[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council
of the City of Hagerstown 11-26-2013 by Ord. No. O-13-38.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Auctions and special sales — See Ch. 52.
Noise — See Ch. 155.
Streets and sidewalks — See Ch. 216.
[1]
Editor’s Note: This ordinance also provided for the
repeal of former Ch. 176, Peddlers and Transient Dealers, Art. I,
Peddlers, adopted 6-28-1983, as amended, and Art. II, Transient or
Temporary Dealers, adopted 6-28-1983, as amended.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
A person or entity engaged in a business for profit who sells,
offers to sell, or offers to purchase merchandise or commodities of
any type, or solicits orders for future services, from house to house
or place to place, whether by the use of a vehicle, wagon, cart, pack,
basket, container or otherwise for up to one year.
A person or entity engaged in a business for profit who sells,
offers to sell, or offers to purchase goods, merchandise or commodities
of any types, or solicits orders for future services, from house to
house or place to place, whether by the use of a vehicle, wagon, cart,
pack, basket, container or otherwise for a period not to exceed one
day.
Any person or entity engaged in the temporary business of
selling or offering goods, merchandise or commodities of any type
for sale, or who displays samples thereof for the purpose of taking
orders for future delivery, within any hotel, motel, or conference
room, or house or other structure within the City for period of up
to one year.
A person or entity engaged in a business for profit who does
not occupy a building or structure, but who uses or occupies a fixed
place of business on private or public property, or on the streets,
sidewalks, rights-of-way or public lands of the City, for the purpose
of selling or offering to sell goods, merchandise or commodities of
any type for a period of up to one year.
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, corporation or other
entity to engage in the business of a vendor, peddler, temporary peddler
or transient dealer without first obtaining a license as provided
in this chapter, unless specifically exempted hereinafter.
A.
The following types of businesses shall be exempt from the requirement
to obtain a vendor, peddler, temporary peddler or transient dealer
license:
(1)
Commercial travelers, selling agents and wholesalers in the normal
course of business.
(2)
Bona fide sales of goods for future delivery in interstate commerce.
(3)
Deliveries or sales calls made at the request of the owner or occupant.
(4)
Deliveries or sales calls made in connection with delivery routes
to regular customers.
(5)
Sales of locally grown produce and farm products by bona fide producers
thereof.
(6)
Yard sales, to the extent permitted by Maryland law.
(7)
Lemonade stands, snow cone stands, or other similar businesses conducted
at the operator's residence, which do not operate in excess of
14 days per calendar year.
(8)
Exhibitors or participants in an event for which a transient dealer
license has been obtained are exempt from obtaining individual vendor
licenses, so long as there are at least 10 exhibitors or participants
engaged in the transient dealer activity.
B.
A nonprofit organization which is exempt from federal taxation pursuant
to Section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code, and its employees,
members and volunteers, desiring to conduct sales or solicitations
for charitable, religious or philanthropic purposes shall be exempt
from the payment of any license fee required hereunder.
Licenses, including any renewal thereof, issued by the City
Clerk shall be issued for the period of time hereinafter delineated.
The amount of the nonrefundable license fee identified hereinafter
shall be payable by each applicant at the time of the application
for or renewal of the license.
|
Type of License
|
Duration of License
|
License Fee
|
|---|---|---|
|
Vendor
|
1 year
|
$250
|
|
Peddler
|
1 year
|
$250
|
|
Temporary peddler
|
1 day
|
$25
|
|
Transient dealer
|
Up to 1 year
|
$1,000 for first month and $500 per month thereafter, up to
a maximum of $3,500 per year
|
A.
Every vendor, peddler, temporary peddler and transient dealer shall,
prior to engaging in such activity, apply to the City Clerk and furnish,
in writing, on an application to be furnished by the City Clerk, the
following information, along with the appropriate nonrefundable license
fee:
(1)
The applicant's name and address.
(2)
The applicant's place of residence.
(3)
A personal description of the applicant, including marks of physical
identification. Each applicant shall also submit to a photograph to
be included as part of the license identification card.
(4)
The name and address of the person or entity by whom the applicant
is employed or with whom the applicant is associated.
(5)
The length of such employment or association.
(6)
A description of the business and the nature of the commodities,
articles, items or services the applicant is selling or offering for
sale in the City.
(7)
An estimate of the part of the City in which the applicant intends
to pursue his activities as a peddler.
(8)
The proposed location of sale if the applicant intends to sell any
commodity, article, item or service from an established spot as a
vendor or transient dealer.
(9)
The name and address of three persons who have known the applicant
for at least one year and from whom the applicant authorizes that
inquiry to be made to verify the facts stated by the applicant.
(10)
Proof of having obtained all necessary state and local licenses,
inspections and approvals to carry out the proposed activity.
(11)
A statement as to whether or not the applicant has ever been
convicted of any crime.
