[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee
of the Township of Cranbury 12-15-1980. Amendments noted where applicable.]
It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in the business of peddler, solicitor or itinerant merchant, as defined in § 113-2 of this chapter, within the Township of Cranbury, without first obtaining a license therefor as provided herein.
As used in this chapter, the following words
shall have the meanings indicated:
Includes all goods, wares, food, fruit, vegetables, farm
products, magazines, periodicals and all kinds of articles of personal
property for domestic use. Orders or contracts for a service home
improvement or alterations shall be considered "merchandise" within
the terms of this chapter.
Any person who goes from place to place by traveling on the
streets and roads or from house to house carrying, conveying or transporting
goods, wares or merchandise for the purpose of selling and delivering
them to customers. The word "peddler" shall include the words "hawker"
and "huckster."
Includes the singular and the plural and shall also mean
and include any person, firm or corporation, association, club, partnership,
society or any other organization.
Any person who goes from place to place by traveling on the
streets or roads or from house to house taking or attempting to take
orders for the sale of goods, wares and merchandise or personal property
of any nature whatsoever for future delivery, or for services to be
furnished or performed in the future, whether or not such person has,
carries or exposes for sale a sample of the object to be sold and
whether or not he is collecting advance payments on such sales. The
word "solicitor" shall include the word "canvasser"; provided, however,
that this definition shall not include wholesalesmen calling on retail
merchants.
The Township of Cranbury.
The requirements of this chapter shall not apply
to the following:
A.
Any organization tax exempt under the regulations
of the Internal Revenue Service.
B.
Any person honorably discharged from the military
services of the United States possessing a peddler's license issued
in conformity with N.J.S.A. 45:24-9.
C.
Any person who is an exempt fireman of a volunteer
fire department, as defined by N.J.S.A. 45:24-9, possessing a license
in conformity with said law.
D.
Any person engaged in the delivery of goods, wares
or merchandise or other articles or things in the regular course of
business to the premises of persons who had previously ordered the
same or were entitled to receive the same by reasons of a prior agreement.
E.
Any school, charitable, political or civic organization,
benevolent society, volunteer first-aid or rescue squad, service club
or organization not for profit which is located in or has a substantial
membership from Cranbury Township, provided that identification assigned
by the organization the canvasser represents is carried.
F.
Any farmers’
market, provided that the farmers’ market is sponsored by a
nonprofit corporation or a school, charitable or civic organization,
and provided further that the farmers’ market is limited to
no more than 10 consecutive weeks. Each vendor at any such farmers’
market shall visibly post his/her identification and address and shall
register with the Police Department.
[Added 6-11-2012 by Ord. No. 05-12-09]
Every applicant for a license under this chapter
shall file with the Chief of Police a sworn written application containing
the following information:
A.
The name and a description of the applicant.
B.
The permanent home address and full local address
of the applicant.
C.
A brief statement of the nature of the business and
a description of the merchandise or service to be sold.
D.
If employed, the name and address of the employer,
together with credentials establishing the exact relationship.
E.
The length of time for which the license is desired.
F.
If a vehicle is to be used, a description of such
vehicle and its license number.
G.
The place where the goods or property to be sold or
offered for sale is manufactured or produced, where such goods or
property is located at the time such application is filed and the
proposed method of delivery.
H.
A photograph of the applicant taken within 60 days
immediately prior to the date of the application, which photograph
shall clearly show the head and shoulders of the applicant and shall
measure two inches by two inches.
I.
Two business references located in the County of Middlesex,
State of New Jersey, or, in lieu thereof, such other available evidence
of the character and business responsibility of the applicant as will
enable an investigator to properly evaluate such character and responsibility.
J.
A statement as to whether the applicant has been convicted
of any crime, misdemeanor or violation of any municipal ordinance,
the nature of the offense and the punishment or penalty assessed therefor.
[Amended 10-28-2013 by Ord. No. 10-13-25; 6-9-2014 by Ord. No. 05-14-06]
A.
Registration fee. At the time the application is filed,
a seventy-five-dollar money order shall be paid to the Township Clerk
to cover the cost of processing the application and investigating
the facts stated therein.
B.
No registration or license fee shall be required from
any charitable or religious organization exempt from the payment of
taxes under the regulations of the Internal Revenue Service.
When the aforesaid application is properly filled
out and signed by the applicant, the original and a duplicate thereof
shall be filed with the Chief of Police who shall make, or cause to
be made, such investigation of the applicant's business responsibility
and moral character as he deems necessary for protection of the public
good. The duplicate shall be kept on file in the Police Department
upon completion of the investigation.
