[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Briarcliff Manor 9-24-2019 by L.L. No. 3-2019.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
[1]
Editor's Note: This local law repealed former Ch. 157, Peddling and Soliciting, adopted 1-20-1972 by Ord. No. 185, as amended.
In order to promote the peace, comfort, safety and well-being of the inhabitants of the Village of Briarcliff Manor and to protect these inhabitants from unwanted intrusions upon the privacy of their homes and home lands, the practice of going in and upon private lands and residences in the Village of Briarcliff Manor by solicitors, peddlers, hawkers, itinerant merchants or transient vendors of merchandise or services, who are not otherwise permitted to enter upon private lands and residences by applicable law, not having been requested or invited so to do by the owner or occupants of such private lands or residences, for the purpose of soliciting orders on a commercial basis, for the sale of, or disposing of, goods, wares and merchandise and/or disposing of and/or peddling or hawking the same is declared to be a violation of this chapter. For purposes of this chapter, a canvasser or solicitor shall also be deemed to be one who is not in the business of selling goods but who makes surveys for research purposes, analysis, opinion polls, rating data and any such similar work which of its nature involves a door-to-door or place-to-place activity, and shall include persons going from door to door or place to place for the purpose of contributions or donations for any persons or organization.
No person shall by foot, animal, vehicle or other means go in or upon any private land or residence within the Village of Briarcliff Manor for the purpose of soliciting an invitation or request for any of the purposes set forth in § 157-1 hereof, except for children 16 years of age or younger with or without an accompanying adult, who are: a) offering sales of cookies, cakes, coupons, or other fundraising items as part of an annual fund drive for a local school, team, or recognized civic organization; or b) offering snow shoveling or plowing series shortly after a storm or any other minor chores, including but not limited to car washing or lawn mowing, for which children may be typically compensated from time to time.
No person shall hawk, peddle or vend services, goods, wares or merchandise, nor shall any person canvass or solicit subscriptions or orders for immediate or future delivery of any such goods, wares or merchandise within the Village of Briarcliff Manor, without first having obtained a license therefor upon written application to the Village Clerk. Such application shall be made to the Village Clerk upon a form provided by the Village Clerk setting forth the following information:
A. 
Name, residence address, cell phone number, and email address of the applicant.
B. 
Name and address of applicant's employer or, if self-employed, applicant's business name and address.
C. 
Applicant's place or places of residence for the past five years.
D. 
Applicant's business or businesses for the past five years with address or addresses.
E. 
Applicant's age, height, weight, color of eyes and color of hair.
F. 
Two color photographs, two inches by two inches, of applicant taken not more than 60 days prior to the date of filing of the application, showing the full face and shoulders of the applicant.
G. 
Whether or not the applicant has ever been convicted of a felony, misdemeanor or violation of any municipal ordinance (other than traffic violations), and if so, a statement setting forth in each instance the offenses, in what courts and a description of the sentences imposed.
H. 
Whether any license previously issued to applicant for hawking, peddling or soliciting for orders was ever revoked, and if so, a statement setting forth in each instance the licensing authority, the date of revocation and the reason therefor.
I. 
If applicant is employed by or under contract with another person, firm or corporation, the name and address of such person, together with appropriate evidence of the employment or contract and applicant's relationship and authority to represent the person.
J. 
If applicant proposes to use or operate a vehicle in connection with his proposed activities in the Village, a description of the vehicle, together with registration data thereof, and the operator's license number of the person operating the vehicle.
K. 
If applicant proposes to distribute any literature or materials, a copy of same shall be provided with the application.
L. 
A brief description of the services, goods, wares and merchandise proposed to be sold, offered for sale or disposed of, the place of production, manufacture, publication or printing thereof, as the case may be, and the place from which any such goods, wares and merchandise are proposed to be forwarded to a prospective vendee within the Village.
M. 
The applicant's fingerprints, on condition that the same be taken by the Briarcliff Manor Police Department at the time the application is submitted, shall be submitted with the application.
Each applicant shall pay a permit fee to the Village for a license for peddling and soliciting as set forth in the Master Fee Schedule adopted by the Village Board as same may be amended from time to time.
Upon compliance by the applicant with the provisions of § 157-3 hereof, the Village Clerk shall, within a period of 10 days and subject to the provisions of § 157-7 hereof, approve or deny said application.
A license shall be issued only to and in the name of a natural person. Every such license shall be personal to the licensee and shall not be transferable.
The Village Clerk may deny the application of any person only on one or more of the following grounds:
A. 
The applicant is not a natural person;
B. 
The applicant has failed to furnish all of the information required by § 157-3 hereof;
C. 
The applicant has made a material misstatement of fact in his application;
D. 
The applicant has been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor;
E. 