(12)
Every applicant for a transient dealer's license shall
execute and file with the Clerk a good and sufficient bond in the
amount of $10,000, with the surety thereon a surety qualified to do
business in the State of Maryland, which shall be payable to the City
of Hagerstown to the extent that any fees, taxes, or fines are due
or not paid. Said bond shall also provide that the City of Hagerstown
may file suit in its own name against the licensee and/or the surety
on said bond for any taxes, fees or fines due from the licensee which
are not paid within 30 days of the termination of the sale or the
termination of the license. Said bond shall also provide that any
purchaser at any sale or sales may maintain an action against a licensee
and/or said surety for claims arising from such sale for defective
merchandise or misrepresentation. Said bond shall also provide that
it shall continue in effect for one year after the termination of
the sale and/or license for which the same was made, and until all
actions are concluded and the judgment or judgments, if any, have
been paid and fully satisfied or the amount of the bond exhausted
by such payments. This bond shall be in addition to all deposits,
license fees, permit fees or any other requirements under any other
ordinances of the City. The applicant may, in lieu of the bond, deposit
a sum in cash with the City equivalent to the full amount that would
be due hereunder for the license based upon the estimated time required.
B.
It shall be a violation of this chapter to submit false or misleading
information on the application or to misrepresent any fact therein.
A.
The City Clerk shall promptly make such verification of the facts
stated by the applicant as the circumstances may require and shall
complete such verification and issue, reissue or deny the license
applied for within 14 days after the filing of the application.
B.
It shall be unlawful for an applicant to vend, peddle, or deal within
the City until a license is issued, or until a license is reissued
after expiration of a previous license.
A.
The Clerk may refuse to issue or to renew a license, or may revoke
any license issued under this chapter, if the Clerk finds that the
applicant has willfully submitted false or misleading information
on the license application, misrepresented any fact therein, or has
been convicted of a felony or a crime of moral turpitude. The Clerk
may revoke or refuse to renew any license upon a finding that the
licensee, while vending, peddling, or dealing, has engaged in fraud
or willful misrepresentation, has violated any of the provisions of
this chapter, has committed any unlawful act or has refused to leave
the premises immediately when requested by the owner or occupant thereof
to do so. Any denial, revocation or failure to renew shall be by written
notice to the applicant or licensee, delivered personally or sent
by certified mail to the licensee's address as listed in the
application. The notice shall contain a statement of the reason for
the action taken.
B.
Any person aggrieved by the action of the Clerk in the denial, revocation or failure to renew a license as provided in this chapter shall have the right of appeal to the review board established in Chapter 92 of the City Code. Such appeal shall be taken by filing with the Clerk, within 14 days after receipt of notice of the action complained of, a written statement setting forth fully the grounds for the appeal. The review board shall set a time and place for a hearing on such appeal within 30 days of the filing of the request for appeal, and notice of such hearing shall be given to the appellant. The decision and order of the review board on such appeal shall be final and conclusive and shall be appealable pursuant to Maryland Law for administrative appeals.
All licenses issued under this chapter shall automatically expire
at the end of the license period and must be surrendered to the City
Clerk upon the expiration thereof prior to issuance of any renewal
license. Licenses shall not be transferable.
All licensees hereunder shall comply with the following regulations
and restrictions:
A.
No licensee shall vend, peddle or deal on a public street, parking
space, alley, sidewalk, parking lot, park or other public place, including
the public square, unless specifically authorized to do so by the
Clerk.
B.
Vendor and transient dealer sales are limited to the specific location
identified on the license.
C.
Peddlers may not sell from the same location in the City for more
than 30 minutes nor more frequently than one time per day. Upon the
expiration of 30 minutes, a peddler must move at least 300 feet to
a new location.
D.
No vendor or transient dealer may vend or deal within 100 feet of a store, restaurant or other business, which offers for sale goods or services which are similar to or compete with those of the licensee, located in permanent structure in the arts and entertainment district, as from time to time designated. In all other locations in the City, no vendor or transient dealer may vend or deal within 300 feet of a store, restaurant or other business located in a permanent structure which offers for sale goods or services which are similar to or compete with those of the licensee. The restrictions contained in this Subsection D may be waived only with the express written consent of the competing business(es).
E.
No licensee may vend, peddle or deal within 300 feet of a City-sponsored
or City-supported special event, unless expressly permitted in the
license.
F.
All licensees must clearly and prominently display the photographic
identification license issued by the Clerk at all times when engaging
in the licensed activity.
G.
Unless expressly provided on the license, no vendor or peddler shall
conduct any licensed activity between dusk and 10:00 a.m.
The provisions of this chapter are severable. If any provision
of this chapter or its application to any person or circumstances
is held to be invalid, such invalidity shall not affect any other
provision or applications of this chapter which can be given effect
without the invalid provision or application.
Any person who violates any of the provisions of this chapter
shall be deemed guilty of a municipal infraction and, upon conviction
thereof, may be punished by a fine not to exceed $500. The aforegoing
notwithstanding, a municipal infraction citation issued for a violation
hereof may be prepaid by the violator in the prepayable amount of
$200 within the time prescribed by law for payment of a municipal
infraction citation. Each day a violation of this chapter exists shall
constitute a separate and distinct violation.