A.
If, as a result of such investigation, the applicant's
character or business responsibility is found to be unsatisfactory,
the Chief of Police shall endorse on such application his disapproval
and his reasons therefor and shall notify the applicant that the application
is disapproved and that no license shall be issued. Any determination
by the Chief of Police that an application is unsatisfactory shall
be based on one or more of the following findings with respect to
the applicant:
B.
In the absence of any such findings, the Chief of
Police shall find the application satisfactory. If, as a result of
investigation, the character and business responsibility of the applicant
are found to be satisfactory, the Chief of Police shall issue the
license to the applicant.
C.
Such license shall contain the signature of the issuing
officer and shall show the name, address and photograph of the licensee,
the class of license issued, the kind of goods or services to be sold
thereunder, the date of issue, the length of time the license shall
be operative and the license number and other identifying description
of any vehicle used in the peddling or soliciting activity licensed.
A.
Every holder of a license issued under the provisions
of this chapter or of a peddler's or solicitor's license issued under
the authority of N.J.S.A. 45:24-9 shall be required to carry such
license with him while engaged in the business or activity licensed
within the corporate limits of the Township of Cranbury. He shall
produce such license at the request of any official of said Township
or of any resident of said Township with whom he wishes to conduct
said business or activity.
B.
Every such licensee shall restrict his selling activity
within Cranbury Township to the hours between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.,
prevailing time, on Mondays through Fridays.
C.
Every such licensee shall notify the police on duty
at least once in every week in which he plans to conduct said activity
and before commencing his selling or soliciting activity. Such notification
shall include a statement of the general area of the Township of Cranbury
in which the licensee intends to conduct said activity and a schedule
of dates and times when said activity shall be conducted. The licensee
shall notify the police officer on duty of any change in area or time
of solicitation, should such changes be made during the week.
No licensee shall allow any other person to
use the license issued hereunder, and the use of such license by any
person other than the licensee shall constitute grounds for revocation
of the license.
It shall be the duty of any police officer of
the Township of Cranbury to enforce the provisions of this chapter
and to require any person seen peddling or soliciting who is not known
by such officer to be duly licensed to produce his peddler's license.
The Chief of Police shall maintain a record
of all licenses issued under the provisions of this chapter and shall
record therein all convictions for violations of this chapter and
other pertinent circumstances and incidents.
A.
Licenses issued under the provisions of this chapter
may be revoked by the Township Committee, after notice and hearing,
for any of the following causes:
(1)
Fraud, misrepresentation or false statement contained
in the application for license.
(2)
Fraud, misrepresentation or false statement by the
licensee in the course of conducting the business licensed.
(3)
Any violation of this chapter.
(4)
Conviction of any crime involving moral turpitude.
(5)
Conducting the business licensed in an unlawful manner
or in such a manner as to constitute a breach of the peace or a menace
to the health, safety or general welfare of the public.
B.
Notice of the hearing for revocation of a license
shall be given in writing. Such notice shall set forth the specific
grounds of complaint and the time and place of hearing and shall be
sent by registered mail to the licensee at his last known address
at least five days prior to the date set for hearing.
C.
In the event that the Chief of Police shall determine that there has been a violation of Subsection A(1) through (5) above, then and in that case, he shall immediately notify the Township Committee of said violation and shall order the licensees to suspend further operation until a hearing in accordance with the provisions of this section is held.
Any person aggrieved by the action of the Chief of Police or of the Township Clerk in the denial of a license, as provided in § 113-6, shall have the right to appeal to the Township Committee. Such appeal shall be taken by filing with the Township Committee, within 14 days after the notice of the action complained of has been mailed to such person's last known address, a written statement setting forth fully the grounds for the appeal. The Township Committee shall set a time and place for a hearing on such appeal, and notice of such hearing shall be given to the applicant in the same manner as provided in § 113-11 for notice of hearing on revocation. The decision of the Township Committee on such appeal shall be final and conclusive.
No license issued under the provisions of this chapter shall extend past December 31 of the calendar year in which it is issued. Any such license may be renewed, without payment of an additional registration fee, upon submission by the licensee of a new application in conformity with the requirements of § 113-4 or, in lieu thereof, a sworn statement, in writing, setting forth all changes in the information contained in the application for the expired licensed which are necessary to bring said application completely up-to-date. Such new application, or statement in lieu thereof, shall be subject to the provisions and standards set forth in § 113-4.
Any person violating any of the provisions of
this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject to a fine
not to exceed $500 or to imprisonment not to exceed 90 days, or both.