The applicant has been found to be in violation of any part of this chapter within the previous 24 months;
F. 
The applicant wishes to disseminate material that a reasonable person would likely: i) consider obscene, defamatory, fraudulent, threatening; or ii) which may incite, encourage, or continue criminal activity; or
G. 
The granting of a license would interfere with the peace, comfort, safety and well-being of the inhabitants of the Village of Briarcliff Manor.
A license shall be valid to and including the 31st day of December in the same calendar year as the date of the license, unless previously suspended or revoked as provided by law.
No licensee shall use duress or abusive language, nor in any manner harass or intimidate any occupant or owner of a residence during the course of any solicitation. Each licensee shall, regardless of whether he shall have a prior express invitation or not, exhibit his license to the owner or occupant prior to entry in or upon a residence, whether or not required to do so by such owner or occupant. In addition, every licensee shall wear, fully visible, on his outside clothing an identification badge to be issued by the Village Clerk.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter to the contrary, no person shall hawk, peddle or vend or solicit orders for any services, goods, wares or merchandise within the Village before the hour of 9:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m., or at any time on Sunday and federal holidays.
A. 
The Village Clerk shall maintain a "do not solicit" list of residents who do not wish to allow registrants under this chapter upon their property. The "do not solicit" list shall contain only the street address of the property and no personal ownership information.
B. 
All residents shall be permitted to have their property listed on the "do not solicit" list by submitting a written or electronic request to the office of the Village Clerk.
C. 
On an annual basis, the Village Clerk shall remove from the "do not solicit" list any property for which ownership shall have changed subsequent to the time of listing.
D. 
Every licensee under this chapter shall be provided a copy of the then-current "do not solicit" list. Where more than one individual will be engaged in canvassing or soliciting activities on behalf of an organization, group, company or other entity, it shall be the obligation of that entity to provide true copies of the "do not solicit" list to each such individual. No canvasser or solicitor shall enter onto or into any property that is listed on the "do not solicit" list.
E. 
No canvasser or solicitor shall enter onto or into any property on which there is a sign or signs posted stating "no solicitors" or conveying a similar message forbidding the entry of any person onto the property. It shall be the responsibility of registered canvassers and solicitors to check each residence for the presence of any such notice.
F. 
Being listed on the "do not solicit" list or the presence of such a sign shall constitute sufficient notice to any registered canvasser or solicitor of the intent of the occupant of the residence to be free from such solicitation or canvassing.
G. 
It shall constitute a violation of this chapter for any canvasser or solicitor to go upon any premises and ring a doorbell, knock, or make or create any sound designed to attract the attention of the occupant with the purpose of gaining access to the occupant or entering onto or into the premises for the purpose of engaging in soliciting or canvassing where the premises is included on the "do not solicit" list or has posted notice in the manner described in Subsection E of this section.
H. 
The fact that an owner or occupant has failed to register a property on the "do not solicit" list or post any sign or notice prohibiting solicitors or others from entry on his premises may be construed as an invitation under § 157-1 hereof.
Any police officer of the Village of Briarcliff Manor may require any person peddling, hawking, vending or soliciting, and who is not known by such officer to be duly licensed, to produce his license, and any police officer shall enforce the provisions of this chapter against any person found to be violating the same.
The Chief of Police shall report to the Village Clerk all convictions for violation of this chapter. The Village Clerk shall maintain a record for each license issued and record the reports of violations therein. No person shall be entitled to apply for a license under this chapter who shall have been previously convicted of a violation of this chapter.
The license of any licensee under the terms of this chapter may be suspended by the Village Clerk upon verified complaint pending a hearing by the court before which such person shall be tried for any violation of this chapter. Upon such suspension, the licensee shall surrender his license to the Village Clerk immediately and the Village Clerk shall retain same pending such hearing and determination. The Village Clerk shall give notice of such suspension in writing setting forth the grounds of such suspension and the date of a prompt hearing thereon; such notice to be mailed to the address of the licensee at the address shown on the license or by delivering same to such licensee personally.
After a prompt public hearing thereon, at which the licensee shall have an opportunity to be heard, the Board of Trustees may revoke any license issued under the authority of this chapter for any reason for which an application could be denied or for violation of any provision of this chapter or upon the proven complaint of any person of any unlawful conduct by the licensee.
Any person aggrieved by denial of a license under the terms of this chapter shall have the right of appeal to the Board of Trustees. Such appeal shall be taken by filing with the Board of Trustees, within 14 days after the denial of the license, a written statement setting forth fully the grounds for the appeal. The Board of Trustees shall then hold a public hearing on such appeal.
Any person violating any provision of this chapter shall upon conviction be punished in the discretion of the court by a fine of not more than $500 and/or revocation of any license granted hereunder.