township license shall automatically be suspended or revoked, whichever the case may be, until such time as the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania withdraws the suspension or revocation.